American Cinematheque Chiefs on Celebrating Its 40th Anniversary and Honoring Michael B. Jordan
American Cinematheque, which is now in its 40th year, is paying homage to Michael B. Jordan in an awards ceremony and fundraiser in Beverly Hills on Nov. 20 and is screening a curated selection of films of the incomparable Diane Keaton through Dec. 6.
“The awards are an annual event, and this one is turning out to be quite exciting,” executive director Ken Scherer tells Variety. “When they created this award, they decided to do ‘mid-career’ as opposed to ‘life achievement.’ And having worked at AFI during some of the Great Life Achievement Award shows, it’s a valid interest because you can catch people on their way up. And Michael B. Jordan is reflective of that original concept. He’s on the ascent and, yet he’s achieved [a lot].”
Michael B. Jordan is to receive the American Cinematheque Award for outstanding career achievements.
Dan Doperalski for Variety
The nonprofit is really proud of another thing that’s part of the 40th celebration: the upcoming launch of its archive, with four decades of Q&As and photographs and all kinds of things that are going to be made available to the public. They’re also in the early stages of producing their first book, which tells the history of the Cinematheque.
So, how did this whole thing get started? Back in 1984, three film lovers — Gary Abrahams and Gary Essert, who were also the forces behind who was also a force behind L.A.’s FilmEx, and filmmaker Sydney Pollack — decided the city needed something special, something like the legendary Cinémathèque Française in Paris. They built on the energy of the L.A. International Film Exposition (the aforementioned FilmEx), bringing the American Cinematheque to life. It started showing movies to the public in 1985 and quickly became a must-visit place for film lovers everywhere.
When Scherer was recruited by the board to take a look at the Cinematheque, it was in pretty dire straights. “The 40th [anniversary] is significant because we were able to do some things in 2018 by selling the Egyptian [Theatre], but yet retaining the right to program it from time for every week, which saved the Cinematheque,” Scherer explains. “When you then put it in context of what happened with the pandemic that no one could have imagined, it would not be here today if we had not done that. It’s really significant that we’re here, but it’s even more significant that we survived and came out stronger than ever.”
American Cinematheque is currently screening a selection of films starring Diane Keaton.
Courtesy Everett Collection
That progress wasn’t just about serving up great films in Los Angeles, it also meant opening up the Cinematheque to people across the U.S. with screenings and events in various venues. Everyday moviegoers can now celebrate cinema together, not just in L.A. (at the Egyptian Theatre, the Aero Theatre and the Los Feliz 3 Theatre) but also around the country. And for the first time, they even went international with Bleak Week, an annual festival showcasing darker movies.
“We view ourselves as a specialty cinema where we intertwine advanced screenings, premieres and award season with films from a hundred years ago,” says artistic director Grant Moninger. “We are bringing another festival to New York next year and expanding with our innovation for membership and a way that our customers will be able to interact and experience Cinematheque even if they’re not in Los Angeles.” That includes 1,600-plus screenings and 360,000 patrons every year.
Right now, as Scherer puts it, “the stars seem to be aligned” because Cinematheque is stronger than ever before. “We’re strong and there’s such a resurgence,” he says. “And what I love is it’s the younger generation. It’s the [people in their] twenties and the thirties. Our demographic from where we were in 2018 to where we are today, it doesn’t resemble anything like it did back then. So it’s a real interesting moment for reflection, but it’s also a moment for vision. And I think that’s what I’m trying to celebrate.”
