2010 Conference

Guest speaker John Cooper with attendee. (Photo courtesy of Chuck Foxen)

Keynote Speakers:

JOHN COOPER – Director, Sundance Film Festival
MICHAEL MOORE – Filmmaker and Art House operator
GARY MEYER – Co-director of Telluride Film Festival, Co-founder of Landmark Theatres
BOB OTTENHOFF – President & CEO of GuideStar

Day One

Not-For-Profit Benchmarking and Art House Metrics – Measuring Up!
This interactive session included a report on statistical information gathered from a wide sample of Art House theaters. Find out how your theater measures up, where it excels and where it could improve.
SESSION PANELISTS: Tori Baker, Salt Lake City Film Society; Juliet Goodfriend, Bryn Mawr Film Institute and Bob Ottenhoff, GuideStar

1:00 – 2:00 PM – TUESDAY, JANUARY 19, 2010
Key Note Address – Bob Ottenhoff – Community Philanthropy and the Art House
Bob Ottenhoff is President/CEO of GuideStar. Every day nearly 22,000 people go to the GuideStar website to research nonprofit organizations. Before GuideStar, Bob worked for 25 years in community-based media, primarily public broadcasting, so he has a deep affinity for the role a mission driven Art House can have in communities nation-wide.

2:15 – 4:00 PM – TUESDAY, JANUARY 19, 2010
Art House Sustainability: Balancing Earned and Contributed Revenue
Art House cinema is a profound art form that deserves to thrive outside the fetters of commercial markets. Art Houses need to re-frame their practices from “working like mad to put butts in seats” to “working intelligently to engage their communities to support excellent cinema.”
SESSION PANELISTS: Russ Collins, Michigan Theater; Tori Baker, Salt Lake City Film Society and Bob Ottenhoff, GuideStar

2:15 – 4:00 PM – TUESDAY, JANUARY 19, 2010
Midnights, Sci Fi Marathons, Sing-A-Longs: Profitable Special Programs
Does your theatre offer regular midnight screenings? Have you put on a movie sing-a-long? Do you exhibit classic films in the summer? Is it profitable? Are there other special programs that work? Come share your ideas and learn from your peers about special film programming that can both set your theater apart from the competition and be profitable.
SESSION PANELISTS: Jeff Frank, Drexel Theatre and Tara Schroeder, Tampa Theatre

5:00 – 8:30 PM – TUESDAY EVENING – JANUARY 19, 2010
Opening Night Reception
Opening Night Dinner – Homestead Resort
Welcome and Key Note Address by John Cooper
John Cooper is the Director of Sundance Film Festival and Director of Creative Development, Sundance Institute. Funny, self-deprecating and approachable, Cooper is known to thousands of American filmmakers as the guy who calls with really excellent news. At Sundance he is a central figure – the armature that supports everything.

Day Two

8:30 – 10:00 AM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Best Practices for Membership Programs
Community-based, mission driven Art House Cinemas seem to operate best and be most sustainable when contributed revenue is 30%-50% of total revenue. Growing membership can be a critical step in a comprehensive program to produce a sustainable level of contributed revenue. Learn how three Art Houses grew their membership revenue.
SESSION PANELISTS: Russ Collins, Michigan Theater; Stephanie Silverman, Belcourt Theatre and Elizabeth Taylor-Mead, Coolidge Corner Theatre

8:30 – 10:00 AM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
The Art House and the Film Festival: Challenges and Opportunities
Film Festivals come in many shapes, sizes and forms. The intense stress of running a Film Festival is well known. How does an Art House that hosts or produces a Film Festival balance the challenges of daily programming, marketing and operations with the concentrated work and overwhelming demands of a Film Festival?
SESSION PANELISTS: Richard Peterson, California Film Institute & Mill Valley Film Festival; Michael Moore, State Theatre & Traverse City Film Festival and Sarah Bantz, Ragtag Cinema & True/False Film Festival

10:15AM – 12:00PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Social Networking and the Art House: Twitter, Facebook, E-mail
This session presents effective ways to utilize social media to brand your Art House, connect with target markets, and increase sales. The goal to this session is to provide you with the tools and techniques you need to increase your ability to use the power of social media to motivate moviegoers and increase revenue.
SESSION PANELISTS: Stephanie Silverman & Toby Leonard, Belcourt Theatre; Allen Chou, Passion River Films and Jim Hitch, MyEmma

10:15 AM – 12:00 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Exhibitors Who Are Also Distributors: Seeing the World from Both Sides Now
Everyone is looking for the next hit – even Art Houses. Get insight into why it is so difficult for distributors to discover and market Art House films that deliver sizable audiences. What are the challenges and why are the odds so long?
SESSION PANELISTS: Jon Vaneo, IFC Center; Brian Andreotti, Music Box Theatre and Connie White, Balcony Booking

(Photo courtesy of Chuck Foxen)

