Harris Dickinson’s “Urchin” is a promising debut defined by empathy

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By Claire Wu                             (February 7, 2026)

Previously known for his roles in popular films like “Babygirl,” “Triangle of Sadness” and “The Iron Claw,” BAFTA-nominated Brit heartthrob Harris Dickinson made his directorial debut with the psychological drama “Urchin.” With “Urchin,” Dickinson demonstrates his artistic prowess beyond his acting versatility, pulling from his own lived experiences while volunteering at numerous homeless charities. Through his lens of empathy, he crafts a compelling narrative following Mike, a homeless youth struggling with the cyclical nature of addiction and incarceration as he traverses the East London streets in search of purpose and connection. Continue reading →

Try This Ida Lupino Noir Bar Cocktail

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“Noir City-Face the Music” is in full swing at the Grand Lake Theatre in Oakland as the launch of its eight city tour.

Eddie Muller—host of TCM’s Noir Alley, one of the world’s leading authorities on film noir, and cocktail connoisseur—takes film buffs and drinks enthusiasts alike on a spirited tour through the “dark city” of film noir in this stylish book packed with equal parts great cocktail recipes and noir lore. Continue reading →

Noir City 23 to The Rescue!

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Anticipating This Year’s Music-Themed Fest With Delight

by Meredith Brody.  (January 13,2026)

I love Eddie Muller’s Noir City film festivals; I don’t think I’ve missed a one since his first edition in Los Angeles at the American Cinematheque in 1999, four years before SF’s first Noir City.

I start out perusing the list of 24 films (paired in a dozen double bills) in my usual somewhat-blinkered and mildly narcissistic fashion: which ones are new to me? Since I’ve been seeking out film noir since before I went to college, and my first post-college publication in book form was in Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward’s first “Encyclopedia of Film Noir” back in 1979, it’s not totally a surprise that there are only two that qualify: the British Face the Music aka The Deadly Glove (1954), and The Crimson Canary (1945), neither of which I’ve even heard of.

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The Art of Fingernails with Kristen Valdez-Doherty

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By Noma Faingold.  (December 24, 2025)

Nail artist Kristen Valdez-Doherty is a maximalist in terms of nail design, which is reflected in the kitschy, crowded décor of her Nails of Modern Art Clement Street studio. She’s surrounded by abstract splashes of bright turquoise, chartreuse, hot pink, shades of purple, along with gold and silver metallic accents. Labubu dolls share shelf space with other whimsical pop culture figurines – from Wednesday Addams to Japanese anime characters. Continue reading →

The Librarians: On the Front Line for Freedom

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By C.J. Hirschfield

I know that I live in a bubble—my liberal community’s libraries don’t ban books, and even offer drag queen story time. But outside of this bubble exists a very real and growing threat to the flow of ideas that none of us can afford to ignore.

Be very afraid when a compelling new documentary often quotes from the dystopian novel Farenheit 451, and shows Nazis burning books as often as it does in an attempt to reflect current events. The parallels are both appropriate and chilling. Continue reading →

The Tale of Silyan

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By C.J. Hirschfield

As the former CEO of Children’s Fairyland in Oakland, I appreciate a good folktale. As an aspiring  birder, I am fascinated by their remarkable species. And as someone who follows politics, I value learning about how governmental actions can have profound effects on the lives of working people.

National Geographic Film’s new documentary The Tale of Silyan checks all of these boxes for me—and is stunningly beautiful as well. Director/producer Tamara Kotevska, who also directed the 2019 Oscar-nominated Honeyland, weaves a tale about a down-on-his luck Macedonian farmer who creates a special bond with a wounded white stork—a story that very much parallels a beloved regional folk tale, in which a boy named Silyan is transformed into this regal bird. Continue reading →