FINALLY BREAKING A long silence, the new owners of the historic Clay Theater will today unveil plans for its return as a single-screen theater in its familiar but updated home on Fillmore Street.

When the renovation of the century-old theater is complete, it will include approximately 200 seats and host more than 500 film screenings annually, according to Cody Allen, who is directing the Upper Fillmore Revitalization Project, funded by investor Neil Mehta.

Ted Gerike will be the director and chief creative officer of the Clay. Gerike founded the Los Angeles cinema-bookstore Now Instant and earlier led digital content for New York’s Metrograph cinema.

“Ted Gerike is exactly the type of operator we are eager to see thrive on Fillmore Street,” Allen said, and the plans are “emblematic of our broader vision.”

The renovation and operation of the theater, which has been closed since 2020, will be funded by Mehta’s revitalization project, with donations from supporters in the neighborhood. A board of local advisers is said to be in the works. Allen said the Clay will also host talks and other neighborhood events.

“I envision the Clay as both a home for local voices and a bridge connecting San Francisco to the wider world of cinema and ideas,” Gerike said in a statement. The reborn Clay will host first-run premieres, repertory classics, filmmaker talks and cinema-focused events. Upgrades planned to the theater include 4K digital projection and 35mm film capabilities, plus enhanced acoustics, and will met current disability and fire safety standards.

Architects from Page & Turnbull will guide the renovation, with Min Design as architect of record. The Perron-Roettinger design studio will oversee the interior design, working with Arup, a theater consultant.