Opening Night at MVFF: Tom Hooper (Video)
Stark Insider is on location north of San Francisco for the 38th annual Mill Valley Film Festival. “This script made me cry.” Director Tom Hooper…
Culture
Explore San Francisco and Bay Area culture through theater reviews, film, contemporary art, and creative events. Featuring original artwork by Loni Stark, film reviews by Jeanne Powell, and insights by ATCA member Clinton Stark.
5 Things I learned from a top Hollywood cinematographer
“Take a deep breath.” Who knew?! Breathing is critical to proper camera operation — at least for the Hollywood pros. Amazing what you can learn…
Welcome to Ilana & expanding coverage on Stark Insider
Welcome Ilana Walder-Biesanz! You may have noticed a new voice on Stark Insider. Ilana spent the last year on a Fullbright Scholarship in Germany watching…
Dear Armen, a show in progress
Armen Ohanian was clearly a fascinating person whose story deserves to be told. A genderqueer Armenian over a century ago, she began life as an…
There Will Be ‘Sacred Blood’
You don’t see horror films too often at mainstream film festivals. And you also don’t see new Coppola films all that often either. Sacred Blood,…
At The Stage: ‘RFK’ reminds us of a different kind of politics
Arrow’s got RFK’s pointed elbow jabs, along with hair that falls like Kennedy hair when pushed aside, and a Boston accent that takes me back…
Stark Insider Uncut: Sophie Nélisse (Video)
Film festivals are a creative wonderland. You have the films themselves, thoughtful, and interesting indies, many from far away places, that shed new perspectives, and expanded cultural…
No suppressing creative spirit in ‘Taxi’
A preview of some of this year’s gems at the Mill Valley Film Festival begins with ‘Taxi’ (‘Taxi Tehran’), a banned film shot on the…
Must See: ‘Monstress’ show about Filipino-American life in San Francisco (Review)
Are you married to a Squid Mother? Then, what are you waiting for, you could have a star in the making! All it takes is…
This is (Still) Stark Insider
Team Stark rolls on. We’re coming up on this web site’s 10th anniversary. It was in late 2005 that I published the first post here on Stark…