by Derick Dupre

Starting this Friday at the Prytania Theatre, the fourth installment of the filmOrama showcase will make its return. The program was curated by the staff of the New Orleans Film Society, and represents a wide diversity of styles, subject matter, and nationalities.

Tonight, get weird on Prytania with a new movie from Quintron and Miss Pussycat, check out local music from Oak St. to the Quarter, and more. On this day in 1932, the Louisiana State Capitol Building was completed after just 14 months. Now, more to do this Friday in New Orleans. 

It's Ash Wednesday, a chance for all New Orleanians to recover from the long Super Bowl-Carnival season. As residents plan their Lenten sacrifices and nurse their hangovers, there's a lot of non-alcoholic fun to be had in the Crescent City. On this day in 1899, the lowest recorded temperature in our state's history chilled residents of Minden, La at a frigid -16 degrees. Now, more to do this hump day. 

American news coverage of Haiti’s reconstruction has dwindled to virtually none, but people in the Caribbean are still struggling three years after the tragic earthquake. Haitian people are persisting despite overwhelming damage, using scant resources to rebuild day by day. Haiti Redux, a new documentary film about post-catastrophe reconstruction, explores the progress the people of the island nation have made, and the Prytania Theatre is hosting a free screening Thursday night.

by Erica Boni

These days we have the Prytania and the recently rekindled Joy. But in days gone by, going to a single-screen movie theatre merely required walking down the street. And now there's a book to prove it. On Thursday night, the Prytania theater hosts an event to celebrate the release There’s One In Your Neighborhood: The Lost Movie Theaters of New Orleans, a coffee table book two years in the making that reveals the details of hundreds of lost theaters throughout the city.

by Emma Boyce

The New Orleans Film Festival rolls the final credits on Thursday, but there's still a heaping helping of selections that have yet to see the bigscreen.  Whether you like a Civil War western, a quirky contemporary comedy, a sex drama or an adventurous foreign language film, there is something for everyone. Many films that screened on the weekend are also getting a second run during the last two days. Check out our pick of the fest's remaining debut flicks:

Make room, Mike Scott. Starting Thursday, everyone in New Orleans is a critic. The New Orleans Film Society is holding the 23rd annual New Orleans Film Festival from October 11 to October 18, featuring some of the best films from around Louisiana and the world. Throughout the week, the festival packs in more than 200 films, 70 directors, panels and parties into 8 days of cinematic adventure.

If you can read this, you can read subtitles. Even though some folks shy away from foreign language movies, this year’s New Orleans French Film Festival offers plenty of reasons to exercise your readin’ muscles.

Today, be French at the 13th Annual Summer Wine Festival, support Women with a Vision at Twelve Mile Limit, watch Koan return to Tipitina’s and bid adieu to Johnny White's Sports Bar - as we know it. On this day in history, the Robert E. Lee and the Natchez began their famous riverboat race (1870), trumpeter Wallace Davenport was born in New Orleans (1925), lead singer of Pantera Phillip Anselmo was born in New Orleans (1968), and Better Than Ezra bassist Tom Drummond was born in Shreveport (1969). Now for today's complete menu:

If gray skies are making this weekend feel like a good weekend to catch a movie, there's plenty of options that don't involve driving out to the 'burbs. That's because the time of the New Orleans' Film Society's annual look at fresh independent pictures, known as filmOrama, is with us until we start packing up the folding chairs for the Fair Grounds. The Prytania Theatre projectors started rolling on this fest yesterday. But most of the films shown will get a second showing, so there's still plenty of time left in the five-day fest. Click through for five highlights of the schedule.