For most groups, an 80 percent drop in annual attendance over 12 years would be a cause for concern. But leaders of A&O Productions said they still consider their film series, which has seen its annual attendance drop from 39,000 to 7,500 since 1990, one of their greatest successes.
The Student Activities Finance Board, which funds the movies, agrees the films have an important place on campus. SAFB allocated about $32,000 to A&O for the film series this spring, a $4,000 increase from last year.
A&O executives said the increase in funding is warranted, as they attribute the attendance drop to a scaled back film schedule and an increase in Evanston’s other entertainment options.
A&O Senator Neil Shah said the group showed six films per week in 1990 on every night except for Mondays, contributing to the high attendance figures.
“Our numbers (for each movie showing) are just as good as they were then,” Shah said.
Shah also said that now there is “simply a hell of a lot more to do in Evanston,” as opposed to in 1990, such as Century Theatres.
A&O leaders said that although life in Evanston has picked up, the development of the Century Theatres in fall 2000 hasn’t changed on their film programming drastically.
“The theater opening up did make an impact,” said Rebecca Safier, A&O film director. “But we’re not really targeting the same audience. Our audience is students who either want to see the movie a second time or who didn’t want to pay the movie theater price.”
Safier said October’s showing of “Moulin Rouge” drew the best attendance this academic year. A&O also is trying to bring more sneak previews to campus, she said. The advance showings of “How High” in the fall and “Better Luck Tomorrow” this spring drew high attendance.
In light of these successes, Safier and Shah said A&O is not planning to change its approach or target audience.
“A&O Films is still one of the best things for SAFB,” Shah said.
No other programming on campus generates the kind of revenue and attendance that A&O Films does, he said. A&O Films generates a revenue of $10,000 to $12,000 each year and puts the money back into their film budget.
“That is basically unheard of,” Shah said. “That’s something our concerts don’t even produce.”
Le’Jamiel Goodall, ASG financial vice president, agreed that the films pay off financially.
“A&O has brought in numbers that surpass any other $30,000 program,” Goodall said.
Because of these numbers, Shah and Goodall are positive about the future of the series.
“I don’t see A&O losing funding for films,” Goodall said. “I think students enjoy seeing films on campus for a very inexpensive amount.”
A&O brings big-name films such as “The Lord of the Rings” to campus every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at a cost of $3 for students. They also show films Wednesday nights in Norris University Center’s The Gathering Place for free.
Shah said A&O can pay up to $12,000 for films such as “Ocean’s Eleven” and $200 for smaller, less recent films.
A&O began showing the older films for free Wednesday nights after losing a partnership with the Campus Activities Office, which until last winter used to foot half of the bill for A&O’s Wednesday movies.
A&O opted to continue the series on its own but decided to show older, more classic movies to compensate for the funding loss.
“They’re movies that most students haven’t had much opportunity to see, and they’re free,” Safier said.
Cabiria Jacobsen, a Weinberg freshman, said she was drawn to last Wednesday’s film “Nights of Cabiria” because she was named after the film. She said she plans to attend more showings.
Besides showing less-expensive films, Safier said A&O has been seeking co-sponsorships with other student groups for Wednesdays’ flicks.
A&O showed four shorts from the Chicago Latino Film Festival in conjunction with Hispanic History Month Committee in October, as well as a film for Black History Month in March.
A&O will continue to show more famous movies on the weekends.
