Backlight Productions
About
GENERAL PROGRAM - Our general program is the overall operational costs to run our business, including entities such as facility rental for our classes to take place, storage unit to store costumes, sets, and props for all classes, and employee and contractor salaries. THEATER PROGRAMS - Our theater program teaches everything from musical theater to playwrighting, teaching students essential skills such as expressing emotions, eye contact, memorization, and speaking clearly. There are over 40 students in our theater program and they work as a team to produce professional-level theater performances. PRODUCTION - Every class we teach culminates into a production. These productions range in expense, but each one is a chance for our students to show what they have learned …
Providing opportunities for adults with special needs to gain education in the arts and perform significant roles before live audiences.
Focus & reach
Verification & registration
Every mark links to the official registry entry and opens in a new tab.
Integrity assessment
A score from 0 to 100 for how openly a charity shares public information across five areas: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and data recency. It does not measure programme impact. See exactly what we do and do not have →
Financials
IRS Form 990Leadership at a glance
Official filingsSimilar charities
GiveRadar Intelligence
GiveRadar Analysis
From what GiveRadar has verified so far, Backlight Productions has a complete profile, cross-referenced across 4 independent sources including the IRS.
- It is one of the better-documented youth development charities in the United States GiveRadar currently tracks, because GiveRadar has verified its financial disclosures and its governance. Most of those have little verified data on record yet. View this cohort
- GiveRadar has cross-referenced this organization across 4 independent sources, led by the IRS - more than 95% of similar organizations. See the sources
- GiveRadar holds 6 years of financial filings for this organization, the most recent for fiscal year 2025 - a deeper filing history than 90% of the 18,694 youth development charities in the United States with filings on record. See the filings
- government registration
- financial records (6 filed years)
- disclosed leadership
- a website
- a contact email
- a donation page
Analysis based on GiveRadar's benchmark dataset of 2026-07-03. It describes what GiveRadar has verified, not a judgment of the organization itself.
Filing history
6 years on file from IRS Form 990: revenue, expenses, program spending, assets, and liabilities by fiscal year.
See 5 years of revenue, expense breakdowns, and balance sheet.
Sign up to viewTax deductibility
Whether a gift to Backlight Productions lowers your own taxes depends on where you pay them. Choose your country to see the rule that applies.
Donations may be tax-deductible for residents of United States under local rules. Confirm with the charity directly.
BACKLIGHT PRODUCTIONS is registered in United States. Donations from the Netherlands to charities outside the EU/EEA are generally not tax-deductible for Dutch donors unless the charity is listed on the Dutch ANBI register with foreign-recognized status.
This is general guidance, not tax advice. Confirm treatment with the charity or your tax advisor before donating.
Staff & volunteers
Leadership & board
Official filingsBoard members and senior officers on record, with disclosed pay where available.
13 officers and trustees on file, free with a GiveRadar account.
No red flags detected
Timeline
From official filingsKey dates from this charity's official filings, newest first.
In the news
No recent news coverage found
News coverage will appear here when articles mention this organization.
How it stacks up against peers
Compared with 8 similar youth development charities in United States.
Cause areas in United States
Charities working in each area, this charity's highlighted.
Sources and verification
- Officers and trustees
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Tax Exempt Organization Search · 49 disclosed in the public registry.
What we know and don't know
Every data point we track for this charity, and whether we have found it. Disclosure only, never a judgment of the charity's work.
Data freshness
How current this profile is, and when we last checked it against the official source.
Methodology
GiveRadar builds each profile primarily from official government charity registries, supplemented where available by third-party nonprofit databases and news archives, and combines it into a single 0-100 integrity assessment. The exact sources for this charity are listed above. We don't take a cut of any donation, ever.
Read full methodologyIf you represent this organization and want to correct or update its data, you can claim this listing to edit details yourself, or email info@giveradar.com with the correct information. We review every request and respond within 30 days.
