Museum launches new Friday Films Series this week with “Fried Green Tomatoes”

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) gives visitors more reasons to visit with extended evening hours and a new Friday Film Series starting this week.

The museum is extending operating hours until 9 p.m. each Friday. VMFA is now open daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with extended hours until 9 p.m. on both Thursdays and Fridays.

In addition to the galleries, each Friday visitors are invited to enjoy art on the silver screen with the launch of the VMFA Friday Film Series, a weekly showcase of motion pictures. Located in the renovated Leslie Cheek Theater for performing arts, the series will bring a curated lineup of recent, classic, independent, documentary and some “art house” films from both Hollywood and abroad. 

“The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts has a tradition of movie exhibition going back to 1940s,” says Trent Nicholas, VMFA’s coordinator of statewide media resources. “Our Friday Film Series continues our history of addressing film as art. The series will be linked by a monthly theme so we’re able to compare and contrast cinematic approaches. Each movie will be presented with a brief introduction and followed by a discussion when time allows.”

The films for the month of July are selected on the basis of the rich – and sometimes eccentric – heritage of life and culture of the South:

July 2010: The South 

July 2:  “Fried Green Tomatoes” (1991) 
Veteran character actor Raynor Scheine, who plays “Sheriff Curtis Smoote,” will appear to comment on the film and answer questions. 

July 9:  “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” (2000) 

July 16: “Sullivan’s Travels” (1941)

July 23:  “Frank’s Place” (1987-88)
Special appearance by creator and star Tim Reid, star Daphne Maxwell Reid and co-creator Hugh Wilson

July 30:  Double Feature
“Seven Signs: Music, Myth, and the American South” (2008) 
“It’s Grits” (1980, updated 2010) 

In August, the theme will be “Great Ladies of the Screen.” Films, dates and guest appearances are available online at www.vmfa.museum/fridayfilms. Friday Film Series tickets are $7 (VMFA members $5). Tickets may be purchased by phone at 804.340.1405, online or at the museum’s Visitor Services desk.

About the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

With a collection of art that spans the globe and more than 5,000 years, plus a wide array of special exhibitions, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) is recognized as one of the top comprehensive art museums in the United States. The museum’s permanent collection encompasses more than 22,000 works of art, including the largest public collection of Fabergé outside Russia and one of the nation’s finest collections of American art. VMFA is home to acclaimed collections of English Silver and Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, British Sporting and Contemporary art, as well as renowned South Asian, Himalayan and African art. 

In May 2010, VMFA opened its doors to the public after a transformative expansion, the largest in its 74-year history. Programs include educational activities and studio classes for all ages, plus fun after-hours events. VMFA’s Statewide Partnership program includes traveling exhibitions, artist and teacher workshops, and lectures across the Commonwealth. General admission is always free.