OLD PASADENA FILM FESTIVAL FROM JULY 9 – AUGUST 1
SHOWCASES CLASSICS, VINTAGE HORROR, CULT FAVORITES, AND MORE
IN MOSTLY OUTDOOR FREE SCREENINGS
Pasadena, CA (June, 2015) - The Old Pasadena Film Festival, a month-long, free movie series featuring screenings in predominantly outdoor locations, returns July 9 – August 1. This annual summer film program celebrates motion picture in all of its forms offering a variety of audience-pleasing movie titles and genres. With twenty-one screenings, the Old Pasadena Film Festival is the largest free open-air film festival in California and draws a broad local and regional audience.
This year the festival continues to offer an eclectic mix of crowd-pleasing fare, as well as cult favorites, and rarely screened films for the cinema enthusiast. Kicking off the screenings in historic Central Park each weekend is the charming father-daughter story Paper Moon, followed by creepy fun with The Witches. Enjoy vintage horror with The Creature from the Black Lagoon, and then take a quick lesson in ballroom dance from Dance Street Studio dancers, before viewing the exuberant dance feature Strictly Ballroom. Next up is the heart-warming baseball classic Field of Dreams.
On the final night of the festival at Central Park, we screen the campy sci-fi romp Barbarella. Come dressed for interplanetary travel and enter the costume contest for a chance to win $250 on Saturday, August 1. Mr. Pasadena, Michael Calderon will be our special host that night. Arrive early for any of the six Central Park screenings, pick up picnic provisions from one of the many options in Old Pasadena, enjoy select food trucks, and ambient music from local DJs.
Additional outdoor screenings are hosted by One Colorado in their open-air courtyard. Starting on Friday, July 10, see the award-winning West Side Story and the next night contrast it with the stylized Luhrmann film Romeo + Juliet. Their program includes the sci-fi comedy Galaxy Quest, critically acclaimed Juno, one of the favorite all time films To Kill a Mockingbird, and the popular a cappella comedy Pitch Perfect. For a music-filled “80s Date Night,” their final selection on Friday, July 31, is the John Hughes classic Sixteen Candles.
We are pleased to include the documentary film selection Aluna on Thursday, July 9, presented by Conscientious Projector, whose aim is to highlight the investigative work of filmmakers probing the social, geopolitical, environmental, and economic undercurrents of our time. Now in its twelfth year, Conscientious Projector offers a free monthly documentary film series sponsored by Sustainable World (a Peace & Justice Ministry of All Saints Church) and screened every second Thursday of the month at the Armory Center for the Arts.
Thursdays continue at the Armory with a variety of diverse screenings. Explore the art of 3-D stereoscopic photography and film at the LA 3-D Club
Friday evenings, Distant Lands Travel Bookstore offers travel-related movies such as the Australian travel adventure Tracks, and the Merchant-Ivory period piece A Room with a View. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz take a slapstick road trip in The Long, Long Trailer, and pre- and post-war Italy is the back drop for Tea with Mussolini.
The Old Pasadena Film Festival gives attendees the unique experience of enjoying a month-long series of cinema in mostly outdoor spaces, and some unconventional indoor locations. All showings are free and open to the public. For more information including the complete schedule, visit www.oldpasadena.org.
Old Pasadena Film Festival Schedule
Thursday, July 9
Aluna (2012) – 89 min
Conscientious Projector at Armory Center for the Arts, 45 N. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM
In 1990, Alan Ereira’s classic BBC documentary From the Heart of the World brought global attention to the centuries-old indigenous Kogi tribe, an ancient “lost” Colombian civilization, who saw themselves as guardians of the earth. Their emergence came with a warning that the people of the modern world are destroying the planet’s ecosystems through their plundering of nature. In recent years, Ereira returned to the Kogi to document their renewed call for humanity to recognize the interconnectedness of all life. The result is the stirring documentary Aluna. A community discussion follows the screening.
FRIDAY, JULY 10
Tracks (2013) – 112 min
Distant Lands, 20 S. Raymond Ave. – 8:00PM
Tracks is a 2013 Australian drama starring Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and Adam Driver (HBO’s Girls). It is an adaptation of Robyn Davidson's memoir of the same name, chronicling the author's nine-month journey, a 1,700-mile trek across the deserts of West Australia with four camels and her faithful dog. The novel’s adaptation to screen succeeds in presenting a richly inspirational tale of perseverance.
West Side Story (1961) – 152 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley 8:30PM
William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is updated to the tenements of New York City in this Oscar-winning musical landmark starring Natalie Wood and Rita Moreno. The action follows two teenagers from rival New York City gangs. They fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy. Recreating the Broadway production’s choreography, the film features one of the “most startling and balletic dance sequences ever recorded on film.” Music was composed by Leonard Bernstein with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. West Side Story swept the Oscars, taking ten awards, including Best Picture, and Best Director.
