Hello Everyone!

There are so many good films at THE NEON this week!  Between OUT HERE DAYTON FILM FEST and our new engagements of JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE and TAYLOR SWIFT THE ERAS TOUR, we've got 18 new films for you this weekend (granted, 9 of those are short films...but still)!  If you  need to see STOP MAKING SENSE, Thursday will be your last chance to catch this restoration at THE NEON. SHE CAME TO ME will stick around for select screenings for one more week.

The festival we work on for months and months starts Friday!  Tickets for all of this weekend's screenings at OUT HERE DAYTON FILM FEST are still available (though only a few for Opening Night remain), and the scholarship portal is open.  We don't want ticket prices to deter anyone from attending the festival...so due to the assistance of our generous sponsors, people can apply for Free Tickets  to any screening at this year's festival.  Please help us spread the word, and be sure to read more about the festival by visiting the official site.  It's a great line-up!

In the next day or so, we're hoping to secure a special advance screening of my favorite film from TIFF this year.  Stay tuned!

"Open Caption Mondays" continue to be well-received - unfortunately, neither of our films on Monday, Oct. 16 offer captions as an option...but I'm certain NYAD (the incredible film with Annette Bening and Jodie Foster) will offer them next week. Stay tuned. (As a reminder, seating is no longer assigned on Mondays-Thursdays for traditional engagements.)

Synopsis for JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE: "Since her debut at the age of 18, musician, civil rights campaigner and activist Joan Baez has been on stage for over 60 years. For the now 82-year-old, the personal has always been political, and her friendship with Martin Luther King and her pacifism have shaped her commitment. In this biography that opens with her farewell tour, Baez takes stock in an unsparing fashion and confronts sometimes painful memories." (Magnolia Pictures) Don't miss one of the best reviewed docs of the year during this limited engagement!

Synopsis for TAYLOR SWIFT | THE ERAS TOUR: "The cultural phenomenon continues on the big screen! Immerse yourself in this once-in-a-lifetime concert film experience with a breathtaking, cinematic view of the history-making tour." (Variance)  Tickets are $19.89 each for general admission.  Seniors 60 and over and children 12 and under are $13.13.  (For this special engagement, no discounts or passes can be accepted.) (As an FYI, the distributor has asked us to pass along the fact that TAYLOR SWIFT | THE ERAS TOUR contains several sequences with flashing lights that may affect those who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy or have other photosensitivities.)

It’s year 18 for THE NEON’s annual festival celebrating the best in LGBTQIA+ stories on the big screen, but instead of “The Dayton LGBT Film Festival,” the event is now known as “OUT HERE DAYTON FILM FEST.”  This weekend, the event will screen 7 feature length films and 9 shorts. We have a well-rounded line-up of films that include big stars like Billy Porter, Luke Evans and the Indigo Girls to smaller films with stars who are about to make make big waves in the industry (like Lily Gladstone in FANCY DANCE...she'll soon be a household name when Martin Scorsese's new film gets released) - we even have films with Dayton connections.  THE NEON is leveraging the strength of fantastic films along with multiple sponsors to help make this year’s festival a success.  Visit our official site to learn more - and if you have time to volunteer this weekend (we need ushers for each show), please send an email my way to theneon@msn.com).

Special Thanks to Meredith Moss for her great story in Sunday's DAYTON DAILY NEWS...you can check it out HERE.  To see a short spot I did with Tej at GOOD DAY DAYTON, click this LINK.

If you're into underground, fringe or cult classic cinema, there's a new film series you're gonna want to check out - Cult Movie Mondays - and week #4 happens at The NEON on Monday, Oct 16th at 7:30pm, with TRICK OR TREAT - written by Rhet Topham and directed by Charles Martin Smith. Tickets and all of the details for upcoming screenings are available at the official site!
Synopsis: Remember when your parents told you your records were satanic? Well, they were right! The 1986 heavy metal Halloween horror film centers around a teen who resurrects his favorite hair metal hero to evoke death & destruction on his fellow classmates. With appearances from Ozzy Osborne & Gene Simmons, this movie has everything you would want in an 80s horror film, and takes place during Halloween. Sami Curr lives.

