Film Diary #2—The No Nothing Cinema2024

“No Nothing Cinema” one of the first micro cinemas located in San Francisco.

Dean Snider one of the founders of the No Nothing Cinema on Berry Street.
The others included myself, Steve Schmidt, Rock Ross, Marion Wallace and
Mark Stern. The No Nothing Cinema was founded because at that time the
San Francisco Cinematheque had stopped, for the most part, showing local
filmmaker’s work.

Dean and I were best friends, he committed suicide in around 1985 after a
diagnosis of Parkinson’s. He was not even 40. The No Nothing was torn down
around that same period to make room for the PacBell Baseball Stadium.

Sometime after Rock Ross created the “New Nothing Cinema” the “No
Nothing” from the ashes. “No Nothing” charged no admission fees, etc.

In the courtyard we would roast Italian Sausages before each screening.

Bruce Conner would often come to the screenings, so he is also in the
imagery, and it is him playing the superimposed piano/organ. The posters on
the wall are calendars of some of the previous screenings. I also shot some
footage for Dean’s film and star in two of them “Polter Guys and “Marriage”
Dean made a film of my marriage at City Hall in 1982.

Dedicated to Dean Snider.