Next screening · October 3
Northwest Bronx's Backyard Cinema for Social Causes
Treehouse Cinema is a small outdoor community cinema. Every film screening spotlights a social issue close to home, and every dollar goes to an organization doing the work. Suggested donation is always $35 per guest — includes wine, beer, N/A drinks & popcorn.
RSVP for the next filmThe next screening
Unrest
Directed by Jennifer Brea · 2017 · 98 min · Documentary
When filmmaker Jennifer Brea is struck down by a fever that leaves her bedridden, she turns the camera on herself — and on a global community of patients whose lives have been erased by illness. Part memoir, part investigation, Unrest is a rare, intimate portrait of what it means to live with a disease the world has refused to see.
Unrest is a groundbreaking documentary that changed how many people understand Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Made while its director was herself bedridden, it brought an unseen illness out of the dark and into public view — and helped countless patients feel, for the first time, that someone had told their story honestly.
- Date
- Saturday, October 3, 2026
- Time
- Doors open 6:30 PM. Pre-Screening Discussion Starts 7:00 PM, with film at dusk.
- Location
- A backyard in the Northwest Bronx, New York City
- Issue in focus
- Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)
Your host will follow up personally with the full address after reviewing your RSVP. Bring a blanket or low chair.
Save your spot
RSVP for Unrest
Saturday, October 3, 2026 · A backyard in the Northwest Bronx, New York City. Suggested donation: $35 per guest — includes wine, beer, N/A drinks & popcorn.
100% of your donation goes to ME/CFS research. Wine, beer, N/A drinks, and popcorn are provided in-kind by the host.
Your host will follow up personally with the full address after reviewing your RSVP. Rain date is Sunday, October 4 — we'll email you if the sky doesn't cooperate.
In honor of
Alana
the host's beloved and brilliant 27-year-old cousin
Alana on her graduation day
Alana lives with severe ME. She is bedridden, confined to a darkened room, and relies on others for every part of her daily care. Her illness began as Long COVID, which progressed into severe ME. She is loved fiercely by everyone who knows her — and this night is held in her honor.
Donations benefit
CFS/ME Project at Open Medicine Foundation
Open Medicine Foundation (OMF) funds the CFS/ME Project — a coordinated global research effort to find biomarkers, causes, and treatments for ME/CFS. Every dollar directed to this work pushes the science closer to answers, and closer to a day when people like Alana can leave their rooms.
100% of your donation goes to ME/CFS research. Suggested $35 per guest — wine, beer, N/A drinks & popcorn are provided in-kind by the host.
About ME
A devastating disease without a cure — and too often unseen.
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) is a devastating disease without a cure. The few treatments that exist address individual symptoms — pain, sleep, orthostatic intolerance — rather than the disease itself.
Millions of people live with ME worldwide, and for most of them the illness is invisible to everyone but their caregivers. Too often unseen, and too rarely studied, it can leave even the most active life confined to a single darkened room.
Help us pick
Suggest a film or issue area
Most of our screenings start as a neighbor's recommendation. Tell us about a film you'd like to screen, or an issue you'd like to build a screening around. We'll get back to you if we can accommodate.
We read every suggestion.
Good to know
Frequently asked
- How many people can you accommodate?
- Treehouse Cinema can host up to 40 guests per screening.
- What does the suggested donation cover?
- 100% of your donation goes to ME/CFS research through the CFS/ME Project at Open Medicine Foundation. Wine, beer, N/A drinks, and popcorn are provided in-kind by the host.
- Where exactly is it?
- We're in a backyard in the Northwest Bronx. Because it's a private home, your host will reach out personally with the full address after reviewing your RSVP.
- What should I bring?
- Just bring a blanket for after dark. We provide the chairs, screen, sound, and snacks. We'll also have mosquito spray on hand.
- What if it rains?
- Our rain date is typically the next night. We'll email everyone on the guest list if the sky doesn't cooperate.