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Robert Townsends Artist-in-Residence Series Opens at San Franciscos Balboa and 4-Star Theaters, Alongside New Documentaries and Classic Film Screenings
Robert Townsend – the comedian‑actor‑director best known for launching "The Parent ’Hood" – has been named the inaugural artist‑in‑residence for CinemaSFBay’s Balboa and 4‑Star theaters. The program, running Wednesday through Sunday, will see Townsend screen nine films—four in which he directed or acted and five that inspired his work—followed by discussion panels.
The first night, August 5, opens with Townsend’s 1987 satire "Hollywood Shuffle" at 7 p.m. in the Balboa. Thursday’s lineup includes two classic dramas: "In the Heat of the Night" (1967) at 4:30 p.m. and "The Great White Hope" (1970) at 7:30 p.m. Friday’s 4‑Star screenings feature "A Face in the Crowd" (1957) at 4:30 p.m. and Sidney Lumet’s "Network" (1976) at 8 p.m. Saturday’s program showcases "Claudine" (1974) at 4:30 p.m. and Townsend’s 1991 film "The Five Heartbeats" at 7:30 p.m. Sunday concludes the series with "BAP*S" (1997) at 4 p.m. and "The Meteor Man" (1993) at 7 p.m.
CinemaSFBay, a nonprofit that runs the Balboa, Vogue and 4‑Star venues, announced the residency to honor Townsend’s contributions to independent and Black cinema. Tickets and additional details are available on the organization’s website.
In other Bay Area releases, documentary filmmaker Alysa Nahmias’s "Cookie Queens" opens Friday in local theaters. The nonfiction drama follows four Girl Scout girls competing to sell the most cookies during the six‑week season that saw over 200 million boxes sold nationwide. The film profiles 12‑year‑old Olive from Charlotte, North Carolina, who broke a state record with more than 12,000 boxes; 9‑year‑old Nikki from Chino, California, who leverages her sisters’ popularity; 8‑year‑old Shannon Elizabeth from El Paso, Texas, who aims to fund summer camp; and 5‑year‑old Ara from San Diego, who has type 1 diabetes and can only consume a small amount of the cookies she sells.
Penny Lane’s latest documentary, "Wild Inside," debuted on International Owl Awareness Day. It chronicles the journey of Flaco, a Eurasian eagle‑owl that escaped from a vandalized enclosure at New York City’s Central Park Zoo in 2023. Using archival footage, interviews and crowd‑sourced videos, Lane documents Flaco’s year‑long survival on his own, his eventual return to the park, and the debate over whether he should be recaptured or allowed to remain free.
The Roxie Theater opened a 4K restoration of Luchino Visconti’s 1957 adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novella "White Nights" on Friday. The film stars Marcello Mastroianni and Maria Schell as strangers who meet on a canal bridge and develop a tentative romance.
The Goethe‑Institut San Francisco marked the 50th anniversary of German director Fritz Lang’s death with a free screening of "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse," Lang’s 1933 mystery thriller, at 6 p.m. Thursday on Howard Street. Admission is free, but registration is required.
CatVideoFest 2026, a 70‑minute global festival of feline videos, began Thursday at the Roxie and the Smith Rafael Film Center. The festival’s proceeds partially benefit cat‑related charities.
These events illustrate the diversity of programming available in the Bay Area, from classic cinema and contemporary documentaries to niche festivals. The region’s independent theaters continue to provide a platform for both established filmmakers and emerging voices.
The current lineup will run through Sunday, after which the residency will conclude. The next season of CinemaSFBay’s artist‑in‑residence program has not yet been announced.
The first night, August 5, opens with Townsend’s 1987 satire "Hollywood Shuffle" at 7 p.m. in the Balboa. Thursday’s lineup includes two classic dramas: "In the Heat of the Night" (1967) at 4:30 p.m. and "The Great White Hope" (1970) at 7:30 p.m. Friday’s 4‑Star screenings feature "A Face in the Crowd" (1957) at 4:30 p.m. and Sidney Lumet’s "Network" (1976) at 8 p.m. Saturday’s program showcases "Claudine" (1974) at 4:30 p.m. and Townsend’s 1991 film "The Five Heartbeats" at 7:30 p.m. Sunday concludes the series with "BAP*S" (1997) at 4 p.m. and "The Meteor Man" (1993) at 7 p.m.
CinemaSFBay, a nonprofit that runs the Balboa, Vogue and 4‑Star venues, announced the residency to honor Townsend’s contributions to independent and Black cinema. Tickets and additional details are available on the organization’s website.
In other Bay Area releases, documentary filmmaker Alysa Nahmias’s "Cookie Queens" opens Friday in local theaters. The nonfiction drama follows four Girl Scout girls competing to sell the most cookies during the six‑week season that saw over 200 million boxes sold nationwide. The film profiles 12‑year‑old Olive from Charlotte, North Carolina, who broke a state record with more than 12,000 boxes; 9‑year‑old Nikki from Chino, California, who leverages her sisters’ popularity; 8‑year‑old Shannon Elizabeth from El Paso, Texas, who aims to fund summer camp; and 5‑year‑old Ara from San Diego, who has type 1 diabetes and can only consume a small amount of the cookies she sells.
Penny Lane’s latest documentary, "Wild Inside," debuted on International Owl Awareness Day. It chronicles the journey of Flaco, a Eurasian eagle‑owl that escaped from a vandalized enclosure at New York City’s Central Park Zoo in 2023. Using archival footage, interviews and crowd‑sourced videos, Lane documents Flaco’s year‑long survival on his own, his eventual return to the park, and the debate over whether he should be recaptured or allowed to remain free.
The Roxie Theater opened a 4K restoration of Luchino Visconti’s 1957 adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novella "White Nights" on Friday. The film stars Marcello Mastroianni and Maria Schell as strangers who meet on a canal bridge and develop a tentative romance.
The Goethe‑Institut San Francisco marked the 50th anniversary of German director Fritz Lang’s death with a free screening of "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse," Lang’s 1933 mystery thriller, at 6 p.m. Thursday on Howard Street. Admission is free, but registration is required.
CatVideoFest 2026, a 70‑minute global festival of feline videos, began Thursday at the Roxie and the Smith Rafael Film Center. The festival’s proceeds partially benefit cat‑related charities.
These events illustrate the diversity of programming available in the Bay Area, from classic cinema and contemporary documentaries to niche festivals. The region’s independent theaters continue to provide a platform for both established filmmakers and emerging voices.
The current lineup will run through Sunday, after which the residency will conclude. The next season of CinemaSFBay’s artist‑in‑residence program has not yet been announced.
