Mel Brooks to Celebrate 100th Birthday With Los Angeles Screening Series of His 20 Favorite Films

Mel Brooks, who turned 100, has programmed a film series for the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles featuring 20 of what he described as his favorite films from the past century. The series, scheduled for this fall, will spotlight Brooks’s own cross-generational range, with the Guardian reporting that the American Cinematheque worked with him on the selection.

The Guardian’s report says Brooks’s picks span early film and contemporary titles, reflecting both mainstream classic cinema and later auteurs. Among the films listed in the report are Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights and Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit, illustrating the breadth of the comedian and director’s interests in different eras, styles, and international filmmaking traditions.

American Cinematheque, described by the Guardian as a year-round nonprofit film venue and festival, is producing the public screenings. For audiences, the program effectively turns Brooks’s private canon into a shared viewing experience, with the venue presenting the films as a curated sequence rather than as a one-off event.

Because the project is built around Brooks’s curated list, details beyond the two example titles cited in the Guardian report are not confirmed in the material provided here. The Guardian report characterizes the program as Brooks’s “favorite films” and indicates there are 20 total selections, but the complete schedule, day-by-day lineup, and any associated introductions or panel events were not included in the supplied description.

The series also places a major public figure’s taste and influence into a formal exhibition setting. Brooks’s work has been closely identified with mainstream comedy and popular filmmaking, and the screening slate, as described, reaches beyond a single genre or period into both celebrated early cinema and more recent international work.

For the American Cinematheque, the programming has practical significance for ticketing and audience planning during the fall season, particularly for filmgoers who follow directors’ and comedians’ careers across different media. The venue’s ability to mount a broad set of titles selected by a major creator also depends on distribution and screening clearance, which are typically handled through standard film rights processes for festival and venue exhibition.

As the series approaches, film fans in Los Angeles will likely look for the full lineup and screening dates through the American Cinematheque’s published program materials. The Guardian report establishes the organizing framework, including the central actors (Brooks and the American Cinematheque) and the overall structure (20 films this fall), but additional event specifics will need to be verified from the venue’s listing as it is released.