Castro Theatre attendees were in for a treat on Monday night, with appearances by Academy Award-winning director Martin Scorsese and lead actors Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver at a screening of Scorsese's new film Silence.
Set for a limited release on December 23rd (it will expand into other markets over the course of January), Silence, based on Shūsaku Endō’s 1966 novel of the same name, has been a passion project for Scorsese for more than two decades.
The film follows two 17th-century priests, Sebastião Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Francisco Garrpe (Adam Driver), who face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan in search of their mentor, Father Cristóvão Ferreira (Liam Neeson), who committed apostasy after being tortured.
The San Francisco Film Society (SFFS) had previously announced that Scorsese would be in attendance for the screening, but surprised audience members with appearances by Driver, Garfield, Scorsese's longtime editor Thelma Schoonmaker and Japanese actor Issey Ogata. (Neeson, however, did not attend.)
As if that wasn't enough, the film was introduced by Star Wars mastermind and Bay Area local George Lucas, who has his own presence at the box office this holiday season with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. SFFS executive director Noah Cowan moderated the panel.
Silence , filmed entirely in Taipei, Taiwan, premiered in Vatican City on November 29th. It's rumored to be in contention for multiple Oscars, according to Variety.
Rumor has it that after the screening, Scorsese and his cast and crew dined at nearby Poesia. Did you spot them? Send us a tip or leave a comment below.
