2012 Conference

Art House Strength: Colleagues, Community, Connection

The 6th Annual Art House Convergence will take place from January 14 – 17, 2013. Check out our 2013 Conference page for more information!

Art House Strength: Colleagues, Community, Connection
Click here for a list of our 2012 speakers

Day One: Monday, January 16, 2012

3:00pm – 9:00pm – MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
Conference Registration & Office
Registration and conference office open. Coat room in St. Moritz, storage in Thurgau.

3:00pm – 7:00pm – MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
Art House Lounge
The Art House Lounge features snacks, refreshing drinks, distributor displays, a movie trailer show reel and a theater information table.  Sponsored by Emerging Pictures, the largest all-digital specialty film and alternative content theater network in the United States.  Distributors represented in the Art House Lounge: Adopt Films, ATO Films, Eammon Films, Focus Features, Fox Searchlight Pictures, IFC Films, Janus Films, Kino Lorber, Inc., Magnolia Pictures, Menemsha Films, monterey media inc., Music Box Films, Oscilloscope, Roadside Attractions, Samuel Goldwyn and The Weinstein Company.

5:00pm – 7:00pm – MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
Informal Dinner
Early-arriving delegates can plan to join colleagues for dinner before the fifth annual Art House Convergence begins. Cost of this informal meal is the delegate’s responsibility.
7:00pm – 10:00pm – MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
Opening Reception & Art House Slide Show
Greet friends and colleagues and meet new members of the Art House movement over a drink to kick off the fifth annual Art House Convergence. Learn more about your fellow Convergence attendees by watching a slide show of theater and special event photos from attendees, prepared by Beth Gilligan of the Coolidge Corner Theatre. Cash bar.

9:30pm – 10:30pm – MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
Crater Swim
Of all the unique things you can do at the Convergence, there is nothing quite like a visit to the Homestead Crater, a 55-foot tall, 10,000-year-old, beehive-shaped limestone formation that nature hollowed out and filled with 90° water. The hole at the top of the dome lets in sunlight and fresh air while the interior stays wonderfully heated — it’s a not-to-be-missed, truly relaxing and unique resort experience. Swim is limited to the first 24 delegates to show up with suit and towel.  The Resort will charge $10 to enter the water. Support for the opening night reception is provided by the CopperBridge Foundation, specialists in cultural exchange programs in Cuba and other unique destinations.

Day Two: Tuesday, January 17, 2012

7:00am – 7:00pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Conference Registration & Office
Registration and conference office open. (Coat room in St. Moritz, storage in Thurgau.)

7:00am – 7:00pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Art House Lounge
The Art House Lounge features snacks, refreshing drinks, distributor displays, a movie trailer show reel and a theater information table.  Sponsored by Emerging Pictures, the largest all-digital specialty film and alternative content theater network in the United States.  Distributors represented in the Art House Lounge: Adopt Films, ATO Films, Eammon Films, Focus Features, Fox Searchlight Pictures, IFC Films, Janus Films, Kino Lorber, Inc., Magnolia Pictures, Menemsha Films, monterey media inc., Music Box Films, Oscilloscope, Roadside Attractions, Samuel Goldwyn and The Weinstein Company.

7:00am – 8:30am – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Breakfast
This pre-conference breakfast is not included in the Conference fee.

8:00am – 8:45am – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Meet the Delegates
You’re invited to join us for a completely optional structured networking event. Sit at a long table across from another delegate and quickly say hello, perhaps exchange cards, before the bell rings and everyone switches partners — it’s a fun and easy way to meet new colleagues and reconnect with old.

9:00am – 9:30am – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Plenary Session: Opening Remarks from Steve Apkon, Founder and Executive Director, Jacob Burns Film Center
The organizers of the Art House Convergence welcome delegates to an important few days of coming together to explore the community-based, mission-driven Art House in order to strengthen our impact on each of our communities, and on the world of independent film.

