Downer Theatre reopening, Milwaukee Film takes over operations

MILWAUKEE – The iconic, shuttered Downer Theatre on Milwaukee’s east side will reopen in April.

Milwaukee Film announced on Tuesday, March 5 that it will officially take over operations starting with the April 12 Milwaukee Film Festival. Regular theater operations will resume on April 26.

“The Downer Theatre, with its storied past and charm, has been a cornerstone of Milwaukee’s cinematic and cultural scene since its opening in 1915,” Susan Mikulay, chair of Milwaukee Film’s board of directors, said in a news release.

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“This is a story of what dedicated supporters can do,” Milwaukee Film’s interim CEO Anne Reed said. “By stepping forward to support Milwaukee Film, our community is saving another historic cinema, and all the moments of story and connection that can happen there again.”

Downer Theatre, which was the oldest operating movie theater in the city, shut its doors in September 2023. West Hollywood-based Landmark Theatres, which purchased Downer Theatre in the 1990s, said it closed the location as part of “evaluating its business strategy.” At the same time, Milwaukee Film hinted at a possible role in Downer Theatre’s future.

“Our being able to reopen the Downer this spring is a significant occasion for our organization as well as for the neighborhood,” Cara Ogburn, Milwaukee Film’s artistic director, said in the news release. 

The 2024 Milwaukee Film Festival runs April 11-25 and will include screenings at the Downer Theatre, Milwaukee Film’s Oriental Theatre and two other local theaters – the Avalon Theater on Kinnickinnic Avenue, and the Times Cinema on Vliet Street.

Following the festival, Milwaukee Film said the Downer Theatre will reopen to the public on April 26 and offer a year-round program of first-run independent, foreign and documentary films.

David Volkmar, a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee film student, had just moved to the neighborhood a month before the theater closed.

“I just kept putting it off. I was like, ‘I’ll go see a movie soon. I’ll go see a movie soon,’” Volkmar said. “And then, gone.”

Downer Theatre, Milwaukee (Wisconsin Historical Society)

He was quick to return Tuesday, just as news of Downer Theatre did too.

“I literally just saw the sign walking around the street, and I ran into one of the local places like, ‘Guys, did you see? They bought it!'”

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The Oriental Theatre is just five blocks away.

“We’re thinking of it, really, as sort of a cinema district,” Reed told FOX6 News. “We really felt we just couldn’t let it close if we could possibly help it. We just couldn’t let it happen.”

Downer Theatre, Milwaukee

Ogburn said more capacity brings more opportunity.

“We know Milwaukee’s cinema audiences, and we think we do as right by them as we possibly can, and two more screens will help us do even more,” Ogburn said.

She’s hoping those screens can provide more memories for families, film students and movie lovers.

“Maybe some day, I’ll be putting a film here,” Volkmar said. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”

For those continuing to look for ways to lend a hand, Milwaukee Film has additional information online.