6621 ST. Claude ave. arabi, la 70032
(504) 352-1150 rene@zeitgeistnola.org
"Something for and against everybody"
Zeitgeist is a non-profit, art house cinema that was founded in New Orleans in November 1986.
We currently have 80 seats in our theatre and 50 seats in our lounge. Yes, we are available for private screenings and events.
We installed 3 UV air-scrubbers in our ventilation system for your safety. Check out our new Dolby sound system.
Our theatre is located just one block East of New Orleans past Jackson Barracks in Arabi, LA
(currently the 6th fastest growing neighborhood in America)
Memberships and donations may be made at the Zeitgeist Box Office, through the "Support Us" Page at the top of this website or through PayPal to rene@zeitgeistnola.org or Zelle to (504) 352-1150 or our new venmo
Zeitgeist is a non-profit, art house cinema that was founded in New Orleans in November 1986.
We currently have 80 seats in our theatre and 50 seats in our lounge. Yes, we are available for private screenings and events.
We installed 3 UV air-scrubbers in our ventilation system for your safety. Check out our new Dolby sound system.
Our theatre is located just one block East of New Orleans past Jackson Barracks in Arabi, LA
(currently the 6th fastest growing neighborhood in America)
Memberships and donations may be made at the Zeitgeist Box Office, through the "Support Us" Page at the top of this website or through PayPal to rene@zeitgeistnola.org or Zelle to (504) 352-1150 or our new venmo
ZEITGEIST – NOUN, GERMAN. THE SPIRIT OF THE TIMES; GENERAL TREND, MOOD OR FEELING CHARACTERISTIC OF A PARTICULAR PERIOD OF TIME, ESPECIALLY AS IT IS REFLECTED IN THE ARTS, LITERATURE, PHILOSOPHY, ETC. \ˈtsīt-ˌgīst, ˈzīt-\
Wednesdayday, July 6th:
7:00 pm - A MAN OF INTEGRITY by Mohammad Rasoulof Reza, having distanced himself from the urban quagmire, leads a simple life along with his wife and young son, somewhere in a remote village in Northern Iran. He spends his days working on his goldfish farm. Nearby, a private company with close links to the government and local authorities, has taken control of nearly every aspect of regional life. Its shareholders, accumulating wealth, power and economic influence, have been pushing local farmers and small owners to sell off their belongings, farms and estates, to the benefit of the Company’s influential network and its monopoly. It is under their pressure that many villagers have themselves become local links in the larger network of corruption. Iran’s Mohammad Rasoulof, whose latest feature THERE IS NO EVIL won the Golden Bear at last year’s Berlinale, has been making scathing social commentary of the Iranian regime for over a decade, but he remains relatively unknown and underappreciated in the US—despite winning numerous prizes at such top world film festivals as Cannes and Berlin. A MAN OF INTEGRITY reveals the corruption and state cronyism at the heart of one of the most powerful and influential regimes in the Middle East. Banned in Iran! Opens July 1:
7:00 pm nightly through Wednesday A MAN OF INTEGRITY by Mohammad Rasoulof. Reza, having distanced himself from the urban quagmire, leads a simple life along with his wife and young son, somewhere in a remote village in Northern Iran. He spends his days working on his goldfish farm. Nearby, a private company with close links to the government and local authorities, has taken control of nearly every aspect of regional life. Its shareholders, accumulating wealth, power and economic influence, have been pushing local farmers and small owners to sell off their belongings, farms and estates, to the benefit of the Company’s influential network and its monopoly. It is under their pressure that many villagers have themselves become local links in the larger network of corruption. Iran’s Mohammad Rasoulof, whose latest feature THERE IS NO EVIL won the Golden Bear at last year’s Berlinale, has been making scathing social commentary of the Iranian regime for over a decade, but he remains relatively unknown and underappreciated in the US—despite winning numerous prizes at such top world film festivals as Cannes and Berlin. A MAN OF INTEGRITY reveals the corruption and state cronyism at the heart of one of the most powerful and influential regimes in the Middle East. Banned in Iran! [TRAILER] And In the
