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MONO NO AWARE INC
BROOKLYN, NY · EIN 464573533 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE A31 · Arts, Culture & Humanities · Small ($100K-$1M) · mononoawarefilm.com
revenue
$953K
expenses
$944K
net assets
$196K
employees
1
volunteers
67
program ratio
80%
profile · synthesized from sources

MONO NO AWARE INC is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering appreciation for traditional filmmaking and the moving image as an art form. It offers hands-on workshops in analog film techniques, provides access to preservation labs and equipment, and supports artists through commissions, screenings, and community events. Programs are accessible to the public, with both in-person and online offerings.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2021

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $24K
    Lab Services
  2. #2 $16K
    Workshops - MONO NO AWARE organizes affordable workshops in traditional filmmaking for the public. All ages, Accessible and open to the public, these instructional sessions are offered below hard cost thanks to partnerships, sponsorships and grant support. In 2021 we were able to re-open our doors in the Fall to offer nearly 30 live in person workshops in Brooklyn to over 200 participants in a reduced capacity over two months. We also offered FREE streaming seminars, lectures and demonstrations to thousands of viewers. The in-person workshop experience is all inclusive with film material, equipment access, developing and scanning lab services done in-house at our preservation lab, Online streaming sessions were offered for free with the option to donate for materials to be shipped with zero contact through the mail to our community members. At the end of each September and October ALL the films premiere on film projected in a free screening program hosted by Anthology Film Archives. The films are also available digitally through our Vimeo page. We teach off-site workshops as well, in 2021 we provided ZOOM learning sessions with Duke University, Lafayette College,and a special film intensive with a new artist run lab in Portugal started by one of our former workshop participants from 2019. These initiatives foster an appreciation for the moving image art form
named programs · 5 · from sources

What they call their work

Equipment Access & Preservation
Program providing artists with access to specialized film equipment and technical support for analog film production and restoration.
Free Screening Program
Annual public screening event hosted in partnership with Anthology Film Archives, showcasing films created through workshops and commissions.
Lab Services
In-house film preservation, developing, scanning, and editing services using analog and digital tools including Oxberry animation stands, Bolex cameras, and Steenbeck flatbed editors.
MONO NO AWARE Commission Program
Supports artists in creating new 16mm films through material, technical, and production resources; culminates in public screenings.
Workshops
Hands-on instructional sessions in traditional filmmaking techniques including Super 8, 16mm, stop motion, and cameraless animation, offered in-person and online to participants of all ages.
activities · 7 groups

What they do

  • Film Festival and Screening Programming 2 activities
    • Annual expanded cinema festival and exhibition
      Organizes a year-round program culminating in an annual 12-day expanded cinema festival in New York City, featuring live performances, installations, and film screenings by international artists using Super 8mm, 16mm, 35mm, or altered light projections. The event has attracted over 4,000 attendees and featured up to 150 works by 150 artists during its tenth anniversary, with free annual screenings also hosted at Anthology Film Archives.
    • Community screenings and public film events
      Hosts monthly in-person artist screenings, open-air dual-channel film projections, and free public screenings of experimental and participant-created films at its Brooklyn venue and partner locations. Events include community potlucks with film processing and screenings of works by established experimental filmmakers.
  • Community Art Education Workshops 1 activity
    • Analogue filmmaking workshops
      Offers hands-on analogue filmmaking workshops in Brooklyn for all ages, including multi-session courses on Super 8mm film production, stop motion puppetry, and specialized techniques like multiple exposures, with materials, equipment, and post-workshop film screenings provided. Conducted nearly 30 in-person workshops serving over 200 participants in fall 2021 and over 300 in early 2020, supplemented by free online streaming seminars and off-site Zoom-based workshops in collaboration with universities.
  • Educational Field Trips and Experiential Outings 1 activity
    • Cinema education and field trip programming
      Organizes educational field trips and cinema-focused excursions for participants, supporting experiential learning in analogue filmmaking and expanded cinema practices.
  • Community Makerspace Access and Training 1 activity
    • Facility and lab access for filmmakers
      Maintains dry and wet lab facilities, editing stations, and scanning equipment for motion picture film, providing access to artists and workshop participants for film processing, development, and post-production.
  • Fundraising for Community and Charitable Initiatives 1 activity
    • Grantmaking to support community food programs
      Funds community food initiatives by directing audience donations from public film screenings to organizations such as CityHarvest and FOOD NOT BOMBS - BED-STUY through a sliding-scale donation model.
  • Film Production Funding and Fiscal Sponsorship 1 activity
    • Production support and commissioning of artist films
      Provides production-support micro-grants in the form of film stock, equipment, lab services, and printed materials to photographers, filmmakers, and artists. Commissions and fully supports the creation of artist films such as "Transitional Object" and "Labor," including access to facilities, film, and scanning. Supported the completion and exhibition of the film जान की ओर (jaan ki or) in 2021.
  • Uncategorized 4 activities
    • Artist commissioning and exhibition support
      Commissions and provides full production and exhibition support for artist films, including access to equipment, film stock, and scanning facilities, enabling the creation and public presentation of works such as "Transitional Object" and जान की ओर (jaan ki or).
    • Film equipment rental program
      Operates a film equipment rental service in Brooklyn with a fixed three-day cycle based on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday pickup days, requiring in-person pickup and return. Offers access to cameras, editing stations, and projection equipment, including specialized workshops on equipment use such as the Bolex camera.
    • Film stock and supplies sales and distribution
      Sells a rotating selection of factory-fresh and short-end 35mm, 16mm, and Super 8mm film stocks and related chemistry, spooled in-house, through in-person sales at its Brooklyn office and events, and fulfills mail orders via USPS Priority Mail within the continental U.S. Also fulfills mail-order requests for film stock, publications, small equipment, and lab services free of charge to select recipients weekly.
    • Online and remote educational outreach
      Provided free streaming seminars, lectures, and demonstrations on traditional filmmaking during the pandemic, reaching thousands of viewers, and shipped filmmaking materials by mail to participants. Delivered off-site Zoom-based workshops in collaboration with Duke University, Lafayette College, Brooklyn College, and an artist-run lab in Portugal in 2020 and 2021.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$953K
Contributions & grants$131K14%
Program service revenue$823K86%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$944K
Program expenses80%
Admin / overhead19%
Fundraising1%
Salaries & benefits$81K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineOther
balance sheet
Total assets$244K
Cash$222K
Investments$0
Liabilities$48K
Net assets$196K
Liquid reserves2.8 mo
5 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +26.9%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
STEVE COSSMAN FOUNDER DIRECTOR 40 $75K
board members · 3
  • COURTNEY MULLER — TRUSTEE
  • LAURA MAJOR — TRUSTEE
  • ROSS NUGENT — TRUSTEE
relationships · 33