SATURDAY, JULY 11
Romeo + Juliet (1996) – 120 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley 8:30PM
Romeo + Juliet is Baz Luhrmann’s (The Great Gatsby, Moulin Rouge, Strictly Ballroom) film adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes in the leading roles, the film retains the original Shakespearean dialogue, but juxtaposes it with an arresting visual style and modern soundtrack. The film received Best Screenplay – Adapted, and Best Production Design at the BAFTA Awards.
Paper Moon (1973) – 102 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
Directed by Peter Bogdanovich (Last Picture Show), the comedy-drama Paper Moon was shot in black and white, and set in Kansas and Missouri during the Great Depression. It stars the real-life father and daughter pairing of Ryan and Tatum O'Neal as bible-selling grifters. Newcomer Madeline Kahn appears as the scene-stealing Trixie Delight, and wins an Oscar nomination, only to lose to Tatum O’Neal who, at age 10, became the youngest Academy Award winner with her Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
SUNDAY, JULY 12
The Witches (1990) – 91 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
The Witches is a comedy-fantasy film based on the book by Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox). Anjelica Huston provides a deliciously wicked performance as Miss Evangeline Ernst / Grand High Witch. With creature-effects by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, The Witches was the last film Henson worked on before passing away in 1990. This dark and witty film is praised for successfully capturing the spirit of Raold Dahl’s original book.
THURSDAY, JULY 16
LA 3-D Club
Armory Center for the Arts, 145 N. Raymond Ave. – 7:30PM
Join the LA 3-D Club and see real three dimensional photography and shorts created by some of Southern California’s best stereo photographers. The images are projected on a large screen and viewed with polarized glasses. 3-D glasses will be provided.
FRIDAY, JULY 17
A Room with a View (1985) – 117 min
Distant Lands, 20 S. Raymond Ave. – 8:00PM
Starring the captivating Helena Bonham Carter and beloved Maggie Smith, A Room with a View is the film adaption of E. M. Forster's 1908 novel of the same name. This British romance-drama was directed and produced by the award-winning team of James Ivory and Ismail Merchant. Set in England and Italy, Bonham Carter plays a young woman in the restrictive and repressed culture of Edwardian Era England and her developing love for a free-spirited young man (Julian Sands). Nominated for eight Academy Awards, the film brought home three.
Galaxy Quest (1999) – 102 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley 8:30PM
This action comedy follows the adventures of a troupe of faded TV actors. When they are unwittingly beamed aboard an actual alien spacecraft, they rise to the occasion and fearlessly defend a group of aliens against an alien warlord. Starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Tony Shalhoub, and Sam Rockwell, Galaxy Quest is a surprisingly amusing send-up of cult sci-fi television shows and infamous "Trekkie" fanaticism.
SATURDAY, JULY 18
Juno (2007) – 96 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley 8:30PM
Directed by Jason Reitman (Thank You for Smoking, Up in the Air), Juno debuted at Toronto International Film Festival to a standing ovation. Independent, worldly beyond her years, and wielding a disarmingly dry humor, teen Juno (Ellen Page) finds herself pregnant after a brief encounter with longtime friend Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera). Deciding to keep the baby, she seeks the perfect adoptive parents, and finds a potential couple played by Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner. Juno won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay with three other nominations, including Best Picture, and Best Actress for Page.
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) – 79 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
Creature from the Black Lagoon is a classic monster horror film, and is considered one of the last worthwhile monster movies from Universal, the studio that most enthusiastically embraced the horror genre in the 1930s and 40s. A scientific expedition searching for fossils along the Amazon River discovers a prehistoric Gill-Man in the legendary Black Lagoon. The explorers capture the mysterious creature, but it breaks free only to return to kidnap the lovely Kay, fiancée of one in the expedition, with whom it has fallen in love.
SUNDAY, JULY 19
Strictly Ballroom (1992) – 94 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
His first film, Strictly Ballroom is an Australian romantic comedy directed and co-written by Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby, Moulin Rouge, Romeo + Juliet). This wildly off-beat comedy is about a male dancer, who refuses to follow the accepted rules of ballroom dancing and creates his own style of choreography, which infuriates the ballroom dancing establishment. Strictly Ballroom was a surprise international hit, winning over audiences and critics with its giddy blend of tongue-in-cheek humor and exhilarating dance sequences.
THURSDAY, JULY 23
The Angels’ Share (2012) – 101 min
Armory Center for the Arts + Everson Royce, 45 N. Raymond Ave. – 8:30PM
$45 Whiskey Tasting will be offered pre-screening
Winner of the 2012 Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize, The Angels' Share is a comic fable about wasted talent and what happens when we are given a chance in life. It tells the story of a young Glaswegian father who narrowly avoids a prison sentence. He is determined to turn over a new leaf and when he and his friends visit a whisky distillery, a route to a new life becomes apparent. The title is from "the angels' share", a term for the portion (share) of a whisky's volume that is lost to evaporation during aging in oak barrels.
