According to New York State law, in a membership nonprofit, the
board has the right to add or remove board members at will, unless
there is anything in the bylaws or the corporate charter that
states otherwise. Even in that case, if there is a justifiable
reason, like proven embezzlement, or something like that, the
board probably could get rid of the offending board member. There
is nothing wrong in the appointment of board members, with members
approval or not.
According to MFW bylaws, the president can call for an election at
any time for a special purpose at their discretion. Stephanie
Wuertz could have made that decision at time. I am not
criticizing her because of Millennium's extenuating
circumstances. I also don't think that it is fair nor appropriate
to bag on George, Lili, or the rest of the current board either.
There has been a lot of stuff going on, but as far as I know, the
board is working on getting the bylaws together, etc., so that
when the time comes, the meeting will be able to go on smoothly.
I have trust in the current board, and would prefer that they can
have the space to do their job. If one has concerns, it is much
better that they contact board members personally, rather than
through public forums.
David Baker's criticisms about the movement to reform MFW was
predicated on "negating howard" and that there was no interest in
the archive and completely false and oversimplified. MFW had been
in decline for many years. The problems were not personal but
structural. The NYSCA grant went from $30,000 to $12,000, to
$8,000. There were considerable debts to the landlord, who were
about to pull the plug. NEA stopped funding MFW.
When I spoke to the funders, they both said that MFW was suffering
from severe and obvious "founder's syndrome," where one individual
dominates the organization, and can not distinguish between their
own affairs and the affairs of the organization. MFW was in
danger of imminent collapse. If nobody had stepped in the
following would have happened: the landlord would have pulled the
plug, the archive would have been hastily sold, the landlord would
get that money, the equipment would have gathered by vultures,
etc. It was in the best interest of all parties that something was
done.
Regarding the finances, all of that information should be
available. As for myself, the "undocumented income", that Sasha
describes totals $22K, which includes 3K of debts from my works as
a monitor, or 19K, basically 10K a year. I can document that I
worked an average of 15, 16 hour days for months on end, including
thirty six hours clearing stuff from the theater and putting it in
a dumpster. I worked my ass off well past the point of exhaustion
and payed and significant personal price for it. If anyone has a
problem with that, tough shit. I have no complaints about it, nor
any animosity towards anyone, but I am not going to take shit for
it either.
I have been away from MFW for two years and have moved on. As
tough as it was, it was a great experience for me. I was thankful
to have the opportunity. I also am supportive of the current
board. I think that people should not think about how MFW was or
how MFW should be, but how MFW is, what MFW can do and what they
themselves can do to contribute. If people want to be stuck on
negative shit from the past, that is their problem, not mine. If
people don't like the "now" MFW, they don't have to participate.
On Wed, Sep 30, 2015 at 1:41 PM, Francisco Torres <[email protected]
> wrote:
I would like to bring something up may seem harsh to most people
on this discussion- Why not close the place for good already?
After all these years it seems like the only sensible thing to do.
As of ''As if it was our last day'' it seems that day is long past
for the MFW. Maybe it was the day they closed shop at 4th street.
Only the journal will remain as testimony of its greatness. And
our memories.
2015-09-30 12:26 GMT-04:00 David Baker <[email protected]>:
Dear Sasha,
For all those who enter the orbit of this strange institution
there are endless irreconcilable ironies to untangle.
There is considerable mystery in how Howard Guttenplan was able to
preside despotically for forty years
without adherence to any of the precepts set forth in the bylaws,
simultaneously acting single handedly as steward to a cultural
milieu of such importance
that MoMA would proffer eighty five thousand dollars
(a number I believe was low for the staggering trove therein)
to obtain the archives.
Lili White as much as she may vex
(I have no appreciation for gender biased curation whatever the
rationale)
decisively stepped up to lead a tiny group of people in order to
preserve the
Millennium Film Workshop Archives at a moment of almost
unimaginable disorder and chaos.
Were she not to have acted with such forceful authority this
treasure could easily have
been made to disappear by an ensuing political regime determined
to negate Howard's
achievement.
As ironies go, one of the greatest for me to negotiate
has been observing my mentor Ken Jacobs's recent involvement with
the Millennium,
serving as great Oz behind
an obfuscating curtain in successive post-Howard "democratic"
political regimes
each of which eschewed and expunged the monthly open screenings
that were an entry portal of the most democratic kind.
The irony being that it was precisely the open screening format
that gave Ken his start as a maker.
Things blossom in that sort of environment that cannot occur
elsewhere.
One Friday on Fourth Street I remember the rare paperback book
specialist and great single frame advance
practitioner Chris Eckhoff a.k.a. Mr. E speaking about the
projection screen, he asked
"What if residue from all the films that have ever been projected
on that screen
are still there in some way?".
