The UA Will Nolan Film Club put together a special preview screening of independent film distributor A24’s new sci-fi-comedy film “Y2K” on Tuesday.
The event, exclusive to students who had reserved a spot beforehand, featured not only the film but 1999-based trivia and themed ‘90s music. Many students arrived wearing themed clothing based around the ‘90s and ‘00s.
“A24 emailed me with the subject line ‘Hi from A24! – Screening of Y2K’ and gave information about their new film,” said Cayla Shipman, president of the club and a sophomore majoring in computer science. Initially, she believed it to be a scam because she couldn’t believe that the famous indie film company would reach out to the club.
Shipman said she received the email on Nov. 7 and that a plan was quickly put together to screen the film during dead week. This is normally a week where the club plays a surprise film, but in this case, announcements were made in advance to get as many people as possible to attend.
This is the first time the club has worked with an outside film company and the first time the club screened an unreleased film.
There was also a surprise video appearance from the film’s director, Kyle Mooney. He thanked the audience for coming and signed off with a “Roll Tide!”
“I’m very happy with how attendance turned out,” said Reese Gabrielson, a senior majoring in finance who serves as the club’s treasurer. “I remember when we started the club, we had maybe seven people showing up. But we have a very consistent group now, and I’m really happy with how far it’s come.”
The film, a satirical sci-fi movie that depicts the hypothetical Y2K crisis from the perspective of a group of high schoolers, received high praise from those in attendance, with laughter and exclamations of excitement throughout the showing. There was a round of applause when the credits arrived.
“Y2K” is in theaters now, and can be seen at Tuscaloosa’s CMX Hollywood.
“This was an amazing opportunity from A24, so I am hoping since we had a high turnout, they’ll be willing to ask us to screen more films at UA,” Shipman said. “This event also proved to me that it’s not impossible to connect with bigger companies. I’m looking forward to trying it the other way, and this time reaching out to film companies asking for them to let us screen their movies, whether it’s local Alabama films or more popular ones.”
