Whether you want to savor a screening of an obscure Italian film from the ’50s or gawk at Glen Powell on the red carpet, Austin has you covered. Since 1997, the Alamo Drafthouse has invited audiences to revel in cinematic oddities on raucous theme nights like Terror Tuesday and Weird Wednesday. Founders Tim and Karrie League’s business proved so successful that the Drafthouse has since expanded to 44 locations and was purchased by Sony in 2024.

If you loved old-school Alamo, head to East Austin, where Hyperreal Film Club has opened a delightfully DIY space that plays movies most nights of the week, with titles ranging from Gremlins and The Crow to Independence Day. The space is run by Tanner Hadfield, David McMichael, and Jenni Kaye—the latter of whom makes a great case study for just how robust Austin’s community of film buffs has become.

Kaye is a correspondent for Letterboxd, the New Zealand company whose popular app has united movie lovers everywhere. “They’ve always been interested in SXSW,” Kaye says. “That’s how I got started covering carpets with them.” Since then, Letterboxd has had Kaye report on other events like Fantastic Fest, and she’s developed a series of curatorial reels for the app’s social media account. In effect, one of the fastest-growing cinema communities in the world has an eye on Austin.

And for true patrons, Austin Film Society offers members discounted tickets and access to events with directors and actors. Their North Austin theater frequently screens classic and arthouse films along with exclusive premieres.

From intimate nights at Hyperreal or AFS Cinema to festival red carpets or Fons PR hosting surprise celebrity pop-ups with the likes of Brad Pitt and Austin Butler, the capital city teems with film-centric experiences. If you’re feeling like a night on the couch, you can even hit up We Luv Video (the reincarnated version of I Luv Video) to rent a VHS cassette tape.

As the capital city’s movie industry expands, it’s sure to discover a community of cinephiles whose love of the silver screen rips at the thin veil of the fourth wall to remind us that films amount to very little without an audience to appreciate them. 

Whether you want to savor a screening of an obscure Italian film from the ’50s or gawk at Glen Powell on the red carpet, Austin has you covered. Since 1997, the Alamo Drafthouse has invited audiences to revel in cinematic oddities on raucous theme nights like Terror Tuesday and Weird Wednesday. Founders Tim and Karrie League’s business proved so successful that the Drafthouse has since expanded to 44 locations and was purchased by Sony in 2024.

If you loved old-school Alamo, head to East Austin, where Hyperreal Film Club has opened a delightfully DIY space that plays movies most nights of the week, with titles ranging from Gremlins and The Crow to Independence Day. The space is run by Tanner Hadfield, David McMichael, and Jenni Kaye—the latter of whom makes a great case study for just how robust Austin’s community of film buffs has become.

Kaye is a correspondent for Letterboxd, the New Zealand company whose popular app has united movie lovers everywhere. “They’ve always been interested in SXSW,” Kaye says. “That’s how I got started covering carpets with them.” Since then, Letterboxd has had Kaye report on other events like Fantastic Fest, and she’s developed a series of curatorial reels for the app’s social media account. In effect, one of the fastest-growing cinema communities in the world has an eye on Austin.

And for true patrons, Austin Film Society offers members discounted tickets and access to events with directors and actors. Their North Austin theater frequently screens classic and arthouse films along with exclusive premieres.

From intimate nights at Hyperreal or AFS Cinema to festival red carpets or Fons PR hosting surprise celebrity pop-ups with the likes of Brad Pitt and Austin Butler, the capital city teems with film-centric experiences. If you’re feeling like a night on the couch, you can even hit up We Luv Video (the reincarnated version of I Luv Video) to rent a VHS cassette tape.

As the capital city’s movie industry expands, it’s sure to discover a community of cinephiles whose love of the silver screen rips at the thin veil of the fourth wall to remind us that films amount to very little without an audience to appreciate them.