Indie Movie Theater in Charleston, WV

Indie Movie Theater in Charleston, WV

From West Virginia International Film Festival

The WVIFF brings movies to WV that otherwise would not play here, and has done so for 30+ years. We are raising funds to create a permanent "micro-cinema" in Charleston, WV to show thought-provoking movies year-round.

West Virginia International Film Festival

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Update #11

almost 8 years ago

A big thanks to all who volunteered their time and energy over the holidays to help clean and paint the Underground Cinema!

We're in need of volunteers again! Can you commit to help carry building supplies in on Wednesday from 4-6 pm and/or paint and clean on Saturday from 11 am-3 pm? (Lunch will be provided on Saturday.)

Email us at [email protected] if you can make it! :)

More Info

You can help bring independent, compelling films to Charleston, West Virginia!

The WV International Film Festival is building a nonprofit cinema in downtown Charleston, with a "soft opening" in late January of 2017. We will call it "Underground Cinema." It will be in the basement of the Taylor Books' Annex Gallery, accessible from the alley between Capitol and Hale Streets, near the Lee Street Triangle. We need your help to make it happen!

     

We have based our business model on a theater in Buckhannon, WV, called the Lascaux Micro-Theater that has operated for over fifteen years. What is important to us is that we are able to create this space and sustain it long-term, so we have made sure the operation is lean and mean, while keeping it classy! Check out an artist's rendering of what it will look like on the inside! (note person with wine glass on the front row)

This is an opportunity to enhance the city of Charleston, making it even more of a place we want to live in - a place with an independent movie theater. Underground Cinema will :

  • show independent, foreign, and documentary films that only usually play in big cities
  • show West Virginia-made films that otherwise would have a limited audience
  • take risks and show unconventional movies that may not fill a normal theater, but deserve an audience
  • help make Charleston into even more of a cultural hub for the state
  • help attract and retain businesses to downtown Charleston

We have needed an art house theater for the past twenty years, so let's make it happen together!

Whether you live here, grew up here, visit here, or just like what we're doing, please pitch in to help make this a reality. We have some great "premiums" for different giving levels. Check them out and find something that is right for you!

Yours in film,

Emmett Pepper

WVIFF Board President

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #12

A big thanks to all who volunteered their time and energy over the holidays to help clean and paint the Underground Cinema!

We're in need of volunteers again! Can you commit to help carry building supplies in on Wednesday from 4-6 pm and/or paint and clean on Saturday from 11 am-3 pm? (Lunch will be provided on Saturday.)

Email us at [email protected] if you can make it! :)

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #11

With everyone's support we've raised enough money to build the Underground Cinema! Construction will begin soon, but before we can begin, we need your help.

We're looking for volunteers to complete 4-hour shifts to help clean, repair chairs, and paint. We'll have free pizza and drinks for everyone who commits to volunteer for a 4-hour shift.

Below are open shifts and details:

*Tuesday, December 27 | 4-8 pm - Shop-vac party! We'll have a couple shop-vacs handy, but feel free to bring your own if you can; we can accommodate as many shop vacs as show up! We will be cleaning floors, so if you have a broom, dust pan, scrub brush, mop bucket, mop, etc....bring it!

*Wednesday, December 28 | 4-8 pm - Cleaning, repairing seats, and painting

*Thursday, December 29 | 11 am-3 pm and 4-8 pm - Painting

*Friday, December 30 | 11 am-3 pm and 4-8 pm - Painting

*Monday, January 2 | 11 am-3 pm and 4-8 pm - Painting and clean-up

Will you commit to one or more 4-hour shift? With your help, we can stay on schedule and have the Underground Cinema open by late January/early February!

RSVP by emailing [email protected] and letting us know which shifts you can commit to. (RSVP's are important so we know how much supplies, pizza, and drinks to have at each shift.)

We're also looking for shift leads! If you're interested in leading the volunteers and activities of any particular shift(s), please indicate that in your RSVP email.

Thank you for all of your help, and happy holidays!
WVIFF Board of Directors

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #10

A huge shout out to all of our amazing friends for your donations and pledges! Because of your support, we have exceeded our original fundraising goal. It's an exciting time for the WVIFF and all of our supporters! What next?

With an opening date of February 5, 2017 we have an aggressive timeline and are working diligently to make it happen! Yesterday we started cleaning and preparing the space for buildout, which will begin in less than two weeks. We've purchased cool, vintage cinema seats, are working with a local interior decorator to finalize the pretty details, the projector and sound installation has been initiated and we are kicking off the film selection process. The only left will be for you to grab your tickets to an upcoming screening!

Note: We will have need for painters when it comes time to paint. If you are waiting for the perfect opportunity to put your paint-rolling skills to work, please reach out to us!
Again, thank you and see you at the Underground Cinema.

Emmett Pepper & Rachel Kerns
West Virginia International Film Festival

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #9

Because of generous supporters like you, we more than passed our goal and can begin construction soon!

BUT...we're just $2,079 away from being able to purchase a 4k projector and better sound system*. Can you pitch in $25 today to make the Underground Cinema experience even better?

*If you're a tech-person and curious, here's the full run-down on the better A/V system we hope to purchase with the extra donations:

---Projector: 1,700-lumen projector, for 4K precision (3840 X 2160) projected image, with three 0.7" 1080p D-ILA devices and native 40,000:1 contrast (lens aperture increases dynamic ratio to 400,000:1), 6-Axis Color Management System, 27-29 db fan noise.
---Speakers: Four 8" active woofers with two 8" passive radiators, four 6.5" poly graphite woofers, five 0.75" tweeters, 200-watt subwoofer
---Receiver: 95-watt, 7.2-channel receiver that is Dolby Atmos-ready and HDMI 2.0 compliant.

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #7

Thanks to your generous donations we have now passed 60% of our goal! Let's keep the momentum going during our Dollar-for Dollar match campaign!

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #6

Keep the momentum going! Thurs. we passed 40%, Fri. we passed 50%!

The dollar-for-dollar match continues until Halloween!

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #5

Keep spreading the word and give what you can knowing your donation is being matched dollar-for-dollar!

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #4

The matching campaign is going gangbusters! We have two updates: First, we have cleared $9,000 of overall funds raised! Second, we now have enough matching funds to get us through to the full $24,800 needed to build the Underground Cinema! So, let's not let any of that go to waste! Please help us spread the word to your friends and ask them to give what they can!

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
almost 8 years ago

Update #3

We are now in a DOLLAR-FOR-DOLLAR MATCH until the end of October!

Through some generous donations from members of the Charleston community, your contributions count DOUBLE! We have $8,000 of matching commitments that we want to make sure we fully utilize to make this amazing theater a reality! For the full details about the theater, scroll down...

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
about 8 years ago

Update #2

Your generosity is making the micro-cinema a reality!

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West Virginia International Film Festival posted a new update:
about 8 years ago

Update #1

Supporters have helped us reach 10% of our goal in day 8 of our Micro-Theater campaign. Help us get to the next level for a fun new meme! Which movie will we choose next ;-)

http://fundly.com/indie-movie-theater-in-charleston-wv

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