Thereafter I treated that particular projection surface
as a secret sacred palimpsest.
When Millennium collapsed and the screen came down,
the ghosts were gone.
The place was useless to us.
Cronyism and concomitant kickbacks do not make a cultural milieu
of consequence.
Singular courage and passion of the intensity you demonstrate does!
As artists it is our mandate to be fearless, to find a way, to
make it happen.
As if it was our last day.
David
On Sep 30, 2015, at 12:16 AM, Sasha Janerus wrote:
Thank you Dr. Walley. Thank you David.
It is worth noting that MFW has kept this document off their
website. Strictly speaking you're right about the "President"
thing, which I'd forgotten about--but it's really a technicality,
as the title doesn't bring any special powers. George was not
elected to this or any other position, but was . As I recall it,
after Howard stepped down, a member-consensus decision was made
to keep the director off the board, and to have the ED be
appointed by the board. All of which makes good sense, especially
given everything that had transpired during the latter phase of
the Gutenplan period, though this emergency measure should have
been ratified by a timely revision of the bylaws. So "President"
here is just an honorific--same term, different meaning--so that
the board looks the way boards are supposed to look.
If only the board had acted the way a board's supposed to act.
One other quibble, David: the verb: "to Gerrymander" implies that
elections are in fact taking place. The mot juste would have been
"to steal."
***
George,
I didn't receive your email as you didn't send one to me.
Apparently the fact that I don't agree with your failure to
follow MFW's bylaws means that I'm not to be counted a "Friend"
of Millennium--or is it simply a friend of yours? My partner,
Stephanie Wuertz--who previously occupied your office--did
receive a copy but deleted it, wanting nothing to do with MFW
ever again. Another life you've touched. The email is, of course,
also posted on an orphan page on your site. How could I have
missed that?
Your texts are, needless to say, mendacious in the extreme.
Millennium didn't pack up shop because the MoMA money was late.
Millennium sank because you and PK were incapable of providing
financial information to go with the grant narratives I wrote for
you. When you did finally massage the books into order, I'm
pretty sure it involved making some shit up, in particular Jay
Hudson's undocumented ATM withdrawals.
Your claim to transparency is belied by the fact that nobody
knows what's going on at MFW and next to nobody cares, as well as
by a prior email from you instructing me 1) not to talk about MFW
in public and 2) not to share "confidential financial and other
information without authorization," namely PK's insane budget for
FY2014. I should note that PK had himself informed me that all
MFW documents--minutes, books, etc.--were available to anyone who
wanted to see them. And why not?: it belongs to its members and
to the community, and not to you.
If you'd like to have a discussion about Millennium's future, I'd
encourage you to do so in full view of your constituency, which
I'm sure you'll agree extends beyond present membership and self-
selected "friends". Here are some places to begin:
Could you put text of MFW's present bylaws on your website--
preferably not on an orphaned page.
How many active members does MFW presently have? How many of them
do you consider elligible to vote? How many lapsed members would
you consider eligible to vote upon renewal? According to what
criteria?
How much cash does MFW have on hand?
What are its month-to-month expenses?
What were its FY2014 net income and expenditures, exclusive of
the MoMA money?
How much income did MFW receive from workshops and equipment
rentals FY14? How much profit on the same?
Has the board passed any resolutions to compensate Peter
Kingsbury? If so, for how much?
ON WHAT DATE, IN OCTOBER, IS A MEMBERS MEETING TO BE HELD?
Finally, there is the question of "slander." I was careful to
frame certain statements speculatively, and in your last email to
me you enjoined me to "desist from broadcasting via Frameworks
opinions and speculation that are not based on facts." The
present opacity of MFW makes a necessity of speculation. I do,
however, know these people. Lili, for instance, attempted to
program herself in a Millennium show at the New School, with a
$200 honorarium for a single film. Steph and I stepped in, and
those with conflicts of interest were replaced by Jen Reeves and
Peter Hutton, among others. Lili promptly one-upped herself by
having her husband build Millennium a website. MFW was stuck with
unauthorized, recurring, exorbitant paypal payments. The website
Mark built was so shitty it had to be replaced by the current
shitty site.
MFW has furnished me with many more interesting anecdotes. And I
should note I have been a model of restraint insofar as I have
not contacted or the NY arts press, regulatory bodies, or your
prospective funders. That stance is subject to revision.
Yours in cinema
Sasha Janerus
PS I have a sneaking suspicion certain phrases in the trash
you've been sending out as "Outreach Coordinator" were derived,
consciously or not, from the grants and other fluff I wrote. It's
the sort of vague, pseudo-descriptive language that is meant to
sound inspiring when the situation is anything but.
On Tue, Sep 29, 2015 at 10:08 PM, David Baker
<[email protected]> wrote:
Dear Mr. Spencer,
Your skill as an Outreach Coordinator is certainly evident.
