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When the Lincoln Plaza Theater closed in January of 2018, it was like a body blow to the Upper West Side, an area that historically housed a huge community of arts lovers who were educated, sophisticated and open to a wide variety of cinema experiences.

It wasn’t as if there weren’t alternatives. Film at Lincoln Center is one of the best curated art houses in the country. AMC has two large multiplexes that, in addition to playing the latest Hollywood movies, also squeeze in the occasional Focus, Searchlight, A24 or Neon film. But, with the passing of the Lincoln Plaza Theater, a stalwart community institution was gone.

The Upper West Side is desperately under-screened for the rabid art film audience that exists. Since the demise of both the Lincoln Plaza Cinemas and the Landmark 57, there are now only 3 full-time art screens plus 1 part-time screen north of 14th Street. This is in comparison to over 20 dedicated art screens that exist in downtown Manhattan, and a similar number in Brooklyn.

The neighborhood is also in need of an anchor destination and event space for the community.

The Plan

The Upper West Side Cinema Center (UWSCC) has been formed as a not-for-profit corporation, with the goal of creating a new facility dedicated to screening art film releases that currently have no home in the neighborhood, as well as classic films and special events. The facility will include an Education and Community Center and a Lobby Lounge/Cafe open to the street and available for events.

We are now in contract to buy the former Metro Theater, on 99th Street and Broadway. The plan is to restore the facade and marquee to its original splendor and build a five-screen cinema within its walls.

The organization plans to partner with other cultural institutions such as Film at Lincoln Center, the JCC of the Upper West Side, the Latin American Film Institute, Tribeca Film Festival, BAM, MOMA and Columbia University School of the Arts among others to offer additional capacity for their existing programming. The Educational Center will be modeled on existing cinema organizations such as the Jacob Burns Center in Pleasantville, NY and the Coolidge Corner in Brookline, MA.

Board of Directors

Board of Directors:
Stephen Cohen, Counsel
Ira Deutchman, President
David Huntington
Peter Koffler
Beth Krieger, Community Liaison/Marketing
Adeline Monzier, Vice-President

Architects:
Voith & Mactavish Architects LLC
Audiovisual Design:
Boston Light and Sound

Impact

“Movies are empathy machines” –Roger Ebert

Nonprofit cinemas are community spaces where audiences can have collective experiences, exposing themselves to the world beyond their own. The model has proven to add significant value to their communities in several ways:

  • Economic Activity: Nonprofit arts and culture organizations, including cinemas, generate substantial economic activity. For example, in 2022, the nonprofit arts and culture sector in the U.S. generated $151.7 billion in economic activity, supporting 2.6 million jobs and providing $101 billion in personal income to residents.
  • Job Creation: These cinemas create jobs not only within the organization but also in the surrounding community. This includes positions in hospitality, retail, and other service industries that benefit from increased foot traffic and tourism.
  • Community Vibrancy: Nonprofit cinemas contribute to the vibrancy and attractiveness of neighborhoods. They can become cultural hubs that draw residents and visitors alike, fostering a sense of community and pride.
  • Tourism and Local Spending: Events and screenings at these cinemas attract visitors who spend money on dining, shopping, and lodging, thereby boosting local businesses.
  • Social Impact: Beyond economic benefits, nonprofit cinema centers enhance the social fabric of communities. They provide accessible cultural experiences, promote diversity, and encourage social connections.

In July of 2024, the Art House Convergence, an organization representing art house theaters across the country, released the results of a survey of patrons with some startling results. Here is a summary:

74% of patrons report that their art house theater is “extremely” or “very” valuable to their overall quality of life, up from 66% in 2019. 43% of respondents have paid to be members of their local art house organization. 92% of respondents said that their art house cinema presents films that are profound, 83% agree that their art house exposes them to new ways of thinking, 82% believe that attending their art house cinema makes them a more well-rounded person, 75% say that it raises their consciousness of important issues and 67% say that attending their art house connects them with people with shared interests and beliefs.

