Ah my friends it’s February and time for a cuddle! Adorable puppies and kittens are back at the Embarcadero center for cuddles and cuteness. The ever-popular SF Independent film festival is here with more unique and thought provoking premieres. The Asian Art Museum has a beautiful exhibit of Kimono Art and there’s a new way to listen to jazz – accompanied by puppets acting out a graphic novel. Yes, we do have some unusual and equally fabulous events in our city!

Now – Feb. 14. SPCA Pop-Up

If you happen to be at One Embarcadero Center and hear the lovely sounds of purring and woofing, it’s because the Puppy Cuddles and Cat café sponsored by the SFSPCA has returned. Head into the lush indoor jungle where you will step into an enchanted world where adoptable animals are just waiting for you to visit and deepen your connection with the animal kingdom. Open daily from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. through February 14th. You can pop in for a spontaneous cuddle or book a private SFSPCA Cuddle session with friends or co-workers.

On Thursday evening February 7th you are invited to a Yappy hour with wine and appetizers, presentations, activities and engaging animal stories. Don’t forget to visit the art gallery where local artists have captured the many moods of our four legged friends. You can bid on the creations as well and support the SPCA. Can you say awwwww? https://popup.sfspca.org/

Now – Feb. 14. SF Indie Fest

It’s Film fest time and the glorious celebration of gutsy independent cinema has returned. This two-week celebration of independent, alternative, wild movie rides is happening now. The movies are funky, and celebratory and edgy. Shows can be seen at the Roxie Theatre on Valencia and the Victoria theatre on Mission.

Known for their annual parties, the 16th Annual Big Lebowski Party will thrill fans. For those who love to laugh out loud, the Super Bowl – Men in Tights Comedy show ensures an ab workout from all the giggles. Bingo anyone? Beetlejuice Bingo includes a screening, bingo card and a chance to win fab prizes.

As for the films, here is a taste of what’s in store – Human Affairs – a love triangle involving a couple who hire a surrogate to carry their child and when she moves in with them mid-pregnancy, the triangle begins. Human emotions are displayed fantastically in this narrative film. A washed up musician in The Last Hot Lick, played by an original member of Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, looks for a comeback and meets a mysterious woman with a secret that could ruin his plan. These two and dozens more are well worth the visit. So much more enjoyable than going to the megaplex and seeing the blockbusters (in my opinion!) sfindie.com

Opening Feb. 8. Kimono Art

The Asian Art Museum has done it again with a gorgeous exhibit – Kimono Refashioned. Think Kimono inspired fashion from the Victorian to today’s digital age. Exquisite is the descriptor for this upcoming display. In the early 1980’s, you may remember that Japanese avant-garde designers took Paris by storm, disrupting the world of haute couture with their minimalist, deconstructed clothing. I remember it well! But this was not the first time that Japanese design principles had transformed international fashion.

The evolution of Japan’s traditional dress tells a visual and tactile narrative of haute couture for over 150 years. Plus the kimonos are just simply fabulous. One of the earliest dresses in this exhibition is a bustle gown made in the 1870’s in London fashioned from a dismantled kimono. Featuring over 35 garments from the Kyoto Costume Institute, Kimono Refashioned shows that the beauty and tradition of the kimono is a fertile source of inspiration for all designers including Chanel, Issey Miyaki, Christian Louboutin and Tom Ford. Oh so chic. You will not want to miss this! Asianart.org

Feb. 2-7. Jazz And Puppets

SF Jazz is at it again; bringing us programming that is inventive and a little bizarre. DJ and producer Kid Koala brings his amazing multi-disciplinary, multimedia project to the Jazz Center. Titled Nufonia Must Fall, Koala brings his 300 page graphic novel to life. The live staging of this book about a lonely robot on the verge of obsolesce who is looking for love is built around a cast of 10 inch puppets manipulated by a team of puppeteers that interact in real time on over a dozen miniature sets, filmed with a network of cameras, edited live, and simultaneously projected onto the video screen above the action.

Directed by Oscar nominee K.K. Barrett, the monochromatic world of this book is brought to life with humor and heart with the composer’s music as its lifeblood. Cutting edge digital video joins with the art of puppeteering as well as electronic music and a live string quartet. I haven’t seen it tomato pals but it promises to be a little kooky, totally cinematic, and deeply cool – so why not? http://www.sfjazz.org