WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 30, 2020 5
Queens Drive-In coming to Flushing Meadows Corona Park
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
The New York Hall of Science will
remain closed until mid-2021
due to the COVID-19 pandemic,
but its vast parking fi eld in Flushing
Meadows Corona Park will not go unused.
It will house the Queens Drive-
In, which will start next month and
off er free and ticketed screenings
of new independent fi lms, as well as
recent and classic fi lms of all genres.
Rooftop Films, in partnership
with the Museum of the Moving Image,
the Hall of Science and the city’s
Economic Development Corporation,
will present fi lms throughout the
remainder of the summer and in the
fall.
“For 24 years, it has been Rooft op’s
mission to bring New Yorkers together
via the media of fi lm,” Rooft op
Films Artistic Director Dan Nuxoll
said. “With theaters shuttered and
most festivals postponed or moving
to streaming, we hope that these
events will be part of a collaborative
healing process for our neighbors,
and give us an opportunity to once
again spotlight the most daring new
fi lms from around the world.”
Rooft op will also present a drivein
festival at The Brooklyn Armory
working with Mutual Aid Risk and
Safety to ensure both sites meet city
and state safety protocols. Screenings
will be available only to those
in an enclosed vehicle at fi rst but the
partners will continue conversations
with the proper agencies to determine
whether in the future it will be
safe and legal to adapt event spaces
to accommodate socially distanced
walk-up attendees.
“In this unusual New York summer
without concerts and other largescale
events in the parks, Queens is
proud to partner with Rooft op Films
and others to present this drive-in
movie series as an option for families
and friends to enjoy together while
still prioritizing safety,” Acting
Queens Borough President Sharon
Lee said.”We are especially delighted
to bring New Yorkers a number of
these fi lms free of charge here in the
‘Borough of Families.’”
A portion of public ticket sales will
be donated to Elmcor, the youth and
adult social services organization
serving Elmhurst and Corona, and
free tickets to most programs will be
made available to residents of Corona
and Elmhurst, the neighborhoods
that were hardest hit by the coronavirus
crisis.
“After months of stay-at-home
orders and social distancing, New
Yorkers are craving the opportunity
to safely go out and seek entertainment,”
Councilman Francisco Moya
said. “I’m thrilled to see Rooft op Films
team up with the Museum of the Moving
Image and the New York Hall of
Science to provide both its fi rst-ever
drive-in festival, and I’m proud to
support this fantastic initiative.”
Programming will include screenings
of new independent and foreign
fi lms, new and classic family fi lms,
and classic repertory and thematic
programming by the New York Hall
of Science and the Museum of the
Moving Image.
“At MoMI, we believe in the excitement
of being in the same space to
watch movies, and in continuing the
legacy of cinema as a shared experience,”
MoMI Executive Director Carl
Goodman said. “We are also pleased
to partner with Rooft op Films and
NYSCI, as it allows us to bring communal
moviegoing back to Queens
during a time when many have been
hit hard, including independent fi lmmakers
who have lost the venues for
their work.”
Visit the Queens Drive-in website
in the coming weeks for schedules
and ticket sales.
Queens Drive-In is coming to the New York Hall of Science parking fi eld
beginning next month. Courtesy of Rooftop Films
link
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