Rooftop Films is a non-profit film organization based in Gowanus, Brooklyn. They are best known for their Rooftop Films Summer Series, a screening series/film festival that runs from June through September every year and consists of as many as 47 outdoor screenings of new, independent short and feature-length films. The screenings all take place on rooftops or in other scenic outdoor locations throughout New York City, including the roof of the Old American Can Factory in Gowanus, Open Road Rooftop in the Lower East Side, the lawn at Automotive High School in Williamsburg, the roof of El Museo del Barrio, the roof of Brooklyn Technical High School in Fort Greene, and more. Past venues have included Governors Island, the roof of Westbeth Artists Community, Fort Greene Park, 210 Cook Street in Bushwick, Solar One on East 23rd Street, a roof within the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Soutpoint Park on Roosevelt Island, and many other spots across the city.
Founded by Mark Elijah Rosenberg in 1997, the festival included one night of short film screenings in each of its first two years. Rooftop moved in 1998 to the roof of Peter's Car Corp. a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) artists' loft and occasional event space located at 265 McKibbin Street. An all-volunteer staff that included Rosenberg, Joshua Breitbart and Moira Griffin helped Rooftop expand from one screening a summer to more than 12 a summer by 2002. In 2003, Rosenberg became Rooftop's first full-time employee as Artistic Director, while former volunteers Dan Nuxoll and Sarah Palmer became part time employees as the Program Director and Festival Director, respectively. That year, Rooftop moved its offices and event space a few blocks down the street to Office Ops. The screening series went well but their relationship with Office Ops ended badly at the end of the summer.
What could have been a damaging setback turned out to be a blessing, as in winter 2004 Rooftop moved their offices to The Old American Can Factory in Gowanus Brooklyn. A gorgeous 19th century industrial complex with a huge roof and a peaceful view of Park Slope to the North, The Old American Factory has provided Rooftop with a permanent home base for their screenings and operations. By 2006 Rooftop Rooftop was presenting more than 45 shows a summer all over New York City, including world premieres of feature films and many of the best new short films being produced anywhere in the world.
== In 2007, the staff expanded to include Managing Director Genevieve DeLaurier, and now also includes Chris O'Brien (Technical Manager), Danielle Kourtesis (Music and Outreach Manager), Daisy Rosario (Show Manager), and Chantel Hirter (Festival Coordinator). The Board of Directors includes: Jim Browne, Bruce Levingston, Catherine Martinez, Casimir Nozkowski (Secretary), Sarah Palmer (Treasurer), and Mark Elijah Rosenberg (Chair). The Board Advisors include: Joshua Breitbart and Philip Rosenberg. The Panorama Advisors include: J. Tad Barnes, Amy Dotson, Lucila Moctezuma, Josh Penn, Molly Thompson, and Nicole Tschampel.
Rooftop screenings are more community events than standard festival screenings. Though Rooftop exclusively screens new independent films that have not yet gotten theatrical releases and which rarely feature stars or big name directors, the events are very well attended, with more than 20,000 people attending Rooftop shows each summer. Live music precedes every film screening, with many established and up and coming performers appearing each year. Some standouts include TV on the Radio, The Bravery, The Mountain Goats, Drew & the Medicinal Pen, members of Fugazi and Califone, Frances, Vic Thrill, Dirty on Purpose, O'Death, and many others. Admission for almost all screenings is $9 or less and screenings are often followed by open bar after parties.
Though Rooftop does not present very many screenings outside of its Summer Series, it is operational year-round and has spearheaded a variety of other endeavors, including a Rooftop Filmmaker Fund that gives thousands of dollars of cash and further thousands in services to filmmakers whose work have shown as part of the Summer Series. They also organize filmmaker workshops for high school students, stream many of their best shorts online, produce a TV show for the Manhattan Neighborhood Network, publish reviews and movie news on their blog, and rent audio and video equipment.