UAA at the Movies

UAA at the Movies — abbreviated to UatM — is a program that offers students the ability to purchase discounted tickets for the releases of new movies as well as “retro films” that may be celebrating anniversaries. This program is made possible by UAA’s community partnership with Century 16, the local Cinemark theater for the Anchorage area. 

All information about UatM was provided to The Northern Light by Iesha Jones, Student Activities fiscal technician, through email exchange. 

Some of the films that UatM has offered in the past include screenings of “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” and most recently “Dune: Part Two” which sold out all available seats. 

UatM has been a program that has been available to students since spring 2018, known back then as “Family Movie Night.” With the passing of COVID-19, the program underwent a rebranding, changing its name to UAA at the Movies. This rebranding began in the fall semester of 2020 in an effort to maintain student engagement during the pandemic.

In addition to big blockbuster events like “Dune: Part Two,” and the “Retro-film” events such as “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” UatM also provides sensory-friendly screenings of family friendly films. 

According to the UAA Student Activities Facebook page, sensory-friendly screenings are “characterized by having the lights turned up slightly and the sound turned down to create a safe space for neurodivergent viewers and by providing space for young children to move about freely during the movie.” UatM is hoping to host one of these screenings in May or June of this year.

UatM usually holds these screenings in one of the 95-seat auditoriums at Century 16. They typically sell 90 tickets and hold five seats for their staff who work the event. 

These tickets go fast — usually selling out each event — so if you see one of these events on the horizon that interest you, it is better to buy your ticket sooner rather than later. 

Students and faculty can buy tickets to UatM showings at UAATix.com. Students have first dibs on ticket sales while faculty, staff and alumni must wait until students get their chance to purchase tickets. Student tickets are priced at $5, even for notable films such as “Dune: Part Two.” Tickets also come with a concessions voucher, allowing students to get a small popcorn and small drink for free. Ticket prices for faculty, alumni or staff range from $5 to $10 depending on the type of screening being shown. 

Students and staff alike should be sure to keep an eye on UAATix.com and the UAA Student Activities Facebook page for upcoming UatM events.