Until we are able to host you and your families at the State Theatre later this year, we are partnering with independent film distributors to bring you the best in virtual cinema. We are now offering a variety of films for you to watch from the comfort of your own home.
We invite you to check out our library of theatrical on-demand selections, available to watch on your computer, phone or table, or by connecting to your TV.
When you rent one of these films, you are not only supporting independent film, but also supporting the State Theatre! With each screening, the State Theatre receives 40-50% of the tickets price! Films will updated on a weekly basis, so we suggest checking our website and social media regularly to make sure you don’t miss out.
Your support—through virtual screenings and donations – is much appreciated! Thank you!
NOW SHOWING
Team Marco |
Saul & Ruby’s
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Coded Bias |
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| Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
Purchase | Trailer $10.00 |
| Young Marco is obsessed with playing video games and hardly leaves the house. But when his grandfather moves in, Marco’s life is turned upside-down and he’s forced…to go play outside. Nonno introduces him to bocce — the world’s oldest game — and to the neighborhood crew of old-school seniors who play daily at the local court. With sport, laughter and love, Marco finds connection to other people “in real life” and rounds up a team of neighborhood kids to take on his grandfather and his pals.
Family Comedy | Rating: NR |
Like many survivors of the Holocaust, after World War II, Saul and Ruby moved to America, started families and careers, grew old, and retired to South Florida. For them, retirement could have been the last chapter in their story. But then they decided to start a klezmer band, named the Holocaust Survivor Band. The band summons the bittersweet memories of childhood in Poland, but more than that, it is a celebration of life. In this utterly heart-affecting and enthralling film, we follow Saul and Ruby’s musical journey, which begins in total obscurity, playing in residential homes for the elderly and small Jewish community organizations, to being invited to perform at venues across the country, including a coveted performance at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage. This unique and compelling story is about having the courage to live one’s dreams, finding purpose and meaning in life at any age, the transcendent power of music, and the importance of speaking out against anti-Semitism and bigotry.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
Modern society sits at the intersection of two crucial questions: What does it mean when artificial intelligence increasingly governs our liberties? And what are the consequences for the people AI is biased against? When MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini discovers that most facial-recognition software does not accurately identify darker-skinned faces and the faces of women, she delves into an investigation of widespread bias in algorithms. As it turns out, artificial intelligence is not neutral, and women are leading the charge to ensure our civil rights are protected.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
RBG |
The Artist’s Wife |
Ava |
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| Purchase | Trailer $6.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
Purchase | Trailer $6.99 |
| In tribute to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s life and unparalleled legacy upholding justice, Magnolia Pictures is proud to offer their documentary RBG for Virtual Cinema ($6.99 to own). Magnolia will be donating their net proceeds to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation in support of their Women’s Rights Project, which was co-founded by Ginsburg in 1972. While we’re all mourning the loss of an American hero, we hope that viewers will be re-introduced to her work, and take her passion and courage back out into the world.
The Oscar®-nominated and Emmy®-winning documentary RBG, directed by award-winning filmmakers Betsy West and Julie Cohen, chronicles the inspiring and personal story of Ginsburg’s rise to the nation’s highest court while becoming an unexpected pop culture icon. “From her Supreme Court chambers to her exercise room, what a privilege and a joy it was for us to train our cameras on RBG, and capture the story of this feisty, determined, brilliant woman who used her talents to make our world a better place,” said West and Cohen. Documentary | Rating: NR |
Claire (Lena Olin) lives a quiet domestic life in the Hamptons as the wife of celebrated artist Richard Smythson (Bruce Dern). Once a promising painter herself, Claire now lives in the shadow of her husband’s illustrious career. While preparing work for his final show, Richard’s moods become increasingly erratic, and he is diagnosed with dementia. As his memory and behavior deteriorate, she shields his condition from the art community while trying to reconnect him with his estranged daughter and grandson from a previous marriage. Challenged by the loss of her world as she knew it, Claire must now decide whether to stand with Richard on the sidelines or step into the spotlight herself.
