The Maysles Cinema, a new non-profit theater in Harlem, is dedicated to the exhibition of documentary film and video. The cinema extends the Maysles Brothers’ principle that the lives of ordinary people not only deserve, but demand, our attention. We aim to foster a democratic viewing experience by selecting and presenting movies in collaboration with independent filmmakers, programmers, critics, local film clubs and organizations.

We work hard to solicit material and programs from amateur video-graphers, “hood” documentarians, street vendors, video store-owners, neighbors and citizen-activists. In addition to presenting the masterworks of the documentary tradition, overlooked or under-distributed gems and new releases, we build a space for meaningful social exchange. We offer a forum for the discussion of questions of social, racial, and economic justice and explore liminal areas of knowledge.