NEWS

March 26, 2025 - Experimental filmmaker Amanda Besl has confirmed her participation on the Women in Fillm panel at Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th!

March 25, 2025 - The schedule for Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th has been posted on the CAE page of this website! We're still awaiting confirmation from a couple of potential panelists and will update very soon!

March 24, 2025 - On Saturday, April 5th, following Opening Remarks at 11:00 am, the first panel discussion at Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College will be "Buffalo Niagara Film Production" featuring Buffalo-Niagara Film Commissioner Tim Clark, Buffalo Film Office Director of Operations Rich Wall, and Cindy Abbott Letro, who sits on the film commission's board of directors and really got the film commission as we now know it underway. Tim, Rich and Cindy will not only discuss how the film commission works, but will update attendees on new developments, including many film projects coming to Buffalo. The Buffalo-Niagara film region is about to become a major production city in New York State!

March 20, 2025 - Thank you to Buffalo Rising for publishing details about the inaugural Cinema Arts Expo, including the names of many of our panelists and speakers (more to come)!

March 19, 2025 - We've just confirmed and are excited to announce that Cinema Arts Expo will now be held at the large auditorium at Villa Maria College instead of the smaller Recital Hall as previously announced! The auditorium seats 1,100 people. Cinema Arts Expo will be held Saturday, April 5th from 10:30am - 5:30 pm. Programming details will be announced very soon!

March 18, 2025 - We're excited to announce Mindflip as a sponsor of Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th, 10:30am - 5:30pm! Mindflip  is an independent feature film wrtten, produced and directed by Ken Rowe in Niagara Falls, starring the legendary LynnLowry, Chad Ridgely, Bob Bozek, Isabel Deschamps, Veronica Rozler, and Alyssa Grace Adams. Learn about the release plans for this horror/sci-fi hybrid at the expo!

March 17, 2025 - We're excited to announce Rowe Visuals as a sponsor of Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College  on Saturday, April 5th, 10:30 am - 5:30pm!  Rowe Visuals is a production company offering full services in cinematography, photography, lighting, audio and post production. Principle owner Ken Rowe is an award-winning independent Filmmaker, Cinematographer, and Photographer. His work has been ehibited internationally and telecast on PBS, TLC and Cinemax. Festival screenings include the Ann Arbor Film Festival, the European Media Art Festival, and the National Video Festival at American Film Institute. 

March 17, 2025 - We are excited to announce the sponsorship of Buffalo Film Academy (formerly Buffalo Movie Video Makers, one of the oldest film clubs in the nation) at Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th, 10:30 am - 5:30 pm!  Buffalo Film Academy supports the growth of independent film in the WNY region trough education, connection and experience. Members meet monthly at the Screening Room Cinema & Arts Cafe in Amherst, New York, and also attend workshops.

March 13, 2025 - We are excited to announce that John Scardino, the Business Representative for The Western New York Region of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Union  Studio Mechanics (IATSE Local 52) will be joining Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College Saturday, April 5th for a discussion about the advantages of membership in the union, a topic of great importance for people looking to join the Western New York film community!

March 12, 2025 - We are excited to announce the sponsorship and participation of eGlobal Publishing at Cinema Arts Expo! This company has been producing Vertical Features and is basing her operation here now, bringing jobs to cast, crew and creators for years to come. They looks forward to meeting members of the Buffalo-Niagara film community!

March 11, 2025 - We are proud to announce that Casting Buffalo has joined us as a sponsor of Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th!

March 10, 2025 - We are proud t announce that Buffalo Camera + Expressway Cinema Rentals has joined us as a sponsor of Cinema Arts Expo on Saturday, April 5th!

March 9, 2025 - We are proud to announce the first sponsors for Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th: Digital Arts Cinema, LLC; Macrocosm Productions, LLC; Armand John Petri, Film Composer; and Valkyrie International Film Festival. Thank you for supporting out community!

March 5th,2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CINEMA ARTS COLLABORATIVE PRESENTS CINEMA ARTS EXPO AT VILLA MARIA COLLEGE

CONTACT: CinemaArtsCollaborative@gmail.com

Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc., a new Nonprofit, aims to educate and grow

Western New York’s film community with Cinema Arts Expo at Villa Maria College

Buffalo, New York – Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc., a new 501 (c)(3) charitable organization formed to help promote, educate, develop, and grow the Buffalo-Niagara film community, will hold its first event, Cinema Arts Expo, at Villa Maria College on Saturday, April 5th, from 10:30 am – 5:30 pm. The all-day event will feature guest speakers and panel discussions about film production in WNY and beyond.

CAC Executive Director Gregory Lamberson, who is a member of the Producers Guild of America, created Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc. to “pay it forward” to his community. Lamberson has been an independent filmmaker for 40 years and previously hosted Buffalo Film Expo in 2013 and 2014. 

“Cinema Arts Collaborative will program periodic, low-cost, educational events to benefit the community,” Lamberson says. “Our focus is Cinema Arts Expo, an annual event created to bring together members of the film community for productive discussions and to provide people who wish to join it with an opportunity to do so. We’re excited to hold this expo at Villa Maria College, which shares similar goals, and hope to expand to two days next year.”

“We look forward to welcoming the Cinema Arts Collaborative to campus for the first Cinema Arts Expo,” said Dr. Matthew Giordano, president of Villa Maria College. “By providing an opportunity for collaboration, education, and networking, the event will strengthen the local film community while providing our students with another opportunity to learn from experienced professionals. Hosting events like the Cinema Arts Expo support our ongoing efforts to create structured pathways to sustainable careers for our students and the greater Western New York film industry.”

According to Buffalo-Niagara Film Commissioner Tim Clark, “This is a great opportunity for local residents, including students who are graduating this spring, to network with film professionals and learn about the Buffalo-Niagara film community.”

The Founding Directors of Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc. are Sabrina Pena Young, President; Terry Kimmel, Vice President and Secretary; and Armand John Petri, Treasurer. Young is an accomplished filmmaker, composer, animator, and instructor; Kimmel served as the president of Buffalo Movie and Video Makers for four years; and Petri is a film composer who teaches Music Business at SUNY Fredonia. Local filmmaker and author Kristen Skeet is Lamberson’s designated successor.

Cinema Arts Expo will be held in the Recital Hall of Villa Maria College, located at 240 Pine Ridge Road, Buffalo, New York, 14225. Admission is $20 for the day and $15 for students with ID and seniors ages 65 and over; Villa Maria students pay $5.  All admissions must be paid in cash at the door.

Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc. is seeking sponsors for Cinema Arts Expo and future events, and donors for tax deductible donations. Visit www.cinemaartscollaboration.com for more information.

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March 1, 2025 - We are proud to announce the formation of Cinema Arts Collaborative, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) Nonprofit charitable donation, and to announce our first event, Cinema Arts Expo, which will be held at Villa Maria College, 240 Pine Ridge Road in Buffalo, New York, 14225, on Saturday, April 5th, 2025. Please check this space for future events and screenings, we already have something in the works for Friday, May 16th.