Approximately 165 people turned out on May 8 for the West Newton Cinema Foundation‘s (WNCF) update on the status of its effort to save the theater from the wrecking ball. The event at the theater included presentations followed by a Q&A session and a reception.
Board President Elizabeth Heilig walked the audience through the 501(c)(3) non-profit’s current capital campaign. Phase I calls for raising the $5.6 million needed to acquire the cinema from Mark Development by the August 10, 2024 deadline. This goal is now conceivably within reach, thanks to a recent anonymous gift of $5.2 million. Of that amount, $3.2 million is an anchor gift toward the acquisition, and $2 million provides a matching opportunity. To achieve the acquisition by the deadline date, the WNCF needs to raise $1.2 million in new donations, which will be matched one-for-one, retroactive to April 1, 2024. Prior to receiving the $5.2 million gift, the WNCF had received over 700 donations from the community, totalling $149,700.
Phase II calls for raising an additional $8.4 million, of which $4.4 million will be for building restoration and renovation, $2 million for an endowed maintenance fund, and $2 million for a programming endowment fund.
West Newton Cinema Foundation banners in the theater lobby 
Board members J.B. Sloan, Elizabeth Heilig, and Kelley Brown at the West Newton Cinema Foundation’s community update 
Ty Burr, advisor to West Newton Cinema Foundation 
West Newton Cinema Foundation volunteer marketing team: Connor Donovan, Nico Guadagno, Tim North, and Madison Umbrello 
Attendees of the West Newton Cinema Foundation’s community update meeting at reception after the meeting 
West Newton Cinema Foundation volunteer marketing team: Connor Donovan, Nico Guadagno, Madison Umbrello, and Tim North
When asked about the prospect of raising funds from foundations, Heilig informed the audience that most public foundations do not fund capital plans. However, once the WNFC has purchased the theater, public foundations are inclined to provide programming funding. In addition, Newton’s Community Preservation Commission may release CPA funds at some point in the future.
WNCF Board members Kelley Brown and Jill Bellio outlined plans for a complete engineering, architectural, and construction assessment. The WNCF has received two technical assistance funding opportunities from the Mass Cultural Council, one for a facility study ($35,000) and one for a building systems study ($7,000). Both are matching grants.
Board member J.B. Sloan showcased the WNCF’s successful and innovative programming, which is in addition to the West Newton Cinema’s regular offerings. Under the aegis of their Behind the Screen program, the WNCF offers free panels such as the one at which distinguished panelists discussed the historical facts behind the film Killers of the Flower Moon. Other WNCF events have included An Oscars Evening with Ty Burr – the former long-time Boston Globe film critic, WNCF advisor, and author of Ty Burr’s Watchlist on Substack. The WNCF also offers family and youth programming.
At the WNCF event, Ty Burr stressed the importance of the West Newton Cinema as a cultural treasure and a community anchor by asking the audience to imagine Coolidge Corner without the Coolidge Corner Theater. The Coolidge Corner Theater was saved from demolition in 1989 by a passionate band of Brookline citizens. Its current status as a thriving non-profit independent theater has been an inspiration for the WNCF and a proof of what is possible when local people work together.
The WNCF and its supporters hold that a restored and revitalized West Newton Cinema will foster social connections, build community, act as a cultural film center, and serve as a key economic driver by attracting tens of thousands of visitors from Newton and surrounding areas. Last year alone, the Cinema drew 50,000 people.
Speakers noted that saving and restoring the West Newton Cinema will also preserve Newton’s rich historical and cultural heritage. Founded in 1937, the Art Deco Theater was purchased in 1978 by the Bramante brothers, David and Jim, who ran the Cinema for 45 years. David’s daughter, Bridget Bal,i set the campaign to save the West Newton Cinema in motion during the coronavirus pandemic when she established a GoFundMe Campaign to support the struggling theater. Her goal now, she told the audience, is to save the theater “for my Dad’s legacy.”
WNCF Board members agree that saving the West Newton Cinema is about honoring the past while securing the future. For this writer, the future was personified by the Marketing and Design Team of twenty-something Boston and Suffolk University graduates who presented the highlights of their marketing campaign. Distressed to hear that the WNC might be demolished, Nico Guadagno and Connor Donovan volunteered their marketing and design expertise and recruited their friends Timothy North, Madison Umbrello and Maxwell Kraft to help. The results of their efforts include a new logo, a new website, and promotions of fundraising events across social media platforms.
When asked about the WNCF’s needs for volunteers, Heilig expressed a need for a Volunteer Coordinator. She also encouraged people to offer their professional expertise and to do outreach such as hosting house parties or other events.
And of course there’s a need for continued financial support to meet the August 10 deadline and beyond.
For information on Leadership Gifts to the West Newton Cinema Campaign, with naming opportunities, contact Elizabeth Heilig at elizabeth.heilig@wncfoundation.org.
...Other News...
Saving the Cinema
West Newton Cinema Foundation receives $5.2M boost to capital campaign
West Newton Cinema establishes non-profit foundation; Mark Development applies for demolition permit [UPDATE: Community meeting, Apr. 11]
West Newton Cinema Foundation panel discussion: Killers of the Flower Moon, Nov. 12