Art houses serve as the backbone for the artistic, civic, and economic vitality of communities. 93% say their art house sparks art and culture, 90% agree that their art house is one of the best things about the community, 89% say that their cinema helps tell important stories that would otherwise not be told, 87% say their cinema is an anchor in their community and 77% say that their cinema enhances their community’s economic vitality.

The plan for the Cinema Center is aimed at fulfilling exactly this function for the Upper West Side and for all of Manhattan above 14th Street. Arts institutions, in general, have proven to be an economic boom, bringing patrons to restaurants and retail establishments, creating pedestrian traffic and increasing real estate values. The Metro location is perfectly situated to provide a huge multiplier to the neighborhood.

#SaveTheMetro
#RestoreTheMetro
#ReclaimTheMetro

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The Vision

The vision for the Metro Cinema Center is a five-screen theater, with two larger auditoriums, two smaller ones and a fifth room that has flexible seating and can be used as a screening room, a classroom, a meeting room or as a small reception space. Additionally, there would be a lobby lounge/cafe that would be open to the street and can be used for events. The architects have come up with the concept drawings below.

Booking Policy

  • One of the five screens would be used for first-run art films, many of which would be playing simultaneously downtown or in Brooklyn. There would be a new release every two weeks.
  • One screen would be dedicated to festivals and repertory bookings.
  • Two additional screens would be used for move-overs of successful releases, either from the first-run screen or from other Manhattan venues.
  • The fifth screen (Educational Center) would be for private events, community events, educational use and other specialized screenings. It will have flexible seating so it can accommodate classroom setups and other configurations.

Existing Program Augmentation

Examples of programming that could use additional venues:

  • Film at Lincoln Center: Annual programs such as “Rendezvous With French Cinema,” “Open Roads: New Italian Cinema,” “The Jewish Film Festival” and others.
  • The Upper West Side JCC has only one auditorium for their large, internationally recognized festivals, such as “The Other Israel” and “Reel Abilities.” The programs could easily support more showtimes and larger capacities.
  • Uptown Flicks, currently housed at the tiny Maysles Cinema in Harlem, could expand its programming.
  • The Children’s International Film Festival could expand its programming year-round with screenings and festivals targeting families kids and teens.
  • The Latin American Film Institute has year-round screenings at various venues and could use a more consistent home.

Education and Community Use

  • The plan includes NYC’s ONLY comprehensive Education and Community program (see details here)

 

Founders

Ira Deutchman

Ira Deutchman has been making, marketing and distributing films since 1975, having worked on over 150 films including some of the most successful independent films of all time. He was one of the founders of Cinecom and later created Fine Line Features—two companies that were created from scratch and, in their respective times, helped define the independent film business. He was also a co-founder of Emerging Pictures, the first digital projection network in the United States and a pioneer in delivering live cultural events into movie theaters.

Currently Deutchman is an independent producer and a consultant in marketing and distribution of independent films. He is also Emeritus Professor in the School of the Arts at Columbia University, where he was the Chair of the Film Program from 2011-2015.

His current projects include serving as producer of Nickel & Dimed, based on the book by Barbara Ehrenreich and directed by Debra Granik (in pre-production); director/producer of the feature documentary Searching for Mr. Rugoff (currently available on the Criterion Channel and on various pay-per-view platforms); producer of the stage adaptation of Joan Micklin Silver’s Hester Street (recently opened on Washington DC); and executive producer of the mini-series based on the novel Radio Girls by Sarah-Jane Stratford (in development).

In 2017, Deutchman was awarded the Spotlight Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sundance Art House Convergence for his service to independent film marketing and distribution.

Adeline Monzier

Adeline Monzier, a Harlem resident, is currently a guest programmer at Metrograph downtown and the founder of the Harlem film series Uptown Flicks. She also organizes the year-round student screenings at Film at Lincoln Center and collaborates with Rosalie Varda and Ciné-Tamaris on an educational project centered around Agnès Varda’s The Gleaners and I. From 2013 to 2024, she served as the U.S. representative of Unifrance, promoting French cinema abroad, and oversaw the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema festival in partnership with Film at Lincoln Center.

