Mission America’s pre-eminent film presentation
organization, The Film
Society of Lincoln Center was founded in 1969 to celebrate American
and international cinema, to recognize and support new filmmakers,
and to enhance awareness, accessibility and understanding of the
art
among a broad and diverse film going audience.
As an independent constituent of the world’s foremost performing
arts center, the Film Society of Lincoln Center presents a 363-day
season that includes premieres of new films from an international
roster of established and emerging directors; major retrospectives;
in-depth symposia and high profile events. The Film Society is
one
of those rare institutions whose stature is matched by its popularity,
each year welcoming an aggregate audience of more than 200,000
film aficionados, filmmakers and industry leaders of every nationality,
age, economic and ethnic group.
The organization has been a pioneer among film institutions and
one of the film world’s most respected and influential arbiters
of
cinematic trends and discoveries. François Truffaut, R.W.
Fassbinder,
Jean-Luc Godard, Pedro Almodóvar, Martin Scorsese, Wes Anderson–
over the last four decades there is scarcely a major director who
has
not been introduced to American audiences by the Film Society.
The Film Society is best known for two world-class international
festivals – the New York Film Festival (the most famous and
prestigious
in the country), and New Directors/New Films (celebrating
new cinematic artists). It runs a state-of-the-art year-round cinema,
the Walter Reade Theater (capacity: 268), and publishes the country’s
most respected cinematic journal, Film Comment.
Each year the organization presents its annual Gala Tribute honoring
legendary stars and industry leaders of our generation at Lincoln
Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. At
various times of the year the Film Society partners with Hollywood studios to present
premieres and special live appearances.
