This past weekend, theDavid Lynch Foundation’simmersive Festival of Disruptionreturned to downtown Los Angeles for its fourth iteration. Curated entirely byDavid Lynch, the weekend once again saw the auteur filmmaker’s vision transformThe Theater at the Ace Hotelby uniting hand-picked creatives from multiple disciplines for musical and artistic performances, talks, film screenings, art exhibits, meditation sessions and more, benefiting theDavid Lynch Foundation.
David Lynchhosted the festival’s kick-off party at theKayne Griffin Corcoran Gallery onFriday, October 12.Shepard Faireyhandled DJ duties while partygoers enjoyed Lynch-inspired cocktails,Coppolawines and beer fromMikkeller Brewing NYC surrounded by fine art pieces from Lynch’s new exhibition entitled “I Was A Teenage Insect.”
Festival attendees were greeted with thought-provoking floor-art quotes before entering theTheatre at the Ace Hotelwhere a waft of lavender emanating from presenting sponsorALEX and ANI’sticket booth pop-up store enveloped the crowd as they made their way to the 1,600-seat theatre for two days of talks and screenings.
Each morning’s first program focused on meditation. OnSaturday October 13,Dr. Norman Rosenthaldiscussed meditation withMario Orsattiand the morning ofSunday October 14opened with the transcendent imagery and meditative score in the filmKoyaanisqatsi.
Visitors flocked to cross-disciplinary discussions throughout the weekend. Following the screening of the filmWild at Heart,Barry Gifforddiscussed his collaborative relationship withDavid Lynch, moderated byJohn Hornof NPR’sThe Frame.
Grace Jonesreceived a standing ovation as she sat down withJudith Casselberryfollowing the screening of her documentaryBloodlight and Bami.Twin Peakscollaborators Scott Cameron,Michael Horse,Kimmy RobertsonandSabrina Sutherland discussed all things Great Northern, moderated byJonathan Cohen.Francis Ford Coppolaheld a lively Q&A following the screening of his filmJack, starring the late Robin Williams.
Lynchhimself took the stage in front of a packed house for a “Q&A with Coffee and Donuts,” also moderated byJohn Horn.Lynchanswered questions about his work, the birth of ideas and the infinite ability of all human beings to transcend. Interspersed between each of these presentations were clips fromDavid Lynch’sexpansive archive of shorts, interviews and commercials.
Meanwhile, just across the street at theBoldspace,SHOWTIMEandCollider Games debuted the first look ofTwin Peaks VR, the virtual reality game that transports players toTwin Peak‘s iconicGlastonbury GroveandRed Room.
Visitors were also able to capture their own one-of-a-kind photos at a digitalSHOWTIMEphoto booth posing with cutouts of iconicDavid Lynchcharacters. At theSHOWTIME Booth, attendees purchasedTwin Peaksmerchandise from surprise guestsKimmy Robertson,Eamon Farren,Madeline Zima,Robert Broski,Christian Calloway,Stewart Strauss, Sabrina SutherlandandRuss Tamblyn. At theCooper Design Space,Sigur Rós’ Jónsiand collaboratorsAlex SomersandPaul Corleyperformed theLiminal Soundbath, an emotionally powerful meditative light and sound experience that left some attendees in tears.
Presenting sponsorALEX AND ANIshowcased their limited editionCHARITY BY DESIGNcollection ofDavid Lynch-designed products at the festival, including a beautiful Fish Hook Necklace andTwin Peaks‘ themed Coffee and Donut Charm Bangles; proceeds of sales from which support theDavid Lynch Foundation.
Each evening, fans congregated for one-of-a-kind performances. Saturday brought thrilling sets fromJustin JohnsonandDylan Carson,RuPauls’ Drag Racealum KatyaandMike PattonandDJ QBert, who reconstituted music from Lynch’s famed catalog into unique new forms.
Wu-Tang ClanfounderRZAclosed out the night with a performance alongside a re-score of the classic 1978 kung fu filmThe 36th Chamber of Shaolinfrom opening sequence to closing credits, syncing scenes from the movie with tracks fromWu-Tang’s legendary discography.
Sunday night featured an incredible DJ set bySaint Motel,performances fromRichard Reed ParryofArcade FireandTOKiMONSTA, and a poetry reading ofDark Sparkler from authorAmber Tamblyn. Bringing the weekend to a close,Mercury Revtook to the stage for their first LA performance in almost 10 years and played several tracks from their beloved 1998 albumDesertersSongs, whileDover Quartet, alongside Daniel Schlosberg, played theirTwin Peaks Suite.
HighlightingDavid Lynch’songoing involvement in fine art, the festival staged the U.S. premiere of his photography andChristian Louboutin‘s sculptures entitled “Fetish,” first presented in 2007 atGalerie du Passage in Paris.
Proceeds from the festival benefit the David Lynch Foundation, whose mission is reducing toxic stress and trauma among at-risk populations, including victims of domestic violence, veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress (PTS), and underserved urban youth, through the evidence-based Transcendental Meditation technique. The Foundation has reached more than 500,000 people since founding in 2005. For additional information on the work of the Foundation, or to subscribe for news about its programs and events, visitwww.davidlynchfoundation.org.