Drama | Rating: R |
Ava (Jessica Chastain) is a deadly mercenary who works for a black ops organization, traveling the globe and specializing in high profile hits. Ava’s career takes a bad turn when a high profile job goes wrong due to faulty information provided to her. With a botched hit (as well as a track record for questioning the validity of her targets), Ava is told to take a hiatus until the heat blows over, but secretly the head of the organization, Simon (Colin Farrell), has ordered a hit on her to ensure nothing traces back to the company. With the recent death of her father, Ava decides to go back home to Boston and attempt to mend her relationship with her mother and sister, Judy, though the homecoming proves to be far from happy as the years of estrangement have created resentment. To complicate things further Ava’s ex-fiancé, Michael (Common), is now in a relationship with Judy, and involved with an underground gambling ring that Ava knows all too well from her younger days. Ava now has to save her family and herself from multiple threats, while battling her own demons.
Drama | Rating: R |
Critical Thinking |
John Lewis: Good Trouble |
Jimmy Carter:
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| Purchase | Trailer $6.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
Purchase | Trailer $9.99 |
| It’s 1998 in Miami. Rampant poverty, broken families, and a prejudiced system push underprivileged youth to the fringes of society. But for a magnetic group of teens, there’s a reprieve. A game where it’s not about where you come from, but how you play. That equalizer is chess. Mr. “T” Martinez, a chess militant and passionate coach, leads them to a completely foreign field of battle: the National Chess Championship. With an underfunded school district, Martinez and his team can’t just waltz into the arena. They have to fight for it. Chess runs parallel to their own experiences as Martinez teaches them that the power of Critical Thinking can not only save their kings, but also their lives.
Drama | Rating: NR |
Using interviews and rare archival footage, JOHN LEWIS: GOOD TROUBLE chronicles Lewis’ 60-plus years of social activism and legislative action on civil rights, voting rights, gun control, health-care reform and immigration. Using present-day interviews with Lewis, now 80 years old, Porter explores his childhood experiences, his inspiring family and his fateful meeting with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957. In addition to her interviews with Lewis and his family, Porter’s primarily cinéma verité film also includes interviews with political leaders, Congressional colleagues, and other people who figure prominently in his life.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
If it hadn’t been for a bottle of scotch and a late-night visit from musician Gregg Allman, Jimmy Carter might never have been elected the 39th President of the United States. The documentary charts the mostly forgotten story of how Carter, a lover of all types of music, forged a tight bond with musicians Willie Nelson, the Allman Brothers, Bob Dylan and others. Low on campaign funds and lacking in name recognition, Carter relied on support from these artists to give him a crucial boost in the Democratic primaries. Once Carter was elected, the musicians became frequent guests in the White House. The surprisingly significant role that music played throughout Carter’s life and in his work becomes a thread in this engaging portrait of one of the most enigmatic Presidents in American history.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind |
Desert One |
Once Upon A River |
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| Purchase | Trailer $4.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $4.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
| Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind is an exploration of the career, music, and influence of legendary Canadian musical icon Gordon Lightfoot. With unprecedented access to the artist, the documentary follows Lightfoot’s evolution from Christian choirboy to troubled troubadour to international star and beloved Canadian icon who has sold over 10 million albums and been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
Using new archival sources and unprecedented access to key players on both sides, master documentarian Barbara Kopple (Harlan County, USA) reveals the true story behind one of the most daring rescues in modern US history: a secret mission to free hostages captured during the 1979 Iranian revolution.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
Based on the best-selling novel by Bonnie Jo Campbell, Once Upon A River is the story of Native American teenager Margo Crane in 1970s rural Michigan. After enduring a series of traumas and tragedies, Margo (newcomer Kenadi DelaCerna) sets out on an odyssey on the Stark River in search of her estranged mother. On the water, Margo encounters friends, foes, wonders, and dangers; navigating life on her own, she comes to understand her potential, all while healing the wounds of her past. Written and directed by Haroula Rose, this midwestern gothic Americana story is, in the words of Jane Smiley for The New York Times, “an excellent American parable about the consequences of our favorite ideal, freedom.”
