- This event has passed.
Emerging Filmmaker Showcase: ‘Water Rites’
January 8 @ 7:15 pm – 9:30 pm
The Lindsay’s first Emerging Filmmakers Showcase of 2026 is an independently made thriller featuring a few horror legends and plenty of local talent.
Water Rites was written and directed by McMurray native Dean Jacobs. It follows a young couple, played by Jacobs and Katy Bentz (Life is Strange), who uncover unsettling secrets while spending the summer in a secluded lakefront community.
Jacobs’ followup to 2023’s The Trip will have its East Coast premiere at The Lindsay on Thursday, Jan. 8, at 7:15 p.m. This event is free, though we recommend that all attendees RSVP via the below sign-up form due to space limitations. The screening will be immediately followed by a filmmaker Q&A.
“I’m thrilled to come home and premiere my second feature film,” says Jacobs. “As long as I’m making movies, I’ll always screen them in Pittsburgh first—for family, friends and the city that made me who I am.”
Bentz and Jacobs play Katie and James, a young couple embarking on a summer getaway to a remote town nestled high in the California mountains. However, they may never be able to escape this idyllic retreat after unwittingly discovering this community’s disturbing secrets.
The film’s supporting cast includes Dee Wallace, who played Elliott’s mother in E.T. and is also known for roles in The Stepford Wives and Cujo; Michael Berryman, a long-time character actor who has appeared in classics such as One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and The Hills Have Eyes; and Lynn Lowry, a horror icon who many will recognize from George Romero’s The Crazies and David Cronenberg’s Shivers.
While Water Rites was filmed in California, Jacobs is a Western Pennsylvania product through and through. The Peters Township High School and Indiana University of Pennsylvania graduate performed at regional theaters and worked on several locally made films before moving to Los Angeles in 2012.
Most of Water Rites‘ crew hails from the Pittsburgh area, including director of photography Ethan Leisie. Jacobs knew he needed this region’s plethora of skilled entertainment professionals to level up as a filmmaker.
“With this film, I really wanted to raise the bar,” Jacobs says. “My first feature was shot on an extremely low budget. So going into this project, I knew I wanted every aspect to be bigger and better. And I think we achieved that.”
UPDATE: This event is now at capacity! If you wish to be put on a waitlist, please contact us via hello@thelindsaytheater.org