In addition to a very rare theatrical screening, we're excited to screen the local heavy metal short film BIRDFEEDER by Bryce Logan. Everything starts with special programming at 7:30pm and the feature film starts at 8:00pm with a runtime of 1h 38m. Following the film,  head to Blind Bob's for an afterparty and hang out to talk about the movie. Tickets are $11 in advance, $14 at the door, and $53 for a 6 pack of tickets in advance. Advanced tickets and more information are available atcultmoviemonday.com

**Discounted presale tickets end at Midnight on Oct 15th.

Cult Movie Monday is proudly presented in partnership with The Local 937, a brand new sandwich café opening in St. Annes Hill this Fall and Toxic Brew Company located a short D.O.R.A. walk away in the Oregon District. Tickets only available at cultmoviemonday.com or in-person one hour before the screening at THE NEON.

TICKETS ARE MOVING! We're delighted to bring the new documentary KING COAL to THE NEON for a special, one-night event - hosted by local Academy Award-winning director Steve Bognar. Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 - tickets are $12.50 (on sale now). "A lyrical tapestry of a place and people, KING COAL meditates on the complex history and future of the coal industry, the communities it has shaped, and the myths it has created. Oscar-nominated filmmaker Elaine McMillion Sheldon reshapes the boundaries of documentary filmmaking in a spectacularly beautiful and deeply moving immersion into Central Appalachia where coal is not just a resource, but a way of life, imagining the ways a community can re-envision itself."

Two professors from UD's Department of English are bringing back "Slasher Night at The Neon" - October 26! This year they are showing two classic horror films, THE THING, starring Kurt Russell and directed by John Carpenter, and AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, directed by John Landis.  A $20 ticket covers both films. THE THING will be the first film at 7:30, and after a 10-15 minute intermission, they'll start AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON. After the success of last year's selections, we are expecting a bigger crowd...so get your tickets early!

Special Screenings are now on the books for "TRIANGLE PARK - a documentary based on the first-ever NFL Football game, written and directed by Allen Farst. The film, for the first time, will uncover the facts around this seminal game in over 100 years. One of 14 original professional teams, the Dayton Triangles, played on Sunday October 3rd, 1920. The game was played in front of 5,000 fans. Farst goes to great depths to connect family decedents of former players even finding never before seen football treasures while leaning on football greats such as Troy Aikman, Ben Roethlisberger, Eric Dickerson, Joe Buck, Cooper Kupp, Joe Theismann, Larry Fitzgerald, Cris Collinsworth, Tony Dungy and more to uncover this generational story. Narrated by record setting, four time Emmy Sports Winner, Michele Tafoya." (taken from press notes) On November 7 & 9 at 7:30, the film will be followed by a special Q&A with director Allen Farst.  Tickets for those shows are $20 each.  On Wednesday, Nov. 8, the film will screen at 7:30 (without a Q&A) , and tickets are $17.50. TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW - and a matinee on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 5:10 was just added...tickets just $12 for this afternoon screening!

"The Kiss by Gustav Klimt is one of the most recognized and reproduced paintings in the world. It is perhaps the most popular poster on student dorm walls from Beijing to Boston. Painted in Vienna around 1908, the evocative image of an unknown embracing couple has captivated viewers with its mystery, sensuality and dazzling materials ever since it was created. But just what lies behind the appeal of the painting – and just who was the artist that created it?  Delving into the details of real gold, decorative designs, symbolism and simmering erotica, a close study of the painting takes us to the remarkable turn of the century Vienna when a new world was battling with the old. From the director of FRIDA KAHLO and MARY CASSATT - PAINTING THE MODERN WOMAN comes a powerful, gripping and passionate new film."  Join us on Sunday, Nov. 12 at 5pm for the last of our Exhibition On Screen events in partnership with Dayton Art Institute until Spring 2024! Tickets are flying!

If you pop in this weekend, you'll get a sneak peek at our new  MERCH SHOP - with some great, new NEON swag (even more new items will be hitting the shelves this Fall)!  Many thanks to Megan Smith & Ben Callahan for transforming our lobby alcove into an inviting and charming little shop!  You're gonna love it!

My best,  Jonathan