Things to do in Los Angeles on Friday

Ever wanted to watch Disney’s most beloved spooky flicks in L.A.’s most iconic cemetery? Allow this free weekend of screenings at Hollywood Forever to help. Disney+ Hallowstream kicks off on Friday, October 7 with Hocus Pocus and its new streaming sequel, Hocus Pocus 2. Then on Saturday, October 8, you can catch The Nightmare Before Christmas followed by a Marvel double feature, the “Halloween Spooktacular” episode of WandaVision and the new one-off special Werewolf by Night. Smorgasburg will be handling a selection of food for sale at the event. Free reservations open up on Monday, September 26 at 10am, but capacity is limited.

Scope out B-movie classics and under-the-radar premieres at Beyond Fest. This film fest comes from Death Waltz Recording Co. and American Cinematheque (for which the fest will raise funds) and includes two weeks of screenings and Q&As. You’ll find the screenings spreading across town at the TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood Legion Theatre, Aero Theatre, Los Feliz 3 and IMAX headquarters.

Stroll through a mile-long trail filled with all things pumpkins, including an illuminated forest of jack-o’-lanterns, during Descanso Gardens’ annual Carved. For three weeks this fall (Oct 7–31), the event will line a loop of the botanical garden with thousands of professionally-carved pumpkins. Tickets ($32–$38) go on sale to the general public on September 15, but in the meantime here’s what we thought of last year’s edition… Expect pumpkins in all sorts of forms: as a sea monster rising from a pond, arranged on the ground like a white-and-orange paisley, stuck together with branches in the form of some oversized bugs and cobbled together into a house. Most notably, you’ll find an uplit forested section of the garden lined with expressive jack-o’-lanterns, as well as some intricately carved ones that pay homage to everything from Hocus Pocus to Captain America to Kobe Bryant. There are a few familiar sights if you’ve ever attended Descanso’s other holiday tradition, Enchanted, but tweaked for Halloween (stomp along the trunk-encircling platforms in the oak grove and you’ll hear shrill cackles instead of sparkly sounds). Like Enchanted, the music is moody (but not spooky or scary; this is definitely made for families) and the installations are artfully assembled: Sure, they could’ve just dumped a bunch of jack-o’-lanterns everywhere, but supplementing them with woven straw lanterns, a floating Day of the Dead altar and red, glowing skeletons that subtly emerge out of the da

The two British electronic juggernauts team up for a synth-filled night at the Hollywood Bowl, as part of the bands’ co-headlining Unity Tour.

Home of the LA County Fair, the Fairplex turns into a German wonderland for Oktoberfest every Friday and Saturday with Bavarian music, beer and plenty of chicken dancing. Sink your teeth into bratwurst, knockwurst and sweet corn while knocking back authentic German suds at this 21-plus event with DJs, oompah bands and even a No Doubt tribute band.

Though you can linearly chart decades of Oscars winners, you can’t really do the same with the history of cinema: There are many stories that have pushed the medium forward, as the Academy Museum’s collection spells out. That’s particularly true for the L.A. film museum’s second-ever special exhibition, an essential and energetic display that spotlights an entire century of often-overlooked filmmaking and demonstrates that Black artists have been a vital part of cinema since its inception. A collaboration with Washington, D.C.’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, “Regeneration” uses posters, costumes and film clips to dive into the works of Black actors, directors and production companies from the birth of the motion picture industry through the Civil Rights era. The exhibition (which kicks off with a screening series of the same era) spans across seven galleries and is arranged roughly chronologically, starting with vaudeville and race films (movies made for Black audiences by Black actors) into a complex era of Hollywood musicals, through a political awakening in moviemaking and right up to the dawn of Blaxploitation films. Along the way you’ll see everything from Louis Armstrong’s trumpet to footage of Josephine Baker at the Folies Bergère to Sidney Poitier’s Oscar. But our absolute favorite thing on display is a 1939 Mills Panoram movie jukebox that screens a series of “soundies”—basically a colorful wooden cabinet with short-form musical films on a

One of L.A.’s best free live music offerings, Jazz at LACMA has featured legit legends over its three-decade run at the museum. The beloved program is back again for the season, and so too is its open seating and picnicking format (whereas last year you needed a reservation). You’ll find the series on Friday evenings in LACMA’s welcome plaza (just behind Urban Light) starting in April.

Hatched out of the hunger for car-friendly trick-or-treating options, this former Halloween drive-through is back again in Woodland Hills as on-foot adventure. Haunt’oween will celebrate spooky season with a walkthrough that features tons of pumpkins, a trick-or-treating–filled town and an illuminated carnival, plus face painting, performances, games and food trucks. The event once again comes by way of Experiential Supply Co., which cut its teeth on activations for big-budget movies (like that terrifying IT house) and has continued to stage all sorts of holiday events in the Valley. Tickets go on sale August 23 at 9am and start at $40. You’ll find it at 6100 Topanga Canyon Boulevard on the site of the former Westfield Promenade, with free parking right next to the event entrance.

Head to the mountains for the annual Oktoberfest at Big Bear Lake, where you’ll be able to clink steins every weekend from early September to early November. Beer will be flowing, knockwursts will be cooked up and dirndls will be worn. The schedule includes numerous bands—four flown straight from Germany—and other performances, and some lucky damsel will be named the Oktoberfest Queen when she wins the stein carrying contest.

The masters of alfresco rooftop movie viewing have returned for another season of screenings in Downtown L.A., the Arts District and El Segundo. Known for excellent film choices and a steady supply of snacks and booze, Rooftop Cinema Club is your snazzy, comfortable and less stressful alternative to other outdoor movie screenings. You don’t even need to bring your own camping chair—Rooftop Cinema Club provides you with your very own comfy lawn chair (though you’ll need to bring your own blanket for the ultimate cozy experience). And instead of listening to the movie over loudspeakers, you’ll get a set of wireless headphones so you never have to miss a word.