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The Cinefamily was a
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
cinematheque A cinematheque is an archive of films and film-related objects with an exhibition venue. Similarly to a book library (bibliothèque in French), a cinematheque is responsible for preserving and making available to the public film heritage. Typically ...
located in
Beverly Grove, Los Angeles Beverly Grove is a neighborhood within the Mid-City West region of Los Angeles, California, adjacent to Beverly Hills. The median household income in 2024 dollars was $119,223, among the highest for Los Angeles and the county. Geography City o ...
, at the historic Silent Movie Theatre. The Cinefamily's mission statement was to "reinvigorate the movie-going experience by fostering a spirit of community and a sense of discovery." Cinefamily followed a member-based ticketing system by which a tax-deductible donation provided universal access to all screenings and events. There was an individual ticket system in effect for non-members or those who did not make a pledge commitment. The Cinefamily was open from 2007 to 2017, when it closed due to a sexual harassment allegation. In 2019, the theatre was reopened as Fairfax Cinema. The next year, clothing company Brain Dead announced that they would be leasing the space under the name Brain Dead Studios.


History

The complex originally opened in 1942 as The Silent Movie Theater by
silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
collector John Hampton and his wife Dorothy. Until its closure due to low attendance in 1979, Hampton had the largest private collection of silent films, which he exclusively projected in his theater. A year after Hampton's death, the Silent Movie Theater reopened in 1991 and remained active until January 1997 when the theater's owner, Lawrence Austin, was murdered. In 2007, Hadrian Belove (co-founder of Cinefile Video, a specialty video store), along with Sammy Harkham (co-owner of the nearby Family Bookstore) and his brother Dan, founded the Cinefamily, which officially opened its doors on Halloween of 2007.


Programming

Cinefamily programming included a range of films, from early silents to contemporary features, live comedy, live music, found footage, mixed media and other special events, and extended form post-screening Q&As. They mounted original retrospectives on filmmakers
Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, actor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notability as the creator of the Muppets. Henson was also well known for creating ''Fraggle Rock'' ( ...
,
Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian, with a career spanning seven decades in film, stage, television and radio. Famously nicknamed as "Th ...
,
John Cassavetes John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...
, and
Andrzej Zulawski Andrzej is the Polish form of the given name Andrew. Notable individuals with the given name Andrzej * Andrzej Bartkowiak (born 1950), Polish film director and cinematographer * Andrzej Bobola, S.J. (1591–1657), Polish saint, missionary and ...
and commissioned live film scores by musicians such as
No Age No Age is an American noise rock duo consisting of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Allen Spunt. The band is based in Los Angeles, California, and was signed to Sub Pop records from 2008 to 2013. No Age's fourth studio album, '' ...
,
Stephin Merritt Stephin Merritt (born February 9, 1965) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the songwriter and principal singer of the bands the Magnetic Fields, the Gothic Archies, and Future Bible Heroes. He is known for ...
and Espers. Some of Cinefamily’s programming included Animation Breakdown, Don’t Knock the Rock, Everything is Festival!, reunion tributes for ''
The Adventures of Pete and Pete ''The Adventures of Pete & Pete'' is an American television sitcom created by Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi for Nickelodeon. It focuses on two brothers, both named Pete Wrigley, and their humorous and surreal adventures in suburbia among thei ...
'' and '' Space Ghost Coast-to-Coast'', and women-only pajama party screenings. After independent film maker
Neil Breen Neil Breen is an American filmmaker and actor. Since 2005, he has made six feature films in which he acts as director, writer, producer and lead star, while being in charge of most other key crew positions. He usually finances his films himself ...
's film ''Double Down'' was played at the Cinefamily cinematheque in 2010, he amassed a small cult following. In early 2011, the Cinefamily exhibited the Greek independent film '' Dogtooth'', which received an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
nomination within a month of its sold-out run. The Cinefamily also held special screenings of ''
We Need to Talk About Kevin ''We Need to Talk About Kevin'' is a 2003 novel by Lionel Shriver, first published by Serpent's Tail, about a fictional school massacre. It is written from the first person perspective of the teenage killer's mother, Eva Khatchadourian, and do ...
'', ''
Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...
'', '' Bullhead'', ''
Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
'' and ''
Battle Royale Battle Royale may refer to: * Battle royale, or battle royal, a fight among many combatants ** Battle royal (professional wrestling) Fiction and literature * Battle royale genre, a narrative genre of films, manga, anime and visual novels inspire ...
''. Starting in 2011, Cinefamily held an annual 24-hour holiday
telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other cause. Most telethons feature heavy solicitatio ...
.
Robert Downey Jr. Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965), also known as RDJ, is an American actor. One of the highest-grossing actors of all time, his films as a leading actor have grossed over $14 billion worldwide. In 2008, Downey was named by ''Time ...
made an appearance at the second annual event, where he pledged to donate to the theatre's upgrade fundraiser. About $144,000 was raised for the theatre to install digital projection and make restorations. In 2014, Downey and his father,
Robert Downey Sr. Robert John Downey Sr. ( Elias Jr.; June 24, 1936 – July 7, 2021) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He was known for writing and directing the underground film '' Putney Swope'' (1969), a satire on the New York Madison Ave ...
, made appearances in a retrospective for the latter to help raise funds for the theatre, in place of the telethon. As early as December 2012, artist collective Everything Is Terrible! held events at the theatre. In October 2014, the collective exhibited its full collection of over 7,000 ''
Jerry Maguire ''Jerry Maguire'' is a 1996 American sports comedy-drama film directed and written by Cameron Crowe. It was produced by Crowe and James L. Brooks for Gracie Films and distributed by TriStar Pictures. It stars Tom Cruise as the titular spor ...
'' VHS tapes in the formation of the "Jerry Throne". Starting in 2013, the theatre hosted SpectreFest from
SpectreVision SpectreVision (formerly The Woodshed) is an American film production company founded in 2010 by actor Elijah Wood and directors Daniel Noah and Josh C. Waller. SpectreVision is a genre driven company with a focus on psychological thriller and horr ...
, an indie horror film company co-founded by
Elijah Wood Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor and producer. Wood made his film debut with a minor part in ''Back to the Future Part II'' (1989) at the age of eight and achieved recognition in the early 1990s as a child acto ...
. Also that year,
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...
hosted a screening of
Robert Blake Robert Blake (or variants) may refer to: Sports * Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player * Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer * Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player * Rob Blake ...
films, and a retrospective of
Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a m ...
films was screened, with appearances from Kristofferson, who played music with
Harry Dean Stanton Harry Dean Stanton (July 14, 1926 – September 15, 2017) was an American actor. In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton played supporting roles in films including ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), '' Kelly's Heroes'' (1970), '' Dilling ...
at one event. In 2014,
Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...
presented the 1973 compilation film of ''
Your Show of Shows ''Your Show of Shows'' is a live 90-minute variety show that was broadcast weekly in the United States on NBC from February 25, 1950, through June 5, 1954, featuring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. Other featured performers were Carl Reiner, Ho ...
'' and
Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; né Stipetić; born 5 September 1942) is a German filmmaker, actor, opera director, and author. Regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema, his films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with unusu ...
made an appearance at the beginning of a weeklong run of his 1979 film '' Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht''. In 2015, Cinefamily worked with SpectreVision and
Cinelicious Pics Cinelicious Pics is a distribution wing of the post-production company Cinelicious, launched by Paul Korver and Dennis Bartok, former American Cinematheque head programmer. The company was designed to distribute new U.S. and foreign independent ...
to restore the 1973 animated Japanese film ''
Belladonna of Sadness is a 1973 Japanese adult animated drama film produced by the animation studio Mushi Production and distributed by Nippon Herald Films. It is the third and final entry in Mushi Production's adult-oriented '' Animerama'' trilogy, following '' ...
''. In 2016, the theatre held an ''
X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction drama television series created by Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to May 19, 2002, on Fox, spanning nine seasons, with 202 episodes. A tenth season of six e ...
'' marathon with a live episode of
Kumail Nanjiani Kumail Ali Nanjiani (; ; Urdu: کمیل علی نانجیانی; born May 2, 1978) is a Pakistani-American stand-up comedian and actor. He is known for his role as Dinesh in the HBO comedy series ''Silicon Valley'' (2014–2019) and for co-writi ...
's podcast ''The'' ''X-Files Files''.