9:30am – 10:15am – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Plenary Session: The Art House Survey Project: Benchmarking Year Three
This interactive session includes a report on three years’ worth of statistical information gathered from a wide sample of Art House theaters. Find out how your theater measures up to other Art Houses and commercial theaters. Learn where your theater excels and where it could improve.  SESSION LEADER: Juliet Goodfriend, President, Bryn Mawr Film Institute and Valerie Temple, Programming Manager, Bryn Mawr Film Institute

10:30am – 12 Noon – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 1: The Sustainable Art House – Balancing Community Relevance, Artistic Vibrancy and Multiple Revenue Streams
Sustainability is not a simplistic sense of financial security. Art House sustainability requires a balancing act between three interdependent but sometimes competing priorities: community relevance, artistic vibrancy and proper capitalization – which, for non-profit Art Houses, should include dynamic fundraising programs and capabilities. This focus on fundraising effectiveness frequently conflicts with the traditional notion of movie exhibitors’ almost exclusive reliance on box office and concessions revenue.
This session will walk through a case study of the Michigan Theater, which has steadily expanded its level of community participation and artistic quality. As a result, it has increased its fundraising capabilities from 15% to nearly 50% of total revenue. These sustainable contributed revenue streams, in turn, have allowed the Michigan Theater to invest in needed digital projection equipment, focus on improved customer service and hire fundraising staff. SESSION LEADER: Lee Berry, Chief Development Officer, Michigan Theater

10:30am – 12 Noon – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 2: For-Profit Colloquium
For-profit theaters can be community-based and mission driven, and are an important part of the Art House landscape. This session will be devoted to issues of particular importance to for-profit theaters: the pros and cons of the for-profit vs. non-profit model; issues regarding clearances and competition; and developing audience loyalty and successful membership programs. Participants should come prepared to share their experience and concerns in order to find common cause and solutions. SESSION LEADERS: Jeffrey Jacobs, Owner, Jacobs Entertainment Inc.; John Toner, Executive Director, The Ambler Theatre/Renew Theaters

12:15pm – 2:15pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Roundtable Lunch Session
Small group lunch discussions allow you to share information and concerns with like-minded colleagues. The lunch is broken into two segments so that you can join two different tables. Box lunch will be served. Support for the Roundtable Lunch Session is provided by Sony Digital Cinema Solutions.

Topics

• Competition Within and Outside the Market Segment – Sydney Levine, Sydney’s Buzz
• Distribution CO-OP: Brainstorming a New Model – Tori Baker, Salt Lake City Film Society; Denise Kasell, Coolidge Corner Theatre; Connie White, Balcony Booking
• Driving Marketing for Films Without Major Studio Backing – Scott Mansfield, monterey media inc.
• Employees and Volunteers: How to Find, Manage, and Keep Them Happy – Landee Bryant, Maiden Alley Cinema and River’s Edge International Film Festival
• Engaging New or Youth Markets – Jesse Locks, Nevada City Film Festival
• Event-izing Moviegoing, or How To Sell Out a Show on a Rainy Tuesday – Dylan Marchetti, Variance Films
• Film-Based Tours of Cuba as Fundraisers and Friend Raisers – Geo Darder, Copper Bridge Foundation
• Groupon and LivingSocial: How to Put Together a Deal that Works for You – Sid Garcia-Heberger, Crest Theatre
• Interactive Screenings: Audiences Singing, Quoting, Smelling, Dancing – Clinton McClung, SIFF Cinema
• New and Adventurous Programming: How to Build on What You Have – Barak Epstein, Aviation Cinemas; Elizabeth Taylor-Mead, Art House Cinema Consultant
• Nuts and Bolts of Art House Operations – Sheri Signer, Arts and Non Profit Operations Consultant, Previous General Manager of the Jacob Burns Film Center, Consultant at Film Society of Lincoln Center
• Planning for Digital – Robert Harris, Boston Light and Sound
• Print Traffic: Working with Film – Brian Belovarac, Janus Films
• Programmer Chat: Mentoring Session with Seasoned and New Programmers – Randy Siefkin, The State Theatre Modesto
• Programming Partnerships: Advantages and Challenges of Working with Community Groups, University Departments and Student Groups – Jon Vickers, Indiana University Cinema
• Small Venues in Small Towns – Billy J. Estes, The Midwest Theatre
• What Do Exhibitors Need from Distributors? Developing a List of Materials that Would Improve Marketing Efforts – Beth Gilligan, Coolidge Corner Theatre
• Working Group of Art Houses in Larger Institutions (Museums and Universities) – Brian Hearn, Oklahoma City Museum of Art
• Working with Local Media – Matthew Helmerich, Tropic Cinema

