Mission & Vision

Squeaky Wheel Film & Media Art Center has a mission to continue a legacy of innovation in media arts through access, education, and exhibition. We envision a community that uses electronic media and film to celebrate freedom of expression and diversity of voice.

Squeaky Wheel’s first home on 585 Potomac Street, 1988.

History

Established in 1985, Squeaky Wheel Film & Media Art Center is the only organization in Western NY to offer education, equipment access, and exhibition programming dedicated to exploring film & digital media arts. Squeaky Wheel’s reputation in the media arts field continues to grow nationally and internationally.  We have won awards for Best Workshops of Any Kind (2010); Best Curation (2012); Best Youth Workshops (2013) from regional publication, Buffalo Spree Magazine of Western New York. In 2014, the Arts Services Initiative of Western New York nominated Squeaky Wheel “Cultural Organization of the Year”.

Squeaky Wheel’s programs are recognized and generously supported by the following regional and national sources:  AmeriCorps VISTA, The Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes, The Cameron & Jane Baird Foundation, Children’s Foundation of Erie County, City of Buffalo (Cultural & Anti-violence Funding), Erie County (Arts & Cultural Funding), Gannett Foundation, Give for Greatness, The Marks Family Foundation, M&T Charitable Foundation – Western NY, The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), The New York State Regional Economic Development Council, The John R. Oishei Foundation, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Western NY, Ronald McDonald House Charities – Global, The Margaret L. Wendt Foundation, and The Western New York Foundation.

Our dynamic roster of quality arts education programs builds social and creative capital through the cultivation of critical thinking and 21st century skills, such as innovation, digital literacy, and collaboration. Public equipment and facility access includes a digital media lab, professional grade equipment, and an array of affordable video transfer and digitization services. Our annual exhibitions showcase regional and national media artists at Squeaky Wheel and throughout the city as film screenings, performances, and gallery installations – most of which are free and open to the public.

The power of our programming is amplified when working with community organizations, educational institutions, and other entities to share audiences and resources. Community partners for 2015 include: Arts Partners for Learning, Buffalo Center for Arts & Technology, Burchfield Penney Art Center, CEPA Gallery, Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp, Girl Scouts of America, Learning Disabilities of WNY, Mayor’s Summer Youth Internship Program, Partnership for Public Good, PUSH Buffalo, Open Buffalo, Pride Center of WNY, Silo City, University at Buffalo, and more!

Core Values

  • Creativity & ExperimentationWe embrace experimentation as essential to the creative process.
  • Media & Digital LiteracyWe engage individuals with technical and critical approaches to media technologies at every level of need and knowledge.
  • Community Engagement & CollaborationWe connect communities, local and international, as both a leader and a partner with artists, educators, schools, and community groups.
  • Equal AccessWe actively remove barriers that can prevent access to our programs by offering programs with free and affordable tuition, free and low-cost admission to events, and work trade/volunteer/internships opportunities.

We are the only nonprofit in Western NY with an inclusive roster of education, equipment access, and exhibition programming dedicated to film and digital media arts.