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The Cinema Revolution Starts Now...
Help this staple of the local film community find its new home

If you haven't already heard, beloved indie DVD rental store Cinema Revolution is experiencing a financial crisis and has issued an appeal for support.  Already relying on a staff of dedicated volunteers, Cinema Revolution is asking for your help in raising $5,000 to pay for the move into a new, more visible space.  You don't have to be a Cinema Rev member to contribute; anyone who is interested in supporting a small business that enriches the local arts community and gives it a personal face is encouraged to get involved.  A note from CR owner John Koch follows:

Dear Cinema Revolution Customers:

The past three months have not been kind to Cinema Revolution and we are facing a crisis - a serious and rapid decline in revenue that contradicts all past performance, precedents and expectations. Up until now, the business has performed steadily enough to sustain itself and carry on, due largely in part to our dedicated volunteer staff. To counter our current sales decrease we are seeking ways to help make the business better, and one consensus priority is that the store needs a more viable location with better visibility, access and parking. We are also open to the idea of partnering with other compatible businesses and/or sharing space.

We believe that a local store run by live local people is something of value - a store that curates film as a gallery would curate any other form of art, a store that actively promotes film in the community, a store with a real, tangible personality. Cinema Revolution creates an artistic context for your DVD rental experience; we help guide you through innumerable choices, and celebrate films that otherwise are marginalized or ignored. We are active in the community as well. Through the nearly five years of our existence, we have shot a feature film using all local talent, we have held dozens of film screenings through Cinema des Artistes and our Film Society, commissioned new original short films from local artists, held weekly live film discussion groups, started a local record label, and have helped actively promote countless festivals, performances and screenings by local producers. It is a major part of our mission to connect, support and inspire our local artistic community. If you value what we do for the community, we ask you to please help us continue in these endeavors.

We are seeking to raise $5,000 by September 15th to help make our move to a new location a reality, as it cannot be done without this additional support. The suggested donation is $20 (and if 250 people can do this, we will make our goal), but please feel free to give at any level you can afford. With your collective help we can make this happen.

We are also seeking volunteers to help in this fundraising effort. If you are interested in helping out, contact john@cinemarevolution.com. We are also open to any suggestions or advice anyone may have to help us along.

In just the past two years we have lost legendary video stores Discount Video and Box Office Video. We have seen the Oak Street and Bell Auditorium film programs vanish, we have watched the entire film editorial staff at the City Pages lose their jobs, and Hollywood fare is now seeping into our beloved Lagoon Cinema. Please help keep an active, inspiring film culture alive in the Twin Cities and donate securely via PayPal today at www.cinemarevolution.com.

Please note that if for any reason we do not achieve our financial goal, your generous donations will be refunded directly through PayPal. If we should raise more than our goal, the extra money will be applied to growing our movie collection to help fill our new space. Also be aware that we are not organized as a non-profit organization for tax purposes, so your donation is not tax deductible.

Thank you all so much for your support through the years, and may there be many more to follow.

Best regards - John Koch, Owner, Cinema Revolution