After earning a Masters degree in Culture and Media Management from Sciences Po Paris and a Master’s in Contemporary German Studies from the Ecole Normale Supérieure d’Ulm, Monzier joined DIRE, a French syndicate of independent distributors, in 2005. She founded Europa Distribution in 2007, a network of 130 independent distributors from 26 European countries, which she managed until 2013.

Monzier also launched and ran the filmmakers’ program “US-in-Progress” from 2011 to 2016, connecting American independent films at rough-cut stages with European buyers and post-production funds. As a producer, through her company Black Rabbit Film, she produced her first short film, L’Héritage by Michaël Terraz, which was selected by 40 international festivals and won 10 awards. She has also been a script reader for French companies like Mars Distribution and the CNC. In 2018-19, she collaborated with Serge Toubiana on his book about Helen Scott, L’Amie américaine.

Advisors

Bob Balaban, Actor, Author, Comedian, Director and Producer

Meira Blaustein, Co-Founder/Executive Director, Woodstock Film Festival

Russ Collins, CEO & Executive Director, Michigan Theater Foundation

Chapin Cutler, Principal & Co-Founder, Boston Light & Sound

Griffin Dunne, Actor, Producer

Geoffrey Fletcher, Screenwriter

Richard Guay, Producer

Leslie Harris, Director

Mary Harron, Director

Ethan Hawke, Actor, Director

Frédérique Henriot, Director of Sales & Marketing, The Altman Building

Lesli Klainberg, Former President, Film at Lincoln Center

Doug Kleinman, RIPCO Real Estate

Tim League, CEO, Alamo Drafthouse Theaters

Frances McDormand, Actor

Richard Pena, Director Emeritus, New York Film Festival

Paul Richardson, Former CEO, Landmark Theaters/Sundance Cinemas

Amy Robinson, Producer

Ira Sachs, Director

Josh Sapan, Media Executive

Nancy Savoca, Director

Martin Scorsese, Director

Jonathan Sehring, Former President, IFC Entertainment

Josh Siegel, Curator, Museum of Modern Art

John Toner, Founding Director, Renew Theaters, Philadelphia

John Turturro, Actor, Director

Barbara Twist, Executive Director, Film Festival Alliance

Isaac Zablocki, ReelAbilities Film Festival, Carole Zabar Center for Film

Fareed Zakaria, Journalist

History

  • Opened in 1933 as The Midtown Theater
  • 1970’s – The Midtown becomes a porn house
  • 1982 – Dan Talbot purchases the theater and renames it The Metro as a dedicated art house
  • 1986 – Clearview Cinemas takes over and twins the theater
  • 1989 – Façade and marquee are landmarked
  • 2004 – Embassy Cinemas reopens the Metro Twin as an arthouse
  • 2005 – Theater padlocked, and entire interior is demolished
  • 2024 – Upper West Side Cinema Center announces plans to purchase the theater, restore its landmarked façade and build a five-screen arthouse cinema within

Read about the history of the Metro Theater at the following web sites:

The Metro (Midtown) Theatre | by Tom Miller, Landmark West

Wikipedia Page

Cinema Treasures

 

Donate

HELP MAKE THE METRO THEATER DREAM A REALITY!

Thanks to the generosity and enthusiasm of over 100 donors, we have successfully signed the contract and made the deposit toward the purchase of the Metro Theater.

Now we enter the next phase, and WE NEED YOUR HELP!
In order to finalize the purchase, we need to raise an additional $7 million.  Pledges toward purchase need to be met by Jan. 3, 2025.

All donations are 100% tax deductible.

HOW TO DONATE

Major Gifts and Pledges

Dream Big. Name a Seat! — Name a Seat for $2500+ donations 

Donations of all sizes: Click below



   or you can use Venmo

The Metro will be operated by Upper West Side Cinema Center, Inc.
(a not-for-profit 501c3 corporation).

Disclaimer: Donations made at these links are for a project that will require substantial additional funds in order to be implemented. There is a chance that the project will not be able to proceed, but your donation remains tax deductible.

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