A Double Life

Felon(en)

A family man convicted of killing an intruder must cope with life afterward in the violent penal system.

San Quentin(en)

An ex-con sets up a program to straighten out hard-core prisoners. Things don't go as planned.

Paperback Dreams(en)

In a time of increasing competition from mega-chains and online retailers, many local businesses are fighting for survival. Through the tumultuous story of two beloved Bay Area booksellers, Cody's and Kepler's, PAPERBACK DREAMS captures the David and Goliath struggle faced by countless independents around the country.

The Zodiac Killer(en)

The San Francisco area is beset by a series of seemingly random murders without motive or pattern. The police are taunted by phone calls and letters. Could the maniac be the violent truck driver, or the seemingly mild-mannered mailman, or even a cop?

Johnny Cash at San Quentin(en)

On February 24th, 1969, two days before he turned 37, Johnny Cash led his traveling troupe behind the foreboding walls of the California State Penitentiary at San Quentin, long known as one of America's toughest prisons.

Free Chol Soo Lee(en)

On June 3, 1973, a man was murdered in a busy intersection of San Francisco’s Chinatown as part of an ongoing gang war. Chol Soo Lee, a 20-year-old Korean immigrant who had previous run-ins with the law, was arrested and convicted based on flimsy evidence and the eyewitness accounts of white tourists who couldn’t distinguish between Asian features. Sentenced to life in prison, Chol Soo Lee would spend years fighting to survive behind bars before journalist K.W. Lee took an interest in his case. The intrepid reporter’s investigation would galvanize a first-of-its-kind pan-Asian American grassroots movement to fight for Chol Soo Lee’s freedom, ultimately inspiring a new generation of social justice activists.

Fish, Prawn, Crab(en)

A gritty crime drama set in Oakland about a Vietnamese brother trying to throw a Tết (Lunar New Year) celebration for his little sister. But when life gets in the way, he turns a traditional dice game, Bầu Cua, into a street hustle and builds an underground gambling empire.

Mudflat(en)

Years ago, artists would walk around the muck at the edge of the San Francisco Bay in Emeryville, and build loads of sculptures out there on the flats, created from driftwood and found objects that drivers would enjoy as they motored south on the old Highway 17 (known in numerous radio ads as 'Highway 17, The Nimitz'). Grabbing material off someone else’s work was considered fair game and part of the fun, and contributed a kinetic dynamic to the ongoing display. Now the place is a park, and the sculptures are gone, but you can see what it used to be like in this neat and funny documentary by Ric Reynolds, augmented by Erich Seibert’s wonderful musique-concrète/time-lapse sequences. The flashback circus sequence includes Scott Beach and Bill Irwin. Sculptors interviewed include Walt Zucker, Tony Puccio, Robert Sommer, Ron & Mary Bradden, and Bob Kaminsky.

Druid Heights(en)

Druid Heights is a short documentary film by Marcy Mendelson about a wild & wooly place. California’s hidden bohemia. Where sex, drugs and philosophy thrived among the eucalyptus just a few miles north of the Golden Gate.

Men of San Quentin(en)

A corrupt official at San Quentin tries to frame an innocent guard for several murders within the prison.

The Saga of Macrame Park(en)

Alexandra Jackonetti recounts the building of a children's playground of macrame in Bolinas, Calif., including her conception of the project and the process of obtaining community financial support, knotting of macrame, and erection of the structure.

To See One's Self(en)

Born in Ozan, Arkansas in 1933, White traveled the world observing and documenting the Black experience from Nigeria to France to Chicago. He arrived in the Bay Area in 1958, and opened the first Black owned art gallery in San Francisco.

Remembering Port Chicago(en)

In California's Bay Area, a painful memory lingers of the Port Chicago disaster of WWII, when hundreds of the Navy's first Black Sailors perished, and the White officers in charge were protected by the chain of command.

We Were Hyphy(en)

A love song to the artists, dance, music, slang, clothes and, most importantly of all, the people who came of age during the Hyphy Movement. We were there, we were hyphy.

Voyage dans les abysses(fr)

Leo Patrick McArdle: Veterans Helping Veterans(en)

A veteran creates support systems that help other veterans and their families.

Aoki(en)

A film documenting the life of Richard Aoki, a Japanese-American activist and founding member of the Black Panther Party.

It Came From Aquarius Records(en)

IT CAME FROM AQUARIUS RECORDS tells the story about the San Francisco based independent record store, Aquarius Records. Having closed in 2016 after 47 years, this small apartment-sized store championed local, underground, independent, and challenging music to the masses - most memorably with their infamous bi-weekly, college essay-length, new-release lists. Six years in the making, interviewing collectors, musicians, and store owners, the film has a very personal angle, with lots of behind-the-scenes footage (and drama) that shows both the joy and excruciating stress that comes with running — and closing — a store like this, helped in no part by the changing city around them.

Thizz Nation Presents - The Block Report(en)

Thizz Nation takes you on a journey with some of Thizz & the San Francisco Bay Area's hottest rap stars. Take a visit to the real streets of The Crest, Fillmore, Pittsburg, East Palo Alto, Lakeview, North Richmond, Mission District, Sacramento, Thizz South, Millersville and Hunter's Point. Featuring PSD, Mac Mall, Rydah J. Klyde, San Quin, Cellski, Bavgate, J. Diggs, Little Bruce, Mistah F.A.B., Goldtoes and many more.

Duffy of San Quentin(en)

San Quentin's new warden crusades for reform and for a framed inmate who loves a nurse.