Central Park Film Festival Returns With 4 Outdoor Screenings

CENTRAL PARK, NY — One of the best events for New York City's film buffs is set to return to the city's most famous park in August. The annual Central Park Conservancy Film Festival will return to the park's Sheep Meadow and host four free film screenings in a one-week span.

The free screenings will begin Tuesday, Aug. 14 with a showing of the 1979 film version of the musical "Hair," Central Park Conservancy officials said. The next three nights will feature Spike Lee film "Crooklyn," followed by the classic dark comedy "Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" and 1984's "The Muppets Take Manhattan."

All of the movie showings are completely free to attend. The gates open at 6:30 p.m. and the movies begin at 8 p.m., so be sure to get there early and claim a spot with a good view of the screen. Don't worry about sitting around bored for an hour, as a DJ will be spinning tunes until the movie starts.

Alcoholic beverages, any drinks contain in glass bottles, chairs, video cameras and tape recorders will not be allowed at the screenings, according to the Central Park Conservancy.

The Central Park Conservancy did not announce plans to bring the festival back to Harlem's Marcus Garvey Park, which hosted two additional films the past two years. Information about potential Harlem screenings is not found on the conservancy's website.

The conservancy is responsible for day-to-day maintenance and programming at Central Park.

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