Small, defiant celebrations of the good stuff.
Astoria Picture Show runs a year-round festival program. We begin with intimate mini-fests exploring niche film territories, building toward our main spring event, JOYRIDE — a curated celebration of cinema that chooses life over despair.
The Whole Thing, Said Plainly
“The world is burning down — but relax, it’s not total garbage yet. There’s still fun! Absurdity! Beauty! Snacks!”
Our festivals are small, defiant celebrations of the good stuff: cinema that chooses life over despair, curiosity over cynicism, and wonder over well, that’s bleak.
Each film is tuned into life’s weird little frequencies… its contradictions, textures, and moments of accidental magic. Expect surprise and astonishment, not necessarily through explosions or trauma, but through recognition: the joy of seeing something honest, strange, and alive on screen.
These films suggest that feeling better doesn’t require a grand solution — just closer attention.
Feel Like Feeling Better?
We have Movies.
Festival Calendar
TRASH HUMPERS: A Mini-Fest of So-Bad-It’s-Good Treasures
November 13 & 14, 2026 | The Columbian Theater
Our first offering explores the magic and wonder of cinema’s most gloriously terrible gems. This isn’t ironic distance — it’s genuine celebration of the cream of the crap, the so-bad-it’s-divine.
What to expect:
- Four films across two nights (two per night)
- At least two films unavailable on any streaming service
- The weirdest, most wonderful trash we can find
More Mini-Fests Coming Winter 2027
We’re cooking up two additional niche-focused mini-fests that will serve as warm-up acts for the main event. These small events are where we test ideas, build community, and prove that there’s an appetite for quality movie-related events in Astoria.
JOYRIDE FILM FEST: The Main Event
April 2027 | Astoria, Oregon
This is where the year’s festival momentum culminates. JOYRIDE is a three-day celebration across two venues, programming 10–12 brand new feature films alongside a full array of special events. Think of it as the festival that follows the philosophy we’ve been building all year: that film appreciation, in the truest sense, means celebrating cinema that makes you feel alive.
What to expect:
Films: Carefully curated features that prioritize joy, strangeness, beauty, and honesty. Films that suggest another way of seeing.
Events & Sideshows:
- Our inaugural Hootenanny, to open the festival
- A massive Films with Benefits trivia show
- Live recording of The Kick podcast with Chance Solem-Pfeifer
- Silent Partner silent film screening with live foley artists
- An exclusive secret film showing
- Salons: Q&As and conversations with filmmakers, educators and community
Passes and Tickets:
Single-screening tickets and multi-day passes are available. Student and community pricing is offered.
Submit Your Film!
We’re opening submissions June 1st.
Why Multiple Festivals?
Folks in Astoria have an appetite for quality movie-related events. We’ve been cultivating a small but growing community of film literacy… and with Jeremy’s upcoming courses, film craft.
That’s film appreciation, in the truest sense. And that’s our whole mission with Picture Show.
The mini-fests let us explore niche interests and test programming ideas. They’re intimate, focused, and they build momentum. JOYRIDE is the celebration — the full expression of what we’re about.
The Festivals Are Part of Something Larger
Our festival program is the most visible part of what we do… but it’s not all of it. The APS Film School runs year-round. Our future project program will fund local films. Our Salons will keep the conversation going between festivals. The festivals are the celebration. The rest is the foundation.
