We’ve seen a lot of terrific films at SFIAAFF, but the one that won my heart was Colma: The Musical. Colma is a coming-of-age story set in the eponymous town just south of San Francisco that’s home to 17 cemeteries but just 1,300 residents. This film is jam-packed with humor, smarts, and great songs. It’s amazingly well-shot and looks much more expensive than it probably was, proving once again that budget and creativity are not correlated. (In particular, the eight-minute long tracking shot in the party scene is exhilarating.) First-time feature director Richard Wong and writer/composer H.P. Mendoza have created something amazing here. I hope lots of people get to see this. I can’t stop humming the songs.

(BART to SFO, San Francisco, CA)