7 Summer Film Series Happening in Metro Phoenix

Watching films a bit off the beaten path is a fun, affordable way to beat the summer doldrums. We’ve found seven series featuring a diverse assortment of films, ranging from works by Arizona filmmakers to music documentaries. Here’s a look at some of your options in coming weeks and months, happening in several places around the Valley.

The Arizona Filmmaker Showcase series presents several films by Arizona creatives at 6 p.m. on the fourth Sunday of every month. The July lineup at FilmBar includes Retrocausality, The Pit, Dreamt, Growing Up in Public, and Ice Cream Cake. Tickets are $9.95.

Scene from Hard Boiled, which is part of the Art House Society series at FilmBar.

Golden Princess Film

The Art House Cinema series at FilmBar, which is presented by FilmStruck and Zia Records, includes monthly screenings of art house classics. The next screening will be John Woo’s Hard Boiled at 2:30 p.m. on August 4. Tickets are $9.95.

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has teamed up with Four Peaks Brewing Company for this monthly series of music documentaries. Screenings include beer tastings. Next up is The Public Image Is Rotten at 7:30 p.m. on July 17 in Tempe. The film is for ages 18 and up. Tickets are $8. Future films in the series include Awesome; I Fuckin’ Shot That and Here’s to Life! The Story of the Refreshments.

This free, family-friendly film series presented by RAIL happens once a month at an outdoor venue called the Sliver Lot where people bring their own chairs and blankets. Pre-film activities start 30 minutes before screenings. Upcoming films include Lego Movie 2 at 8 p.m. on August 9 and Bolt at 7 p.m. on September 13.

The Scene and Heard Film Series at the Heard Museum includes Smoke Signals on July 28 and Your Name Isn’t English on August 25. These 11:30 a.m. film screenings are free. Smoke Signals director Chris Eyre will do a Q&A session after the July film. Writer and director Tazbah Chavez and actress Chelsey Luger will hold a discussion following the August screening.

The Tuesday Night Classics Series includes classic films screened at various Harkins Theatres locations on Tuesday nights at 7 p.m. Upcoming films include Footloose on July 16, 8 Mile on July 23, Saving Private Ryan on July 30, Gone With the Wind on August 6, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade on August 13, Saturday Night Fever on August 20, and Rudy on August 27. Tickets are $5.

This Friends of Contemporary Art Film Series presented by Lisa Sette Gallery at Phoenix Art Museum includes 6 p.m. screenings for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind on July 24, La Gran Belleza on August 28, and Roma on September 25. Tickets are $5 (or free for museum members).

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