Drama | Rating: NR |
Meeting The Beatles
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Creem: America’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll Magazine |
Dating Amber |
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| Purchase | Trailer $9.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $4.99 |
Purchase | Trailer $12.00 |
| In 1968, with the eyes of the world upon them, The Beatles traveled to Rishikesh, India, to study transcendental meditation with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In one of the most anticipated Beatles documentaries, Filmmaker Paul Saltzman, retraces his journey of 50 years ago when he spent a life-changing time with John, Paul, George and Ringo. Fifty years later he reveals previously unknown details of this pivotal moment in the Beatles’ career and the inner workings of the masterful White Album.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
Capturing the messy upheaval of the ’70s just as rock was re-inventing itself, the film explores CREEM Magazine’s humble beginnings in post-riot Detroit, follows its upward trajectory from underground paper to national powerhouse, then bears witness to its imminent demise following the tragic and untimely deaths of its visionary publisher, Barry Kramer, and its most famous alum and genius clown prince, Lester Bangs, a year later. Fifty years after publishing its first issue, “America’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll Magazine” remains a seditious spirit in music and culture.
Documentary | Rating: NR |
DATING AMBER is a poignant, honest and funny look at the highs and lows of teenage life where the only way to fit in is to not be yourself, even if this goes against your very being. Set-in Ireland during the mid-90’s, Eddie and Amber decide to stage a relationship in order to stop everyone speculating about their sexuality. Eddie is keen to follow his Dad into the military, while Amber dreams of moving to the liberal hub of London. However, their ‘ideal’ arrangement begins to fall apart, forcing Eddie deeper into denial as Amber realizes that a perilous future awaits her best friend unless she intervenes. DATING AMBER is a love letter to all those kids who grew up in a small town and who needed to escape in order to be themselves.
Comedy/Drama | Rating: NR |
Virtual Cinema Q & A
We’ve compiled this overview to answer questions you may have about how you can watch the new releases we’re making available.
Thank you for supporting the State Theatre.
Q: What kinds of programming and online engagement is the State Theatre doing during this closure period?
A: Virtual screenings of new releases you can watch at home — In partnerships with film distributors, we’re offering new releases — and your virtual ticket purchase helps support the State Theatre.
Q: If I purchase a film, how long do I have to watch it?
A: This varies film to film, but it is typically 2-3 days.
Q: Are these the types of films the State Theatre will be showing once it opens later this year?
A: This is a sampling of some of the independent films we’ll be showing. Once open, we’ll also be showing classics, first-run and some cult favorites.
Q: Can we watch these virtual screenings of new releases on our TV or must it be on a computer screen?
A: It depends on the Smart TV you have. There are several options.
Watching from an App on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, etc
Some Smart TVs will let you download Apps from distributors on to your smart TV – then you can sign in to the app and watch the film through the app.
Learn how to download an App on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Firestick
Chromecast
You can “cast” a video from your computer or smart device (phone, iPad) using the following steps
- Open the movie on your device (computer or phone)
- At the bottom right of the screen you should see the casting icon. It looks like this:
- If you don’t see that icon and you’re casting from a computer in the Chrome browser, you can open the menu in the upper right corner of the window (or the View menu) and select “Cast”
- Once you select that button, it should give you the option to select a nearby device, so you’d then select your Chromecast. If you don’t see your Chromecast, make sure both devices are on the same wireless network
You can find more details on the Chromecast website.
Apple TV
You can do that using a method called AirPlay! Here is how to do it:
- Open the movie on your Apple device (computer, iPhone or iPad)
- At the bottom right of the video window you should see the AirPlay icon.
- It looks like this:
- Once you tap the icon, select “Apple TV” from the list of devices
And that should be it! You can also find these instructions and more information on the Apple website.
Roku
You can cast a video from your Android or Windows device using the following steps:
- Open the movie on your device
- At the bottom right of the screen you should see the casting icon. It looks like this:
- Once you select that button, it should give you the option to select a nearby device, so you’d then select your Roku/Chromecast.
- If you don’t see your Roku/Chromecast, make sure both devices are on the same wireless network. The channel should launch automatically and playback will begin!