Milwaukee Film, the ever-busy nonprofit organization that stages the annual Milwaukee Film Festival and operates the historic Oriental and Downer theaters all year long, has a snazzy new look for 2026. Out with the old (that all-seeing “eye”), and in with the new (see below).
On Friday, Milwaukee Film Executive Director Susan Kerns unveiled both a new Milwaukee Film logo and a similarly redesigned Milwaukee Film website. The name and theme of the logo? “Big Screen,” of course. Fans of retro colors and aspect ratios rejoice!
“This logo, with its colors reminiscent of the Oriental Theatre, the Downer Theatre, and celluloid film stock itself, feels like a part of the theaters and calls one inside,” Kerns says in an open letter. “It’s a logo with movement, with pull, that also lets the film images shine. It’s a logo befitting not just of a film festival but of year-round community. It frames the movies while drawing us together to experience them.”
The logo and website were designed by Milwaukee studio Northern Ground.