L.A. Film Festival adds ‘Train Your Dragon 2,’ ‘22 Jump Street’

A pair of late-breaking, high-profile additions to the Los Angeles Film Festival have been announced: the animated fantasy-adventure “How to Train Your Dragon 2” and the buddy-cop comedy “22 Jump Street.”

On June 9, two days before the festival proper begins at L.A. Live downtown and four days before “Dragon 2” opens in theaters, the LAFF will screen DreamWorks Animation’s sequel to the 2010 tale “How to Train Your Dragon.” Written and directed by Dean DeBlois, the new film continues the story of a young Viking (voiced by Jay Baruchel) and his faithful dragon who must protect both their kinds from a power-hungry warlord.

A day later, the festival will screen “22 Jump Street,” the follow-up to Chris Miller and Phil Lord’s 2012 big-screen reboot of the TV series “21 Jump Street.” In the film, Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill reprise their roles as a pair of bumbling cops who go undercover for a drug bust, this time at a local college. Columbia Pictures will release the film June 13.

In the past, the LAFF has regularly aimed for mass appeal by showcasing mainstream Hollywood movies alongside indie fare. Last year, the festival screened the superhero blockbuster “Man of Steel” and the animated film “Monsters University.”

Film Independent, which presents the festival, previously announced Bong Joon-ho’s post-apocalyptic sci-fi film “Snowpiercer” as the opening film and Clint Eastwood’s “Jersey Boys” as the closer.

The fest is sponsored by the Los Angeles Times and runs June 11-19.

Other festival events announced Tuesday include a conversation with crime novelist Michael Connelly; two musical programs at the Grammy Museum; and the Black List Live, a staged reading of an unproduced Black List script.

More information is available at lafilmfest.com.