RED HOOK — The rising costs of organizing Red Hook's summer movie series may lead to dark screens.
Red Hook Flicks has been a part of the neighborhood for 10 years and is scheduled to begin July 12 with an eight-week slate of films that includes "Purple Rain," "Beverly Hills Cop" and "Pitch Perfect."
But the single biggest cost for the series are the projection fees, which have doubled from roughly $4,000 a year ago to about $8,000 this year, lead organizer Denise Oswald said.
The team of volunteers behind the series has already secured about $4,000 through local sponsors. To raise the remaining amount, they recently launched an online fundraiser for an additional $4,000 and have so far raised $1,900.
If Red Hook Flicks is unable to make the goal, organizers will likely have to cut the series short.
But putting together a film series requires more than just projection costs, Oswald said. It also includes permits from the city to use Valentino Park and Pier as the venue and licensing fees for screening the movies.
For the projector, screen and technical services, Red Hook Flicks has worked for several years with Rooftop Films, which organizes its own outdoor film screenings throughout the city.
For almost all those years, Rooftop has charged a heavily discounted price for its services, Oswald said.
But now that Red Hook Flicks has grown in size and popularity, "it's just not something they can afford to do anymore," she said.
"They really did us a huge service for the last few years."
In previous years, Red Hook Flicks paid roughly $2,000 for the projector and Rooftop's services.
Last year, that price went up to between $3,500 to $4,000, which included free services from a Rooftop employee who lived nearby and was able to donate his time and vehicle for transporting gear, according to Dan Nuxoll, program director for Rooftop Films.
But this year, Red Hook Flicks will have to pay for those technical services, bringing the price up to around $8,000, a discounted rate that includes projection, sound, screens, delivery and labor, Nuxoll said.
"We've always though they were a good community event and supported them," he said. "As they've grown, their needs have grown a bit."
Typically Rooftop charges between $1,500 and $2,000 for these services but through "Rooftop Community Funds," the company is able to charge substantially less for community events, Nuxoll said.
Reaching the fundraising goal will not only help Red Hook Flicks run for its full eight weeks, but it also allows organizers to keep the series local and affordable for Red Hook businesses and eateries that help sponsor the event.
"We like that we haven't had to go to a big corporate sponsor yet," Oswald said.
For a full schedule of movies, click here.
