The warm months of summer are soon coming to an end. That sad truth is especially tough on cinephiles who love to experience their films under the stars on a rooftop, or surrounded by nature.
Luckily, August is a robust month for outdoor movie events, with screening series across the US going strong up until the end of the summer. From big-budget blockbusters al fresco-style to classic black-and-white films with the Manhattan skyline glowing in the background – we have you covered.
Los Angeles
In and around Los Angeles, there are countless outdoor events occurring throughout August. Thrillist lists every single one, but here are the highlights.
Cinespia, an organization that hosts on-site screening of classics films, kicks off the month with a screening of Apocalypse Now in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. A DJ is scheduled to spin before and after the movie, so the night should make for a suitably surreal experience. Also tapped to screen in the cemetery are Frank Capra’s It Happened One Night (8 August), Tim Burton’s cult classic Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (22 August), and Sofia Coppola’s breakthrough feature, The Virgin Suicides (29 August).
East|See|Hear pairs gourmet food trucks with live music and three story tall inflatable movie screens (the largest west of the Mississippi, according to the organization). The first day of August will see them host a screening of Wet Hot American Summer in Griffith Park, timed to the release of Netflix’s prequel series, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, which premieres the day before. “Special guests” are expected at the event, so expect to see some stars from the film pop by. Another event sure to draw a crowd: a 20th anniversary screening of Amy Heckerling’s stylish teen comedy, Clueless.
Not to be outdone, the Hollywood Bowl is hosting a screening of Stanley Kubrick’s landmark sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey (18 August), with the soundtrack performed live by the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
New York
If independent films are your flavor, consider Rooftop Films a godsend. Their Summer Series boasts screenings of studio classics like Mrs Doubtfire, but Rooftop Films is better known for their stellar programming of film festival favorites, the bulk of which they screen before the films open in theaters. Stand outs in August include the bone-chilling Austrian thriller Goodnight Mommy (14 August), Joe Swanberg’s latest ensemble comedy Digging for Fire (18 August), and a special sneak preview of this year’s SXSW winner Krisha (20 August), which doesn’t even have a theatrical release date yet.
Not to be confused with Rooftop Films, Rooftop Cinema Club is new to the Big Apple, having first taken off in London before traveling across the pond. Their first season has largely sold out, thanks to a strong slate of films and a posh venue (the terrace of midtown’s YOTEL hotel).
Arguably more popular that either is Bryant Park’s summer film festival, which attracts huge crowds to New York’s midtown park, adjacent to the New York Public Library. It ends its summer run with screenings of Marathon Man (3 August), Desk Set (10 August), Chinatown (17 August) and Back to the Future (24 August). No chairs are provided, so get there early with a blanket handy to ensure a spot.
Elsewhere in the US
Just down the road from New York in Washington DC, the NoMA Summer Screen series offers free showings, accompanied by live music, food trucks and local craft beers. Its August slate includes screenings of Stomp the Yard (5 August), and Footloose (12 August).
Over in Philadelphia, the Schuylkill Banks Movie Series screens movies on the waterfront, by the Walnut Street Bridge.
The film loving city of Austin, Texas, host to the SXSW film festival in March, hosts the Sound and City outdoor screening series in association with the venerable theater chain Alamo Drafthouse.
And in the Pacific north-west in Seattle, Magnuson Park is celebrating its fifth season of Seattle Outdoor Movies, by ending this year’s run with a screening of The Princess Bride (27 August).
