Historic Upper Manhattan Cinema to Reopen as 'Uptown Film Center'

A historic theater on Broadway and 99th Street is being restored, reopening with a new name and new mission. The news was announced by Ira Deutchman, President of UWS Cinema Center, which purchased the building on April 4, 2025 and has renamed the venue the "Uptown Film Center." Built in 1933, it originally went by the name "Midtown," with it being dubbed "Metro" in 1982 and "Metro twin" in the 1990s. Take a look at the design renderings of the theater below.

In making the announcement, Deutchman emphasized that the new name is a reflection of an entirely new mission, and a clear statement about its location within the city. “We wanted to give the theater a unique identity that instantly would conjure up its iconic Upper West Side locale,” said Deutchman.

The Uptown Film Center will be the only full-time art film theater north of Lincoln Center. According to Deutchman, “Unlike commercial theaters or streaming platforms, the UPTOWN will deliver an immersive, community-first film experience that blends the best of independent, international, documentary, repertory, and family cinema with educational programs and cultural partnerships. We envision a future where the Uptown Film Center will be more than a theater; it will be a cultural anchor that revitalizes the Upper West Side neighborhood, bridges divides through the power of cinema, and ensures that film remains accessible, inclusive, and essential to community life.”

Deutchman notes that arthouses are having a resurgence across the country, particularly with young audiences who want to get out of the house and away from the solitary experience of streaming devices. 

At a “BIG REVEAL” event held on Oct 27 at the Villa Albertine, Deutchman was joined by Tim Blake Nelson, Kyra Sedgwick, and Tony Award-winning playwright Tony Kushner, as well as architects Voith & Mactavish, to celebrate the new name, reveal architectural renderings of the marquee and landmarked façade, and talk about what the theater will mean for the neighborhood, the independent film community, and the power of art. 

Deutchman also announced the launch of a $29 million capital campaign to build out the film center. The timeline for completion will depend largely on how quickly those funds can be raised, noted Deutchman, who is hoping to be able to break ground by early 2027 and open the film center’s doors by early 2028.

The organization has set a goal of $5 million in donations by the end of the year, and announced that they’ve achieved more than half of that amount already through recent commitments by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Great Hill Foundation, Roland and Lois Betts, Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor, continued support from the Klingenstein-Martell Foundation, and an additional grant from the State of New York through the efforts of Assemblyman Micah Lasher.

Uptown Film Center Board Member Tim Blake Nelson added, “Filmmakers—those who consider movies an art form as well as entertainment or a way to make a profit—still make films for movie theaters. The work might end up on smaller screens, but the actual creation happens with theaters in mind: places where strangers gather for state-of-the-art projection and sound to sharpen their sensitivity and intelligence about the world. The Uptown is going to be such a venue for a neighborhood that’s been starving for it.”

The $6.9 purchase of the property—which was raised in four months starting just a year ago--was made possible by a $3.5 million grants from Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York; $500K in grants from the NY State Senate (Brad Hoylman-Sigal); major grants from the Hearthland Foundation (Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw), the Martell-Klingenstein Foundation, and the Brandt Jackson foundation; and more than 500 individual contributors from the greater NYC community.  

Since last April, when the property was purchased, UWSCC has made significant progress to push forward. They hired the architects and various consultants to plan and prepare the final designs for the center, which are nearly completed. Simultaneously, the original volunteer founding team—Deutchman, Adeline Monzier, Steven Cohen, and Beth Krieger—has been working on expanding the Board, arts and professional advisory teams; building the internal day-to-day workings of the nonprofit organization; hosting a 10-part summer pop-up film series in cooperation with local arts and community organizations; and this month, launching a pilot educational project with an UWS public school.

Logo Designer: Daymon Bruck