Zeitgeist Lounge: Sunday, July 10 @ 8:00 pm
WREST featuring JACK WRIGHT (saxophone), EVAN LIPSON (bass) and BEN BENNETT (percussion). The three musicians of Wrest live in Easton PA, Knoxville TN and Philadelphia respectively, and come together several times a year to create “experimental jazz”. The next tour is Wrest Southeast and makes one ephemeral stop in the Zeitgeist Lounge. Friday, July 15 @ 8:00 pm
GOLD ROOM READING presented by the UNO Creative Writing Workshop featuring Stacey Balkun is the author of Sweetbitter & co-editor of Fiolet & Wing: An Anthology of Domestic Fabulist Poetry. Winner of the 2019 New South Writing Contest as well as Terrain.org’s 10th Annual Contest, her work has appeared in Best New Poets 2018, Mississippi Review, Pleiades, & several other anthologies & journals. Stacey holds an MFA from Fresno State and teaches creative writing online at The Poetry Barn. Brad Richard’s most recent full-length collection is Parasite Kingdom (The Word Works, 2018), winner of the Tenth Gate Prize, and his most recent chapbook is In Place (Seven Kitchens Press, 2022). He has taught creative writing at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts and The Willow School (whose creative writing program he founded and directed), and for New Orleans Writers Workshop and the Kenyon Review Writers Workshop for Teachers. Series editor of the Hilary Tham Capital Collection from The Word Works, he lives, writes, and gardens in New Orleans. More at bradrichard.org. Justin Lamb is an educator, writer and a 2013 National Poetry Slam champion with Slam New Orleans (SNO). A four-time member of the nationally acclaimed Team SNO (2011-14), Justin is a two-time Slam New Orleans Grand Champion and received his M.F.A. in Creative Writing at the University of New Orleans in 2019. He is the author of the live poetry album However It Turns Out Is Perfect (2013) and chapbooks Everything Has A Place (2016) and Me & the Rest of My Heathens (2022) which was recorded live in the Zeitgeist Theatre. Justin co-founded and co-organized the New Orleans Youth Open Mic, a poetry show for New Orleans youth. He lives in New Orleans with his partner and his puppy. Elizabeth Miki Brina writes exclusively memoir. She doesn't know how to make something up unless she really believes it actually happened to her. Her debut book Speak, Okinawa was published by Knopf in February of 2021 and one of NPR's best books of the year. Her work has also appeared in The Sun, River Teeth, Lit Hub, and Gulf Coast, among others. She lives in New Orleans and teaches at the University of New Orleans. Wednesday, July 20 @ 8:00 pm
ScatterJazz presents Glass Key Trio, plus Trapper Keeper w/ special guest Sam Dickey. The Glass Key Trio (from Santa Fe)- explores compositions inspired by country, world music, folk, and film noir. Each composition is a vehicle for spirited dialogue between the players ushering the listener into a narrative exploration of musical landscapes featuring Jeremy Bleich - guitar, Paul Brown - acoustic bass and Milton Villarrubia III - drums. Trapper Keeper features Marcello Benetti and Will Thompson. Saturday, July 23 @ 8:00 pm
BLACK LAUREL Black Laurel is the brainchild of singer/songwriter/guitarist, Gregg Yde. In 2016, Yde began collaborating with bassist, Rade Pejic, which resulted in the band's first album (self-titled). After years of performing in and around New Orleans, the band released their sophomore album, Tales From The Motherland, in February of 2020. The band enjoys improvising and digging into extended jams. With special guests John Krupa & Max Rea. Saturday, July 30 @ 8:00 pm
ScatterJazz presents DANNY KAMINS (Saxophone and bass Clarinet from Houston, TX), WILL THOMPSON (keyboards from New Orleans), THOMAS MILOVAC (bass from Florida) and CHARLES PAGANO (drums from New Orleans via New Haven, Connecticut). Friday, August 12 @ 8:00 pm
GOLD ROOM READING |
C O M I N G S O O N !All films are in the Zeitgeist Theatre.
