original reporting

Is Cinefamily’s Hadrian Belove the Man Behind the Curtain?

Is Cinefamily’s Hadrian Belove the Man Behind the Curtain?

Former Cinefamily Executive Director Hadrian Belove is linked to the upcoming New York film festival New People’s Cinema Club, and to a newly-formed California nonprofit called Children's Cinema Resource. But why does it seem like everyone’s trying to hide these connections?

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Harkhams Fade into Background as Operations Resume

Harkhams Fade into Background as Operations Resume

After months of pandemic-related shutdown, cinema-going in Los Angeles is ramping back up, and films are once more being shown commercially at the Silent Movie Theater. And once more, operations resume with another change in branding: the space is now called “Brain Dead Studios,” following its brief run as Fairfax Cinema and, before that, Cinefamily.

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“Uncut Gems” [Was] to Open Cinefamily / Fairfax on Christmas 2019 [Updated]

“Uncut Gems” [Was] to Open Cinefamily / Fairfax on Christmas 2019 [Updated]

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fairfax Cinema—the rebranded Cinefamily entity—will open next week with a 35mm run of “Uncut Gems,” the new Safdie Brothers movie starring Adam Sandler. Yet inaccuracies in THR reporting left readers scratching their heads, and roiling anger over the Cinefamily scandal spilled into social media and may have caused the filmmakers to rethink their plans.

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Cinefamily / Fairfax Hires Lobbyist to Woo City, Community

Cinefamily / Fairfax Hires Lobbyist to Woo City, Community

Cinefamily / Fairfax’s Dan Harkham has brought a veteran lobbyist onto the team. Apex LA’s Margaret Taylor is expected to help the Harkhams secure a conditional use permit to allow beer and wine sales at the rebranded Fairfax Cinema at the Silent Movie Theater.

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Harkhams Make (Yet Another) Half-Assed Effort to Run Away from Cinefamily

Harkhams Make (Yet Another) Half-Assed Effort to Run Away from Cinefamily

Cinefamily ceased operations in August 2017 and Dan Harkham launched Fairfax Cinema shortly thereafter. But Cinefamily continues to exist as a legal entity. Newly-discovered state filings suggest Cinefamily finally closed. Except here’s why it didn’t.

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Fairfax Attempts Opening, Cinefamily Gets More Tax Woes

Fairfax Attempts Opening, Cinefamily Gets More Tax Woes

In late 2018 the Harkhams applied for a Certificate of Occupancy from the L.A. Department of Building and Safety for the Silent Movie Theater’s Fairfax Cinema (Cinefamily). As of this writing in early February 2019, the application is still pending. New documents indicate that plans for the venue may have changed yet again, possibly related to an alcohol licensing challenge with the state ABC.

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