2:30pm – 3:15pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Plenary Session: Key Note Address by Tim League, Alamo Drafthouse Chief Executive and Founder
Tim League took a lifelong love of movies and built a wildly popular independent movie theater chain. This former Shell Oil engineer will talk about creating and maintaining one of the coolest Art Houses in the world with good food, adult beverages, terrific films, Fantastic Fest and the Rolling Roadshow.
3:30pm – 4:30pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 1: Creating Viewers AND Doers. The Importance of Education in the Art House Community
Steve Apkon is back to share more from the frontiers of Art House educational programming.  The Jacob Burns Film Center and Media Arts Lab are recognized as one of the leaders in developing leading edge programs focused on visual literacy. Come learn how these lessons can be translated into your own organization and help you build a more dynamic community. SESSION LEADER: Steve Apkon, Founder and Executive Director, Jacob Burns Film Center
3:30pm – 4:30pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 2: Social Media for the Art House
Twitter, Facebook and Blogs — oh my! The panel will explore such questions as: How is social media being used to launch films and how to build social media communities to support your Art House? How are film producers, public relations and marketing agents, networks and studios using social media to promote cinema for Art House exhibition? What are tips, trends and techniques used by Art Houses to make Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogging, web sites, email and more traditional media work together to promote the programs and virtue of the community-based, mission-driven Art House? SESSION PANELIST: Ira Deutchman, Chair of Columbia University’s Film Program, Managing Partner of Emerging Pictures
4:30pm – 5:00pm  – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Yoga / Coffee Break
Relax, stretch and think about what you have learned at this professionally-led, but informal, yoga / coffee break.
5:00pm – 6:15pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 1: Programming Models for the Art House
Calendar house, repertory house, first-run house; cult films, classic films, big hit first run indie film — there are so many silos, so much potential content, how do you sort through it to create the right programmatic mix for your community? Does a film curator craft your film programming highlighting the genres, artists, techniques, nationalities, history and languages of cinema? Do you wait every week hoping and praying that a distributor will grant you the opportunity to play the most popular Art House film currently in distribution? Or do you do both? Join a lively conversation about the possibilities of programming and the role of curation in the Art House. SESSION MODERATOR: Stephanie Silverman, Managing Director, Belcourt Theatre; PANELISTS: Hadrian Belove, Head Programmer, The Cinefamily; Toby Leonard, Director of Programming, Belcourt Theatre; Andy Smith, Executive Director, Nickelodeon Theatre; John Vanco, Vice President & General Manager, IFC Center; Connie White, Founder & Film Buyer, Balcony Booking & Releasing
5:00pm – 6:15pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Option 2: How to Use, and Make Your Own, Trailers, Ads and PSAs
Part hands-on session that will show you in real time how quick and easy it can be to make your own pre-show content, part high-level overview of what three of the country’s best Art Houses are doing in pushing the boundaries of custom content creation, this session will change the way you look at this crucial part of Art House presentation and marketing. SESSION PANELISTS: Michael Falter, Program Director, Pickford Film Center; Henri Mazza, Alamo Drafthouse Chief Creative Officer
6:45pm – 7:45pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Opening Cocktail Reception
Support for the opening night reception is provided by Proludio, founded to create an inexpensive alternative to Hollywood’s costly DCI digital standard for theaters.
7:45pm – 8:45pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Opening Night Dinner
Join your fellow Art House colleagues and Convergence delegates at the opening dinner party.  Support for the opening night dinner is provided by Proludio, founded to create an inexpensive alternative to Hollywood’s costly DCI digital standard for theaters.
8:45pm – 9:15pm – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Special Presentation to John Cooper
The Convergence is proud to recognize the founding contributions of John Cooper, Director, Sundance Film Festival, to the Art House Convergence, by helping to establish the Sundance Institute’s Art House Project.
9:15pm – 12 Midnight – TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2012
Art House After Hours
Enjoy drinks and snacks and wind down from a thought-provoking and productive day.

