Here’s a reminder that this year’s version of the Lower East Side Film Festival debuts tonight at Village East Cinemas with “Getting Naked: A Burlesque Story.” The documentary directed by James Lester explores the “neo-burlesque” scene in New York City (much of the filming took place at the Slipper Room).
If you can’t make opening night, there are lots of great films and after-parties coming your way in the next week. Tomorrow night, for example, the local film fest celebrates the 10th anniversary of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, the Michael Cera cult classic set on the Lower East Side.
Also on Friday, it’s a special screening of Papillon, starring Rami Malek (Mr. Robot) and Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy). The remake of the 1973 classic tells the story of a Parisian safecracker framed for murder and condemned to life on Devil’s Island. [The film doesn’t open nationwide until late summer.]
On Saturday, there a Ladies Night Shorts Showcase and the New York premiere of The Outdoorsman, a romantic comedy. Then on Sunday, you can channel your inner-activist self at a screening of Show Me Democracy, a documentary that follows seven college students on the front lines of the protests in Ferguson, Missouri after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in 2014.
All festival tickets include beer and wine before the screenings. For more info and the full lineup, visit their website here.
*Editor’s note: The author of this story is a member of the Board of Directors of the Lower East Side Film Festival.
