Ocean Film Festival Starts Friday

The 5th Annual San Francisco Ocean Film Festival, the first of its kind in North America, kicks off Friday at the Cowell Theater in the Fort Mason Center, and runs through the weekend. Filmmakers from around the world submitted their work in an effort to encourage awareness and conservation of our oceans. The following are some of the West Coast-focused films on the schedule:

• The Jurassic Journey — Just where do leatherback turtles go when they set off from the West Coast?
• What’s Killing the Sea Otters? — Find out why the California sea otter’s recently revived population has stalled out.
• The Science of Big Waves — Spectacular footage of Mavericks waves and where they’re born.
• 19 Arrests, No Convictions — San Francisco bar owner George Farnsworth was, at 71, the oldest person to swim from Alcatraz on New Year’s Day.
• Returning Home: Bringing the Common Murre back to Devil’s Slide Rock — Devastated by the ’86 oil spill, birds are once again breeding in their ancestral Bay Area home.
• Restoring Balance: Removing the Black Rat from Anacapa Island — See how the destruction of one human-introduced species — the black rat — saved other native species on this Channel Island.

Check out www.oceanfilmfest.org for the full schedule and ticket information.The $60 weekend pass is a bargain, especially considering that individual programs are $10.