Celebrating Independent Cinema at The Roxie
By Jordan DelFiugo
Nestled in the heart of San Francisco’s vibrant Mission District, the Roxie Theater looks like something straight out of a vintage postcard with its cobalt blue tiles, striking red doors, and iconic neon marquee.
First established in 1913, the Roxie is the oldest continuously operating movie theater in San Francisco and one of the oldest in the country. 112 years since its inception, the theater remains a spirited community hub, where independent film is celebrated, and burgeoning filmmakers are supported by a passionate team.
Despite its historic status, the Roxie has never actually owned its building. For decades, it’s existed under the uncertainty of leasing, a risky position for any arts organization, especially in a rapidly changing city like San Francisco. With rising real estate costs and the ever-present threat of displacement, that lack of ownership has meant that no matter how beloved the Roxie is, its presence in the Mission District has never been fully secure.
“My love story with the Roxie is a long one that runs deep,” said Lex Sloan, the theater’s Executive Director. “When I first started, I went into our projection booth, which is just this really magical, special place [...] and I just remember standing there, thinking about how all these places I personally loved, from restaurants to bars to other movie theaters, were disappearing from the San Francisco landscape, and I thought, ‘we can't lose the Roxie, I've got to do what I can to make sure it's still here.’”
That’s where the “Roxie Forever” campaign comes in. The campaign aims to do more than raise funds, it’s about rewriting the Roxie’s future. Owning the building would not only preserve a vital piece of San Francisco’s cultural history, it would also guarantee that future generations will not lose this important community space.
Sloan said, “We have just about $1.4 million to raise, and we are really hopeful that we'll be able to purchase our building, which will be just an incredible next chapter for the cinema.”
Throughout the years, the theater has served many purposes. Initially, it was owned by a German family, who screened German films and served traditional snacks and goods. Then, under new ownership, it transitioned into an Adult theater, showing XXX films. Eventually, in the late 1970s, it was taken over by a group of artists and activists. “That’s really what we consider the founding of the Roxie that everyone knows and loves today,” Sloan explained. “For many years, the theater has operated as the independent art house cinema showing all the ‘hard-to-find’ films, films that aren’t being shown anywhere else.”
Inside, the lobby is lined with retro movie posters and stocked with local beer and classic concessions. In addition to traditional screenings, drag performances, trivia nights, and Q&As with filmmakers are also regular occurrences.
Currently, the Roxie shows over 500 individual film titles a year, often screening films using the theater’s original 35-millimeter projectors, which date back to the 1940s. “I’m always excited about something we’re showing,” said Sloan. “There’ll be different genres, different languages, from animation to experimental, or documentaries and local films [...] something for everyone plays here.” According to Sloan, programming at the Roxie is a collaborative and dynamic process, with films coming from a mix of festival discoveries, distributor partnerships, and community input.
In addition to screenings, the Roxie also serves as an invaluable resource for filmmakers, with a trifecta of programs, including “Roxie Mixtape,” “Roxie Review,” and “First Look.” In 2009, the theater became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and a large part of its mission has been supporting the Bay Area filmmaking community.
“As a filmmaker myself, I know how hard it is to get short films shown on a big screen,” said Sloan, who studied film at San Francisco State University. “Film school doesn’t teach you how to get your movie on the big screen. I learned that at the Roxie, that’s why we started Mixtape nearly a decade ago.” Roxie Mixtape is a showcase of short films (each 15 minutes or less) which are by Bay Area filmmakers and or depict Bay Area stories. “It’s a total mash-up, 70 minutes of every genre you can imagine,” Sloan said. The event is free to submit to and ends with a packed Q&A, where the line often stretches from one side of the theater to the other.
Roxie Review, on the other hand, offers filmmakers a behind-the-scenes opportunity to quality-check their films on the big screen before submitting to festivals. Since its launch, nearly 100 filmmakers have used the program to fine-tune everything from sound mixes to final cuts.
Completing the trio is First Look, a program designed to help short films qualify for the Academy Awards. “To get qualified, a short has to screen seven days in a theater, and that’s nearly impossible for most filmmakers,” Sloan said. “So, we put the call out: ‘Want to qualify for the Oscars?’ Once we get enough submissions, we program the run and provide the official letter to the Academy.” While no alum has taken home an Oscar just yet, Sloan said some films have gone on to make the shortlist.
Like many independent theaters, the Roxie has faced significant challenges post COVID-19, due to subsequent shifts in audience habits. The pandemic forced the Roxie to close its doors for over 400 days, and though nationwide movie theater attendance has improved, attendance still remains nearly 40% lower than it was pre-pandemic. As a result, the Roxie staff constantly works to identify ways of reaching new audiences.
“We have to ask ourselves ‘What audiences are not here?’ ‘who isn’t coming?’” Sloan explained, “For a long time, it was ‘Where are our folks in wheelchairs?’ Or folks who are hard of hearing or blind? We’ve been really intentional about making sure that we are accessible to the disabled community.”
The Roxie highlights accessible screenings, such as those with open captions, closed captioning devices, audio description or ASL interpretation, on its website and in regular newsletters. The theater recently renovated its largest auditorium and restrooms to meet ADA standards, including widening doorways and installing wheelchair-accessible stalls. It also partners with local Deaf organizations to host events, such as an upcoming screening of Compensation with live ASL interpretation.
In 2021, the Roxie launched “Movies for All,” a ticket initiative modeled after the Museums for All program, offering $5 admission to anyone with a SNAP card. “We don't want the movies to be a luxury. We want them to be affordable and accessible,” said Sloan. The program has brought thousands of new visitors through the doors and has helped cultivate a more diverse and intergenerational audience. “We’ve sold over 5,000 Movies for All tickets in the last year alone,” she said. “It’s become a way for people to explore independent films who might not otherwise be able to.”
Sloan emphasized the lasting communal significance of movie theaters, even in an era dominated by streaming. “Having the collective viewing experience where people are laughing together, crying together [...] at the end of the screening, the standing ovation that films have gotten has been so meaningful and moving. To me at least, you can’t replace that.”
To help support the Roxie’s mission or make a donation, visit roxie.com/forever
