Founded in 1979 by two University of South Carolina students, the Nickelodeon Theatre is the only nonprofit art house theater in South Carolina. Commonly referred to as “the Nick,” the theater screens diverse and independent films that aim to invoke discussion and appreciation for cinema and other artistic mediums.
Pauline Arroyo, the marketing assistant at the Nickelodeon, said the theater is introducing two new film series in the upcoming semester. The first, "Sound & Vision," is a partnership with DRIP (records). The program pairs musical documentaries with live performances from local bands before each screening. The series will commence on Jan. 28 with a performance from Debbie and the Skanks and The Rolling Stones documentary “Gimme Shelter.”
The second new series that the Nick will be hosting is "Black Stories." Each week of February, the theater will show documentaries and feature films that showcase influential stories of black history and culture. Different community leaders will attend each screening and participate in a question-and-answer discussion session. A collaboration with SC Humanities has made all of these films free to the public.
The theater will also be continuing "Foreign Focus," an international film series, and "First Friday Lowbrow Cinema Explosion," a tribute to old-school horror films.
Another continuing event is the Indie Grits festival. Indie Grits is scheduled for April 20-23. Founded in 2007, the annual festival showcases local art, film, music and technology.
Arroyo said that this year, Indie Grits has a different theme from previous festivals.
“Every year our intention with Indie Grits is to keep raising the bar for ourselves — for creators and for our audiences," Arroyo said. "Already this year we’ve had a record breaking number of film submissions and artist proposals.”
“For the first time, Indie Grits has opened up submissions beyond the southeast to include all of Latin America in coordination with this year’s Visiones theme," Arroyo said. "Visiones is an exploration of Latinx community, identity, dreams, and it’s relationship to the southeast. This means a portion of our content will work to illuminate that subject the same way Indie Grits has always tried to amplify small voices. Expect plenty of films, art, music, and food."
Although no musical artists or feature films have been confirmed to perform at the festival, announcements about the lineup should be released in the next few months.
“At the Nick, you can experience things you might not find at any other place in Columbia, and definitely not at another movie theatre in state," Arroyo said. "You can experience events featuring anything from live music, to media installations, to seeing a movie on 16mm analog film to catching the latest Oscar contender,” Arroyo said.
Visit the Nickelodeon website for information about ticketing and further information about new series and events.