Anyone 18 years and older is invited to laugh, or cringe, at three cult films shown by Palouse Cult Film Revival next Tuesday through Thursday at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre.
This year, the four films are “Sleep Away Camp,” “Drop Dead Gorgeous” and “The Room”/ “Best F(r)iends” Double Feature.
As described by Eric Billings, founder of Palouse Cult Film Revival, cult films are films that might not have been super popular when they first came out, but have developed a sort of cult following over time.
“They (cult films) can sometimes be hilarious—whether intentional or not—or just downright bad and cringe worthy,” Billings said. “But I think what they all have in common is that when people get together, sometimes over alcohol, it’s just a fun experience and good time with friends and the community.”
Eric Billings | Courtesy
As a University of Idaho alumnus, Billings said he recently created the Palouse Cult Film Revival on-profit as a way to give back to the community. In partnership with Moscow Community Theatre, all of the profits go back to them as a sort of 501C3 status.
The entire event is sponsored by the Best Western University Inn, while individual films are sponsored by One World Café, Mikey’s Gyros, Safari Pearl Comics, Tabikat Productions and the UI Journalism and Mass Media Department. Tickets are $5 for a film, $15 for a double feature or $20 for all. They can be purchased at all aforementioned locations, on Facebook or at the door.
“The special interactivity for “Sleep Away Camp” is the encouragement to wear pajamas to the showing for $1 off drinks,” Billings said. “For “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” local drag queen Aquasha DeLusty will open with a drag performance around the theme of beauty queens. Lastly, props and call out scripts will be provided for the showing of “The Room.””
Billings said Greg Sestero, actor in “The Room” and writer of “The Disaster Artist,” will be visiting Moscow for a Q&A session and script reading, as well as meet and greet on Thursday. Billings expects The Room showing to be sold out this year.
“These showings are a way to interact with a group of friends in a really special way,” Billings said. “I think it’s just fun — movies are such an important part of our culture, and they don’t have to all be great, amazing movies, because there are unique parts to all types of movies.”
Lauren Rickards, public relations major and Palouse Cult Film Revival intern, said the internship opportunity came out of the blue and she did not really know what to expect. She said she fell into it pretty fast, doing average intern work such as social media posts and press releases, but all in relation to a topic she already loved.
“This internship works well with my major, and I feel like it has given me a lot of applicable work experience, while still getting to do something that is fun and interesting to me,” Rickards said. “I didn’t know such a fun opportunity existed.”
She said she has had an interest in cult films since a young age, even though they are crazy and did not do well in the box office. She said she is excited to see “Sleep Away Camp” because she has not seen it before, and each film showing is interactive.
“Even if you’ve never seen a cult film, if you like doing things with your friends and seeing things that are bizarre and unexplainable, then you will like them,” Rickards said.
She said Moscow is a place rich with counter culture, and it caught her attention when she first started at UI. Anything from cult films to punk shows can be found in Moscow, along with anything in between.
“I think everyone goes to social events because they want a conversation starter, and I think that cult films are like the conversation starter to end all conversation starters,” Rickards said. “My favorite thing about these events is you can create your own counter culture community.”
Allison Spain can be reached at [email protected]