Los Angeles, California: Outdoor Movies Help to Transform an Inner City Neighborhood in Los Angeles

“Three years ago, people were afraid to go into the park,” says Donald Haber, executive director of BAFTA/LA. Through “BAFTA/LA's Inner City Cinema” -- run with CURE (Common Unity Reaching Everyone), the L.A. County Dept. of Parks and Recreation, and Hollywood Outdoor Movies -- Helen Keller Park in South Los Angeles has been transformed into a community gathering place. A screening of The Longshots drew 500 people, ages 8 to 60.

The programme sparked a growing partnership with L.A. Parks, with plans for an outdoor amphitheatre connected to an indoor screening room, BAFTA/LA involved in the design and infrastructure. The county has since refurbished the park -- restoring the pool, trimming trees, renovating sports fields. “The screenings programme can't be measured in dollars and cents,” says recreation supervisor Michael Ealey. “It's been a transformation.”