Blockbusters, discounted matinees, live performances and more! (Chatham, NY, June 12, 2023) — School is almost out and that means a slate of soon-to-be-released blockbusters is coming to the Crandell Theatre seven days a week. The theater’s special summer schedule, launching on June 15, includes hotly anticipated films The Flash, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, plus a live Chatham SummerFest children’s musical performance featuring the Columbia County Youth Theatre. The Flash, Indiana Jones and Mission: Impossible will screen during new Wednesday matinees at 3 pm with discounted ticket prices. The Flash will also have additional matinees on Fridays at 3 pm at the regular ticket price. For all summer showtimes and to reserve tickets visit crandelltheatre.org. The Crandell’s new summer schedule coincides with the special preview opening night of The…
Crandell Theatre and Ellsworth Kelly Studio to Present Free Ellsworth Kelly Documentary and Post-Show Filmmaker Q+A
On Sunday, May 21, at 1 pm, the Crandell Theatre and the Ellsworth Kelly Studio will present a free screening of the 2007 documentary, Ellsworth Kelly: Fragments. The afternoon is part of a year-long centennial celebration of one of the most influential American artists of his time and a long-time resident of Spencertown. A conversation and Q&A with the filmmaker, Edgar Howard, President of Checkerboard Film Foundation, and Jack Shear, President of the Ellsworth Kelly Foundation, will directly follow the film. “Ellsworth was a film lover and the Crandell Theatre was an important resource for him beginning when he first moved to Columbia County in the 1970s,” said Shear, the late artist’s husband and now President of the Ellsworth Kelly Foundation. “He really appreciated having a theater so close to home.” The Ellsworth Kelly Foundation and Jack Shear have long…
May 13: Q+A with Wild Life Film Editor Bob Eisenhardt
Wild Life, the latest documentary from the Oscar-winning team who produced Free Solo, will screen at the Crandell Theatre in Chatham May 12, 13, 14 and 18. Following the Saturday, May 13 screening at 7 pm, the film’s editor, Bob Eisenhardt (right), will take to the stage with FilmColumbia Managing Director Calliope Nicholas to answer audience questions and share more about how the documentary was shaped in the edit suite. Wild Life is directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin and follows conservationist Kris Tompkins on an epic, decades-spanning love story as wild as the landscapes she dedicated her life to protecting. After falling in love in mid-life, Kris and the outdoorsman and entrepreneur Doug Tompkins left behind the world of the massively successful outdoor brands they’d helped pioneer—Patagonia, The North Face, and Esprit—and turned their attention to…
The Crandell to Launch May Membership Drive
May 6
KICK-OFF MEMBER DAY: May 6, 10 am – 4 pm The Crandell Theatre invites area residents and families to participate in a day of free film-themed activities on Saturday, May 6, from 10 am to 4 pm at the historic theater in Chatham, New York. The program includes family short films, tours of the theater, photo opportunities with film celebrity cutouts, and marquee cookies created for the occasion by Pooky Amsterdam of PookyStudio. Admission to the regularly scheduled 1 pm screening of The Eagle Huntress, an award-winning documentary about the first female eagle hunter in twelve generations of a nomadic Mongolian family, is free for new and current members. Those who join the Crandell or renew their memberships on May 6 or anytime during May receive free admission to all films during the month. According to Annie Brody, Crandell…
Award-Winning Writer, Producer, Director James Schamus Elected to Crandell Theatre Board
James Schamus was elected to a three-year term on the Crandell Theatre board at its January annual meeting. Schamus, who has had a home in Columbia County for 25 years, is a longtime supporter of the Crandell, and was honored at the 2018 FilmColumbia festival. By providing FilmColumbia with advance screenings of films he produced, such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, The Pianist, and Brokeback Mountain, Schamus helped anchor the young festival with quality cinema. “By adding his invaluable perspective to our film programming efforts, James Schamus will help us navigate these changing and challenging times in the film industry,” said Crandell Board President Lydia Kukoff. “He has shown himself to be fully engaged in the issues of maintaining and sustaining the Crandell as a vital presence in the Chatham community.” “People-supported theaters such as the Crandell are not just…
15th Farm Film Festival Call for Entries
Farm Film Festival, the annual event presented by the Crandell Theatre in collaboration with the Chatham Agricultural Partnership and the Columbia Land Conservancy, is currently seeking entries to its 15th season. The entry deadline is March 15, 2023. Farm Film Festival focuses on farms, farming, and farming issues with special interest in films that have a Hudson Valley connection. Submitted films can be either feature length or in short film format. The program will include those made by professional and amateur filmmakers. Students of all ages are encouraged to submit their work. Click below for the downloadable PDF entry form. Farm Film Festival 15 Entry Form NOTE: All submissions will need to include a Vimeo or YouTube link for jury viewing. Additional information about previous festivals is available at farmfilmfest.org.