I mean no disrespect in asking who designated you President of
Millennium Film Workshop?
As I read the bylaws (with which Howard Guttenplan was wrested
from his long time role as Executive Director), it stipulates in
Article I #2,
the President is to be voted on by the membership.
I have no recollection of this election occurring in regards to you
holding this office.
Is it possible I missed this important event?
Perhaps I am in some way mistaken.
It is my understanding that the original bylaws are applicable
until the membership chooses to ratify a new set of bylaws.
Is this not the case?
Attached are the original bylaws as they were sent to me by Jay
Hudson on 9/21/11.
I do not think Sasha Janerus is alone in the perception that this
venerable institution has been gerrymandered by a coterie of
insiders bent on personal
enrichment of one sort or another.
This may in part explain the precipitous decline in Millennium's
membership from last year's 89 to the current 40 active members
(as I count them on this recent list, http://millenniumfilm.org/memberlist/
)
I would very much appreciate a response from you here in this
forum.
Herein I also appreciate Jonathan Walley's caring constructive
words
as they pertain to this matter.
Thank you,
David Baker
On Sep 27, 2015, at 8:55 PM, George Spencer wrote:
Hi, fellow experimental film enthusiasts-
The great institution of Millennium Film Workshop, which over 49
years has done much to support the development of artists
cinema, has been under financial threat since 2011. Our
governing board, executive director, and volunteer staff have
struggled in extremely difficult circumstances not only to
maintain our workshops, screenings, film journal, and equipment
access programs, but to restructure our governance and operations.
THESE are the questions some of you are asking on FRAMEWORKS,
and here is MFW's reply:
- Is there any foundation to the original allegations posted on
7/10/15?
NO. Millennium’s finance and operations are transparent, with
best practices internal controls. Its board wholly supports and
appreciates the work of its Executive Director, Peter Kingsbury,
who will step down on October 31. Accusations against a public
service non-profit such as Millennium are a disservice to the
experimental cinema community; and slander against individuals
is morally repugnant and a violation of the Frameworks terms of
service.
- Is there a more objective account of what’s gone on at
Millennium that we might be able to read and discuss?
A “status update” letter emailed by the board to our Members and
Friends on 7/23/15 provides some perspective on recent
developments. It can be found at: millenniumfilm.org/boardupdate
- Is there anything we could do to improve things? To intervene?
YES, YOU CAN HELP IN MANY WAYS.
1. Become a member or supporting member via our web-site:
millenniumfilm.org/membershipandsupport/
2. Join our email list at millenniumfilm.org to get news and
program announcements.
3. Come to our screenings, currently being held at Spectacle
Theater in Williamsburg Brooklyn. See the schedule at:
spectacletheater.com/millenium-film-workshop-at-spectacle/
4. Subscribe to the Millennium Film Journal at mfj-online.org
5. Attend our Members & Friends Informational Meeting on
Wednesday 10/7 at 7:00 pm at Brooklyn Fireproof (119 Ingraham
Street, Brooklyn, NY 11237 -two blocks from Morgan Ave stop on
the “L” subway). Learn about our organizational restructuring
and plans for the future. Contribute ideas and volunteer some
time.
6. Finally, and most importantly, “Take a Turn for Millennium”.
Make a short term volunteer commitment (see millenniumfilm.org/
volunteer). Millennium’s restructuring and transformation over
the last few years has been difficult and frustrating work by a
very small number of filmmakers who believe in its promise and
potential. We have made significant progress toward “the new
Millennium”. But to get there we urgently need volunteers to
perform simple but necessary tasks in the next few months to
sustain our screenings, workshops, film journal, and equipment
access programs.
- What’s happening right now?
We are planning workshops, programs, and fundraising in
celebration of Millennium50, our fiftieth year. We are
searching for a new Executive Director. We are working with our
lawyers to finish our new Bylaws, which will improve
Millennium’s governance and support, and enhance member
participation. After their approval by members, we will hold
elections for our new expanded governing board. In preparation
for elections, we are defining the diverse knowledge, skills,
and experience we will need on our new board, and our
expectations for candidates. We will ask members and friends
for candidate recommendations, and ask people to serve.
Finally, we are asking people to volunteer, to “Take a Turn for
Millennium” (see millenniumfilm.org/volunteer).
This email list serves parties interested in the cinema art.
Please join, volunteer, or otherwise show your support for
Millennium, an organization that has effectively supported that
art for nearly a half century. Encourage others to become
involved. You will be revitalized by personal interchange with
others of like mind, and your own cinema practice will be
supported by becoming part of our community. MFW continues to
be a place where the passion and expression of hands-on,
personal cinema, is studied, nurtured, and celebrated.
Thanks,
George Spencer,
President, Millennium Film Workshop
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