Two Out of Three Ain't Bad But What About 100?

I counted up the films I saw in 2008...the grand total was 243 films. That works out to approximately two films every three days. For these purposes, I counted short film programs as "one film" and the short film that sometimes precedes the feature film at festivals as "zero films."

Of those 243 films, I watched 80 at the Castro, 80 at the Roxie and 40 at the PFA. That means I saw over 80% of the films at three theaters. I'm proud to say that they are all independent theaters and in the case of the Roxie and PFA, affiliated with universities. The Roxie has been affiliated with New College of California since 2006. I'm not sure what the status of New College is. The last I heard, it was on its deathbed. According to Wikipedia, New College "ceased operations in early 2008."

The Roxie has been on the verge of shutting down many times in the past dozen years. I recall one time, Nicholas Cage provided a donation to keep it operating because he launched his comeback with Red Rock West (which I saw at the Roxie). It was distributed in the US by Roxie Releasing. Roxie Releasing is the independent film distribution company affiliated with the Roxie theater.

Another little tidbit is that the Roxie is turning 100 years old this year. It doesn't look a day over 80. Luckily, I'm not too picky about the amenities of the theaters I go to. I can only imagine how someone that is used to stadium seating and Dolby Surround Sound would react to the Roxie.