Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals - A Boozy Tribute to Holiday Films

With immersive pop-up events gaining popularity, especially for big budget film releases or special occasions, it only makes sense that these ventures have grown to include both Los Angeles night life and the holidays. Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals is an unofficial, fan-made, immersive holiday experience that plunges guests into three classic Christmas films: Home Alone, A Christmas Story, and Bad Santa.

Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals splits up the location into four different areas, one for each of the featured films, and an outdoor space for their ice skating rink. Wrapping paper covers the walls, scattered posters pay tribute to iconic film moments, presents adorn the tables and shelves, and the staff members wear appropriately tacky ugly sweaters. Each of the three film-inspired areas contains a free photo booth. In A Christmas Story, you can don a pink bunny onesie while holding an official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle or take a selfie with the classic leg lamp. The Home Alone photo booth, across from Kevin’s make-shift treehouse, is the McCallister family’s living room, complete with a decorated tree and stockings above the fireplace. Bad Santa, the most interactive of the three rooms, lets guests pose and take photos with a drunk Santa – one who might be swayed to dance with you if you ask nicely (I speak from experience).

The outdoor space is more traditionally decorated: fake snow lines the floors, string lights twinkle, a blow-up snowman waves hello. This is where you can ice skate under the stars or warm up by a fire pit. Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals uses Glice for their skating rink: it’s a synthetic ice made for any climate and does not use electricity or water! The rink is smoother than a typical torn up ice rink, and has a slightly different feel to skating; it takes some getting used to, and offers plenty of opportunity to hold onto that special someone.

When on a break from skating or taking selfies, other indoor entertainment is also provided, from comedy to live music. Or guests can choose to have a more intimate evening playing one of several board games spread throughout the event.

In addition to hosting a full bar, Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals has also created an array of specialty cocktails – the espresso-flavored “Look What Ya Did Ya Little Jerk” is topped with marshmallows; “Bad Santa” incorporates tequila and sparkling apple cider, garnished with a festive rosemary wreath; the egg nog-based “Filthy Animal” comes with a mound of whipped cream and a cinnamon stick. Of course it wouldn’t be the holidays without hot chocolate (virgin or spiked) and roasting s’mores over the fire pits. And when you’re good and toasted, a rotating assortment of food trucks will be waiting to feed your late-night cravings.

Strictly for adults 21 and over, Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals is a fun alternative to more traditional, family-friendly holiday fare. The booze flows, the entertainment can be raunchy, and the Santa is bad, but the joyful holiday spirit still encompasses the event. May your days be merry and bright, and may all your Christmases be… just a little bit naughty.

Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals is open Wednesday-Sunday, through January 6^th, and can also be rented for private parties. Timed-entry tickets (purchase them here) include admission to the event, all live entertainment, ice skating, two cocktails, and three film-inspired photo booths. Check out more photos on their Instagram page.

As a special bonus, guests will have a chance to pose for a fun photo or boomerang in the holiday photo booth rental provided by CEG Interactive. Shareable images can be downloaded to the guest’s phone and shared on social media. Visit the CEG website to download!

As a thank you to our readers, Happy Holidays Ya Filthy Animals is offering a discount code for tickets. Normally $40, code HOLIDAY25 will drop tickets to $25. Happy holidays, indeed!