Sundown Cinema Film Screenings Are Back at San Francisco Parks

A beloved free outdoor film series in San Francisco is making a comeback thanks to a local newsroom, The San Francisco Standard.

Just before it was set to kick off its 2025 season in May, Sundown Cinema was canceled amid a financial scandal at the San Francisco Parks Alliance, the nonprofit that organized the event.

This week, The San Francisco Standard announced that it’d revive the series with two screenings: Damien Chazelle’s 2016 musical rom-com La La Land on Sept. 25 at Dolores Park and Tim Burton’s 1990 fantasy classic Edward Scissorhands on Oct. 23 at the Presidio Civil War Parade Ground.

Sundown Cinema has been a San Francisco staple since 2003. “As a team, we decided we just couldn’t let the tradition disappear,” San Francisco Standard CEO Griffin Gaffney told KQED via email.

“It brings together two of the best parts of living in San Francisco,” he continued, “our gorgeous parks and the community that lives here.”

The San Francisco Parks Alliance told KQED earlier this year that Sundown Cinema screenings had cost the nonprofit $30,000–$40,000 per event to produce. While he didn’t get into the financial specifics, Gaffney said that to make the series financially feasible, The SF Standard secured backing from Waymo, Mubi and Pier 39.

The September and October screenings will feature food trucks, and the events are free and open to all. If they are a success, Gaffney said, The San Francisco Standard will explore an expanded 2026 season that brings movies to more of the city’s parks and neighborhoods. “An expanded series would also create opportunities to partner with more local vendors and small businesses in each neighborhood we visit,” he added.

But that all depends on community feedback. “We want to ensure we’re creating something that serves San Franciscans,” he said.

Sundown Cinema takes place on Sept. 25 at Dolores Park and Oct. 23 at the Presidio Civil War Parade Ground.