Producer Ryan Coogler, award-winning director Peter Nicks, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, and Warriors owner Joe Lacob were among the notable figures to attend last night’s premiere of Stephen Curry: Underrated at the 66th San Francisco International Film Festival. The film screening took place at the Grand Lake Theater.

The festival returned in person this year after being canceled in 2020 and hosting a hybrid version for the past two years. This is the first time that opening night took place outside of San Francisco. 

The festival features more than 130 films, three by Oakland filmmakers: Peter Nicks’ Underrated, director Savannah Leaf’s Earth Mama, and Boots Riley’s Amazon TV series I’m a Virgo, which will screen at the festival’s closing night on April 23.  

The central character of Nicks’ Underrated, Golden State Warriors Point Guard Stephen Curry, was not in attendance for last night’s premiere because his team is preparing for the first round playoff series against the Sacramento Kings. The playoffs begin Friday, April 14, in Sacramento. 

Although Curry wasn’t at the screening, he announced via social media that the film, based on his rise from a college athlete to a four-time NBA champion, will be released exclusively on AppleTV+ on July 21.

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Oakland filmmaker Ryan Coogler was a producer for Stephen Curry: Underrated. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Underrated‘s Emmy award-winning director Peter Nicks. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Sean Havey was the executive producer for Underrated. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Producer Eric Peyton with his children. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Bob McKillop (left), Stephen Curry’s coach at Davidson College, embraces Erick Peyton at the SFFILM festival premiere of Underrated. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Peter Nicks (left) and his wife Vanna Sivilay. Credit: Amir Aziz
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Ryan Coogler and his wife Zinzi Evans. Credi: Amir Aziz
Azucena Rasilla headshot

Azucena Rasilla is a bilingual journalist from East Oakland reporting in Spanish and in English, and a longtime reporter on Oakland arts, culture and community. As an independent local journalist, she has reported for KQED Arts, The Bold Italic, Zora and The San Francisco Chronicle. She was a writer and social media editor for the East Bay Express, helping readers navigate Oakland’s rich artistic and creative landscapes through a wide range of innovative digital approaches.

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Amir Aziz is a photographer and videographer from Oakland, California. Using photography as his primary medium, Amir documents life and times in his community and the rapid changes in his environment. He's covered music events and social justice movements in the U.S. and abroad for local and international publications. Before shelter-in-place, he traveled to over 10 countries producing multimedia projects juxtaposing the experiences of locals elsewhere to those in his hometown of Oakland. Amir hopes to continue to bridge the gap between African diaspora communities and oppressed groups in the world through multimedia storytelling.