LITTLE ITALY TO TRANSFORM INTO POMPEII
On Saturday, Aug. 15, from 6 p.m. – midnight, the Little Italy Association (LIA) is inviting the community to come to Amici Park where they will be holding their next big fundraising bash, “Pompeii: Little Italy’s Toga Party.” There will be a VIP reception at 5 p.m. Guests are encouraged to “become Italian” and wear togas, strap on sandals, and enjoy local food and drink for the evening. Called “Ferragosto,” the fourth annual event is LIA’s take on “Feriae Agusti,” an event in ancient Pompeii, and will include circus rides, live entertainment and fantasy settings, including a Roman coliseum. “We are pulling out all the stops to recreate the historic Italian city Pompeii, where there will be non-stop jaw-dropping moments throughout the night that will have everyone talking for weeks,” Luke Vinci, Ferragosto’s chairman, said in a press release. “The event takes two years of planning because we make sure that every detail of the night is one that will be unforgettable.” This year the beneficiaries are Washington Elementary School Foundation, Our Lady of the Rosary Church and the LIA. Food and drink participants include Isola Pizza Bar, Monello, Kettner Exchange, PrepKitchen, Cookbook, Bencotto and more. Tickets start at $105 (or $1050 for a table of 10). Visit ferragostosd.org.
SAND SCULPTING RETURNS TO WATERFRONT
The annual U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge & Dimensional Art Exposition returns to the B Street Pier for four full days over Labor Day weekend. The Pier, located at 1140 N. Harbor Drive, has been in the midst of construction on either side of it for the past couple of years and this may be the first year the streets will be clear for the event. Eleven World Master sand sculptors from all over the globe and nine Cool California Carvers will descend upon SAND iego (the organizers’ new name for the event) to compete and manipulate 300 tons of sand into dozens of beautifully sculpted masterpieces. In addition to the sand sculpting challenges, there will be dozens of three-dimensional artisan booths, live entertainment, a dozen food trucks, Festival of Sail happening concurrently with the best view on the bay, sandboxes and rides for kids, and much more. A portion of the proceeds will go toward children’s arts education programs. For a full list of entertainment, participating sand sculptors, food trucks and activities, visit ussandsculpting.com.
LOCAL FILMMAKING COUPLE SCREEN ‘COSPLAY DREAMS 3D’
Gulliver and Christine Parascandolo, two local filmmakers, will be screening “Cosplay Dreams 3D,” their new film that explores what goes on behind the scenes and the elaborate costumes every year at Comic-Con and other related events. The film, which recently won Best Documentary at the seventh annual 3D Film Festival, will be presented by Platt College at the Gaslamp Reading Cinema, located at 701 Fifth Ave., Aug. 21 at 7:30 p.m. The night will kick off at 6 p.m. with a red carpet event and pop culture show, with a Q&A with the filmmakers immediately following the film. Cosplay hobbyists and their unique stories will be profiled to reveal what it is like to transition between their costumed fantasy lives and their everyday lives. Cosplay Celebrities and other world famous Cosplay artists will also be highlighted. “As filmmakers, we were immediately captivated by the idea of Cosplay even though we had no idea how popular it was when we started,” said executive producer and San Carlos resident Christine Parascandolo in a press release. “Each Cosplayer in the film is like a living, walking sculpture. This combined with the amazing environments that these events took place in, it was a clear choice to us that there was no better medium than 3D to allow the audience to be fully immersed in the world of Cosplay. When you see this amazing art-form, on the big screen — in 3D — you can’t imagine seeing it any other way.” For more information follow them on Facebook, “CosplayDreams3D,” and watch the trailer here: bit.ly/1Fo04vj.
‘FREE TO BREATHE’ RAISES AWARENESS FOR LUNG CANCER
The annual Free to Breathe 5k run/walk takes place along the North Embarcadero’s Marina Park on Sunday, Aug. 9 stepping off at 7:45 a.m. This is the sixth annual event aimed at helping to “make surviving lung cancer the expectation, not the exception.” All proceeds from the event will go to Free to Breathe, a lung cancer advocacy and research organization. The organization has helped raise more than $12 million in recent years. San Diego’s 2014 5k raised over $37,000. This year’s chairs hope to top that number at $43,500. “Fundraising for lung cancer research can help families think of survival in terms of years, instead of months,” said San Diego volunteer event chair Jessica Evans in a press release. “By taking action in the Free to Breathe movement and fundraising, you’re bringing hope and empowerment to all those touched by the disease.” This family-friendly event will also include face painting, a one-quarter mile Kid’s Dash and more. Fore more information or to see the various fundraising opportunities available even if you choose to not participate in the 5k, visit freetobreathe.org.
FREE PARKING, CHARGING FOR EV THROUGH AUGUST
To commemorate its installation of 30 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at its parking garage located at 707 Broadway, Downtown, Emmes Realty Services is offering free parking and charging to electric vehicles through Aug. 31. Emmes’ 707 location, situated near East Village, the Gaslamp Quarter and the B Street business corridor, offers the largest concentration of publicly available EV chargers in San Diego. The firm currently owns and operates four high-rise office buildings in the Downtown area. “At 707, we’re focusing on innovation and creating a smart workplace for the future,” said Jordan Johnson, vice president at Emmes. “With electric vehicles becoming more popular, we believe it is important to embrace this technology now … the addition of the EV charging stations also ties in perfectly with our strong commitment to sustainability and providing our customers with the highest level of amenities available.” Those wishing to park and charge may do so by downloading the ChargePoint app and reserving a spot for up to two hours. “By 2020, 50 percent of the workforce will be in the millennial category and they expect amenities like EV charging stations from their employers,” Kris Michell, president and CEO, Downtown San Diego Partnership, said in the release. “Emmes’ charging stations are especially important because they are open to the public. So people who travel to our vibrant Downtown for work or play now have a place to charge their vehicle. It is exciting to have companies like Emmes help make our Downtown greener.”