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Film at Lincoln Center Inc

EIN 23-7042553 · New York, NY

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthWeak45 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER, INC. WAS FORMED TO DEVELOP, STIMULATE AND SUPPORT THE ART OF FILM AND RELATED MEDIA BY THE PRESENTATION OF FILM FESTIVALS AND YEAR-ROUND FILM PROGRAMMING AT LINCOLN CENTER OR ELSEWHERE; THE SHOWING OF SELECTED PROGRAMS OF FILM; THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE STUDY OF FILM THROUGH STUDENT SCREENINGS WITH FILM GUIDES AND FILMMAKERS CONDUCTING Q&A'S; AND PARTICIPATING IN ANY AND ALL MATTERS IN CONJUNCTION WITH OR INDEPENDENT OF OTHERS IN SPONSORING, PROMOTING, APPRECIATING, SHOWCASING, SCREENING, AND IMPROVING THE FILM MEDIA.

Income
$15.2 million
Spending
$18.7 million
Spent on programs
85%
Reserves
-0.6 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 60%
Employees
123
Volunteers
263
Highest pay
$493,683, president

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Weak: 45 out of 100. Higher than 12% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $10m to $100m).

  • Reserves

    0 of 35

    Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 10% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    0 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 23% of income.

  • Income trend

    10 of 15

    Income fell 3% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    85% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 7 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 34% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $10m to $100m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    33 of 33 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (4)
  1. $8.5 million spent. THEATER GENERAL PROGRAMMING AND FESTIVALSFLC'S STATE-OF-THE-ART WALTER READE THEATER AND THE ELINOR BUNIN MUNROE FILM CENTER, LOCATED AT LINCOLN CENTER, PROVIDE A HOME FOR YEAR-ROUND PROGRAMS AND THE NEW YORK CITY FILM COMMUNITY. FOUNDED IN 1969 TO CELEBRATE AMERICAN AND INTERNATIONAL CINEMA, FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER WORKS TO RECOGNIZE ESTABLISHED AND EMERGING FILMMAKERS, SUPPORT IMPORTANT NEW WORK, AND TO ENHANCE THE AWARENESS, ACCESSIBILITY, AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOVING IMAGE. FLC PRODUCES THE RENOWNED NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL, A CURATED SELECTION OF THE YEAR'S MOST SIGNIFICANT FILM WORK, AND PRESENTS OR COLLABORATES ON OTHER ANNUAL NEW YORK CITY FESTIVALS AND CURATED FILM SERIES. IN ADDITION TO PUBLISHING THE AWARD-WINNING FILM COMMENT MAGAZINE, FLC RECOGNIZES AN ARTIST'S UNIQUE ACHIEVEMENT IN FILM WITH THE PRESTIGIOUS CHAPLIN AWARD.
  2. $4.8 million spent. NEW YORK FILM FESTIVALTHE NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL (NYFF) HAS BEEN A MAJOR FILM FESTIVAL SINCE IT BEGAN IN 1963, HIGHLIGHTING THE BEST IN WORLD CINEMA, AND FEATURING TOP FILMS FROM CELEBRATED FILMMAKERS AS WELL AS FRESH NEW TALENT. THE NON-COMPETITIVE FESTIVAL WAS ESTABLISHED BY AMOS VOGEL AND RICHARD ROUD. THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL IS MATTHEW BOLISH, WHILE THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND CHAIRMAN OF THE SELECTION COMMITTEE IS DENNIS LIM. THE SELECTION COMMITTEE ALSO INCLUDES OTHER INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS. THE FESTIVAL IS ALSO KNOWN FOR ITS SEVERAL SIDEBARS, PROGRAMS RUNNING CONCURRENTLY WITH THE MAIN FESTIVAL, INCLUDING REVIVALS, RETROSPECTIVES, SPOTLIGHT AND CURRENTS.
  3. $1.8 million spent. MEMBERSHIPSTHE FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM IS FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO CONTRIBUTED BETWEEN $75 - $25,000. MEMBERS SUPPORT FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER'S ONGOING WORK TO ENHANCE AWARENESS, ACCESSIBILITY AND UNDERSTANDING THE ART OF CINEMA. MEMBERSHIPS ARE VALID FOR ONE YEAR. THERE WERE ROUGHLY 5,000 ACTIVE MEMBERS IN 2024. MEMBERS RECEIVE REGULAR NEWSLETTERS INFORMING THEM OF THE PROGRAMMING AND OPPORTUNITIES TO ENGAGE WITH FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER.
  4. $768,926 spent. FILM COMMENT

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since November 1969.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.