Day Three: Wednesday, January 18, 2012

7:00am – 7:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Conference Registration & Office
Registration and conference office open. (Coat room in St. Moritz, storage in Thurgau.)
7:00am – 7:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Art House Lounge
The Art House Lounge features snacks, refreshing drinks, distributor displays, a movie trailer show reel and a theater information table.  Sponsored by Emerging Pictures, the largest all-digital specialty film and alternative content theater network in the United States.  Distributors represented in the Art House Lounge: Adopt Films, ATO Films, Eammon Films, Focus Features, Fox Searchlight Pictures, IFC Films, Janus Films, Kino Lorber, Inc., Magnolia Pictures, Menemsha Films, monterey media inc., Music Box Films, Oscilloscope, Roadside Attractions, Samuel Goldwyn and The Weinstein Company.
7:00am – 8:30pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Complimentary Breakfast
Support for Tuesday breakfast is provided by Storming Images, specialists in digital media distribution and playback.
7:00am – 8:45pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Self-Selected Meetings
This time is set aside for delegates to schedule meetings with other like-minded people at the Convergence. Delegates often use the Google Group to spread the word about such meetings.
8:00am – 8:45am – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Informal Networking Winter Walk
The Zermatt Resort is situated on a beautiful piece of land nestled in the Wasatch Mountains. Come celebrate this winter wonderland on this invigorating morning walk.
9:00am – 10:45am – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 1: The Other Way to Get an Edge – Treat Your Customers Like Royalty: Zingerman’s The Art of Giving Great Service
The center of Mario Batali’s “gastrodeli universe” and held in Saveur magazine’s highest regard for its service, Zingerman’s has taken its national accolades into the world of training and consulting with ZingTrain. Zingerman’s provides service that makes its customers feel like royalty, and ZingTrain teaches you their 3 steps to giving great service and the 5 steps to effectively handling customer complaints. Informal and interactive, this workshop will focus on what Zingerman’s great service looks like in art houses. Some of the best businesses in the world look to ZingTrain for unique, productive and energizing training experiences. If you’re committed to improving the quality of your customer service, ZingTrain’s most popular workshop will offer much food for thought. SESSION LEADER: Ann Lofgren, ZingTrain Consultant
9:00am – 10:15am – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 2: DCP, Part I
Digital projection in the form of Blu-ray or DVD is a part of most Art House operations, but for most — or all — theaters, DCI-compliant systems are soon to be necessary as well. This morning session is a survey of the DCP future and the continuing availability (or lack) of 35mm prints. How to select and install a DCI compliant system — advice from experts in the field. How to pay for a DCI-compliant system — fundraise, lease or buy? Can the VPF program work for Art Houses? The hottest topic in the Art House world today will be the focus of this special morning session. SESSION MODERATOR: Greg Laemmle, President, Laemmle Theatres; SESSION PANELISTS: Hannah Cash, Doremi Labs; Chapin Cutler, President and Co-Founder, Boston Light & Sound; Robert Harris, Film & Digital Cinema Manager, Boston Light and Sound; Christopher Simpson, Sony Digital Cinema.
10:15am – 10:45am  – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Yoga / Coffee Break for DCP Session Participants
Relax, stretch and think about what you have learned at this professionally led, but informal, yoga / coffee break.
10:45am – 12 Noon  – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 1: Science on Screen: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Grant Program
The Coolidge Corner Theatre’s Science on Screen series has expanded film and scientific literacy with this popular program, now in its eighth year. Last year, eight grants of $7,000 were awarded to Convergence participants. Those grant recipients return this year to tell us about their Science on Screen experiences, and to encourage other theaters to apply for this year’s expanded grants program. Through generous funding support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Coolidge Corner Theatre will launch a second year of its national Science on Screen initiative at the Art House Convergence. In 2012, the Coolidge will issue 20 grants of $7,000 to art house cinemas across the country for use in implementing their own Science on Screen programming.   SESSION PANELISTS: Denise Kasell, Executive Director, Coolidge Corner Theatre; Beth Gilligan, Associate Director of Development, Marketing & Outreach, Coolidge Corner Theatre; Cheryl White, Science on Screen Program Manager, Coolidge Corner Theatre; Doron Weber, Vice President, Programs, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; Brian Hearn, Film Curator, Oklahoma City Museum of Art; Tara Schroeder, Director of Programming & Marketing, Tampa Theatre
