A few years ago, a new movie theater popped up in Lawrenceville, offering a slightly different set of movies and a very different atmosphere from anything Pittsburgh had seen before. The theater, Row House Cinema, doubles as a craft beer retailer and often offers food to match the theme of the films. Their current theme, running until December 1st, is “Cult Cuts,” which invites audience members to enjoy a series of cult classics while snacking on cold cut meats. While modern movie theater giants such as AMC and Cinemark compete for the newest popular films like Doctor Strange and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, neither of those films would have a place among the curated film selections put together by the owner Brian Mendelssohn. Instead, films such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Big Lebowski, Yojimbo, and Ponyo find their way onto the screen, welcoming audience members to enjoy the community aspect of watching movies in-theaters in an era where Netflix encourages us to binge-watch and avoid leaving the house.

This past week, Row House screened “Films about Artists,” with films such as Exit Through the Gift Shop and Girl with a Pearl Earing. Also shown, was Downtown 81, a film which starred a 19-year-old Jean-Michel Basquiat. It’s discordant sound design and unconventional film style, similar to that of the French New Wave, exemplify Row House’s willingness to play films that the average audience member may not have even heard of. In upcoming weeks, Row House will be screening “Cult Cut,” Anti-Hero, and Hayao Miyazaki films, so be sure to check out their schedule at http://rowhousecinema.com/.