CRANDELL KID FLICKS: A New Saturday Matinee Film + Activity Series for Families
The Crandell Theatre is very pleased to announce the launch later this month of Crandell Kid Flicks, a new family-friendly Saturday matinee series of contemporary classic children’s films (animated and live action) offered January through April on the fourth Saturday of each month at 1 pm. The series aims to provide the youngest moviegoers with fun, safe, exciting and positive opportunities to become engaged in the arts. Chatham’s beautiful, historic, single-screen movie house is the backdrop for an afternoon of educational fun that puts each film into special focus for these budding film lovers. This new series was created for Chatham-area families with children ages 3-12 in mind. Each film is paired with guest presenters and fun, theme-centered activities. Special Admission: $5 per ticket Crandell Kid Flicks is curated by the Crandell’s brand new Parent Advisory Task Force and co-chaired…
SPECIAL EVENT: Q+A with AVATAR’s Stephen Lang
December 29 at 10:15 pm
Join actor Stephen Lang, who originated the iconic role of Colonel Quaritch, for a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the making of Avatar: The Way of Water following a screening of the film. (Chatham, NY—December 22, 2022) —The Crandell Theatre is delighted to welcome actor Stephen Lang, best known for playing Colonel Miles Quaritch in James Cameron’s Avatar, on stage for a special Q+A following the December 29, 7 pm screening of the newly released sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water. In this rare, behind-the-scenes look at the 3D blockbuster, Lang and film historian Peter Biskind will discuss his recurring role in the Avatar universe and how he and his fellow actors prepared for and shot Cameron’s latest installment. Lang will also be signing a limited number of Avatar: The Way of Water theatrical posters for sale. Avatar: The Way of…
The Chatham Public Library and the Crandell Theatre Present Film Career Panel for Teens and Young Adults on Saturday, November 5
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Chatham, NY—November 2, 2022)—Have you ever dreamed of writing and directing your own film? What most may not realize is just how many other critical roles beyond writing, directing and acting are necessary to bring a commercial, television series or film to life. This Saturday, November 5, at 10:30 am, area teens and young adults can hear directly from film and TV professionals who have chosen very different routes to success during “Career GPS: Pathways in Film,” a free program held at the Crandell Theatre. The event is the first of the Chatham Public Library’s monthly Career GPS Series designed to introduce teens to the wide variety of potential jobs that exist within every field and profession. Career GPS is organized and facilitated by Wally Rubin, in collaboration with the Chatham Public Library and the Chatham High…
FilmColumbia Closing Weekend: Big Topics, Big Stars and One Big Surprise
(Chatham, NY—October 27, 2022) FilmColumbia, the county’s premier cultural event held annually at the historic Crandell Theatre, will screen its final set of highly curated festival films during its closing weekend, October 28 – 30. The films, screening from noon to night, tackle important topical subjects and include the unveiling of a very special screening. The storied “Sneak Preview” on Saturday night, October 29, has long been the festival’s headline event. Often a sell out, this advance screening of a major prestige film headed for eventual Oscar contention is also among the festival’s most exciting. The film’s title, unknown at the time of ticket purchase, is only revealed once attendees are in their seats, just minutes before the lights dim. Like many of the films that opened the festival, the closing weekend features several that take on some of the…
FilmColumbia Returns to the Crandell Theatre October 21 – 30
(Chatham, NY—September 22, 2022)—FilmColumbia, now in its 22nd year and Columbia County’s premier annual cultural event, will once again light up the screen with the very best–and the latest–national and international films. Screening some 45 films from October 21 – 30, FilmColumbia 2022 will feature festival-favorite releases from acclaimed directors Laura Poitras, Darren Aronofsky, Luca Guadagnino, James Gray, and Sarah Polley, and lauded performances from Anne Hathaway, Timothée Chalamet, Tilda Swinton, Anthony Hopkins, Hugh Jackman, Laura Dern, Sigourney Weaver, Jessie Buckley, and Frances McDormand, among many others. Urgent, timely and dazzling new films screening at this year’s festival include Call Jane, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, Bones and All, The Whale, The Son, and Women Talking. Each film stirred audiences and critics during their recent festival premieres at Sundance and in Venice, Cannes, Toronto, Tribeca and Telluride. For the…