Every Friday and Saturday Rooftop Films presents outdoor ovies; some actually on New York rooftops, others on the ground. Various venues include Fort Greene Park and Williamsburg's Automotive High School, but no matter where you see it, these films are not to be missed.
Cost: Varies; events at Fort Greene Park and the Brooklyn Navy Yard are free, while most others range from $8-$10.
Program: International indie, with a heavy New York flavor. And not "indie" as in "eventually sells for $10 million at Sundance," but rather "made with distribution as an afterthought." Founder Mark Rosenberg and partners Dan Nuxoll and Sarah Palmer possess keen and somewhat fearless eyes for short films in particular, unspooling rich programs like This is What We Mean... by ROMANCE and New York Non-Fiction every weekend alongside strong documentaries like Andrew Berends' When Adnan Comes Home and the wildly amusing Czech Dream. Live music precedes most outdoor movie screenings.
View/Location: The default venue is the roof of Williamsburg's Automotive High School, a serviceable site offering both convenience to the G and L trains as well as a decent view of the city. East Williamsburg, Gowanus and Red Hook are represented as well, while increasingly more Rooftop Films events (motto: "Movies on a roof in Brooklyn") take place at ground level or in Manhattan.
Seating: The organizers generally provide chairs. Provided there is room, couples or groups can usually throw down a blanket and view the films without any obstructions.
Picture/Sound: I have never been too impressed by the image quality of Rooftop's video projector, which imposes a mildly fuzzy big-screen-TV mist on its films. Surrounding light sources can be a problem, especially in Manhattan. On the bright side, the sound is well-calibrated for its respective venues' sizes.
Restrooms: Depends on the venue, but the restrooms are never so far away and the attendance so out of control that a bathroom break takes longer than 10 minutes.
Food/Drink: A limited selection of beverages (read: water) is available for purchase. You are welcome to bring your own, however, and on a pleasant night, a picnic-style rooftop dinner with a bottle of wine along with an outdoor movie under the stars is arguably the best date in town. Just pack light--you still have to lug it up the stairs.
Excerpt from The Reeler's Screening Gotham Special Edition: The Reeler's Guide to Outdoor Cinema in NYC . Read full article at: http://www.mcnblogs.com/reeler/archives/screening_gotham/. Photo credit: Rooftop Films