Who they work with

  • Adrian Cousins Partner — Features the filmmaker's 16mm work as the festival's call for entries image.
  • Anthology Film Archives Partner — Hosts free annual screening programs for films created in MONO NO AWARE workshops.
  • Bard Experiential Lab Partner — Aarati Akkapeddi, an instructor at MONO, also teaches at Bard Experiential Lab.
  • Brooklyn College Partner — Collaborated on off-site Zoom-based filmmaking workshops in 2020.
  • CINELAB Partner — Collaborates on film processing and lab services for workshops
  • COLORLAB Partner — Collaborates on film processing and lab services for workshops
  • CineLab Partner — Supplied the Xena scanner used for digitizing film scans and stills in collaboration with MONO NO AWARE.
  • CityHarvest Partner — Beneficiary organization receiving donations from MONO NO AWARE's open-air screening events
  • ColorLab, MD Partner — Partnered with MONO NO AWARE to produce exhibition prints for commissioned films.
  • Duke University Partner — Collaborates on off-site Zoom-based filmmaking workshops.
  • ELM Foundation Partner — Hosted the screening of "Labor" at The Boiler, a venue supporting ELM Foundation’s arts education and therapy programs.
  • FOOD NOT BOMBS - BED-STUY Partner — Beneficiary organization receiving donations from MONO NO AWARE's open-air screening events
  • GiF NYC Partner — Co-presented the opening night event of MONO NO AWARE XVIII.
  • Housing Works Partner — Beneficiary organization receiving donations from MONO NO AWARE's open-air screening events
  • InstaGram Partner — Platform used for posting updates and documentation of the Film Care Package Initiative.
  • Julie Orlick Partner — Visiting artist who led a workshop on multiple exposure techniques at a MONO NO AWARE event.
  • KODAK Partner — Provides film stock and technical support for workshop offerings
  • Kodak Partner — Supplies Kodak Ektachrome Color Reversal Super 8mm film for use in workshops.
  • Kodak Motion Picture division Partner — Supplies factory-sealed color negative and black/white film stocks for MONO NO AWARE's distribution program.
  • LES Girls Club Partner — Beneficiary organization receiving donations from MONO NO AWARE's open-air screening events
  • Lafayette College Partner — Collaborates on off-site Zoom-based filmmaking workshops.
  • MONO NO AWARE Partner — Operates film equipment rental and workshop programs in Brooklyn.
  • NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts Partner — Collaborates with instructors who teach at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, including Nicolas Cadena and Vito Adriaensens.
  • National Endowment for the Arts Government — Provides funding support for MONO NO AWARE public programming.
  • New York State Council on the Arts Government — Primary funder supporting community workshops through grant funding
  • New York State Council on the Arts Government — Provides funding support for MONO NO AWARE public programming with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
  • Parsons School of Design Partner — Aarati Akkapeddi, an instructor at MONO, also teaches at Parsons School of Design.
  • Pratt Institute Partner — Aarati Akkapeddi, an instructor at MONO, also teaches at Pratt Institute.
  • RETURN HOME x The Sameer Project Partner — Beneficiary organization receiving donations from MONO NO AWARE's open-air screening events
  • THE GOWANUS DARKROOM Partner — Collaborative partner in providing darkroom and film development resources
+ 3 more
strategies · 4

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Community-Led Education and Practice
    methodology: community-led_instruction
    By using practicing filmmakers and artists as instructors and centering community-led skill sharing, the organization ensures authentic, experience-based learning that strengthens local creative ecosystems and sustains analog film practices because peer-led instruction fosters deeper engagement and cultural continuity.
  • Integrated Technical and Creative Support for Artists
    methodology: integrated-film-education
    By combining education, production support (including micro-grants), commissioning, and access to specialized technologies, the organization sustains experimental analog film practice because holistic backing—from idea to post-production—enables artists to complete and publicly share work that might otherwise be technically or financially unfeasible.
  • Live and Expanded Cinema as Collective Experience
    methodology: live-cinema-connectivity
    By centering live, in-person and open-air cinematic experiences—including expanded cinema that integrates performance—the organization fosters connectivity and collective meaning-making as a counter to digital isolation, because shared physical presence during screenings deepens audience engagement and re-embeds film in communal space.
  • Removing Cost and Material Barriers to Access
    methodology: accessibility-through-cost-removal
    By eliminating financial and material obstacles through sliding-scale pricing, free public events, subsidized workshops, and accessible film supplies, the organization increases participation in analog filmmaking across socioeconomic groups because reduced barriers enable broader engagement with otherwise costly and rare technologies.