Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC)

Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC) is a nonprofit five-screen cinema and education center located in Pleasantville, NY. One of the most successful suburban art houses in the country, we celebrate film as a vehicle for entertainment, education, and inspiration.

With our films, events, community screenings, visiting artists, and special guests, we strive to further our nonprofit mission, spark dialogue and encourage an acceptance of a diversity of perspectives among our theatergoers and the community—something we started when we opened our doors in 2001.

Each year, over 200,000 people come through our doors to see more than 400 films from current releases to foreign cinema, documentaries to curated series. Our audiences experience over 100 special events every year featuring in-depth conversations with filmmakers, actors, authors, and activists to live music performances and custom-crafted receptions with local chefs. Check out our highlights of special guests we have welcomed over the years.

Across the street, our Media Arts Lab is the home of our education programs. At the core of our mission is the belief that viewing and creating media is an essential component to 21st century literacy. Our space is truly a laboratory, where we develop, implement, and refine visual media curricula that craft students and teachers into inspired creators, critical thinkers, and effective communicators.

Fulfilling a need in the Hudson Valley Region, we developed our artist service programs as a resource for emerging makers, offering fellowships, mentorship, and skill-sharing opportunities. We also welcome established filmmakers from across the country and around the world to live, work, and teach on the JBFC campus.

Back in 1998, Pleasantville resident Steve Apkon had a vision of a cultural arts and education center inspired by the power of film. Steve and Lisa Apkon purchased the village’s old Rome Theater and, along with Sabrina Coughlin, brought together a group of community members to help bring their dream to life. The 1925 Rome Theater, a beautiful Spanish mission–style historic landmark, was one of the first movie theaters in the area. “The Show Place of Westchester County,” according to the New York Times, it was a working cinema until 1987, when competition with nearby multiplexes forced it to close its doors. Steve, Lisa, and Sabrina formed a nonprofit organization (originally known as The Friends of the Rome Theater), purchased the lot adjacent to the Rome, and launched a $5 million capital campaign to build the JBFC. Brian Ackerman, an expert on art house cinema, joined the JBFC team in 1998 as an advisor in planning and developing the theaters. From 2001 until 2022, he served as Founding Programming Director. Early on, the campaign received a $1.5 million grant from the Jacob Burns Foundation. The Jacob Burns Film Center received its name in honor of this leadership gift.

The JBFC Theater, with three screens, opened its doors to the public in June 2001. Since then, more than two million people have seen over 5,400 films from around the globe. From the beginning, our pioneering education programs were grounded in 21st-century literacy skills, essential for a generation growing up in a world in which fluency with media and technology is increasingly crucial.

The demand for these programs led to the $20 million Campaign for 21st Century Education to build the Media Arts Lab and further curriculum development. Launched in November 2006, the campaign was successfully completed in December 2008. The Media Arts Lab opened in Jan. 2009.

Another educational initiative, the Fellowship for International Understanding Through Film, was launched with a $1 million planning grant from the late Kathryn W. Davis, a well-known philanthropist, and JBFC supporter. The fellowship program uses film, visual media, and the Internet to create a global community through cross-cultural understanding. The grant was also used to purchase a home at 5 Grant St. in Pleasantville for filmmakers from the international community. The Residence for International Filmmakers, adjacent to the Media Arts Lab, is the third building on the JBFC campus.

In March 2015, in direct response to appeals from our community, the Jacob Burns Film Center began the next step in its evolution by opening two new theaters on the third floor of the Theater complex. The Adam R. Rose and Peter R. McQuillan Theater is the most intimate of our five venues. Along with an updated gallery space, this new construction reflects the success of Phase One of the Building on Success, Fulfilling a Promise to Our Community campaign.

From a group of individuals with a dream, the Jacob Burns Film Center has developed into a 47,500 sq. foot, three-building campus located in the heart of Pleasantville, NY.