The Bay Area is the third largest economy for film and entertainment in the U.S. after New York and Los Angeles, and is home to more documentary filmmakers per capita than any other region.

With film festivals canceled or postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, independent filmmakers are being forced to rethink how to launch and promote their work. The festival circuit is where they try to make crucial connections with distributors who can help them get wider theatrical release and strike deals with broadcasters and digital platforms.

Filmmakers Marc Smolowitz, Rodrigo Reyes, Anne Flatte and Leo Herrera joined us on “Civic” to discuss their current projects and how they’ve been affected by the public health crisis. Marc also wrote about his perspective in an opinion piece for the Public Press.

Links to the filmmakers’ current projects:

“I think in three months when there’s like no new movies, people are going to be freaking out. Because, you know, there’s no filming happening. How do you finish a movie? We’re not essential, officially. But we’re so essential to culture and to everyday life. Like, film is like the most important art form in our country, in our world.” — Rodrigo Reyes

Lila LaHood is Executive Director of the San Francisco Public Press. She is a member of San Francisco’s Sunshine Ordinance Task Force and a member of the board of directors of the Northern California chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. She has worked as a nonprofit consultant and freelance editor. She was previously a business writer at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where she covered retail and real estate. Lila has an M.S. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and a B.A. in international relations from Stanford University.