Progress
April 2019
Campaign Launch
Strengthen Grow Evolve is announced to the public at a celebratory event linking the historic Englert stage with FilmScene’s new theaters at The Chauncey. Over 500 people were in attendance to hear our dreams of Building the Greatest Small City for the Arts.
August 2019
50% Funded
Campaign reaches 50% funding as the State of Iowa commits to Community Attraction and Tourism Grants for both FilmScene and The Englert Theatre. These grants, administered by Iowa Economic Development and Enhance Iowa, provide funds to assist projects that help communities create transformational projects that enhance the vitality of a region and the state overall.
September 2019
FilmScene at The Chauncey Opens
A major element of our Grow initiative, FilmScene at The Chauncey opens with a three day celebration including a donor lighting ceremony, the first public screening of Downtown Abbey, and a community wide open house in partnership with more than a dozen local arts organizations.
February 2020
$4.5 Million Raised
Thanks to over 1000 donors, the campaign is more than 2/3rds funded. These committed pledges ensure that most of the major facilities work for FilmScene and The Englert Theatre will proceed as planned. Additional funding is still needed to achieve all of the campaign’s goals.
March 2020
Iowa City Downtown Arts Alliance Forms
Aligning with one of the key goals of the Evolve initiative, a consortium of eight nonprofit arts organizations in downtown Iowa City come together to form the Iowa City Downtown Arts Alliance and speak with a unified voice regarding the importance of the arts to a vibrant community.
May 2020
Englert Renovations Begin
The Englert Theatre, Iowa City’s century-old performing arts venue, begins work to preserve and modernize this historic space. As the pillar of our Strengthen initiative, work includes interior and exterior structural improvements, improved lighting and sound, a renovation of the second floor parlor, and restoration of the iconic Englert marquee.
1. The Dream
Sharing The Dream
April 2019
$2.7 Million Raised
Strengthen Grow Evolve—an ambitious joint capital campaign led by FilmScene and The Englert Theatre—is announced to the public is announced to the public at a celebratory event linking the historic Englert stage with FilmScene’s new theaters at The Chauncey. Over 500 people were in attendance to hear our dreams of Building the Greatest Small City for the Arts.
2. A New Landmark
The Chauncey Opens
September 2019
$4.0 Million Raised
A major element of our Grow initiative, FilmScene at The Chauncey opens with a three-day celebration including a donor lighting ceremony, the first public screening of Downtown Abbey, and a community-wide open house in partnership with more than a dozen local arts organizations.
3. Unity & Collaboration
Iowa City Downtown Arts Alliance Forms
March 2020
$4.5 Million Raised
Aligning with one of the key goals of the Evolve initiative, a consortium of eight nonprofit arts organizations in downtown Iowa City come together to form the Iowa City Downtown Arts Alliance and speak with a unified voice regarding the importance of the arts to a vibrant community.
4. Restoring an Icon
Englert Renovations Begin
May 2020
$4.6 Million Raised
The Englert Theatre, Iowa City’s century-old performing arts venue, began work to preserve and modernize this historic space. As the pillar of our Strengthen initiative, work included interior and exterior structural improvements, improved lighting and sound, a renovation of the second floor parlor, and restoration of the iconic Englert marquee.
5. Resiliency
Weathering the Storm
Summer 2020
$5.0 Million Raised
This summer brought a change of plans—for everyone on Earth. First, we addressed the economic fallout of the pandemic through PPP loans, operational reductions, grant awards (NEA, Mellon, Iowa Arts Council), and the unbelievable support of our Friends & Members. Then we continued to reckon with how our organizations could be better leaders in a country torn by racism and inequity for centuries. At once we fought to complete this campaign, save our organizations, and be better stewards of a just society.
6. $5.4 Million Raised
Fulfilling a Promise
New Years Eve 2020
$5.39 Million Raised
In order to finish the work, we raised $5.39 Million, to complete and pay for all of our preservation and expansion projects, continue our work with the Iowa City Downtown Arts Alliance, finish our arts access study, and raise crucial end-of-year funds that helped get FilmScene and the Englert through a difficult 2020.
