Ninth Street Media Consortium

Ninth Street Media Consortium (NSMC) was incorporated in 2001 as a partnership between four media arts organizations : Film Arts Foundation (FAF), Frameline, National Asian American Telecommunications Association (now the Center for Asian American Media), and the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival (all Hewlett Foundation grantees). As a consortium the four organizations partnered with a private developer to purchase and renovate a 21,000 square foot, three-story facility in San Francisco’s SOMA District. The Ninth St. Media Center was opened in 2002 and, with the benefit of a Hewlett Foundation capital campaign challenge grant, bought out their private partner two years ahead of schedule. Today the four partners own 100% equity in their building, achieve efficiencies by sharing technology, staff and building maintenance costs and rent additional space to three other film-organizations. Funds for this project will be used to support a comprehensive planning process, and short term occupancy costs as the consortium members respond to FAF’s financial crisis and likely dissolution in 2008. The planning process will engage consultants with expertise in non profit finance, strategic planning, organizational communication, commercial space planning and an accountant. The focus of the process will be to determine the best way for the remaining consortium partners to : 1) Stabilize the partnership’s financial obligations in light of one of the 4 equity partners folding and an outstanding $2.75 million debt to Wells Fargo on the 9th street facility. 2) Determine the consortium’s future and scenarios for either taking on a new partner or buying out FAF’s 25% equity share directly. Bolstering this critical decision by with realistic short and long term business models. 3) Preserve and honor FAF’s legacy including the potential adoption/acquisition of FAF programs and assets.