The Historic Buskirk-Chumley Theater
The Starlight Drive-In
The Cinemat Screening Room
The Rose Firebay
The Haunted History of the Old Indiana Theater
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Featuring a behind-the-scenes documentary and three of the best short films from the festival.
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 Directions and info for the Historic Buskirk-Chumley Theater
Forget so called 'film festivals' that screen movies in a hotel conference room. The Dark Carnival is pleased to present our screenings at the historic Buskirk-Chumley Theater in downtown Bloomington.
The Buskirk-Chumley is a classic 1930s era movie house that's been updated with a state-of-the art sound system, digital projection and a full size 30 foot by 20 foot screen.
DIRECTIONS: (click here for a map)
From North / Indianapolis, take I-465 South to the State Road 37 South exit. Exit onto highway 46 East and travel to the second stoplight. Turn right on College Avenue and continue South until reaching the courthouse square. Make a left ( east ) on Kirkwood Avenue ( 5th Street ). The theater is just 1/2 block east of the square at 114 East Kirkwood.
From the South / Bedford, head North on State Road 37 until exiting onto the 3rd St. exit. Head east on 3rd St. and it will flow directly into 5th Street. Travel East on 5th St., towards the courthouse square, crossing College St. & Walnut St. The theater is located 1/2 block east of the square on Kirkwood Ave. ( 5th St.)
For info on Blomington hotels and dining, go to www.visitbloomington.com
 Directions and info for the Starlight Drive-In
The Dark Carnival will be presenting a special screening and more at the Starlight Drive-In.
ABOUT THE STARLIGHT DRIVE-IN: Experience a blast-from-the-past with the nostalgia of a drive-in theater, or share the fun with a whole new generation of movie-goers! Starlite Drive-in is an affordable, fun and relaxing evening for people of all ages. Established in 1955, the Starlite is one of Indiana's finest outdoor theatres and one of the few that's still in operation today.
DIRECTIONS: (click here for a map)
From Bloomington, Take SR 37about 5 miles S. of Bloomington, to West Smithville Road turn right, and then left (south) onto Old Route 37 and straight ½ mile right to the Drive-In entrance.
 Directions and info for the Cinemat Screening Room
The Dark Carnival will be presenting FREE screenings at the Cinemat screening room leading up to the main festival. Get a free taste of the Dark Carnival and enjoy the Cinemat's excellent selection of domestic and import beers. NOTE: seating is extremely limited, so be sure to arrive early.
ABOUT THE CINEMAT: The Cinemat is a movie rental store at 123 South Walnut Street. They offer a wide variety of films including independent, foreign, classic, art-house, documentary, animated, experimental, silent, GLBT, music documentary & musicals. The Cinemat features a public screening room that seats 50+.
DIRECTIONS: (click here for a map)
The Cinemat is on Walnut and 4th Street, right around the corner from the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. For driving directions, see the Buskirk-Chumley above.
 Directions and info for the
Rose Firebay
The Dark Carnival will be presenting special screenings on Sunday, September 21 at the Rose Firebay (in the John Waldron Arts Center) NOTE: Seating in the Rose Firebay is limited to 100, so be sure to arrive early.
ABOUT THE ROSE FIREBAY: The Rose Firebay was at one time the Bloomington Fire Department fire truck bay, from 1915 to until a few decades ago. Since it's renovation, it has become a popular, intimate space for performances, parties, live radio broadcasts, and just about everything else!
DIRECTIONS: (click here for a map)
The Rose Firebay is in the John Waldron Arts Center on the corner of Walnut and 4th Street, directly across from the Cinemat Screening Room.
The haunted history of the old 'Indiana'
What is now the Buskirk-Chumley, actually began life as the Indiana Theater. Built in 1922 by the Vonderschmitt family, the 'Indiana' opened as a vaudeville and silent movie house. The theater was an instant success, welcoming 1300 people on opening night to see "The Storm" starring House Peters. Before long the 'Indiana' became a fixture in the community- a place for people to cool off from the hot Indiana summers.
 Fortunes changed when, in 1933, the theater mysteriously caught fire and nearly burned to the ground.
As fire fighters made a valiant effort to put out the blaze, a young mother leaned out of her tiny upstairs apartment above the box office and dropped her baby to waiting arms below. The woman disappeared inside, shortly before flames engulfed the building.
The cause of the fire was determined to be arson, although the case was never solved. Many believed the fire was started by three men hired by the labor union as retribution for the owners' resistance to heavy handed union tactics. Some friends of the owners chased the three men south into Kentucky, killing one and throwing his body into the river.
 Determined to carry on, the family rebuilt the 'Indiana' in 1934, returning it to its former glory.
75 years later, few records of the fire remain, and it's difficult to determine who may have survived.
Today, the apartments above the theater have become offices and there are some who work there who have reported hearing strange sounds from the upstairs projection booth, which was closed off a decade ago...
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