Creativity Has a New Home Coming in 2024
FilmNorth marks its 35th anniversary by announcing its most ambitious project to date: the acquisition of the historic Clarence Johnston designed building at 2441 University Avenue West in St. Paul’s Creative Enterprise Zone to create the 2441 Arts Building. The 24,000 square foot building will be co-owned by FilmNorth and D/O Architects and be anchored by a new, state-of-the-art, 10,000 square foot media arts center, providing classrooms, meeting spaces, editing rooms, and indoor and outdoor cinemas—all in a building that is responsibly developed with its carbon footprint front-of-mind.
FilmNorth’s new home recognizes and supports the extraordinary talent that resides in the North. Our artists include Oscar, Emmy, Clio and Independent Spirit nominees and winners; Guggenheim, Bush, McKnight, and Nicholl Fellows; and artists who have had their extraordinary work featured at the world’s most prestigious film festivals: from Sundance, Tribeca, New York, SXSW, and Telluride to Berlin, Toronto, Venice, and Busan. You’ll find their work on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, PBS, the History Channel, HGTV and more.
These artists and more—including those at leading companies and advertising agencies based in Minnesota like Target, Best Buy, General Mills, and the Mayo Clinic—create jobs and inject millions of dollars into Minnesota’s economy each year. And we’re especially proud of their powerful work that champions social justice causes and strives to create a more equitable and inclusive world for us all.
From our first contact with young artists in our Studio Thirteen after school program, FilmNorth tells everyone who walks through our doors that their stories matter. The 2441 Arts Building will be a special and unique center for creativity—an educational and laboratory space for storytellers based in the North that will create opportunity, increase access and remove barriers to film production, and propel the region into a new and exciting future where the sky is the limit for our artists and creative community.
Please consider donating to our capital campaign and celebrate with us as we welcome the community to our new home 2024.
Press Release (PDF - 139 KB)