10:45am – 12 Noon  – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 2: DCP, Part II
Continuation of the morning session on DCP future. SESSION PANELISTS: Neal Block, Head of Distribution, Magnolia Pictures; Larry McCourt, Sony Digital Cinema; Jack NyBlom, Camera Cinemas; John Toner, Executive Director, The Ambler Theatre/Renew Theaters
Afternoon Bonus – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Small Group Consulting
Your chance to sit down with a seasoned veteran in the Art House theater field and dig into the issues and challenges that your theater faces. Attendees will be asked to sign up in advance for these intensive three-on-one Wednesday afternoon sessions. The Convergence office can answer questions about small group consulting sessions.
12:30pm – 2:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Meet the Sponsors Lunch
Visit all of the sponsor display tables and earn the chance to win prizes, including a free registration to the 2013 Art House Convergence!  Support for the Sponsor Lunch is provided by Spotlight Cinema Networks.
2:30pm – 4:15pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 1: Open Book Management: Why It All Works Better When Your Ushers Know Your Net Operating Profit
Open Book Management is a radical, ethically oriented way to run your business. Not only does it empower and enable every single person in your organization to contribute directly to its financial success — it also reduces the stress on leadership and will help your business weather shifting economic winds. And as an unexpected bonus, you might find yourself surrounded by staff that is newly excited to come to work and eager to make a positive difference. This workshop will teach you about the principles of Open Book Management, why and how it has worked for Zingerman’s, and why we think it’s the wave of the future. The session will give you the tools to understand if Open Book Management is the right approach for you, in a way that is accessible to people at all levels of management. SESSION PANELIST: Ann Lofgren, ZingTrain Consultant
2:30pm – 4:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Option 2: The Art House and the Archive: 35mm is Not Dead (Yet)!
Will the archives rise, as has been foreseen, to fill the space being vacated by the Majors? What will the new archives look like? And how about now — for those of us who still want to show beautiful prints of movies shot on film? How can we locate those prints, and get certified to show them? And what can we do to help keep film accessible for Art Houses?  SESSION PANELISTS: Katie Trainor, Film Collections Manager Museum of Modern Art; Brittan Dunham, Moving Image Archiving and Preservation Program at NYU
4:15pm – 6:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Plenary Session: Meet the Distributors
Representatives of many of the most important distributors of art films in America will be on hand to speak briefly about their companies and discuss trends and issues facing the industry from their perspective. It is hoped that a lively conversation with the audience, a Q & A of concise questions and answers, will help bring renewed awareness of the issues and goals facing the all-important exhibitor-distributor relationship. SESSION MODERATOR: Jeffrey Jacobs, Owner, Jacobs Entertainment
6:30pm – 7:30pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Cocktail Reception
Support for Wednesday cocktails is provided by SkyTics: Your Tickets, Your Way.
7:30pm – 9:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Dinner
Join your fellow delegates for dinner as we wrap up the last full day of the Convergence.  Support for the Tuesday night dinner is provided by Boston Light & Sound, the specialty projection & audio gurus.
9:00pm – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
After Dinner Activities
Watch a special private (for Convergence delegates only) film screening of a 2012 Sundance Film Festival selection in the Grindlewald Room. Or join colleagues in the Chalet Lounge for an Informal Networking Session (and maybe a game or two of pool).   Support for the After Dinner Movie is provided by Boston Light & Sound, the specialty projection & audio gurus.
9:00pm – 12 Midnight – WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2012
Art House After Hours
Enjoy drinks and snacks and wind down from a thought-provoking and productive day.