7. The Work Continues
Realizing a Dream
Into the Future
$5.39 Million Raised
Our lasting success is dependent on taking continuing steps towards becoming the Greatest Small City for the Arts including executing our Arts Access Survey, funding a public cinema package for Chauncey Swan park, and launching our community engagement initiative. We’ve begun this work, but your continued support makes it possible to continue.
Progress towards our $6.5M Goal
71% with confirmed pledges, grants and anticipated tax credits.
Your donation to Strengthen • Grow • Evolve >helps us build the Greatest Small City for the Arts. We’ve raised over $4.5 million towards our goal of $6.5 million dollars to secure the long-term vitality of our two organizations and expand our community impact. Our campaign will continue to raise funding until the historic Englert Theatre completes renovations in summer of 2020. Thank you for your contribution.
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Strengthen
Our reputation for excellence is built on diverse and distinguished art, dedicated patronage, and a rewarding audience experience. Beautiful spaces play an equally important role, and our century-old buildings require regular upkeep and renovation to keep our artists and patrons happy.
Strengthening our Historic Spaces
We will strengthen FilmScene’s flagship Ped Mall location and modernize the historic Englert Theatre, sustaining our venues, improving audience experience and accessibility, and enhancing lighting, sound, and stage production to deliver that all important nightly, “wow.”
FilmScene Ped Mall Revitalization
FilmScene’s original home will be updated with:
New comfort seating in The Screening Room New cinema-style seating in Scene 1 Lobby improvements Maintaining modern presentation standards
Englert Historic Preservation & Modernization
These investments will ensure the long-term health of the 108-year-old Englert Theatre, an architectural gem whose lights are a beacon in the heart of downtown Iowa City:
Iconic marquee rehabilitation Building facade and brick repair Window restoration HVAC renovation Improved energy efficiency Roofing membrane Fire panel replacement 2nd floor renovation and parlor expansion Audio system upgrade
Grow
With your help so far, we’ve built a brand new, world-class arts facility for the next generation to elevate the presentation of film to another level.
To fill our remarkable spaces, some of our richest and most prominent programming is found in our festivals, which we intend to nurture and expand.
FilmScene at The Chauncey
A new state-of-the-art three-screen facility at The Chauncey—in the heart of downtown—has become FilmScene’s landmark home.
Three new cinemas, seating over 225 moviegoers Flexible space for educational programming Programming expansion through increased showtimes, community partnerships, and films Cutting-edge picture and sound 35mm and 16mm film presentation Enhanced comfort and expanded food & drink
Additional funding will be put towards ownership of the facility by FilmScene to ensure organizational stability and secure the future of film as an art form in Iowa City.
Festival Investments
With expanded cinema facilities, we will launch Refocus Film Festival in the fall of 2020. Pushing boundaries in multidiscplinary film exhibition and presenting films inspired by and adapted from other art forms, especially text, Refocus will be a unique film event for our City of Literature. Continued nurturing of the Englert’s two annual festivals: the literature and music mainstay Mission Creek Festival and Witching Hour, which explores the creative process.
Evolve
Our campaign is only worth pursuing if we truly feel there is an opportunity to improve access and engagement with the arts for all people in our community.
Iowa City and the surrounding area have great promise but we must take collaborative action on arts education and engagement to fulfill the promise ahead.
Arts Access Initiative
Our organizations have received support to research and improve arts access and engagement for school districts and communities throughout Johnson County.
We seek to further this work with an arts education effort collaboration. Together, we will hire a Community Engagement Director, dedicated to fostering deeper artistic connections with our local K-12 schools, universities and colleges, neighborhoods, and the diverse cultures of our community and to expanding year-round arts education workshops and artist visits to our schools.
Allied Arts Initiative
The Englert and FilmScene will deepen important partnerships with the Bijou Film Board, SCOPE Productions, and other University of Iowa organizations.
We will expand our collaborative efforts, using this campaign as a case study, to work with a collective of local cultural nonprofits to share ideas and best practices, work together, and envision a collective future for our entire region, starting here in Iowa City.