12:00 – 2:00 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Special Interest Round Table Discussions
Join colleagues who share similar concerns. Some topics to be discussed:
* Implementing Best Practices in Daily Theater Operations – Moderator, Jeffrey Jacobs
* When the Art House is Part of a Museum or Other Larger Institution – Moderator, Pablo Kjolseth
* The Small Town Art House – Sustainability Tactics– Moderator, George Cooper & Matthew Helmerich
* Dealing with Nasty Competitors – Distributor Politics & Creative Programming – Moderator, Stephanie Silverman & Juliet Goodfriend
* Fund Raising: Ideas for your annual giving program – Moderator ,Steve Apkon
* Fund Raising: Conducting a capital campaign – Moderator, Rachel Jacobson
* Audience Development: Marketing beyond advertising – Moderator, Margo Gerber
* Newspaper advertising in the Internet age – Moderator, Bernice Baeza
* Big Screen Alternatives Content: Opera, Concerts, Comedy and more – Moderator, Ira Deutchman
* Developing film tours with filmmakers & independent theaters – Moderator, Gary Meyer & Toby Leonard
* Non-profit cinemas: getting the most out of the Board of Directors – Moderator, Philip Cowan
* How to leverage support from businesses & grant giving institutions – Moderator, Denise Kasell
* Creative approaches to generating ancillary revenue for your theater – Moderator, Richard Beer

2:00 – 3:30 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
The Art House, Digital Cinema and DCI: How to Make it Make Sense
Session leader Rob Harris is the cinema projection system expert at Boston Light & Sound (BL&S), which delivers high-end movie images and sound content to the world’s leading film festivals and movie premieres. Join him to learn and discuss DCI, digital cinema and other issues relevant to your theatre’s ever changing tech needs.
SESSION LEADER: Rob Harris, Boston Light & Sound

2:00 – 3:30 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
The For-Profit, Community-Based, Mission-Driven Art House
Is the for-profit Art House model dead? Can they survive only in big cities? Must an Art House in a small or medium sized market accept donations or play more commercial films titles to survive? And, if they do, are they still an Art House? Come to this special interest session and learn from successful commercial Art House operators.
SESSION PANELISTS: Jan Klingelhofer, Pacific Film Resources; Jack NyBlom, Camera Cinema; Gary Meyer, Balboa Theatre and Jeff Frank, Drexel Theatre

3:45 – 5:15 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Film Buying Panel: Programming Trends and Best Practices
Film buying is the art and commerce of balancing programming choices, film availability, competitive negotiations, and many other details that affect the supply of films to theaters. This session explores the nuts and bolts of the film programmer’s work while considering current trends in the industry.
SESSION PANELISTS: Jeffrey Jacobs, Jacobs Entertainment; Connie White, Balcony Booking; Jan Klingel hofer, Pacific Film Resouces

3:45 – 5:15 PM – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
It Ain’t Easy Being Green: LEED Designs for Your Art House
Sustainable design is imperative to our future. The LEED building rating system was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council and applies to the design, construction and operation of green buildings. Learn how LEED design standards can benefit your Art House and what you should consider when making improvements to you Art House.
SESSION LEADER: Scott Georgeson, AIA,LEED, AP Workshop Architects

7:00 – 9:00 PM– WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010
Dinner with Key Note Speaker – Gary Meyer
Gary Meyer is currently the owner of the Balboa Theatre in San Francisco and the co-director of the Telluride Film Festival. Co-founder of Landmark Theatres in 1975, Gary has vast experience as an exhibitor and programmer. Come hear his perspective on the recent past and current state of the Art House and its potential for the future.

Day Three

9:30 – 11:00 AM – THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010
Volunteers and Staff: Maximizing the Relationship
Volunteers can perform work for your Art House (without collecting a paycheck!) and become your strongest community advocates. This is true for volunteers who take tickets and pop popcorn as well as those key volunteers who serve on the Board of Directors. Lean how to use volunteer/staff teams to operate your Art House at the highest level.
SESSION PANELISTS: Deb Lake, State Theatre; Amanda Bynum, Michigan Theater and Tara Schroeder, Tampa Theatre

9:30 – 11:00 AM – THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010
How to Bring Bus Loads of School Kids to Your Theater
The Jacob Burns Film Center’s (JBFC) program, “Classroom to Screening Room” brings lots of students to the JBFC for film screenings. Learn how the Jacob Burns Film Center created and successfully implements this program and how this program is designed to achieve the New York State educational objectives that benefit schools and teachers.
SESSION LEADER: Stephen Apkon, Jacob Burns Center

11:15 AM – 12:45 PM – THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010
Role of the Executive Director in Fundraising
Being an Art House Executive Director is all consuming. There are films to select and book, marketing to execute, venues and equipment to care for, paid and volunteer personnel to manage, etc. However, are you, as Executive Director, focusing enough of your time and energy on soliciting contributions from individuals? You must! Learn how!
SESSION LEADER: Mark Fishkin, California Film Institute

11:15 AM – 12:45 PM – THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010
Creative and Profitable Approaches to Concession Sales
Mike Furlinger, owner and operator of the Terrace and Hippodrome will discuss how specialized cinemas can potentially double their per capita gross income at the concession stand. This session is about re-evaluating traditional concession practices and thinking outside the box. Links to new vendors will be provided.
SESSION LEADER: Mike Furlinger, Terrace & Hippodrome Theatres

1:00 – 3:00 PM – THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010
CLOSING LUNCH & KEY NOTE ADDRESS
Key Note Speaker – Michael Moore
Michael Moore is an award-winning filmmaker (including an Oscar) best known for documentaries such as Roger & Me, Bowling for Columbine, Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, and Capitalism: A Love Story. In 2005, Michael started the Traverse City Film Festival, in northern Michigan and opened an Art House Cinema – the State Theatre in 2008.