The Bay Area’s Official Oscar® Experience Party to Benefit California Film Institute Education and its Outreach Programs
415.526.5845 | kheverin@cafilm.org
California Film Institute Education and its Outreach Programs
Michael Krasny, host of the award winning KQED FORUM,
to emcee exclusive event and party
SAN RAFAEL, CA. (January 11, 2013) - The Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center, owned and operated by the non-profit California Film Institute, hosts on its large screens a high-definition telecast of the thrills and surprises of the 85th Academy Awards® on Sunday, February 24, 2013, the only San Francisco Bay AreaOscar® Experience (OE) party officially sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Benefiting California Film Institute Education (CFI Education) and it’s outreach programs, the San Francisco Bay Area official Oscar Night celebration will be held at the Smith Rafael Film Center, 1118 Fourth Street, San Rafael, with Michael Krasny, host of KQED’s award-winning Forum, a news and public affairs program, as the master of ceremonies for the Smith Rafael festivities beginning at 3:30 pm. Event tickets are $60 (CFI members $50) and include the preshow reception, unique and sensational auction packages, glasses of Diamond Collection and Director’s Family wines from exclusive wine sponsor Francis Ford Coppola Winery, along with appetizers, a gourmet boxed dinner, coffee and desserts. Purchase tickets online at: http://oscarexperience.eventbrite.com
The California Film Institute’s Oscar Experience® is one of 47 parties across the nation, officially sanctioned by the Academy, and the only one in Northern California. This is the 20th year that the Academy and ABC Television Network have cooperated with local charities to support official Oscar® Experience viewing parties throughout the country. This year marks the 19th year that the California Film Institute’s party has been sanctioned by the Academy.
“Oscar Sunday is an event to be shared with others. This network of fundraising parties across the nation is just that: a shared experience. These gatherings also represent the year-round philanthropic work the Academy does,” said Academy CEO Dawn Hudson. “This February we are thrilled to be able to celebrate the movies with fans nationwide while supporting charities around the country. All OE events feature the live broadcast of the Awards presentation on the ABC Television Network. Last year more than $3.1 million was raised through the participating parties, all of it remaining in local communities.
For 24 years, the CFI Education program has designed year-round programs for young people from pre-school to college, including the upcoming “5th Annual Environmental Youth Forum,” (February 11-12, 2013) a two-day event for students grades 1-12, incorporating film screenings, and Q&A’s with filmmakers and representatives from leading local and national environmental organizations; “The Young Critics Jury,” where high school students curate a selection of youth-produced films from all over the world to be screened during the Mill Valley Film Festival; and “My Place,” an intensive five day workshop taught during school vacations which targets at-risk youth recruited by local social service agencies. Each participant learns basic filmmaking and writing skills in order to produce their own individual 3-5 minute film, reinforcing the power of film and giving a voice to those who may not.
Additional funds will be raised to support CFI Education and its outreach programs during the Oscar Night® America party at the Smith Rafael Film Center from unique and sensational auction packages including, a screening of any INDY FILM OF THE HIGHEST BIDDER’S CHOICE (courtesy of Lucasfilm) at the Smith Rafael Film Center, a signed and framed movie poster of 2013 Best Picture nominated Argo by the film’s director and stars, Ben Affleck, John Goodman and Bryan Cranston, and an “Instant Wine Cellar”- a wine refrigerator stocked with a collection of 36 bottles of wine (from Francis Ford Coppola Winery), among other items.
“For the past 19 years, the California Film Institute’s presentation of Oscar® Experience has traditionally benefited CFI Education,” said Mark Fishkin, Executive Director of the California Film Institute, “and this year we’re especially proud to welcome as our emcee Michael Krasny, one of the most highly-regarded radio interviewers in the country as host of KQED’s FORUM program, who’s proven fascinating and highly-entertaining in his many interviews of the best contemporary filmmakers, actors and celebrities in the movie industry.”
About Michael Krasny, Ph.D.Oscar® Experience at the Smith Rafael Film Center host Michael Krasny is host of KQED’s award-winning Forum, a news and public affairs program that concentrates on the arts, culture, health, business, and technology. FORUM is one of KQED’s most popular shows and the nation’s most listened-to locally produced public radio talk show. Krasny has interviewed many of the leading newsmakers and cultural icons of our time. His unique abilities and reputation as one of the world’s best interviewers are enhanced by his creative work as author and educator. He is a professor of English at San Francisco State University and has taught at Stanford University and University of California San Francisco. He is the author of Spiritual Envy: An Agnostic’s Quest, and Off Mike: A Memoir of Talk Radio and Literary Life. He is a widely published scholar and literary critic, a fiction writer, and a guest and frequent interviewer on the City Arts & Lectures stage. He is the recipient of many awards and honors, including The S.Y. Agnon Gold Medal for Intellectual Distinction, The Eugene Block Award for Human Rights Journalism, The Inclusiveness in Media Award from The National Conference for Community and Justice, and a Koret Foundation Fellowship. He has also been named best talk show host by Focus magazine and SF Weekly.
California Film InstituteThe non-profit California Film Institute celebrates and promotes film as art and education through the presentation of the Mill Valley Film Festival and year-round exhibitions at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center, and by building the next generation of filmmakers and audiences through CFI Education. For more information visit cafilm.org or call 415.383.5256.
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For Calendar Editors:OSCAR® EXPERIENCEThe only Official SF Bay Area Oscar® Night event sanctioned by the Academy!
Sunday, February 24, 2013, Doors Open 3:30
Tickets $60 (CFI members $50) available online at:Smith Rafael Film Center, 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael, CA 94901
www.cafilm.org; 415.454.1222
