Film Exchange Building

The Film Exchange Building is a seven-story Art Deco structure standing at the corner of Cass Avenue and Montcalm Street, distinguished by its sculptured entry and marble lobby. The building contains fireproof vaults, screening rooms, and office spaces that were specifically designed to handle film inspection and storage operations.

Architect C. Howard Crane designed this building in 1926 to serve as a central distribution hub for motion pictures across Michigan's Lower Peninsula. The structure remained a vital distribution point for the region's film industry throughout the following decades.

This building once served as a nerve center where major film studios like MGM and Warner Brothers ran their regional film distribution operations. Inside, you can sense how critical this location was for managing movies across the entire region.

The building sits three blocks west of Comerica Park, making it easy to locate on foot from nearby neighborhoods. Recent exterior work, including roof repairs and exterior repainting, has helped maintain the structure in usable condition.

The building featured specialized inspection rooms where staff could examine every film reel before distribution to over 600 theaters across the region. This technical setup was essential to how the film industry maintained quality control at that time.

Location: Michigan

Inception: 1926

Architects: C. Howard Crane

Architectural style: Art Deco

Floors above the ground: 7

GPS coordinates: 42.33760,-83.05590

Latest update: December 11, 2025 11:07