Day Four: Thursday, January 19, 2012

7:00am – 12 Noon – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Conference Registration & Office
Registration and conference office open. (Coat room in St. Moritz, storage in Thurgau.)
7:00am – 12 Noon – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Art House Lounge
The Art House Lounge features snacks, refreshing drinks, distributor displays, a movie trailer show reel and a theater information table.  Sponsored by Emerging Pictures, the largest all-digital specialty film and alternative content theater network in the United States.  Distributors represented in the Art House Lounge: Adopt Films, Art Takes Over, Eammon Films, Focus Features, Fox Searchlight Pictures, IFC Films, Janus Films, Kino Lorber, Inc., Magnolia Pictures, Menemsha Films, monterey media inc., Music Box Films, Oscilloscope, Roadside Attractions, Samuel Goldwyn and The Weinstein Company.
7:00am – 8:30pm – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Complimentary Breakfast
Support for Wednesday breakfast is provided by Storming Images, specialists in digital media distribution and playback.
7:00am – 8:30pm – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Self-Selected Meetings
This time is set aside for delegates to schedule meetings with other like-minded people at the Convergence. Delegates often use the Google Group to spread the word about such meetings.
8:30am – 9:15am – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Plenary Session: The Way Forward for the Art House Movement
2012 marks the fifth annual Art House Convergence and many in Art House industry wonder, what’s next with our nationwide Art House movement? Come hear a presentation about our future direction by the President and CEO of Guidestar, the leading not-for-profit advocacy institution. Thoughts and plans are coalescing around establishing a full-time professional organization. Come hear about those plans and share your thoughts as, together, we build a strong and effective community-based, cinema culture movement. SESSION LEADER: Bob Ottenhoff, President and CEO, GuideStar
9:30am – 10:45am – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Option 1: Concession Stand Tips and Tricks
How can you maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of your Art House concession stand? The Proctor Company is a leader in the design, fabrication and installation of food service facilities and equipment that enhances the profitability of theaters and excites the experience of patrons. The Proctor process of strategic review and design has created profitable concessions stands for cinemas large and small. Come learn concession stand secrets from Bruce Proctor, who has four decades of experience creating highly effective food service facilities in theaters. Learn how the right product mix, point-of-purchase marketing, concession stand equipment, design ergonomics and other insider secrets can increase your net proceeds and get your customers buzzing about your theater’s concession stand. SESSION LEADER: Bruce Proctor, Owner, Proctor Company, Littleton, CO
9:30am – 10:45am – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Option 2: Art House Lessons for Today from the Halcyon Days: History Repeats Itself
The 1980s and 1990s are considered by many the halcyon days of Art House cinema. But halcyon days are always in the past. Some get misty about the 1960s and 70s but “golden” ages rarely feel radiant while you are living through the trials and tribulations of the moment. As bizarre as it may seem, future generations may consider today, with our rich environment of digital AND celluloid film making and exhibition possibilities, as the “good old days” of the Art House and independent cinema. This esteemed panel will reminisce about that radiant era of the 80s and 90s and apply lessons and perspectives from the recent past to the art and business of cinema of the early 21st century. SESSION MODERATOR: Russ Collins, Michigan Theater-Ann Arbor and Chair, Art House Convergence; ESTEEMED PANELISTS:
Richard Abramowitz: President of Abramorama; co-founder of Stratosphere Entertainment; president of Green Valley Films; adjunct professor at New York University Tisch School of the Arts Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film and Television; frequent panelist and juror at film festivals around the world. (pending availability)
Ira Deutchman: Managing partner of Emerging Pictures; Chair of Columbia University’s Film Program; a founder of Cinecom who later created Fine Line Features; filmmaker, marketer and distributor of over 150 films since 1975, and a long-time Art House Convergence supporter.
Jeff Lipsky: Founder and president of the recently established Adopt Films, Art Takes Over, co-founder of October Films; filmmaker and 30-year veteran in the independent film world, internationally known for his expertise in independent film marketing, acquisition and distribution.
Gary Palmucci: Vice President of Theatrical Distribution for Kino Lorber, a regular on the festival circuit and a major figure in the independent film world.

11:00am – 12 Noon – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Check Out
Deadline to be checked out of the Zermatt Resort. Luggage storage in St. Moritz from 11am – 2:30pm.

12 Noon – 2:00pm – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Closing Key Note Address by Ted Hope and Lunch
Ted Hope returns to the Convergence to share his thoughts on where the Art House Convergence and the community-based, mission-driven cinema exhibition movement sits four years after his first visit. Also, from his vantage point as one of the most knowledgeable people in the independent film business, we can expect to hear thoughts about where the art, craft and industry of cinema is headed. Ted is one of independent film’s preeminent commentators, having lectured throughout the world, speaking and writing about the film industry he has helped shape. He maintains several blogs including “hopeforfilm.com,” and is founder and president of the New York production company This is that. His film producing work, numbering close to sixty films, includes many highlights and breakthroughs of the last two decades. As times, platforms and tastes change, Ted’s work continues to break new ground, reach new audiences and define the term “Independent.” Ted has also been a jury member at many film festivals including Karlovy Vary, Sundance and SXSW.  Support for Thursday lunch is provided by SpectiCast, a private digital broadcast company distributing live cultural and performing arts and entertainment events.
2:15pm – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
Group Photo
Meet at the Registration Desk at 2:15 so we can get a group photo of this year’s Convergence delegates.
2:30pm – THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2012
BUSES LEAVE FOR MAIN STREET, PARK CITY, UTAH
Buses will continue on to Salt Lake City airport.