photo credit: Cinespia

It’s hard to believe, but there was a time when cemetery screening still had a tinge of creepiness to them, instead of merely being another place for L.A.’s hipsters to drink wine. Alas, it may be those same people who have kept Cinespia, the summer film series at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, going strong for a decade.

Alas, to celebrate their 10th anniversary, on Saturday, August 13th, Cinespia will allow ticketholders to spend the whole night inside the cemetery. While this alone should be tempting enough, be warned that instead of a lineup of films from the horror or thriller genres, the programming is dedicated to 60s era psychedelic rock, with feature documentaries, animated shorts, and more, with Cinespia DJs spinning in between.

For $10, it’s a deal. No word if a concession stand stocked with Zagnuts and Zig-Zags will be available.

Full details from Cinespia:

Cinespia presents Movies Till Dawn featuring Monterey Pop
Hollywood Forever Cemetery (6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90038)
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Gates open at 7:30pm / films screen from 9pm to 6am
$10 donation / $10 parking
No reservations necessary.

Cinespia is pulling an all-nighter at the cemetery and showing nonstop films from dusk till dawn. The outdoor slumber party kicks off Saturday night, August 13, with a presentation of the seminal concert film, Monterey Pop, followed by rare concert footage, psychedelic animation, visual music, short docs, and other ephemera of the era — all screening until the sun rises early Sunday morning. Renowned music guru DJ Carlos Niño and other Cinespia DJs spin before and after the films. Bring sleeping bags, drinks, and picnic dinners, and stick around for breakfast and coffee following this special screening above — and below — the stars.

Directed by legendary documentary filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker, Monterey Pop chronicles the three-day Monterey International Pop Music Festival, a large-scale rock extravaganza that attracted almost 100,000 people in the summer of 1967 — a full two years before Woodstock. The film features performances by high-profile groups such as Simon & Garfunkel, Jefferson Airplane, The Who, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience, and is a must-see for music fans, documentary film buffs, and anyone with an interest in ’60s-era popular culture.

PLUS: Psychedelic Animation, Visual Music, Short Docs, and other Surprise Screen Gems

After Monterey Pop, Cinespia screens Jimi Hendrix (1973), with live footage of Hendrix, as well as interviews with those who knew him best. Musician Harper Simon then moderates a Q&A with director Gary Weiss and Hendrix’s longtime engineer and producer, Eddie Kramer.

Following the documentaries, Cinespia takes filmgoers on a psychedelic voyage through even more jaw-dropping concert performances, not to mention trippy shorts and a series of stunning visuals. Make a nest and settle in for some of the best screen gems of the late ’60s and early ’70s, as Cinespia DJs spin into the night.

Cinespia held its first film screening at Hollywood Forever Cemetery ten summers ago with Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Strangers on a Train (1951). Since then, Cinespia has become a summer institution in Los Angeles, drawing thousands of film fans to watch classics and cult favorites projected outdoors on the marble wall of the mausoleum where legends like Rudolph Valentino rest in peace. Cinespia is not only known for delivering crowd-pleasers at the cemetery, but for programming and co-presenting first-rate film events at other venues as well, including the Natural History Museum and the Silent Movie Theatre. Visit Cinespia’s website for more information on screenings at the cemetery and beyond.

"Midnight @ The Hollywood Forever Cemetery." Photo by Jennifer Gaillard, used under a Creative Commons license