Beauty and the Beast: Co-Presented by Segerstrom Center for the Arts

Posted on July 1, 2026

Our Broadway Thursdays: Segerstrom Center at The Frida kicks off with the greatest love story ever told…the original 1991 Beauty and the Beast!

When the bright and bookish Belle takes her father’s place as the prisoner of a mysterious Beast, she discovers that the fearsome creature and his enchanted household are hiding a heartbreaking secret. As Belle and the Beast slowly learn to look beyond appearances, an unlikely friendship blossoms into one of Disney’s most enduring love stories.

A landmark in animation storytelling, Beauty and the Beast remains every bit as magical as it was upon its original release. Featuring unforgettable songs by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman and breathtaking hand-drawn animation, it’s a timeless reminder that some fairy tales are simply meant to be experienced together in a movie theater.

Nacho Libre

Posted on June 20, 2026

He’s nacho average hero.

Celebrate 4th of July weekend with some encores of the 21st century cult classic Nacho Libre!

Jack Black stars as Ignacio, a monastery cook with big dreams of wrestling glory. By day, he tends to orphans with meager meals and modest means, but by night, he dons a homemade mask and cape to become “Nacho”, a bumbling yet big-hearted fighter who enters the chaotic world of Lucha Libre. Teaming up Esqueleto (Héctor Jiménez), a wiry street thief with zero wrestling skills but plenty of scrappy determination (and a firm belief in science), Nacho must balance his secret life in the ring with his devotion to the children he cares for, all while chasing respect. Oh, and the heart of the beautiful Sister Encarnación (Ana de la Reguera).

Wildly silly yet surprisingly sincere, Nacho Libre is a raucous underdog tale showcasing Jack Black at his most gloriously unhinged. It has become one of the defining cult films of the 2000s, begging for a re-visit on the big screen with a crowd of cheering Nacho fans!

Hook

Posted on June 12, 2026

Our Spielberg Summer series flies to Neverland with Hook, the once-maligned fantasy film that time has steadily re-appraised as one of Spielberg’s most heartfelt flights of imagination!!!

When grown-up lawyer Peter Banning (the former Peter Pan) returns to Neverland after Captain Hook kidnaps his children, he must rediscover the boy he forgot in order to lead the Lost Boys and face his old enemy. Along the way, he’s guided by Tinker Bell (Julia Roberts), challenged by Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman), and slowly drawn back into a world of belief.

Initially met with mixed reception and criticized for its tone and excess, Hook has since been embraced by many as a deeply personal story about adulthood’s erosion of wonder and the struggle to reclaim it. Beneath the spectacle and whimsy is a film about imagination and the cost of forgetting how to play, revealing Spielberg’s enduring belief that growing up doesn’t have to mean letting go.

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Posted on June 12, 2026

He is afraid. He is totally alone. He is 3,000,000 light years from home.

Our Spielberg Summer series phones home with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, one of the most beloved family films ever made and a landmark of modern American cinema.

When a lonely young boy named Elliott discovers a stranded alien hiding near his home, the two form an unlikely friendship that changes both of their lives. As E.T. becomes part of Elliott’s family, the children must help their otherworldly companion evade government authorities and find a way back home before it’s too late.

Few films capture the wonder of childhood as beautifully as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Spielberg transforms a simple story of friendship into something genuinely magical. Decades after audiences first watched that bicycle lift off against the moonlit sky, the film, like so many others from Spielberg, continues to inspire awe from audiences across the globe.

Enhanced Accessibility: this film has Closed Captioning, Assisted Listening, and Audio Description capability!

The Red Balloon + White Mane

Posted on May 15, 2026

Two of the most beloved family films ever made are up next for our Art House for Families series as we’re presenting a special double feature presentation celebrating the poetic, adventurous world of filmmaker Albert Lamorisse. It’s The Red Balloon and White Mane!

Winner of the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film and an Academy Award for its screenplay, The Red Balloon follows a young Parisian boy who discovers a mysterious balloon with a personality all its own. Drifting through the streets of Paris with almost no dialogue, the film transforms ordinary city life into something quietly magical.

And then after a ten minute intermission, it’s time for White Mane, Lamorisse’s breathtaking adventure set in the marshlands of southern France, where a young boy forms an unforgettable bond with a wild horse pursued by local ranchers. Shot with extraordinary natural beauty and a sense of freedom that still feels exhilarating today, the film captures childhood adventure in an almost-mythic way.

These films will be presented in their original French language, with English subtitles. Although, it should be noted the films are essentially wordless, with the exception of some sparse dialogue.

Our Art House for Families series celebrates the magic of moviegoing across generations all summer long. From silent comedy and international classics to science fiction and fantasy adventures, the series invites longtime cinephiles and first-time art house audiences of all ages to discover some of cinema’s most enduring films together on the big screen. This event is sponsored in part by the City of Santa Ana.

Jason and the Argonauts

Posted on May 15, 2026

Our Art House for Families series is headed to Ancient Greece (pretty timely, no?) for Jason and the Argonauts! Before CGI armies and digital creatures, movie monsters were crafted by hand, and few artists ever did it better than Ray Harryhausen.

