| Facets Multi-Media, Inc. | |
| Type: | Private 501(c)(3) organization |
| Foundation: | 1975 |
| Founder: | Milos Stehlik |
| Location: | 1517 West Fullerton Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.[1] |
| Key People: | Karen Cardarelli (Director)[2] Charles Coleman (Programmer)[3] |
| Industry: | Media education Independent movie theater Video rental Motion-picture video distribution |
| Divisions: | Facets Cinematheque, Facets Film School, Facets Children's Programs, Chicago International Children's Film Festival, Facets Videotheque, Facets DVD Label |
| Homepage: | facets.org |
Facets Multi-Media founded in 1975, is a non-profit, 501(C)3 organization, and a media arts organization.[4] Its mission is to preserve, present, distribute, and educate about film.[5] Besides its facilities at 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago, Illinois, Facets Multi-Media also runs Facets Video, one of the largest distributors of foreign film in the United States.[6] Facets has been described as a “temple of great cinema”[7] by film critic Roger Ebert and "a giant in the rarefied world of art-house films and cultural education."[4]
Facets maintains facilities in Chicago, where it was founded by Milos Stehlik as a non-profit film organization. The brick-and-mortar space includes a single-screen movie theater (referred to as Facets Cinémathèque), which screens "interesting" independent films[8] and "obscure" features.[9] It also houses a video rental store that offers home delivery with over 65,000 titles,[4] described as "a stunningly deep archive of every kind of experimental, avant-garde, foreign and children's film you could hope to find."[10] There is also a non-accredited film school, consisting of classes for the general public.[8]
Facets runs the annual Chicago International Children's Film Festival, a Kids Film Camp for ages 7–14,[11] Facets Film School for Chicago-area cinephiles, Facets Night School for cult film connoisseurs, and a Summer Film Institute for K-12 teachers.[12]
Facets is a nationally recognized conservator, publisher and distributor of films on DVD, including independent, art-house, classics, documentaries, and experimental films.[13] Facets has distributed films by directors such as Bela Tarr, Jean-Luc Godard, Miloš Forman, Věra Chytilová, Amos Gitai, Alexander Kluge, Andrzej Zulawski, and Miklós Jancsó. Since the late 1980s, Facets has released over 800 films on VHS and DVD.[6]