DEPARTMENT of ANARCHY: Short Cinema Assaults

Returning to LA for the first time in 5 years (since covid closed down Arclight), THE DEPARTMENT OF ANARCHY, will be presenting three nights of short form cinematic bat-sh*tery that is not for the faint of heart.
In affiliation with Slamdance Film Festival, this rare event features TWO BRAND NEW DoA CURATIONS and ONE "ANARCHO-CINEMA CLASSICS" program curated from the archives.

Screenings at 11:30pm @ Lyric Hyperion Theater & Cafe

Friday, Feb 21st: Anarcho-Classics Curation: A selection from the archive, featuring many of the most stunning, bizzarre, hilarious, thought provoking, exquisite, challenging and singular short films curated by Department of Anarchy over the last decade.

Saturday, Feb 22nd: Anarcho-PickUp Cuartion A: A never before seen curation by Department of Anarchy, selected from the international submission of 2024.

Sunday, Feb 23rd: 22nd: Anarcho-PickUp Cuartion B: A never before seen curation by Department of Anarchy, selected from the international submission of 2023.

*For nightly program line-ups check Instagram `

Department of Anarchy’s Short Cinema Assaults are curated short film selections from all genres that provoke, disturb, and enthrall. Cultivated at Slamdance film festival for over a decade by underground filmmakers Burke Roberts and Noel Lawrence, this bold program became notorious as the true fringe of the fringe in Park City, Utah during Sundance.
Having branched out over the last few years to tour their unique curations to fans domestically and abroad, Department of Anarchy has begun to bring their rare cinema experiences to all kinds of venues; ranging from traditional art house movie theaters to PopUps at large music, open air cinemas, multi-media exhibitions and art galleries in cities around the world.
Working from an arsenal of mind-melting, misfit cinema - meticulously
selected from thousands of submissions over the last 13 years (and counting) - Burke and Noel unleash short film presentations like no other as they continue the hunt for the unsung innovators of ANARCHO-CINEMA.
In 2025, Burke and Noel have added a new talented voice to the curation team by the name of Meryem Lalou. A brilliant young visual artist from Morocco, whom the Department of Anarchy was fortunate enough to have discovered a sick and wonderful animation by back in 2021.
Anarchy Filmmakers are the black sheep of the cinematic herd. Their films are not
produced for the entertainment industry. They are produced in spite of the entertainment
industry. This ongoing curation gives a platform to cutting edge works
that subvert the status quo -subconsciously, politically, graphically, stylistically, and commercially. Though diverse in every respect, these films all scream a simple message from the rooftops: F THE SYSTEM!
Anarcho-Cinema is innovative in form and provocative in purpose. Some
of these films will make viewers feel as though they’ve been dosed with
LSD. Others are a profound reflection upon the terrors and tragedies of the
human condition. Still others are the darkest of comedies that may (or may
not) include very dirty goblins.
The Department of Anarchy began as a modest short film showcase at
Slamdance in 2012. Curated by underground filmmakers Noel Lawrence and Burke Roberts, the selection emphasized the DIY roots and punk-rock spirit of the festival in its earliest days. Diving headlong into the festival’s vast submission pool, Burke and Noel searched for the wildest and weirdest specimens of cinematic subversion.
Within a couple years, their screenings began to sell out. The take-no-prisoners curatorial style of the program struck a nerve, drawing raucous and enthusiastic audiences in search of something different from Sundance’s middle- of-the-road “indie” programming.
In this increasingly unpredictable era for cinema and beyond ~ The Department of Anarchy stands firmly in the belief that nothing is shocking ... sO WeLcOmE
tO ThE NeW WoRLd DiSsOrDeR!

“People crave increasingly novel stimulation, always looking for
a new form of media contraband.”
- David Cronenberg, Videodrome

“To me some of the most exciting curatorial spaces are those
where anything seems possible. Spaces where creative work
can be celebrated and the filmmaker’s imagination can follow
its own unique paths. Anarchy is one such place, with its curators
functioning as a combination of guides and showmen, taking the
audience on a trip through the weird, challenging and oddball limits
of cinema…”
- Jack Sargeant

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For Attendees requiring an Assisted Listening Device, you must submit a written request to venue operator 48 hours prior to listed show start.

FREE street parking on Lyric Ave and Griffith Park Blvd

At this time there are no additional safety regulations required of audiences - masking, etc. But if you do feel unwell please stay home. We continue to update our policies at times when health conditions change.

Host or Publisher The Lyric Hyperion