Jason, a fearless sailor and explorer, returns to his home land of Thessaly after a long voyage to claim his rightful throne. He learns, however, that he must first find the magical Golden Fleece. To do so, he must embark on an epic quest fraught with fantastic monsters and terrible perils.

More than sixty years later, Jason and the Argonauts still delivers the kind of tactile cinematic wonder that inspired generations of filmmakers, from blockbuster directors to lifelong fantasy fans discovering these creatures for the very first time.

Shark Tale: Presented by 💌FanMail Cinema Club

Posted on April 23, 2026

FanMail Cinema Club is back at The Frida Cinema to present a themed screening event of the 2004 star-studded underwater animated movie Shark Tale! Come dressed up for a themed-photo-op, a cosplay contest, and karaoke in the theater!

Oscar is a small fish whose big aspirations often get him into trouble. Meanwhile, Lenny is a great white shark with a surprising secret that no sea creature would guess: He’s a vegetarian. When a lie turns Oscar into an improbable hero and Lenny becomes an outcast, the two form an unlikely friendship.

Starring Will Smith, Renee Zellweger, Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Ziggy Marley, Martin Scorsese, and Robert De Niro, Shark Tale is a fun time capsule of mid-2000s comedy that Gen Z has a lot of nostalgia and fond memories of, ironic or not!

Themed-Vending starts @ 5:00PM
Karaoke Hour is from 5:30PM-6:30PM
Cosplay Contest is @ 6:45PM
Film starts at 7:00PM shark…errrm we mean sharp!

Tickets to this event are $20. Frida Cinema Member discounts and comp passes do not apply!

The Sound of Music

Posted on April 22, 2026

The hills are alive…with one of the most beloved movie musicals of all time!

Experience the timeless magic of The Sound of Music, coming back to The Frida with some final encores!

Julie Andrews (Julie Andrews) stars as Maria, a spirited young novice sent to care for the seven children of the строг but widowed Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer). What begins as a challenge quickly blossoms into a story of music, love, and resilience, as Maria brings warmth and song back into a regimented household…just as the looming threat of war casts a shadow over their lives.

Directed by Robert Wise and featuring unforgettable songs by Rodgers and Hammerstein, The Sound of Music is a sweeping, heart-lifting celebration of courage and the power of finding your voice. From its breathtaking alpine vistas to its iconic melodies, it remains a cinematic treasure that continues to inspire audiences of all ages.

The Black Cauldron

Posted on April 15, 2026

Hidden by darkness. Guarded by witches. Discovered by a boy. Stolen by a king. Whoever owns it will rule the world. Or destroy it!

We’ve added an encore of Disney’s rarely-screened gem The Black Cauldron!

Taran is an assistant pigkeeper with boyish dreams of becoming a great warrior. However, he has to put the daydreaming aside when his charge, an oracular pig named Hen Wen, is kidnapped by an evil lord known as the Horned King. The villain hopes Hen will show him the way to The Black Cauldron, which has the power to create a giant army of unstoppable soldiers.

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad: Hosted by Arnold Leibovit

Posted on April 13, 2026

From the Land Beyond Beyond…From The World Past Hope and Fear…The Frida Cinema is proud to present a brand new 4K restoration of the most influential fantasy adventures ever made: Ray Harryhausen’s The 7th Voyage of Sinbad! See it the way audiences did in 1958, larger than life on the big screen! This special event includes a rare on-screen video appearance by child star Richard Eyer, along with two additional George Pal Academy Award®-winning Puppetoons, celebrating the golden age of fantasy filmmaking.

In this landmark stop-motion adventure, the legendary sailor Sinbad journeys to the mysterious Island of Colossa to save Princess Parisa, his fiancée, who has been magically shrunken by the evil sorcerer Sokurah. Along the way Sinbad confronts a towering Cyclops, battles a sword-wielding animated skeleton in one of the most famous duels in motion picture history, faces a giant two-headed Roc, and ultimately fights a fire-breathing dragon in a spectacular fantasy climax–adventure, monsters, and magic Featuring groundbreaking Dynamation effects by Ray Harryhausen and a thunderous, unforgettable score by Bernard Herrmann!

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad became one of the top-grossing films of 1958 and helped redefine fantasy filmmaking for generations to come–a giant-screen fantasy experience that launched a thousand filmmakers. Its influence can be seen in the work of Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, James Cameron, Peter Jackson, John Landis, Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Rick Baker and many others.

Hosted by producer-director Arnold Leibovit, who was inspired by the film as a child, later met and directed Ray Harryhausen in The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal, and stayed in touch with him for over 30 years. Leibovit also had the opportunity to meet George Pal and correspond with him for more than a year, and became a longtime friend of Pal’s widow, Mrs. Zsoka Pal. For decades, he has worked to restore and preserve the Puppetoons and carry forward the legacy of classic fantasy filmmaking. In 2008, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant,” and hailed as one of the finest fantasy films ever made, noted for its stunning color photography, imaginative creatures, and Bernard Herrmann’s thrilling score.

Doors open at 6:00PM and the show starts at 7:00PM! Tickets are $20 to this event. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply.