Northwest Film Forum Programs
The award-winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins observed that “Northwest Film Forum is a model for sustaining regional cinema and it is to be cherished."
Founded in 1995, Northwest Film Forum is Seattle’s most comprehensive nonprofit center for the film arts. Every year we screen over 200 independent, international, classic, documentary, and avant-garde films that include festivals, director retrospectives, themed series, original performances, and commissioned work. We offer 100 classes each year, from basic and advanced filmmaking to film history surveys and summer camps for young people. Perhaps most importantly, we support artists directly through grants, commissioned work, and invitations to visit with their films.
Our partnerships help us create dynamic new programs and bring in new audiences. We have worked with the Redcat Theater in L.A., with Anthology Film Archives in New York, Seattle Met magazine and Velocity Dance Center to share or make vital programs. We tours films and festivals around the country, too. Among our 1,000 members are several hundred filmmakers.
We are known for producing original performances and celebrations; among them are:
- Local Sightings Film Festival, an annual showcase of 80 Pacific Northwest films.
- Children’s Film Festival Seattle (100 films from 30 countries)
- Live at the Film Forum, which offers dynamic new work from performers such as Marya Sea Kaminski, Jack Hitt, and Lauren Weedman)
Recent Successes and Current Challenges
In 2011 we launched a new program called Northwest Film Fund, awarding $11,000 that year to a single film. In 2012 we awarded nearly $20,000 to three films, along with a package of services totally $40,000 in value that included legal consultation, and post-production work. KCTS Channel 9, moreover, offered a broadcast contract to one film. The Fund was recently offered a grant of $25,000 with the challenge of tripling the amount of the gift. In close to 18 years, the Film Forum has supported over 700 Northwest films with equipment grants and facilities donations. We are committed to nurturing the most innovative cinematic storytellers in the region.
Our list of needs includes a youth program manager position, finances to fully convert our theaters from 35mm projection to digital cinema projection, which is changing the face of film exhibition around the world, and technology upgrades to our four classroom spaces.