Thursday, July 7 @ 7:00 pm
TEXAS JUSTICE: THE BRANDON WOODRUFF CASE Texas Justice: Brandon Woodruff tells the story of the unimaginable injustice inflicted upon a young gay college student. Imagine it’s 2005. You’re 19 years old in the process of coming out when your parents are brutally murdered in rural East Texas. Despite no evidence putting you at the murder scene, you are immediately the prime suspect. This happened to Brandon Woodruff. He was tried by a jury panel of twelve, eight of whom stated in pre-trial questioning that gay people are morally inferior. The Innocence Project of Texas is now working to free Brandon Woodruff, noting that “homophobia was evident in his trial," with the prosecution repeatedly stating, “If he could lie about being gay, he could lie about killing his parents.” Many in the LGBTQ community can relate to the struggle of coming out. During that process, many of us keep our sexual orientation hidden from certain people while sorting out whom to tell and when. Brandon was doing exactly that at the time of his parents' murders. But the jury interpreted this natural coming-out process as Brandon leading a sinister double life that drove him to murder. This is a chilling story for all of us, especially for the LGBTQ community. Filmmakers Richard Ray & Scott Poggensee will be here for a Q & A after the film. [TRAILER] Opens July 8:
7:00 pm nightly APPLES by Christos Nikou Amidst a worldwide pandemic that causes sudden amnesia, middle-aged Aris (Aris Servetalis) finds himself enrolled in a recovery program designed to help unclaimed patients build new identities. Prescribed daily tasks on cassette tapes so he can create new memories and document them on camera, Aris slides back into ordinary life, meeting Anna (Sofia Georgovasili), a woman who is also in recovery. Through images deadpan, strange and surreal, Greek writer-director Christos Nikou posits a beguiling reflection on memory, identity, and loss, exploring how a society might handle an irreversible epidemic through one man’s story of self-discovery. [TRAILER] Opens July 15:
OLGA by Elie Grappe Olga is a talented teenage Ukrainian gymnast exiled in Switzerland, dreaming of Olympic gold and trying to fit in with her new team in her new home. As she prepares for the European Championships, the Ukrainian people back home in Kyiv rise up in what has become known as the Maidan Revolution, suddenly involving everyone she cares about. Olga is left a powerless, distant bystander as her mother, an investigative journalist, faces danger as she challenges the brutal Yanukovich regime. Incorporating documentary footage from the 2013 uprising, Olga is a tense, sensitively handled tale of exile reflecting the clash between the personal and the political in a young woman’s search for identity. The film was awarded the SACD Prize at the 2021 Cannes Critics’ Week and stars former Ukrainian National Team gymnast Anastasiia Budiashkina in her first film role. Co-presented by the UKRAINIAN NEW ORLEANS RESETTLEMENT GROUP (kryla.org) [TRAILER] Opens July 29:
QUEEN OF GLORY by Nana Mensah Sarah Obeng (Nana Mensah), a doctoral student at Columbia University, is weeks away from following her very married boyfriend to Ohio when her mother suddenly passes away. Her inheritance? King of Glory, a small Christian bookstore serving a Ghanaian immigrant community in the Bronx. Tasked with arranging her mother's funeral according to her family's traditional expectations, Sarah must simultaneously navigate her plans to relocate as well as the unexpected return of her estranged father, all while grappling with the bookstore. Aided by an only-in-New York ensemble of Eastern European neighbors, opinionated aunties, and a no-nonsense ex-con employee, Sarah must face her new responsibilities while figuring out how to remain true to herself. Winner of the Tribeca Film Festival Best New Narrative Director Award for director-star Mensah, Queen of Glory is a "tightly-conceived, witty and compassionate love letter to the Bronx" (The Hollywood Reporter) that's at once a view into a tight-knit community, and an intensely relatable drama-comedy for anyone with a family. [TRAILER] Opens August 12:
FREE PUPPIES! The True Story Of Rescue Dogs Millions of rescue dogs from the rural South have been transported to new homes thanks to the tireless efforts of a grassroots network of dog rescuers. When Hurricane Katrina left more than 250,000 pets stranded, the infrastructure of modern pet transport for a nation-wide dog rescue effort was born. Since then, individual volunteers, transporters, shelters and rescue groups have created a movement to place millions of southern dogs in areas of the country with high demand for adoption but low supply. FREE PUPPIES! is the true story of where those dogs came from and the challenges facing a group of intrepid women rescuers working together to save them. [TRAILER] Opening September 2:
6:00 pm nightly MEMORIA by Apichatpong Weerasethakul From the extraordinary mind of Palme D'or winning director Apichatpong Weerasethakul, and starring Academy Award winner Tilda Swinton, comes a bewildering drama about a Scottish woman, who, after hearing a loud 'bang' at daybreak, begins experiencing a mysterious sensory syndrome while traversing the jungles of Colombia. [TRAILER] Schedule is subject to change as films are held over – please check the website for updates nightly.
