Flaco, the escaped Eurasian eagle-owl who turned Central Park into New York City’s most unexpected birdwatching hotspot, is getting the big-screen treatment right where his legend began. Director Penny Lane’s new documentary Wild Inside, focused on Flaco’s short but spectacular run of freedom, will have a free world premiere inside Central Park on July 29, 2026. The film then opens in theaters at Manhattan’s IFC Center on July 31 and will roll out to select venues around the country.
Free world premiere in Flaco's home
Sandbox Films is presenting the Central Park screening, which organizers say will be free and open to anyone who wants to show up, in association with the office of Council Member Gale A. Brewer, the Central Park Conservancy and Rooftop Films, according to Time Out. “Central Park is a magical place, and it was made even more magical by Flaco,” Lane said in a statement to the outlet, framing the event as a kind of homecoming for the owl that briefly owned the city’s skyline.
How the film was made
Wild Inside is built from footage shared by New York City birders and layered with interviews from wildlife experts and the New Yorkers who followed Flaco’s nightly moves, according to the production company. The feature is directed by Penny Lane and produced by Sandbox Films with support from HBO Documentary Films. Jessica Harrop is listed as an executive producer, and first reported HBO’s involvement last year.
Flaco's year on the wing
Flaco broke out of his Central Park Zoo enclosure in early February 2023 after someone cut through the mesh, then spent nearly a year roosting his way around Manhattan, drawing crowds of birdwatchers and a flood of social media attention, AP News reported. Zoo officials said he later died after an apparent collision with an Upper West Side building, and subsequent testing found a pigeon herpesvirus and rodenticide exposure that likely worsened his condition, according to The Washington Post.
Where to see it
The Central Park screening is set for July 29 and organizers say it is free to attend, with details on exact location and timing to be provided through the event partners. After that, the film opens at Manhattan’s IFC Center on July 31, with showtimes to be listed on the theater’s site. For ticketing information and additional theater dates around the country, check the listing at the IFC Center.
Why the story still resonates
According to the filmmakers, Wild Inside uses Flaco’s unlikely year outside a cage to dig into questions of nature versus nurture and how city residents connect, or fail to connect, with the wildlife that lives alongside them. The production and distributor have highlighted that theme in their press materials, and the Central Park premiere is being framed as a hometown send off for a story that started inside the park, then grew into a citywide conversation about freedom, risk and what it means to belong in New York.
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