About Us

Secret Movie Club started in April 2016 when founder Craig Hammill screened Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark on 35mm at midnight at the Vista Theatre in Los Angeles, California.

Our mission has always been to screen great movies of all kinds (on film as often as possible) in great theaters to great audiences. We have worked to build a local and virtual worldwide community where movie lovers and movie makers can connect, watch great movies in theaters and get the audience experience, and just celebrate cinema. We program our movies in seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall) and by series. We occasionally are lucky enough to have the filmmakers themselves come for Q&As with our audience. We also have a vibrant virtual community we’d love you to be a part of where we do deeper dives into movies, have conversations, do podcasts, offer movie materials, articles, etc.

Since our start in 2016, the Secret Movie Club calendar, audience, and team have grown and we now screen an average of 70 movies every season (3 months) at three venues:

Glendale Sears Parking Lot

211 W. California Avenue, Glendale, CA 91203

During the 2020 year & the COVID pandemic, we were lucky enough to partner with Electric Dusk Drive In to screen safe outdoor drive-ins. Our main drive-in location is at the spacious, Glendale Sears Parking Lot between Central and Brand in Glendale, California. Our screen is 41 feet by 27 feet and allows us to screen great cinema to as many as 120 cars (still under 50% lot capacity so cars can maintain 6 feet of distance). Folks listen to the movies on their car radios. We have factory sealed, LA County Health approved concessions & restrooms.

The Vista Theatre

4473 Sunset Drive, LA, CA 90027

A beautiful 1920’s built single screen 370 seat Los Angeles theater where we show the overwhelming amount of our35mm movies and programs. Usually on Friday, Saturday midnights, Saturday & Sunday morning matinees, and the occasional prime time (8pmish) weekday special screening.

The Club

1917 Bay Street, 2nd Floor, LA, CA 90021

A movie theater and performing arts space in the converted second floor of a toy factory. We screen our deeper dive/avant garde/archival/hard to get movies here on 35mm, 16mm, digital as well as host staged readings, dance parties, film premieres, in depth Q&As with filmmakers, etc. The Club is our creative incubator and a chance for our community to get to know each other and collaborate.

The Million Dollar Movie Theater Palace

307 S. Broadway, LA, CA 90013

At least 1-2 a season, we screen an epic movie on 35mm at the historic Million Dollar Movie Theater Palace in downtown Los Angeles. The Million Dollar has a rich history as Sid Grauman’s 1st Los Angeles movie palace as well as THE destination spot for live performances of Spanish speaking superstars including Pedro Infante, Juan Gabriel, among many others. Located right next to the historic Grand Central Market, audience members are allowed to get food, drinks, beers, whatever and bring them into the theater for our screenings.