Frequently asked questions about Backlight Productions
Backlight Productions is a registered youth development nonprofit based in Franklin, TN, United States. It is registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It was founded in 2013 and has been operating for 13 years. Its EIN is 462420034. According to GiveRadar's records, it holds active tax-deductible status on the IRS Publication 78 list, which means donations are tax-deductible and the organization is in good standing with the IRS. GiveRadar's Integrity Assessment for the organization is 90/100, which reflects how much public information is available, not whether the charity is legitimate. The organization reports $340K in annual revenue. 49 officers and directors are publicly disclosed. No red flags have been detected.
Backlight Productions's Exec Director, Melissa Smith, received $20,800 in reported compensation in its most recent filing (2025). This figure comes straight from the organization's official filing and covers salary plus other reportable pay. Executive pay generally scales with the size and complexity of a nonprofit, so it is best read alongside the organization's revenue and what it does.
Based on official filings, Backlight Productions has $340K in annual revenue. It allocates 79% of expenses to programs and services. This is in line with the average of 79% for youth development charities in United States. Its revenue is below the peer average of $1M. Create a free GiveRadar account to view the complete financial breakdown with year-over-year trends.
GENERAL PROGRAM - Our general program is the overall operational costs to run our business, including entities such as facility rental for our classes to take place, storage unit to store costumes, sets, and props for all classes, and employee and contractor salaries. THEATER PROGRAMS - Our theater program teaches everything from musical theater to playwrighting, teaching students essential skills such as expressing emotions, eye contact, memorization, and speaking clearly. There are over 40 students in our theater program and they work as a team to produce professional-level theater performances. PRODUCTION - Every class we teach culminates into a production. These productions range in expense, but each one is a... Backlight Productions is classified as a youth development organization registered in United States. The organization was founded in 2013.
Backlight Productions is classified as a Youth Development organization, registered in United States. It operates as a Publicly-supported charity (509(a)(2)). By size, it is categorized as a small organization. It has $340K in annual revenue. The organization has 49 disclosed officers and directors.
Backlight Productions's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 462420034. This is the organization's IRS tax identification number; you can use it to verify tax-exempt status and to look up its Form 990 filings with the IRS.
Backlight Productions is located in Franklin, TN, United States. The organization was established in 2013 and has been active for 13 years.
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Quick facts about Backlight Productions
- What is Backlight Productions?
- Backlight Productions is a youth development publicly-supported charity (509(a)(2)) based in Franklin, United States. GENERAL PROGRAM - Our general program is the overall operational costs to run our business, including entities such as facility rental for our classes to take place, storage unit to store costumes, sets, and props for all classes, and employee and contractor salaries. THEATER PROGRAMS - Our theater program teaches everything from musical theater to playwrighting, teaching students essential skills such as expressing emotions, eye contact, memorization, and speaking clearly. There are over 40 students in our theater program and they work as a team to produce professional-level theater performances. PRODUCTION - Every class we teach culminates into a production. These productions range in expense, but each one is a chance for our students to show what they have learned and worked toward over the course of a season. These productions incorporate entities such as costumes, sets, props, contractors, and theater rentals. OTHER PROGRAMS - include music, dance, summer camp, dance party, and contracted classes.
- When was Backlight Productions founded?
- Backlight Productions was founded in 2013.
- Who leads Backlight Productions?
- Melissa Smith serves as Exec Director.
- Where is Backlight Productions located?
- Headquartered in Franklin, TN, United States.
- What is Backlight Productions's annual budget?
- Annual revenue for fiscal year 2025 is $339,945. 79% of expenses go to program services.
- Is Backlight Productions trustworthy?
- Backlight Productions has a GiveRadar Integrity Assessment of 90 out of 100 (Strong transparency). The score reflects public-data transparency: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and how recently data was refreshed. It does not measure program impact.
- What is Backlight Productions's registration number?
- IRS EIN: 462420034.
- What is Backlight Productions's website?
- http://backlightproductions.org