Zeitgeist is ALL- AGES & SMOKE-FREE
![]() Zeitgeist has received a "Performing Arts Exception" which means we can operate as an ALL-AGES venue and still serve alcohol. Children and minors may attend Zeitgeist films, concerts and events, but can not sit at or approach the bar. They may not also consume alcohol. To purchase and consume alcohol you must have a valid ID.
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V I S U A L A R T E X H I B I T I O N S
ec·lec·ti·cism
/əˈklektəˌsizəm/
Solo exhibition by Christopher Ryan
Curated by Rene Broussard
These works cover a variety of genres and span 4 continents. The presentation is every bit as eclectic as the topics as the images are presented on canvas prints, miniature square canvas prints, repurposed frames, and beautiful panels printed in Italy.
Christopher Ryan is an international photographer currently living in New Orleans with his Lao husband. Ryan’s passion is conceptual work with youth and adolescents, with a secondary passion for fine arts nudes with adults. These are frequently shot against natural backgrounds and in abandoned structures all over the world.
He currently has an exhibition “Extremities – An Exhibition of Hands and Feet” at Arabi Visual Arts across the street from the Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge.
/əˈklektəˌsizəm/
Solo exhibition by Christopher Ryan
Curated by Rene Broussard
These works cover a variety of genres and span 4 continents. The presentation is every bit as eclectic as the topics as the images are presented on canvas prints, miniature square canvas prints, repurposed frames, and beautiful panels printed in Italy.
Christopher Ryan is an international photographer currently living in New Orleans with his Lao husband. Ryan’s passion is conceptual work with youth and adolescents, with a secondary passion for fine arts nudes with adults. These are frequently shot against natural backgrounds and in abandoned structures all over the world.
He currently has an exhibition “Extremities – An Exhibition of Hands and Feet” at Arabi Visual Arts across the street from the Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge.
JOSEPH BEUYS: POSTERS AND PRINTS
on permanent loan and exhibition in the
BEUYS + BEYOND Gallery
(which connects Zeitgeist Theatre and the Lounge)
Joseph Beuys (12 May 1921 – 23 January 1986) was a German Fluxus, happening and performance artist as well as a painter, sculptor, medallist, installation artist, graphic artist,art theorist and pedagogue. His extensive work is grounded in concepts of humanism, anthroposophy and the “zeitgeist”. It culminates in his "extended definition of art" and the idea of social sculpture as a gesamtkunstwerk, for which he claimed a creative, participatory role in shaping society and politics. His career was characterized by open public debates on a very wide range of subjects including political, environmental, social and long term cultural trends. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential artists of the second half of the 20th century.
on permanent loan and exhibition in the
BEUYS + BEYOND Gallery
(which connects Zeitgeist Theatre and the Lounge)
Joseph Beuys (12 May 1921 – 23 January 1986) was a German Fluxus, happening and performance artist as well as a painter, sculptor, medallist, installation artist, graphic artist,art theorist and pedagogue. His extensive work is grounded in concepts of humanism, anthroposophy and the “zeitgeist”. It culminates in his "extended definition of art" and the idea of social sculpture as a gesamtkunstwerk, for which he claimed a creative, participatory role in shaping society and politics. His career was characterized by open public debates on a very wide range of subjects including political, environmental, social and long term cultural trends. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential artists of the second half of the 20th century.
