Drive in movie night at Ballston

BallstonConnect Club is doing a retro drive-in movie night showcasing "The Princess Bride" this Saturday, June 13 8pm. You can place orders for &pizza before the movie begins. Drive into the parking lot of the Holiday Inn Ballston and safely watch the 1987 classic from your own car. Cost is $40 per vehicle.

Eat Bar's Sunday Wes Anderson movies

Eat Bar, Clarendon's not to be forgotten unique little bar down Washington Blvd, is starting up their weekly Sunday Night Cinema series tonight staring movies by Wes Anderson.  The first installment will be The Royal Tenenbaums tonight, Sunday August 4 starting at 8pm. There is no cover charge, and you may be able to get concession stand treats for free too. If you can't wait until tonight, Eat Bar opens at 11am Saturdays for their Classic Cartoon Weekend Brunch. The schedule for the rest of August movies is:

August 4 - The Royal Tenebaums
August 11 - Rushmore
August 18 - The life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
August 25 - Fantastic Mr. Fox

Mad Rose Fast and Furious 6 release party

If you spot some flashy or loud cars around town tonight, you can follow them to Mad Rose's movie release party starting at 8pm. The Clarendon bar is hosting a Fast & Furious 6 movie release party tonight, Thursday May 30. The party includes music by multiple DJs like EPX, RI5E and Chazzta, food specials, and "hot cars" provided by Mischief.TV. Champagne and hookah will also be available on their outdoor patios.

Rosslyn outdoor film festival starts tonight

Tonight, Friday May 17 is the first night in the series of outdoor film showings in Rosslyn's Gateway park. This summer all the movies have a school related theme, with the 80s classic The Breakfast Club kicking things off at around 8pm. Bring a blanket, folding chairs, or snacks to these free movie showings on the grass between Lee Highway. Here is the full summer movie schedule:

May 17 - The Breakfast Club (R) 1985
May 24 - Ferris Bueller's Day Off (PG-13) 1986
May 31 – Clueless (PG-13) 1995
June 7 - Risky Business (R) 1983
June 14 - Can't Buy Me Love (PG-13) 1987
June 21 - Easy A (PG-13) 2010
June 27 - 10 Things I Hate About You (PG-13) 1999
July 5 - Bring It On (PG-13) 2000
July 12 - Pretty in Pink (PG-13) 1986
July 19 - She's All That (PG-13) 1999
July 26 – Fame (R) 1980
August 2 - Can't Hardly Wait (PG-13) 1998
August 9 - Sixteen Candles (PG) 1984
August 16 - High School Musical 3: Senior Year (G) 2006
August 23 - American Graffiti (PG) 1973
August 30 – Grease (PG-13) 1978

Local indie movie Nightstars on IndieFlix

Two years ago I got to be an extra in the locally made feature length indie movie Nightstars, and now its available on IndieFlix! I've bought it on DVD so I can watch my one 5 second scene that I'm in over and over again (it is also available as a 30-day stream for half the price of the DVD).

 

 

The movie is an original comedy/drama story about several sets of graduating high schoolers trying to find their way and crossing paths incidentally. It was a finalist at the SNOB movie festival, and you can also check out the trailers here.

Nightstars Movie Premier in DC

Nightstars, a locally produced feature length movie, is premiering at Landmark E Street Cinema in DC next Monday October 4th. I'm always interested in local independent productions like this, but I'm doubly excited because I got to be an extra in this film!

This original drama is set in the Northern Virginia suburbs and teaches its audience that "it’s the small moments that can come to mean everything."

The premier is open to the general public at the trendy and cultured E Street Cinema, a place were I've watched a few foreign flicks like OSS 117 and Run Lola Run.

Come down to the theatre, which is conveniently about one block south of Metro Center off of the Orange Line, Monday around 7pm to get a seat.

Rosslyn Outdoor Film Festival

Tonight was the free outdoor showing of the 90s classic drama "What's Eating Gilbert Grape" at Gateway park in Rosslyn. A small park at the foot of the 14th street Key bridge and one block north of the Metro, its a nice location for the fun and casual Friday Film Festival series.

Tonight was hot and humid and not too crowded. If you arrive after 8:30 you will have a hard time claiming a plot of grass. The event starts around 6pm with games like bean bag toss and t-shirts as prizes. One of the pre-movie videos featured local comedian Remy promoting the Arlington arts community.

Make sure to bring a blanket for your group, or better yet a very low chair. Regular sized chairs will block the view of people behind you, unless you sit on the pavement on the edges of the park. Also recommended is to bring a cooler with chilled water and snacks to fend off the summer heat, or just grab an ice cream cone from the McDonald's next door.

Next week "Empire Records" is playing.

The Sound Of Music @ EatBar

Tonight EatBar hosts its for its Sunday movies series, featuring The Sound of Music show and sing-a-long. Enjoy the classic with bratwurst and free beer steins.

This free event starts at 8pm. Next week EatBar will be showing The Princess Bride.

DC Filmmakers Meetup Sept 29

The first meetup of DC Professional Digital Filmmakers is on Sept 29 at 7pm. The meeting at the West End Library was set up by Peter Estrada, who is putting together a professional team of digital filmmakers with the goal of producing independent short films:

"We are recruiting for the right combination of talent, experience, passion and training; Cinematographers, Writers, Actors, Audio Engineers, Lighting Gaffers, Grips, Audio Designers and other Digital Artists that want to join a team of serious filmmakers."

The film making community in the NoVa/DC area is pretty small, so this is a great opportunity for local film makers or recent graduates to network.

Washington Field pilot being taped in Arlington

The pilot episode for the upcoming series Washington Field is being shot tomorrow nearby. Via Arlington Alert:

Tomorrow March 25 between 9:30 and noon, CBS Paramount pictures will be filming a TV scene on the Potomac River near the Key Bridge in which special effects (loud noise and fire) will simulate a small water vessel being blown up. This will be a heavily monitored and controlled event lasting only a few seconds. There is no cause for alarm.

Benjamin Button @ Courthouse AMC

I had a great spur of the moment opportunity to watch the Curious Case of Benjamin Button tonight, and Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett both had amazing performances. The storyline was superb, and the 160 minute film flew by. It reminded me of Big Fish and The Fall in different ways. Its a really amazing tale that I full heartily recommend for anyone.

On a side note, I also just found that that Listrani's in Courthouse hosts Standup Comedy nights! They have free open mic nights hosted by All Stars Comedy on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Strathmore Outdoor Film Festival

Arrived just in time to catch the latest Harry Potter movie (actually the only one I've watched all the way through) at the Comcast Outdoor Film Festival in Bethesda. Conveniently located off the Strathmore-Grosvenor Metro exit on the red line, it hosts outdoor movies during August.

Too bad the summer is almost over, I would have liked to take advantage of this great venue again as its a nice alternative to the traditional movie theater night.

Nightstars the movie

Got a chance to be an extra in the movie Nightstars currently being films in the area by Playart Productions. First time I've ever seen a feature length film being made up close, and it was great to hang out with all the very cool actors. Looking forward to seeing the final product on screen!