Seeing is believing

Hoosiers need not look beyond campus to find a theater featuring international, independent and documentary films and opportunities to meet filmmakers.

IU Cinema, founded in 2011, has worked with the film industry, University departments and schools to create an “art house” moviegoing experience.

Oscar-nominated German director Werner Herzog and independent filmmaker John Sayles are among the talent IU Cinema has brought to campus.

The first two years have seen other such successes, and audience members should look forward to more distinctive and valuable opportunities in 2013, IU Cinema Director Jon Vickers said.

“Some of the things we’re starting to build are a couple of conferences or mini-festivals,” Vickers said. “We’re going to be home to Orphans Midwest in the fall. It’s an academic program, with screenings, that supports and explores the relevance of orphaned films — films that have never been screened. It’s a high-profile symposium.

“Another is an interesting and fun festival called Slapsticon,” he said. “It’s three and a half days of slapstick films. We might be the future home for that from here on out.”

Every IU Cinema screening and event is open to the public. The cinema receives some of its budget from the University, so Vickers said people and students especially should be aware of the tremendous value offered.

“The majority of events are free to students,” Vickers said. “The public pays nothing, too, for more than half of the events.”

He said the cinema’s success is due in part to its efforts staying academically relevant. The cinema was founded after IU President Michael McRobbie recognized film studies at the University needed a place to live.

“We’ve very quickly become academically relevant with our programs and partnerships,” he said. “We’re also building a really strong national reputation.”

Kathryn Bigelow, Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorcese are among the filmmakers invited to visit IU Cinema in 2013, Vickers said.

Corresponding with big-name Hollywood filmmakers and directors isn’t easy though, IU Cinema Business Manager Carla Cowden said.

“We have a very small staff,” Cowden said. “We have three full-time staff and a number of students, some of whom are volunteers. Our success is contingent on everyone’s enthusiasm for film.”

The cinema exceeded original ticket sale expectations by selling more than 90,000 tickets in two years, according to a press release.

Combined with dozens of lectures and hundreds of partnered screenings, the cinema has proven to be a worthy endeavor, Vickers said.

“People are always impressed with what they see,” he said. “They can’t believe what’s happening at Indiana.”