The Phoenix-based FilmBar, an indie theater located in the heart of the city, has cultivated a close community that has kept them afloat throughout the pandemic.
FilmBar opened in February of 2011 and has kept steady business because the theater has close ties to the community through interactive showings and partnerships with local businesses.
The owner of FilmBar, Kelly Aubey, says that at the time there weren’t a lot of interesting cultural spots to hang out at in Phoenix. In response to that, Aubey brought FilmBar to the Valley.
“I wanted to do something to help round things out in the city…kind of a national class attempt at a place that people really hang out at, and bring some good films to the city” Aubey said.
FilmBar’s programming consists of new independent and foreign films, as well as retro films and local films. Since FilmBar is a one-screen theater Aubey and his staff have been able to create meaningful relationships with their customers.
Those close relationships have manifested in the form of trust.
The biggest show of trust from FilmBar’s customers came during the pandemic when Aubey needed community support so that FilmBar could stay open.
Aubey says that about a month and a half before the COVID shutdown happened, FilmBar’s numbers started to drop. When the shutdown went into effect, Aubey described it as “catastrophic” for his business.
In response to the shutdown potentially shuttering business, Aubey came up with “unlimited-ish” memberships that people could buy.
The idea for the membership was that if FilmBar survived COVID, customers would be able to get a free movie ticket every day for life. The “ish” addition to the membership meant that Aubey could tweak what unlimited meant at a later time.
Aubey says that before the offering of these memberships, FilmBar would not have made it more than a month. While FilmBar needed the money to stay alive, Aubey says that FilmBar has never been about the money for him.
“I don’t think anybody or very few people would ever accuse us of coming off like we’re just in this for the money,” Aubey said. “We do this because we give a damn, and that resonates with enough people. We listen to what people are looking for, for films.”
For as long as FilmBar has been around, Aubey says that FilmBar has been living paycheck to paycheck.
“We have always just kind of gotten by,” Aubey said. “[We] never made a ton of money or anything like that as a business, it’s always been a bit of a tough haul.”
Currently, FilmBar is operating at the Pemberton Phx and Phoenix Art Museum, however, Aubey says that the partnerships weren’t established solely because of the pandemic.
“I did it because I think it’s a great idea independent of the pandemic,” Aubey said. FilmBar has been trying to find a way to work with Pemberton for years, says Aubey; but they could never find the right fit.
FilmBar has been at the Pemberton since January 22 of this year.
Aubey said since people don’t want to be indoors during the pandemic, the outdoor theater setup at the Pemberton made the partnership a “great solution.”
A little less than a month later, FilmBar also started showing films at the Phoenix Art Museum’s outdoor garden on February 12.
As for the Phoenix Art Museum, Aubey says that the films shown there are a “deep kind of classical art house,” and that that type of content “works really well with the art museum crowd,” Aubey said.
Just like The Pemberton, the collaboration with the Phoenix Art Museum is something Aubey has wanted to do for years.
As emphasized before, FilmBar is about the community.
Aubey said that FilmBar once had a panel discussion about Black alternative culture. The discussion was geared towards Black audiences who are into alternative culture, where they could learn from people who have been into it for a while and get more insight.
When it comes to these types of events, Aubey doesn’t want to monetize them.
“There’s certain things that I just think that should be holy, you don’t monetize these things,”Aubey said. “This isn’t about the money…this is about doing the right thing.”
The way that Aubey has run the business has resonated with customers like Michael Fett, who first started going to FilmBar in 2017, looking for a place that could show more independent films.
“If you go there more than a couple of times, they’re gonna know you by your name…it’s kind of an inviting atmosphere,” Fett said.
The atmosphere that has been built around FilmBar has created a community, says Fett.
The community nature of FilmBar has made the business feel more about the people than anything else.
“I can say there’s a very large community of friends that are built strictly just by going to FilmBar,” Fett said. “While Kelly Aubey owns the theater…it feels like it’s owned by the community.”
While FilmBar has managed to stay afloat through the pandemic so far, Aubey says the fight against the pandemic is not over yet.
“If we survive it, I think it has allowed us to become even more entrenched in the community,” Aubey said.
FilmBar will return to indoor screenings of films at their original location on Wednesday, April 21. For more information, go to filmbar.eventive.org.
Contact the reporter at ajdelc1@asu.edu.
