As the Head of Programming & Creative for the Alamo Drafthouse Los Angeles, introduced to the company initially through my favorite festival on earth, Fantastic Fest, it seemed appropriate to present below a collection of personal Fantastic Fest favorites, selections from Drafthouse LA’s original spring programming, titles you may have missed from our screening slate, and a film that truly brings the vast and diverse landscape of Los Angeles to life.
During the past couple of months, I’ve definitely found myself having difficulty diving into heavier material, so I also kept in mind wanting to select titles that not only check the box of being damn good cinema, but also bring some levity into your home via the outrageous, the delightful, the thrilling, and in some cases, all of the above.
As a bonus, three of the films take place primarily in one location (THE INVITATION, WHY DON’T YOU JUST DIE, EXTRATERRESTRIAL) because at a time when people are trying to find ways of being creative within one space, my hope is these can serve as inspiration.
Tip - get on a zoom with a bunch of friends, mute yourselves and communicate via flailing wildly when you watch TAMMY AND THE T-REX