The Jason Reitman-led collective of filmmakers that banded together to save the Westwood Village Theater have partnered with film arts non-profit American Cinematheque in the next stage of the preservation process.
The collective, known as the Village Directors Circle, has entered into a partnership agreement with American Cinematheque to operate and program the century-old movie palace, the two organizations jointly announced Tuesday.
The American Cinematheque will program, manage and be the operating partner for the more-than-1,000-seat theater with active participation from the filmmakers. The organization already prominently runs and curates historic film venues The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, Aero Theatre in Santa Monica and Los Feliz 3 in Los Feliz.
In February 2024, the VDC announced it was buying the historic theatre. The group pledged to raise funds to completely restore and remodel the famed movie palace into a multi-purpose screening and event facility with the goal to reopen in 2027.
Reitman stated: “We often like to think of movie theaters as churches,” Reitman said in a statement. “If so, the Village is a cathedral, and with the American Cinematheque, we found our congregation.”
Per the organizations, the remodeled theater will be home to special screenings with in-person conversations, awards season events, new theatrical releases, retrospectives and tributes, as well as American Cinemathque’s well-established year-round programming and popular film festivals such as Beyond Fest, Bleak Week, This Is Not a Fiction and Ultra Cinematheque 70. There is even hope to launch new festivals.
And the partners also intend to continue the famed theater’s nearly 100-year legacy of hosting theatrical world premieres.
The lobby will be used as a multi-purpose space for concessions, exhibits of artifacts from the filmmaker’s personal collections and retail kiosks.
The organizations boldly say they want to make the Westwood Theater as iconic an Los Angeles landmark and destination as the Walt Disney Concert Hall, The Hollywood Bowl and Griffith Observatory.
“Partnering with the brilliant and virtuoso Village Directors Circle to renovate the Village Theater is an exciting milestone for the American Cinematheque,” stated American Cinematheque chair Rick Nicita. “We are thrilled to bring our expertise in film programming to Westwood, breathing new life into this iconic venue. Our goal is to create a vibrant cultural hub that not only celebrates cinema but also enriches the community and welcomes audiences from all over Los Angeles and the world.”
The director collective includes a who’s who of filmmakers and includes J.J. Abrams, Judd Apatow, Damien Chazelle, Chris Columbus, Ryan Coogler, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Jonathan Dayton, Guillermo del Toro, Valerie Faris, Hannah Fidell, Alejandro González Iñárritu, James Gunn, Sian Heder, Rian Johnson, Gil Kenan, Karyn Kusama, Justin Lin, Phil Lord, David Lowery, Christopher McQuarrie, Chris Miller, Christopher Nolan, Alexander Payne, Todd Phillips, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Jay Roach, Seth Rogen, Emma Seligman, Brad Silberling, Steven Spielberg, Emma Thomas, Denis Villeneuve, Lulu Wang and Chloé Zhao.
Westwood’s historic Village Theater is now owned by a coalition of 35 filmmakers led by Jason Reitman.
Alex J. Berliner/ABImages