Z E I T G E I S T ' S O N G O I N G F I L M S E R I E S :

BEUYS AND BEYOND
Contemporary Artists On Film
In 1989, Zeitgeist curated a city-wide film series BEUYS AND BEYOND: CONTEMPORARY GERMAN ARTISTS ON FILM which also featured artist talks and performances by area artists.
For the premiere of Zeitgeist's great new Theatre & Lounge, we have decided to resurrect the series monthly, but this time expand it to include artists beyond just Germany...
Contemporary Artists On Film
In 1989, Zeitgeist curated a city-wide film series BEUYS AND BEYOND: CONTEMPORARY GERMAN ARTISTS ON FILM which also featured artist talks and performances by area artists.
For the premiere of Zeitgeist's great new Theatre & Lounge, we have decided to resurrect the series monthly, but this time expand it to include artists beyond just Germany...
CANADA IS BIGGER THAN THE U.S. Since 1993, Zeitgeist's ongoing SERIES OF FILMS, MUSIC, PERFORMANCES AND VISUAL ART celebrating the innovative, utterly bizarre and extremely vast body of work from our neighbors to the north. Their films may be smaller, but at least their country is bigger! Size does matter. |
AND COMING SOON!
A state of the art outdoor performance space and year round art market.
A state of the art outdoor performance space and year round art market.
For the past several months the Meraux Foundation has been constructing a "state of the art" year round Outdoor Art Market and Performance Venue in the lot between the Zeitgeist Theatre & Lounge and Art Conscious (Gallery, Framing, Printing).
There is still a few months to go, but the progress is extremely exciting.
Zeitgeist will be in charge of programming and scheduling the Community Event space.
While the Meraux Foundation are building out the venue, Zeitgeist will be fundraising to buy a large outdoor projection screen, stage lighting and a new sound system.
Memberships and donations may be made at the Zeitgeist Box Office, through the "Support Us" Page at the top of our website; through PayPal to rene@zeitgeistnola.org; Zelle to (504) 352-1150 or our new venmo @zeitgeistnola
There is still a few months to go, but the progress is extremely exciting.
Zeitgeist will be in charge of programming and scheduling the Community Event space.
While the Meraux Foundation are building out the venue, Zeitgeist will be fundraising to buy a large outdoor projection screen, stage lighting and a new sound system.
Memberships and donations may be made at the Zeitgeist Box Office, through the "Support Us" Page at the top of our website; through PayPal to rene@zeitgeistnola.org; Zelle to (504) 352-1150 or our new venmo @zeitgeistnola

Special thanks to the Meraux Foundation, The Old Arabi Neighborhood Association, Councilman Gillis McCloskey, The St. Bernard Chamber Of Commerce, Shotgun Cinema, Ellis Fortinberry & Chalmette Movies, the people of St. Bernard Parish and those who have followed us from New Orleans for all of their support. We couldn't have dreamed of a better venue or neighbors.
Zeitgeist would also like to acknowledge the indigenous history of New Orleans, and more broadly, Louisiana, and recognize the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana, the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, and the Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe of Louisiana. We would also like to acknowledge the state-recognized tribes of Louisiana, which include the Addai Caddo Tribe, the Biloxi-Chitimacha Confederation of Muskogee, Choctaw-Apache Community of Ebarb, Clifton Choctaw, Four Winds Tribe Louisiana Cherokee Confederacy, Grand Caillou/Dulac Band, Isle de Jean Charles Band, Louisiana Choctaw Tribe, Pointe-Au-Chien Indian Tribe, and the United Houma Nation.
Zeitgeist celebrated
it's 35th Anniversary in November!
it's 35th Anniversary in November!
We want to thank all of the artists, volunteers, organizations, members, donors and patrons who have kept us going.
We've come a long way. Let's keep it going!
We've come a long way. Let's keep it going!