Maureen Gosling has been making films since the 1970s and has been to film festivals all over the world, but to her, there is no place like Mill Valley.

“One thing that I really love about Mill Valley is how intimate it is,” Gosling told the Chronicle by phone from her home in Oakland, adding that even with some festival events in San Rafael, the setting is “very cozy and walkable.”

“The thing that I appreciate too is how the organizers care about filmmakers and take care of the filmmakers,” she added. “You don’t find that in every film festival. They are true film lovers.”

Gosling is excited to again be immersed in that nurturing atmosphere at the46th Mill Valley Film Festival, which is scheduled to host the world premiere of her latest documentary, “The 9 Lives of Barbara Dane,” on Oct. 10.

Normally amovie star-driven festival, this year’s edition, which begins Thursday, Oct. 5, and runs through Oct. 15, is returning to its roots as a director-driven event, because actors areon strike. But organizers emphasize that hasn’t diminished the quality of the films or scale of the event. In fact, founder and Executive Director Mark Fishkin calls MVFF46 “the most ambitious festival — even though there is a strike going on — since 2019.”

In other words, with its plethora of receptions, parties and musical events, including a closing night bash on the streets of downtown San Rafael, it’s the biggest festival of its kind in the Bay Area since before the pandemic.

Directors expected to attend includeSofia Coppola(“Priscilla”),Todd Haynes(“May December”) andEmerald Fennell(“Saltburn”), with actor and first-time directorJack Hustonset to open the MVFF with “Day of the Fight.”

There is also a particularly strong lineup of local films, from “Carol DodaTopless at the Condor” toFinn Taylor’s“Avenue of the Giants,” about San Rafael shopkeeper and Auschwitz survivor Herbert Heller.

“It’s really about the human condition,” said Zoe Elton, MVFF’s director of programming. “We have an extraordinary lineup that illustrates that, with people at every point in their career using aesthetics that are wide-ranging to create amazing films.”

That includes “The 9 Lives of Barbara Dane,” a fascinating portrait ofBay Area-based blues and folk singerwho became internationally famous in the 1950s and ’60s while singing with performers such as Louis Armstrong, and also became known as an activist, demonstrating for civil rights and against the Vietnam War among other causes.

Gosling, who has worked with legends such as Les Blank andWerner Herzog(a 1989 film, “I Went to the Dance,” which she made with Blank and Chris Strachwitz, was recently restored andtoured theaters in September), caught up with Dane when she was about to turn 90 and on the verge of touring to promote her latest album.

Dane, now 96, also lives in Oakland and their paths had crossed before. But Gosling wasn’t aware of her extensive backstory.

“After learning more about Barbara, I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, she’s really got a lot of history.’ How did I not know all this stuff?” Gosling said. “So we ended up filming her record release concert at Yoshi’s in Oakland, thinking that maybe that would be her last hurrah. Well, that was only the beginning!”

The film details her three marriages, which produced three children (including two sons who are musicians in Cuba); her pioneering San Francisco blues club, Sugar Hill, which she opened in North Beach in 1961 and has long since closed); marching for causes with celebrities such asJane Fonda, who shares her memories about Dane in the film; fun tidbits such as an appearance on TV’s “The Alfred Hitchcock Hour,” in which she shares a scene with James Mason andAngie Dickinson; and her late-career revival.

“She’s one of those women who have been overlooked by history,” Gosling said. “As a woman filmmaker, I totally understand that, so I thought I would rectify feminist history by focusing on somebody who really had a big impact and had an amazing life and was very committed and kept her values throughout her life, even when it cost her fame and fortune.”

事实证明,戴恩是一个狗的梦想:not only was she an engaging participant, she is a pack rat.

”她救了从她的时间teens,” Gosling said with a laugh. “She had every tiny news clipping from the newspapers, video, letters, programs, recordings — miles and miles of tape. It was wonderful.”

Following the world premiere at the festival, there will be a celebratory concert in Dane’s honor at the nearby Sweetwater Music Hall that boasts many special guests. The film also plays on Oct. 15 at the Lark Theatre in Larkspur and will stream as part of MVFF46’s online festival Oct. 16-22.

Gosling is looking forward to it all. She said she’ll be attending to watch other films as well.

“Because it’s a filmmakers-first festival, some of our friends also have films in the festival, and we cheer each other on and go to each other’s films and help promote them,” Gosling said. “It really amplifies the sense of community.”

Reach G. Allen Johnson:ajohnson@sfchronicle.com