San Francisco Film Preserve Launches 1st Ever Re:Vision Festival of Restoration and Rediscovery

San Francisco Film Preserve (SFFP) is launching Re:Vision: Festival of Restoration and Rediscovery, a new film festival focused on rare, restored, overlooked, and archival works of cinema.

The inaugural festival will take place September 24 through 27, 2026, at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco, with films representing 18 countries, 11 decades, and a range of genres and filmmaking styles.

Re:Vision will feature 14 screenings across four days, with each program centered on a feature film accompanied by at least one short.

The festival opens with Angie Chen’s My Name Ain’t Suzie [Fa gai si doi] (Hong Kong, 1985), starring Patricia Ha and featuring Anthony Wong in his first on-screen performance. The festival will close Sunday, September 27, with Bodil lpsen’s 1944 noir Mordets Melodi [Melody of Murder].

The festival will explore themes including queer identity, gender, and perspectives that have often been overlooked in cinema. Among the selections is Mohamed Camera’s Dakan [Destiny] (Guinea, 1997), considered the first West African film to explore homosexuality. It will be preceded by Nancy, Henri and Elizabeth (1973), a recently preserved film exploring trans identity. Other selections include The Outcasts (Ireland, 1982), Los leprosos y el sexo [Lepers and Sex aka Santo vs. The Riders of Terror] (Mexico, 1970), The Waiting Room (United States, 1973), and Araya (Venezuela, 1959).

Several films restored or preserved by San Francisco Film Preserve will also be included. The Bay Area premiere of SFFP’s restoration of The Garden of Eden (United States, 1928) will be accompanied by a live performance from the Club Foot Orchestra. The program will also screen Weak But Willing (United States, 1929), an early sound short featuring an uncredited 19-year-old Jean Harlow. Works by animator Len Lye will also screen as part of SFFP’s partnership with Scan2Screen.

The program also includes films directed by Margot Benacerraf, Sharon Couzin, May Fung, Sumitra Peries, Jocelyne Saab, and Karen Sperling.

Re:Vision will take place September 24 through 27, 2026, at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. Passes and individual tickets are available through the San Francisco Film Preserve. View the Re:Vision festival information and schedule.