Film Streams is a nonprofit arts organization in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

which oversees two cinemas: the Ruth Sokolof Theater, in North Downtown Omaha, and the historic Dundee Theater, Omaha's longest surviving neighborhood cinema. It receives funding from corporate and individual donors, members, and the government.

History

Film Streams was founded by Rachel Jacobson in 2005, it states its mission as "enhanc ngthe cultural environment of the Omaha-Council Bluffs area through the presentation and discussion of film as an art form". In July 2007, Film Streams opened the Ruth Sokolof Theater. A two-screen cinema in

downtown Omaha Downtown Omaha is the central business, government and social core of the Omaha–Council Bluffs metropolitan area, U.S. state of Nebraska. The boundaries are Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha's 20th Street on the west to the Missouri River on the east ...

's North Downtown ( NoDo) area found within a development anchored by Omaha-based music label

Saddle Creek Records Saddle Creek Records is an American record label based in Omaha, Nebraska. Started as a college class project on entrepreneurship, the label was founded by Mike Mogis and Justin Oberst in 1993 (as Lumberjack Records). Mogis soon turned over his ...

. In February 2016, Film Streams announced that Susie Buffett's Sherwood Foundation had donated the 92-year-old Dundee Theater to the organization. The organization launched a public capital campaign in April 2017 with the intention of renovating and reopening the cinema by 2018. Film Streams' Dundee Theater reopened to the public on December 1, 2017. The name "Film Streams" is inspired by Omaha (the word means "above all others on a stream") and the

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- ...

film, '' Love Streams.''

The Ruth Sokolof Theater

The Ruth Sokolof Theater has two auditoriums with 35-millimeter platter and reel-to-reel projection capabilities. The larger theater seats 206 and runs first run feature films. The smaller theater seats 96 and shows a selection of classic films, retrospectives, and other films. Film Streams has

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

, and digital high-definition projection. Films Streams was inspired by joining with

, the indie record label based in Omaha, to build a mini-campus in a deserted downtown Omaha area. The block that is home to Film Streams also houses the Saddle Creek headquarters and

Slowdown A slowdown ( UK: go-slow) is an industrial action in which employees perform their duties but seek to reduce productivity or efficiency in their performance of these duties. A slowdown may be used as either a prelude or an alternative to a stri ...

, a rock club the label operates.

Ruth Sokolof

Film Streams' North Downtown Omaha cinema is named after Ruth Sokolof, née Rosinsky (1925-1982), a well-known educator in Omaha who focused her life on helping children with disabilities. With her husband, Phil, many education-based scholarships are awarded in their name each year to Omaha-area students and educators.

The Dundee Theater

Film Streams announced plans to renovate and reopen Omaha's longest-running cinema in February 2016. When it reopened, it featured two screens: the historic 300-seat main house and a new 25-seat microcinema. The lobby is occupied by Lola's, a neighborhood cafe.

Programming

Film Streams offers screenings of first-run films and a selection of retrospectives and classic films; education programs, and community development programs.

References

External links

Film Streams (official website)
{{Movie theaters in Omaha, Nebraska Cinemas and movie theaters in Omaha, Nebraska Repertory cinemas in the United States Organizations based in Omaha, Nebraska Downtown Omaha, Nebraska Non-profit organizations based in Nebraska 2005 establishments in Nebraska Organizations established in 2005