San Francisco Film Society presents: Sugar October 4, 2012

The San Francisco Film Society has announced that American independent filmmaker Anna Boden will be in San Francisco for the Film Society’s fourth Artist in Residence program, September 25–October 9, including a screening of her feature film Sugar October 4th at New People Cinema (1746 Post Street). Boden’s residency is funded by the Kenneth Rainin Foundation.

Sugar (USA 2008), Boden’s heartfelt examination of a Dominican baseball player’s journey to the big leagues, will be screened Thursday, October 4 at 6:30 pm at New People Cinema (1746 Post Street). The screening will be followed by a discussion with the director and a special guest moderator.

Director Anna Boden in person.

Miguel Santos, a.k.a. Sugar, is a Dominican baseball player from San Pedro De Macorís struggling to make it to the major leagues and pull himself and his family out of poverty. He gets his big break at age 19 when he advances to the United States’ minor league system and travels to a small town in Iowa to train and hopefully move up the ranks as a pitcher. Sugar’s talent on the mound is apparent, but when his performance begins to falter, he is forced to re-examine the world around him and his place within it. What starts out as a classic rags-to-riches sports story turns into a candid and complex examination of what it means for young athletes to chase their dreams. From the Dominican Republic to rural Iowa to New York City, Sugar’s bumpy journey offers a much different take on America's pastime than the average baseball movie.

Written by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Photographed by Andrij Parekh. With Algenis Perez Soto, Rayniel Rufino, Andre Holland. (114 min. In English and Spanish with subtitles, Sony Pictures Classics)

Tickets $11 for SFFS members, $13 general, $12 senior/student/disabled.

Official Website: http://www.sffs.org/Exhibition/Special-Presentations/sugar.aspx