The festival was founded on 21 September 1953.[4] It became aFIAPF-accredited competitive international film festival specialized in color films in 1955.[5] In 1957, the FIAPF granted the festival the non-specialised competitive festival status ("A"-category) for the first time.[6] It held that status intermittently until 1985.[7] It has since held such status on a stable basis.[7] It has hosted several important events of the history of cinema, such as the international premiere ofVertigo, byAlfred Hitchcock (who attended the Festival) and the European premiere ofStar Wars. It was the first festival attended byRoman Polanski, and has helped advance the professional careers of filmmakers such asFrancis Ford Coppola,Bong Joon-ho andPedro Almodóvar.[citation needed]
SSIFF has hosted the European premiere ofStar Wars; the international premiere ofVertigo, presented by Alfred Hitchcock; andRoman Polanski's first attendance at a film festival.[8]
Bryce Dallas Howard andNight Shyamalan attending the 52nd edition of the festival in September 2004Victoria Eugenia TheatreMaría Cristina Hotel during the San Sebastián International Film Festival
These are the main sections of the festival:
Official Selection: a selection of recent full-length cinematographic works, which have not previously screened in other festivals (except FIAPF-regulated non-competitive festivals and national competitions at festivals in their countries of production), compete for the major awards. Spanish-produced films in competition must be world premieres.[9] Some films are included out of competition.
New Directors: First or second movies of new talents.
Horizontes Latinos: A selection of films fromLatin America, unreleased in Spain.
Pearls: A selection of the best movies screened at other international festivals throughout the year.
Zabaltegi – Tabakalera: A competitive section aiming for heterogeneity with no formal norms.
Made in Spain: A showcase of the year's Spanish movies for their international launch.
Zinemira: A showcase of movies produced or directed byBasques.
Retrospectives: Retrospectives are included in the program to present the works of a renowned filmmaker or works that represent a particular theme.
Culinary Cinema: A non-competitive selection of gastronomy-related films.
Velodrome: Projections of movies for a big audience in a giant screen installed at theVelódromo de Anoeta.
Nest Film Students: Selected shorts, mostly graduation projects, from film schools around the world.
Silver Shell for Best Actor (1953–2020) (replaced by Best Leading Performance and Best Supporting Performance)
The following are the main awards for films in the parallel sections:
New Directors Award: decided by a special jury, the films in theNew Directors section compete for this prize.
Audience Award: The audience chooses a film from among those in thePearls section.
Youth Award: A jury composed of 350 youngsters aged between 17 and 21 chooses a film from those competing for the "New Directors Award".
Horizontes Award: A specific jury chooses the best film in the Horizontes Latinos section.
"Otra Mirada" Award:TVE gives theAnother Look award to the film, from any section, that best reflects the female world.
Sebastiane Award: a jury chooses the film, from any section, that best reflects the values and reality of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people.
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