institutional responsibility
An October 2023 lawsuit filed by a former employee of Louis Black — of the Austin Chronicle, SXSW, and the Cinefamily Board of Directors — accuses Black of sexual assault and and forced labor. These and other charges are nearly identical to those made against other Cinefamily Directors in 2017.
Read MoreWhat does Dan and Sammy Harkhams’ Cinefamily have in common with some of the most beloved brands of the 1980s? Ongoing allegations of workplace abuses, sexual improprieties, and board coverups — well into the 21st century.
Read MoreIn which we present a condensed history of Cinefamily and accountability and Cinefamily Accountability. Featuring Dan and Sammy Harkham and their Board of Directors, that one guy who traumatized everyone (and needed a bath), and Brain Dead Studios. Also we try to answer: so what are we doing here again?
Read MoreShortly before the October 2021 New People’s Cinema Club in New York, Cinefamily Accountability reported on connections between the “anti-woke” film festival and Cinefamily’s Hadrian Belove. New reporting details how the NPCC ended in tragedy.
Read MoreRonan Farrow’s new book comes out this week, and it seems to hit on some recurring themes.
From Rebecca Traister in The Cut:
Fancy new seating, fancy new lighting, and “a fall opening with much the same program as Cinefamily.” Now, about that Certificate of Occupancy…
Read MoreIn November 2017, months after closing their doors, Cinefamily was named as a defendant in yet another lawsuit. (Hadrian Belove was also named as a defendant.)
Read MoreThere may be something satisfying about tearing down abusers, but don’t confuse that for justice, Masha Gessen warns.
Read MoreMoviepass did the least it could when it went bust: it gave pro-rated refunds. Cinefamily and the Harkhams didn’t even do that.
Read MoreAfter yet another derailed attempt at straightforward communications with the Harkhams about Cinefamily, Fairfax Cinema, and the Silent Movie Theater, we release this letter, marking the one-year anniversary of the Board’s failure.
Read MoreFormer Cinefamily Board President Simon Oré breaks the board’s long silence and Shadie Elnashai teases a conversation. Dan Harkham and other board members keep on keeping their heads down.
Read MoreWe wrote a report about Cinefamily, the board of directors, the Harkhams, Fairfax Cinema, the Silent Movie Theater, and lots more. We sent it off to people in charge at the Attorney General, Secretary of State, Franchise Tax Board, IRS, and District Attorney. They let us know they got it.
Read MoreCinefamily’s attorney says the board has no money. We talk to insiders who suggest otherwise. What are the Harkhams saying about ongoing Cinefamily responsibilities in the context of a pivot to Fairfax?
Read MoreWe reached out to several indie distributors. Some had been approached by Fairfax Cinema, but none was prepared to do business with the Cinefamily rebrand, citing outstanding debts and “financial scammery.” Former Cinefamily members throw shade.
Read MoreCinefamily’s Erin Hensley confirms that Fairfax Cinema will be a for-profit business, that Dan Harkham is the sole owner, and that Fairfax plans to operate at the Silent Movie Theater showing the same mix of content as Cinefamily. But here’s why they don’t want you to call it a rebranding.
Read MoreIn which we contemplate what it means that Dan Harkham, owner of the Silent Movie Theater and controller of Cinefamily, filed papers back in October 2017 for something called Fairfax Cinema.
Read More![(Another) Cinefamily Board Member Accused of Sexual Assault [2023]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5d859da3ebd96315b08954f5/1699988711942-SW9VYIV2GWA2E79O2RNA/louis+black.jpg)
