Pamela Gentile likes to work in the dark.
The first film she ever processed was 16 mm, meant for movies, her first love and the profession she trained for. She found she always shot stills on everyone else’s movies though.
Shooting the local music scene in San Francisco she got an assignment to go on tour with Chris Isaak where she focused on story. Her interest in stories brought her to SF Weekly where as photojournalist and photo editor she shot photo stories for ten years processing her own film and making prints in her darkroom.
Gentile kept her focus on her first love, the world of cinema.
Her archive is now thirty plus. Her subject matter, backstage, on stage, the red carpet, the marquee, the audience, screenings, and odd moments in between, is captured cinematically in an atmospheric visual narrative. Her portraits of filmmakers, actors and musicians shot simply and candidly, often in a makeshift backstage studio, form a historical record of influential figures in World Cinema. Her most recent capture of screens preserves movies in movie theaters which is fast becoming an endangered species.
EDUCATION
M. A. Film, San Francisco State University
M. A. English, San Francisco State University
B. A. English, Concentration in Film, University of Oregon
GROUP EXHIBITION
2022 Images from Persistence of Vision, Leica Gallery, San Francisco, California, January 2021 - April 2022
JURIED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2021 The De Young Open, Two Portraits, Boots Riley and Honey Mahogany, de Young Museum, San Francisco, California
2019 Something Personal, Leg, American Photographic Artists, SOMArts Gallery, San Francisco, California
2009 Something Personal, Two Triple Portraits, Director (Nicolas Philibert) and Actress (Maggie Cheung), American Photographic Artists, Leftspace, San Francisco, California
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2017 Persistence of Vision, Leica Gallery, San Francisco, California, April 6 - May 31
2017 Atmosphere, Portrait of a Film Festival, San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco, California March 14 - June 13
2015 30 Years of Portraits, Presidio Film Centre, San Francisco, California
2014 Matti Bye, Salle Piano, San Francisco California
2013 Photos from the Archives, San Francisco International Film Festival, Sundance Kabuki Cinema, San Francisco, California October 14 - March 6, 2014
2012 The Stuff that Dreams are Made of : San Francisco and the Movies, San Francisco Mint, San Francisco, California June 14 - June 27
2008 Images from the San Francisco Film Society Archives, Cole Haan, San Francisco, California April 16 - May 15
2008 Portraits from San Francisco International Film Festival, Gamma Black and White Photographic Lab June 26 - August 29
2001 39th Exposure, San Francisco California
1988 Film Festival Faces, AMC Theater, San Francisco California
ARTIST TALK
2017 Leica Store, San Francisco, California
2007 Apple Store, San Francisco, California
PRESS
2018 Sam Whiting “Film festival stills over 30-plus years form a film noir of their own” San Francisco Chronicle (March 30) https://www.sfchronicle.com/movies/article/Film-festival-stills-over-30-plus-years-form-a-12788876.php
2017 Jonathan Blaustein “Real Life Film Noir In San Francisco” New York Times (May 25) https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2017/05/25/real-life-film-noir-in-san-francisco/
2017 Sally Fay “Photographer Pamela Gentile: 30 Years With SFFILM And Still Clicking!” Huffington Post (May 26) https://www.huffpost.com/entry/photographer-pamela-gentile-30-years-with-sffilm-and_b_5926232ee4b090bac9d46b70
2017 Ann Jastrab “Pamela Gentile: Portrait of a Film Festival” All About Photo (April 17) https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-e&q=Ann+Jastrab+%E2%80%9CPamela+Gentile%3A +Portrait+of+a+Film+Festival%E2%80%9D+All+About+Photo+April+17%2C+2017
2016 Rebecca Robertson Photo District News “Portrait of a Film Festival” Photo District News (April 20) https://pdnonline.com/featuredin-print/pdn-july-2016-the-innovation-issue/
2012 Frako Loden The Evening Class “The Stuff That Dreams are Made of : San Francisco and the Movies” (June 12) https://theeveningclass.blogspot.com/2012/06/stuff-that-dreams-are-made-of-san.html
2001 Michael Fox “Eyes Wide Shut “ The Reel World SF Weekly (August 1) https://archives.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/reel-world/Content?oid=2142580
PRODUCTION STILLS
2022 Logic Paralyzes the Heart Lynn Hershman
2019 Shadow Stalker Lynn Hershman
2018 VertiGhost Lynn Hershman
2013 Inequality for All Jacob Kornbluth
2002 China 21 Ruby Yang
1999 Citizen Hong Kong Ruby Yang
1995 No Loans Today Lisanne Skyler
1987 Aria Julien Temple
PUBLISHED EDITORIAL WORK
The New York Times
Vanity Fair
The Wall Street Journal
The Washington Post
The LA Times
The Hollywood Reporter
The Village Voice
Variety
The San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Magazine
PUBLISHED WORK IN BOOKS
Something Beautiful Ruby Yang
Sitting Down with the Stars—Interviews with 100 Hollywood Legends Ruthe Stein
Kim Gordon : No Icon Kim Gordon
Eye on the World—Conversations with International Filmmakers Judy Stone
Born Under Fire Rina Neiman
Lowside of the Road—A Life of Tom Waits Barney Hoskyns
Communicating Effectively In English Pat Porter, Margaret Grant
Venus Envy Elizabeth Haiken
WORK EXPERIENCE
Photo Editor/Lead Photographer SF Weekly, San Francisco, California, 10 years