Help AFS Build a Third Theater

Donate Today | Giving Levels and Perks | About The Third Theater

AFS Cinema brings people together to enjoy films, share stories, and discover new perspectives. More than 84,000 moviegoers visit each year to experience art from around the world and around the corner, rediscover classics, and hear filmmakers discuss their craft.

A hub for Austin’s creative community, AFS Cinema is growing and needs your support to build a third theater. This expansion will allow us to increase screenings and showtimes while creating even more opportunities for audiences, filmmakers, and film lovers to connect.

Help Grow Austin’s Film Community

The Austin Film Society is raising $250,000 to expand AFS Cinema. Your support helps build more than a theater; it helps build the future of film culture in Austin. AFS’ mission is to empower the community to make, watch, and love film. Through AFS Cinema, Austin Public, and Austin Studios, we are:

• Changing lives through the power of cinema
• Building community around great film
• Bringing rarely-seen cinema to Austin
• Supporting rising Texas filmmakers
• Fostering a world-renowned film culture in Austin

Why a Third Theater?

AFS Cinema is much more than a movie theater. It’s a home for Austin’s creative community. As audiences grow and demand for independent, international, and repertory cinema continues to expand, we have an opportunity to build something extraordinary together.

By helping AFS Cinema build a third theater, you’re investing in more than an additional screen. You’re helping expand access to bold, rarely seen films, creating more opportunities for Texas filmmakers, and ensuring Austin remains one of the world’s great film cities.

The New Theater Will Provide

• More screenings
• Better showtimes
• Upgraded seating
• State-of-the-art projection and sound
• A more welcoming experience for film lovers of all kinds

More importantly, it will strengthen a vital cultural hub where artists, audiences, and ideas come together.

We are currently fundraising lead donations of $1,000 and up for this campaign, stay tuned for a wider crowdfunding launch mid-July. All donors at the $1,000 and higher levels will receive campaign-specific perks, including t-shirts, collectibles, and more. Read below for more information about giving levels and perks.

*The AFS Impact Circle is our year-round giving program that offers exclusive invitations to special events, along with many other benefits. If you are already a member, consider an additional gift during this exciting time of expansion at the AFS Cinema. Your current member benefits will be extended for a year from your gift, or spread the joy of cinema and give a membership to a film lover in your life.

We also accept payment via check, DAF, appreciated securities, bank transfer, etc. Checks can be mailed to: AFS Development, 1901 E 51st Street, Austin TX 78723. Please reach out for any of these other options.

Corporate underwriting opportunities are available. Click HERE to learn how to get involved with the AFS Cinema Third Theater campaign and gain visibility and other perks for your business, all while elevating the quality of life in your community.

Questions? Contact development@austinfilm.org or (512) 322-0145 ext. 1