Sexual misconduct allegations

In August 2017, an anonymous email was sent to Cinefamily members detailing a 2014 sexual harassment allegation against Belove that resulted in a settlement and accused Shadie Elnashai, vice president of the board of directors, of "raping multiple women." Both men subsequently resigned on August 22, 2017. On August 23, Women of Cinefamily co-founder
Brie Larson Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. She played supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, and has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and Blockbuste ...
announced that she was stepping aside from the organization for the foreseeable future. Cinefamily itself suspended all operations as of August 26. A number of former volunteers and employees subsequently alleged that an atmosphere of
sexism Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is int ...
against women had long permeated the theatre, including alleged abuses by Belove and Elnashai. On November 14, 2017, Cinefamily altered its website so that only a text statement appeared. The board of directors formally announced the end of the organization, following an independent inquiry into the allegations. By January 2018, a website was launched by a former Cinefamily member with self-proclaimed expertise in "economic and workplace justice" to continue investigating alleged wrongdoing by the theatre; this led to the discovery of apparent financial misdeeds. In late 2018, Elnashai released a statement on his personal website. He admitted that he had once acted inappropriately at a Cinefamily party, but denied all other charges, citing an alleged lack of evidence produced by the investigation.


Rebranding

On December 25, 2019, following a year-long refurbishment project, Dan and Sammy Harkham reopened the theatre under the name Fairfax Cinema. On October 6, 2020, clothing company Brain Dead announced that they would be leasing the space. Rebranding the theater as Brain Dead Studios, the venue focuses on cult cinema fare and offers an outdoor cafe specializing in Asian cuisine. In an interview, Brain Dead co-founder Kyle Ng, who was a Cinefamily member, acknowledged the former cinematheque's sexual harassment scandal and stated:
I think it's still important to show to the community that we can't just stop art due to some shitty people. We have to move forward and show a better example. So what we want to do is not just cater to the old White male demographic of cinephiles. We want to basically open it to a new generation while also catering to film heads from before. But the main thing is to introduce new people to film, showcase people who follow our brand but maybe don't know about it, and create a new culture around cinema. ... My vision is like, Hey, if we see an issue, we got to act upon it and make it better. How do we create this community and make it better? How do we make it more inviting to women, to different sexualities, to different ways of life, and make it better? That's what we've always done with whatever we can. There's no one involved in the programming, or management of the theater, that were previously a part of Cinefamily.


References


External links


Footage
from an event with rock band
AFI AFI may refer to: * Actual flip-angle imaging, a type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) * ''Address-family identifier'', a 16 bit field of the Routing Information Protocol * AFI (band), an American rock band ** ''AFI'' (2017 album), the tenth ...
at Brain Dead Studios – via
Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
. October 1, 2021. {{Movie theaters in Los Angeles Former cinemas and movie theaters in Los Angeles Landmarks in Los Angeles Non-profit organizations based in California Fairfax, Los Angeles Movie palaces Organizations established in 2007 Organizations disestablished in 2018