Walker Film Program gets largest grant in its history

The museum will use the funds to preserve its movie collection and refurbish its 40-year-old cinema.

By colincovert

August 19, 2011 at 1:50PM
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The Walker Cinema will soon have upgraded projection, sound and seating. Photo: Walker Art Center.

Walker Art Center's film/video department has received a $1 million grant from the Bentson Foundation. The gift is the largest ever designated for the museum's film program.

The funds will be used to renovate the Walker Cinema and to digitally preserve celluloid films in the museum's collection.

"We're really thrilled," said Walker film/video curator Sheryl Mousley. "This will enable us to realize the dream of making the cinema a truly state-of-the-art facility, and to bring the collection to a wider audience" than the 30,000 visitors a year it now serves.

The 40-year-old Walker Cinema was last refurbished in 2005. Upgrades for the auditorium include new seats, a high-definition digital projector and redesigned acoustics. Walker staff consulted with the operators of St. Louis Park's Showplace Icon theater, which features high-performance digital sound and cutting-edge projectors, as they planned their redesign, Mousley said, adding, "we hope to equal that quality of presentation."

The Walker film collection includes 16mm and 35mm prints up to 70 years old. Every screening shortens the print's life. Converting the films to digital format will enable the museum to show its films without fear of degrading them, and halts the color fading that occurs over time. As a result, older films will be programmed more frequently and readily available for special screenings for film studies classes.

The Edina-based Bentson Foundation, which supports education and arts nonprofits, made a $250,000 grant to the Walker in 1998 to acquire some 850 films. Executive director Judi Dutcher said the new grant is intended to continue that legacy.

"Walker's film collection is nationally renowned," Dutcher said. "We feel it's important to step in to preserve the film collection and enable people to see it in comfort. Our commitment to the Walker has deep roots, and we expect it to be ongoing."

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