FRIDAY, JuLY 24
The Long, Long Trailer (1953) – 103 min
Distant Lands, 20 S. Raymond Ave. – 8:00PM
The Long, Long Trailer features beloved TV stars Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz as an upwardly mobile couple who decide to buy a trailer so they can live together while his job takes him around the country. Thanks to their naïveté in such matters, they end up with a huge, bulky RV that costs five times what they planned. Their "seeing America" trip turns out to be a slapstick disaster. The film was directed by Hollywood great Vincente Minnelli (Gigi, Meet Me in St. Louis).
To Kill a Mockingbird (1963) – 129 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley – 8:30PM
To Kill a Mockingbird is widely considered to be one of the greatest films ever made, winning three Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Gregory Peck, and was nominated for eight, including Best Picture. Based on Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize winning book of 1961, the timely film reflected the state of deep racial problems and social injustice that existed in the South. In the role that AFI named the greatest movie hero of the 20th century, Gregory Peck portrays Atticus Finch, a lawyer in a racially divided Alabama town in the 1930s. He agrees to defend a young black man who is accused of raping a white woman. The trial and the events surrounding it are seen through the eyes of Finch's six-year-old daughter Scout.
SATURDAY, JULY 25
Pitch Perfect (2012) – 112 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley – 8:30PM
This musical comedy, directed by Jason Moore (TV’s Dawson's Creek, One Tree Hill, Brothers & Sisters) features an ensemble cast that includes Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, and Elizabeth Banks. Pitch Perfect tells the story of a college women's a cappella group, the Barden Bellas, as they compete against another a cappella group from their college to win Nationals. This “sleeper hit” earned over $115 million worldwide, becoming the third highest grossing music comedy film of all time.
Field of Dreams (1989) – 107 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
Adapted from a W.P. Kinsella novel Shoeless Joe, Field of Dreams is a definitive modern day baseball film magically combining baseball history and folklore with whimsical fantasy. The ensemble cast includes Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta, and Burt Lancaster in his final role. "If you build it, he will come." That's the ethereal message that inspires Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) to construct a baseball diamond in the middle of his cornfield. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Original Score, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture.
THURSDAY, JULY 30
Music Videos and Documentary Shorts
Armory Center for the Arts + All Scene Eye, 45 N. Raymond Ave. – 8:00PM
Doors open at 7:00pm; Acoustic musical performance at 7:15PM
The Armory Center for the Arts in collaboration with All Scene Eye is screening music videos and documentary shorts featuring several of LA's best up and coming musical acts. Performers to be featured include: Hobart W Fink, Holland Belle, The Electric West, Beca, MRK, Night Jacket, Dead Panzies, BCGs, Barrie and the Stars, Nacosta, The Most Best, Vinyl Williams, and Vanish Valley. Andrew McAllister (Vanish Valley) will present his SXSW Grand Jury Award nominated documentary short about Pappy and Harriet's titled The Pioneertown Palace.
FRIDAY, JuLY 31
Tea with Mussolini (1999) – 117 min
Distant Lands, 20 S. Raymond Ave. – 8:00PM
Based in part on his autobiography, Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's Tea with Mussolini is a comedic-drama about a group of British and American travelers who, on an indefinite visit to Italy, end up raising a young Italian boy named Luca, before and during World War II. Featuring British and American grande dames Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Lily Tomlin, and Cher, this coming-of-age story basks in beautiful locations and light history. Smith received the BAFTA Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role.
Sixteen Candles (1984) – 93 min
One Colorado, 41 Hugus Alley – 8:30PM
Arrive early for “80s Date Night” with DJ spinning your 80s favorites
The coming-of-age comedy Sixteen Candles was the directorial debut of John Hughes (Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Pretty in Pink). With the occasion all but overshadowed by her sister's upcoming wedding, angst-ridden Samantha (Molly Ringwald) faces her 16th birthday with typical adolescent dread. This film made previously unknown actress Molly Ringwald a beloved star. With an appealing cast and dialog that rings true to every teen, this sweet and funny film treats adolescence with tenderness, and wry humor.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 1
Barbarella (1968) – 98 min
Central Park, 275 S. Raymond Ave. – 7:00PM Music+Food; 8:30PM Film
Costume Contest hosted by Mr. Pasadena - $250 prize
Based on a French sci-fi comic, Barbarella stars Jane Fonda in the title role and was directed by Roger Vadim, Fonda's husband at the time. Although this cult film often pops up on "Worst Movies Ever" lists, it's actually something of a treat. From the eye-popping plasticity of the production design to the gentle grooviness of the campy lounge soundtrack, it's hard to be anything but amused and entertained by this campy classic.