Summer of the Arts is the organization charged with planning pretty much every summer activity in downtown Iowa City. Their season begins May 19 with the opening of the Friday Night Concert Series, nearly every Friday (and one Wednesday) at 6:30pm at the Fountain Stage in the Pedestrian Mall.

Son Volt and Elephant Revival headline the music at the Iowa Arts Festival, June 2-4, which will also feature a juried art show with more 125 vendors, food booths, kids Fun Zone, and much more. Nearly every activity is free.

Details at www.summerofthearts.org.

Some of the earliest moving pictures ever made reside right here in the Creative Corridor. Early silent films made by William Franklin Brinton in the early 1900s have been preserved by historian Michael Zahs of Washington, Iowa. Some years ago, Red Cedar Chamber Music was asked to provide musical accompaniment to a showing of these films. In the time since then, a documentary has been produced about Zahs and his mission to preserve and share these films with a modern audience.

The Johnson County Historical Society, FilmScene, and the Englert Theatre will present “The Brinton Silent Film Project” on May 19 at 8pm. The program will include the original Red Cedar Trio of Carey Bostian, Jan Boland, and John Dowdall accompanying the films, as well as the trailer for the documentary, which will have a June premiere in Washington D.C.

Information and tickets at www.englert.org.