Spooks, specters, ghouls and zombies are planning a Halloween takeover of the iconic 5 Pointz building in Long Island City.
The ghastly cast of characters will star in the first annual Halloween Film Festival on October 27 at the 5 Points Building, the popular urban canvas located at 45-46 Davis Street.
The spooky spectacle includes a Zombie March through the Long Island City neighborhood, the filming of a Zombie “mini-movie” featuring the undead bloodsuckers that participated in the march, the screening of more than a dozen horror films and an “after party” for the 21-and-over crowd – including the decaying, decades-old Zombies.
Queens first Horror Film Festival is free to fans, so it won’t bleed you dry, curator Jason Artiga said.
The walk of the undead is being orchestrated by self-proclaimed “zombie enthusiast” Thomas Art, who operates the online “Zombies Worldwide” network. Art has organized numerous Zombie Walks and Crawls, including the 2011 Zombie Walk through the streets of Astoria.
The October 27 Zombie March will begin at 5 p.m., outside The Shannon Pot at 45-06 Davis Street in Long Island City. Anyone wishing to participate in the march should arrive at The Shannon Pot at about 4:45 p.m., organizers said. Free makeup will be available for anyone wishing to participate in the march.
Artiga, who describes himself as a major horror fan, said he believes the backdrop of the 5 Pointz Building will add to the creep factor of films featured in the Halloween Film Festival.
The graffiti covered 5 Pointz Building will soon face a wrecking ball under a proposal by the building owner to develop two high-rise towers – 41-story and 47-story residential towers that would feature a number of amenities, including a gym, media center, swimming pool, shops, restaurants, a supermarket, a park and open air concourse – and open space for work by graffiti artists.
5 Pointz owner Jerry Wolkoff said the development would be an asset to ongoing changes in the Long Island City community.
Officials at Community Board 2 agreed that a mixed-use development at the site would be a fitting “next chapter” to the history of the 5-Pointz building.
The 5 Pointz canvas has been a favorite of urban artists since the early 1990s, when members of the “5 Pointz Collective” turned the former manufacturing plant into a spray paint palate of graffiti art. In each subsequent year, artists have filled the building with up to 1,000 new graffiti designs.
Local officials said the building has been an unofficial landmark for years, drawing tourists and art lovers to the area.
The block surrounding the 5 Pointz Building was rezoned by the city in 1991 as part of the Jackson Avenue Corridor redevelopment plan. The new zoning allows large-scale development in the area that has undergone transformation into a mini-metropolis, where glistening towers have replaced worn warehouses and factory buildings.
Wolkoff purchased the building in 1971 and has continued to support the work of artists who lived at 5 Pointz and in the surrounding community.
The $300 million-plus project is expected to bring a large number of construction and construction-related jobs to the area, providing a much-needed boost to local businesses.
