Imagine Science Films Corp
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 800215101
- IRS 990-EZ coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2021, Form 990-EZ 2024, Form 990-N 2009
- Location
- Brooklyn, NY, USA
- Phone
- 9174007781
- Rating
- 92
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Film, Video
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $198,534
- Expenses
- $228,027
- Assets
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
6 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- WENDY ETTINGER (President)
- THOMAS CAMPBELL JACKSON (Vice President)
People named in this filing
- WENDY ETTINGER (President)
- THOMAS CAMPBELL JACKSON (Vice President)
- Peter Galison (BOARD MEMBER)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The mission is to bridge the gap between art and science through film, thereby transforming the way science is communicated to the public and encouraging collaboration across disciplines.
What it reported doing in 2024
FILM FESTIVAL: In 2023, our primary focus centered around the Science New Wave Film Festival XVI, held from October 20th to October 27th, 2023. The festival showcased a total of 64 films, comprising 3 world premieres, 21 U.S. premieres, and 24 New York premieres. Additionally, the event featured engaging panel discussions, captivating performances, and enlightening live presentations.Last year's festival not only celebrated avant-garde hybrid science cinema across 28 programs at the centrally-located Cinema Village in Manhattan but also included special evenings dedicated to new works-in-progress within the Science New Wave genre, as well as insightful discussions on the use of field notes as a tool both in scientific exploration and filmmaking. Moreover, the event featured the latest edition of our esteemed Symbiosis Competition presented by the Simons Foundation. The festival comprised four main components: Films: A diverse selection of compelling films.Symbiosis: The competition commenced on October 19, with a midpoint Symbiosis Lab Meeting held on Monday, October 23, at Caveat. The Symbiosis Closing Night took place at the Wythe Hotel Screening Room on Friday, Oct 27. This year's theme, "(art)ificial," inspired filmmakers to challenge traditional scientific film norms and explore innovative expressions.Science New Wave (SNW): Launched in 2021, the Science New Wave program aimed to foster innovative collaborations between scientists and filmmakers. It offers grants ranging from $2,500 to $25,000 to support diverse film projects, including fiction, documentary, and hybrid genres.Science New Wave Field Notes: In partnership with DCTV, we proudly presented Science New Wave Field Notes, providing audiences with an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at select projects involving scientists, artists, filmmakers, and hybrids. Additionally, the Science New Wave-curated film programs continued to reach audiences worldwide through our satellite programs and global outreach. Our programming continues to inspire other film festivals and science communication communities/organizations.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent revenue detail to tell how this nonprofit funds its work.
- Distribution model
- Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 76% for direct work, and 24% for grants.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 96
- Transparency & Controls: 100
- Sustainability: 7
- Growth: 80
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 88.3%; rating input score 88
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -14.9%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
- Officer compensation ratio: 19.3%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 9.1% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 32nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -4.5% per year; rating input score 0; 17th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 88.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: Filed governance answers
- Accomplishments: 1 filed program accomplishment · $201K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 6 people listed
- Consistency: 6 of 6 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules
- Filing history: 9 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 16/100.