Boston

This page is designed to compile all known ways to attend a free advanced movie screening, both online and offline. If you live in Boston and know of other providers or offers in your area, please leave a comment and help us out.

General Providers

When you attend enough advanced screenings, you start to notice that the same providers keep sponsoring them. So it's in your interest to find out more about these providers.

1. Local Radio

Generally, local radio stations can give out screening passes six ways:

• Listen to win: "Our 29th caller gets tickets for two to see.."
  
• Pass pick-up: "Drop by our station office and pick up passes..."
• Expo or festival: "Stop by our booth and be sure to grab tix..."
• Follow the van: "Our wacky afternoon DJ has driven the prize van over to some local business and is giving away free hot dogs and movie passes!"
• Point system: "Join our listeners club, and when you earn enough points..."
  
• Online contests: "Enter by Monday. We'll select five winners then to attend..."

Kiss 108 should update the Movie Club section of its contest page about once a month. Jam'n 94.5 has offered a screening or two in the past. A bunch of other radio stations have a contest page, though few are helpful here: Talk 680, News Radio 1030, Mike FM, 92.9 WBOS, Classical 99.5, FNX Radio, Oldies 103.3, WBCN 104.1, and 105.7 WROR.

Feel free to find other local stations by using Radio Locator or your favorite Internet search engine.

2. Local Print

The Boston Globe has a contest page at Boston.com. Then there's the Boston Herald.

You should also look for any weekly or community papers that you might find in libraries or in colorful boxes along city sidewalks. The Phoenix and the Weekly Dig have no online contests, but maybe you'll find something by flipping through their print versions.

Also consider any campus papers if you live near one of the many colleges in the Boston area. For example, the Harvard Crimson may have no movie screenings on their website, but maybe the print version is more helpful.

3. Local TV

ABC 5 offers only movie-related prizes, not screenings. Find even less at CBS 4 and MyFOX 25.

4. Local Internet

Edge Boston has a great contest page with frequent and consistent movie offers. Understand that the site addresses gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender culture, so it's important to keep an open mind. After all, a contest is a contest, and anyone can enter. Besides, Edge is just one of several sponsors of a single screening -- they get some passes, and maybe a radio station gets others. So if you win passes, you'll be in a diverse crowd; it's not like they check your sexuality at the door.

Mass Live.com has a number of contests for sporting events and live performances; maybe they'll add movies to their list.

Meetup.com has a Boston Movie Group that arranges free advanced screenings. Similarly, the Boston Screening Community is a LiveJournal bulletin board that may provide some helpful local information.

5. Regional and National Internet

Free Movie Screenings has a separate page for Boston events. It's active every now and then, but many of the offers you find are cut and paste jobs from the forums mentioned below.

Sign up for a free membership in the Landmark Theatres Film Club and receive notices about screenings by e-mail. Do the same with The Cinema Source.

Film Metro has gone national and may offer screenings just about anywhere. Take a look and see if your city is included.

Be sure to check the national forums at Fat Wallet and Slick Deals as well. THE MOVIE OUTSIDER has a representative that posts offers on each of those forums, and compiles a list of screenings by city that links back to here. More importantly, other members in the forums will relay info about multi-city screenings sponsored by the movie studios and PR firms. Use these sites in tandem, and you'll get about as much publicly available information as possible.

Specific Offers

THE BUCKET LIST (already in limited release)

Edge Boston screening
Date, time, and location unknown

Film Metro screening
Monday, Jan. 7, time and location unknown

CLOVERFIELD (otherwise opens January 18)

Edge Boston screening
Date, time, and location unknown

HOW SHE MOVE (otherwise opens January 25)

Edge Boston screening
Date, time, and location unknown