Special advanced screenings for VIP members[1] and educational programs[2] for San Diego area high schools are held year round in addition to an annual formal "Oscar watch party" in the winter.[3]
History
The San Diego International Film Festival (originally just "The San Diego Film Festival") and its non-profit foundation were founded in 2001 by event planner Robin Laatz and her filmmaker husband Karl Kozak.[4]
Opening night films have screened at the historic Balboa Theatre.
The festival has been designated "Best Party Fest" and "Best Beach Fest" by the "Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide".[5] It has also been criticized along the same lines for being "more intent on throwing parties than putting quality films on the screen."[6]
New Leadership/Native Direction
In 2012, leadership passed to husband and wife producers Dale Strack and Tonya Mantooth.[7] According to Strack, they were modeling it after Napa Valley Film Festival, with a "longer term goal" of rivaling Sundance or TriBeCa.[6]
The festival expanded to a second location in La Jolla the same year.
In 2013, New York area film critic Jeffrey Lyons was added as festival host and made honorary jury chairman. He acted as host or as co-host along with his with son Ben Lyons or with Access Hollywood film critic Scott Mantz, up until 2018, when Mantz hosted solo.
The festival added "International" to its name in 2016, having previously been known only as the San Diego Film Festival.[10]
In 2016, the festival established a Film Insider Series for VIP members to watch featured official selections and festival winners, premieres and special advanced screenings throughout the year.[11]
In September 2019, the festival began hosting free screenings of popular movies on Mission Beach.[12]
In 2019, the festival expanded to six days and hosted a second opening night film (The Irishman) at the La Jolla Village.[13][14]
In 2022, after organizers at the Women's Museum of California's had ended their Women's Film Festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they joined forces with the San Diego Festival to present a women's series of films.[20]
In 2023, the film festival's opening night is being held at Westfield UTC AMC on October 8. Where, for the festival's 22nd year, they will have a showing of the Oscar winning film, The Holdovers.[21] The Festival will be occurring October 18–22 at Balboa Park's Museum of Photographic Arts, during those 5 days there will be showing 91 films of the 3,200 films that were submitted. The theme of this years Festival is "Celebrating the power of film", meaning films will be outlining the importance of film and its impact on our society and community.[22][23]
The Chris Brinker Award was created by the family of Chris Brinker, a San Diego area producer best known for The Boondock Saints movies, who died of a brain aneurysm at the age of 42.[31] The award is given every year to the best first time director in competition at the festival.
Golden Eagle
Since 2014, honored celebrities and winning filmmakers have been presented with a "Golden Eagle" themed statuette, sculpted by Apache artist Ruben Chato.[32]
Kumeyaay Eagle Award
An annual award presented to the best film competing in the American Indian track.[33]
^Kühne, Olaf; Schönwald, Antje (2014-10-16), "Die mediale Erzeugung gesellschaftlicher Landschaft: San Diego im Film und in Internetvideos", San Diego, Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden, pp. 175–201, doi:10.1007/978-3-658-01720-0_5, ISBN9783658017194
