Castro Update
SFist regrets not following up on our coverage of the Castro Theater controversy sooner, but we really wanted to get the perspectives of the involved parties.
However, litigation seems to be afoot from a number of sides, so no one we contacted was willing to comment. In any case, we were at Saturday's protest organized by Audiences in Action and headed by Monica Nolan. We got to speak with Monica briefly between her protest duties, and she reiterated for us that while she herself does not know Anita Monga, (the Castro's long-time programmer and the firing of whom ignited this controversy), she continues to fear that Monga's firing signals a change to more mainstream programming for the Castro.
While Anita Monga was not present, several other major players in the San Francisco arts and cinema community were there, including outgoing District 5 Supervisor Matt Gonzalez, Fred Nasser, the Castro's owner, (both pictured at left)and Balboa Theater owner and Landmark Theaters co-founder Gary Meyer.
Nolan invited Supervisor Gonzalez to address the crowd, which he did, stating that he was present to encourage dialogue between the community and the Nasser family, as well as to stand in solidarity with all of those who have recently lost their jobs at the Castro as a result of the recent turmoil. This might have been an allusion to the many unsubstantiated grumblings we heard that day that the owners of the Castro are disputing the unemployment benefit claims of the recently terminated employees.
At that point, Gonzalez invited Nasser to the microphone to provide his perspective, and was told by Nolan that Nasser was not welcome to speak at the rally, as "he has spoken by his actions". Gonzalez rejoined the crowd with a muttered "whoops!" and a shrug.
The Balboa's Gary Meyer was not the only one disappointed that Nasser did not have the chance to speak. While Meyer seemed genuinely interested in what Nasser had to say in his own defense, other protesters seemed eager to have Nasser "trip himself up in public". speaking as objective observers, SFist asserts that it certainly would have made for a more interesting and "well-rounded" protest (if there is such a thing) had Nasser been allowed to make a statement.
SFist got a moment with Supervisor Gonzalez before he addressed the crowd, and he reiterated to us that he was out at the protest to express his support of those who had been recently terminated by the Castro. He made these statements to us with Ted Nasser standing by his side, so it looks like Nasser is open to dialogue of some sort.
Folks with concerns on either side of the issue are encouraged to check the Audiences in Action site for updates on their plans to mobilize in support of continued diverse programming at the Castro. And, as always, we encourage you to support our local independent theaters, all of which make an effort to show films off the megaplex-beaten path.
All photos by SFist's own Jackson West