The San Francisco International Film Festival was founded in 1957 and is a nonprofit arts and educational organization dedicated to celebrating the world of media and film.  Its held every spring, runs for 2 weeks and is the longest running film festival in the Americas.  Featuring over 200 films and live events and more than 100 filmmakers in attendance, almost 2 dozen awards are presented for cinematic excellence.  More than 80,000 people enjoy this event every year.

In 2006 the Film Society launched SF360 which was designed to showcase the innovation and variety of the San Francisco Bay Area film and media scene.  The program has branched out to include SF360.org (web magazine), SF360 Live (discussions on filmmaking), SF360 Movie Night (one film screened simultaneously at multiple venuse throughout SF) and SF360 Movice Scene (a monthly TV series).