Copresented by the Downtown Berkeley Association

TWO FREE OUTDOOR FILM SCREENINGS CELEBRATE BAM/PFA'S MOVE TO DOWNTOWN BERKELEY; SCREENINGS OF PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE (OCT. 3) AND THIS IS SPINAL TAP (OCT. 10) WILL TAKE PLACE ON THE UC BERKELEY CRESCENT LAWN ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE NEW BAM/PFA BUILDING SITE

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Berkeley, CA, August 22, 2014-The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) will host a pair of free outdoor movies across the street from the site of BAM/PFA's future home in downtown Berkeley on consecutive Fridays in early October 2014. A copresentation with the Downtown Berkeley Association, Endless Summer Cinema will feature two hilarious eighties comedies that became a template for new styles of comedic filmmaking-the strange Technicolor playground of Tim Burton's first film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and the rockumentary that begat all rockumentaries, Rob Reiner's This is Spinal Tap.

Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) takes audiences on a lovably absurd cross-country journey on October 3 as Paul Ruebens's Pee-wee Herman character hits the road to recover his most prized possession: a tricked-out forties Schwinn cruiser. Encounters with a fraudulent psychic, a jealous lover, and a biker gang guarantee a memorable trip. The highly stylized film launched the directorial career of Tim Burton, who would continue with a hugely successful run of his quirky and visually distinctive comedies throughout the eighties and nineties. In the bike-loving and carefree spirit of Pee-wee, we encourage patrons to bike to this event and saddle up their rides on bike racks donated by Bike East Bay.

The laughs continue on October 10 when we screen This Is Spinal Tap (1984). Follow the fictional British heavy-metal band Spinal Tap as they tour to promote their delightfully inappropriate LP, Smell The Glove. In this mockumentary deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress, the trio (played by Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer) is followed by documentarian Marty Di Bergi (Rob Reiner) as it struggles through failed shows, cancellations, squabbles, and an endless succession of drummer fatalities. The simple bandmates continue to take themselves a little too seriously, provoking laughs all around. A full decade later, Guest would revive the improvisational, ensemble–based mockumentary format introduced by This Is Spinal Tap, tarring and directing in his own series of widely praised comedies, including Waiting For Guffmann, Best In Show, and A Mighty Wind.

Endless Summer Cinema events will take place on the Crescent lawn at the West Gate of the UC Berkeley campus, where Oxford and Center Streets meet. Shorts and other surprises begin at 7:30 p.m. for each event, with the feature films screening at 8 p.m. Patrons are encouraged to bring their own blankets, chairs, snacks, and someone to cuddle with.

www.EndlessSummerCinema.com

Endless Summer Cinema Calendar

Friday, October 3, 8 p.m.
Pee-wee's Big Adventure Tim Burton (U.S., 1985)
Recommended for Ages 7 & Up
Tim Burton (US, 1985). Tim Burton's first feature film follows the squeaky-mad Pee-wee Herman as he rides roughshod over eighties conformity in search of his stolen bike. “Revels in the weird, the unpredictable, the infantile, and the absurd” (Empire). (90 mins)
Bike racks courtesy of Bike East Bay.

Friday, October 10, 8 p.m.
This Is Spinal Tap Rob Reiner (U.S., 1984)
Turn it up to eleven as tightly spandexed past-it rockers Spinal Tap reunite for a doomed US tour. One of the greatest comedies of all time, a “rare comedy that is as completely entertaining now as it was back then” (LA Times). (82 mins)

Support
Endless Summer Cinema is supported by the UC Berkeley Chancellor's Community Partnership Fund. Special thanks to our media sponsor Berkeleyside.

More Online
For updates visit www.endlessummercinema.com

About BAM/PFA
Founded in 1963, the UC Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) is UC Berkeley's primary visual arts venue and among the largest university art museums in terms of size and audience in the United States. Internationally recognized for its art and film programming, BAM/PFA is a platform for cultural experiences that transform individuals, engage communities, and advance the local, national and global discourse on art and ideas. BAM/PFA's mission is “to inspire the imagination and ignite critical dialogue through art and film.”

BAM/PFA presents approximately fifteen art exhibitions and 380 film programs each year. The museum's collection of over 16,000 works of art includes important holdings of Neolithic Chinese ceramics, Ming and Qing Dynasty Chinese painting, Old Master works on paper, Italian Baroque painting, early American painting, Abstract Expressionist painting, contemporary photography, and video art. Its film archive of over 14,000 films and videos includes the largest collection of Japanese cinema outside of Japan, Hollywood classics, and silent film, as well hundreds of thousands of articles, reviews, posters, and other ephemera related to the history of film, many of which are digitally scanned and accessible online.

Website: bampfa.berkeley.edu

About the Downtown Berkeley Association
Downtown Berkeley Association is a nonprofit membership organization and the Owner's Association for the new Property-Based Business Improvement District (PBID), representing 187 property owners and approximately 680 of their merchant and business tenants. The purpose of the PBID is to create and sustain a vibrant and prosperous City Center by: 1) Producing a consistently clean, welcoming, and attractive Downtown experience; 2) Attracting and retaining new businesses; 3) Cultivating a fun and vibrant Downtown “living room;” 4) Enhancing property values, sales, and occupancies; 5) Helping Downtown businesses compete locally and regionally. The district encompasses 25 blocks bounded by Delaware, Oxford/Fulton, Dwight, and MLK Jr. Way.

Website: downtownberkeley.com

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