It's not clear yet what is solved by moving our event to another park. Christmas in the Park has an immediate need to make up our $250,000 deficit, and that has our attention.
The cancellation of NEH grants by the Trump administration led to significant challenges for organizations like California Humanities, which relies on such funding to support arts and education.
"It's so bad right now - funding, distribution, it's all crashed and burned," Cooper says about the documentary landscape, "after a very hot moment when documentaries were it for a while."
On March 14, 2025, the Trump administration's executive order targeted seven federal agencies for dissolution, including the crucial Institute of Museum and Library Services.