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What is the difference between regular membership and premium membership?
Regular membership allows you and one guest to attend all our morning weekend screenings. Premium membership allows you and one guest to attend all morning weekend screenings as well as evening special events. These evening events include: plays, special screenings, concerts, and lectures.

How do I learn about the special events for premium membership?
You can find this information and sign up for special events by going to the “Now Showing” link and inputting your password and number (which has been assigned to you). NOTE: If you were a member of LAFTA, you may continue to use your old LAFTA number for the time being, until our new website is active and operational. If you do not have a number, we will assign you a special temporary number to use until our new website is operational. When we successfully activate the new website, you will then use the number assigned to you which is located just right of the signature panel of your membership card.

How many films do you screen?
We screen upwards of 100 films a year for the members.

What type of films do you screen?
We screen all major genre films. In addition, we also screen films which fall into the categories: action, adventure, thriller, drama, and comedies. We specialize in screening independent films and various foreign films. We screen a broad spectrum of films which brings great variety to our members.

How do we learn about screenings?
We have 2 websites set up for our members to view a list of upcoming screenings. We additionally have 2 hotlines which you can call to learn about upcoming screenings. We will pass out printed screening schedules to the members if we have confirmed at least a month’s worth of screenings. These schedules will be distributed at the morning screenings.

Can I bring extra guests to screenings?
We allow members to bring one guest with them to screenings. If you have an out of town guest (family member or friend), please email us and let us know of this situation. We will most likely allow you to bring an extra guest or two on occasion, as long as we feel there is no danger of turning members away.

Can I bring children to screenings?
We do not allow children under the age of 5 into our screenings. There will be screenings held where we will allow you to bring extra children to the showing (age range will be determined by film).

What time do your screenings occur on the weekend?
We screen most of our films at the Laemmle Monica 4-Plex Theater. We must start our screenings in line with the start of their first attraction of the day. Screenings can begin anywhere between 10:00 am – 11:30 am. Our screening start times are posted on our website.

How do I gain entrance to the screenings?
You must be a member in good standing. When you show up, please show your membership card to the Academy rep at the door to gain admittance. If you have a guest, please enter the theater together. We do not allow anyone to come into the theater and then go back out and bring in a guest.

Do filmmakers or studio representatives attending screenings?
On occasion, the filmmakers will be in attendance to monitor audience reaction to his/her film. We ask all members and guests to be respectful of films we screen and behave in a professional manner. There are occasions we will set up a pre-release screening. Security may be in attendance to check bags and purses for recording equipment. Please cooperate with the security. They are doing their job and should not be questioned or scrutinized in any way.

Do you have any specific rules when attending screenings?
We ask that you behave in a professional manner. This means no talking during the film, leaving refuse/litter in the theater, using and/or checking your lighted cell phones during the film, and behaving in a rude/confrontational manner. We will revoke your membership privileges if we see this type of behavior occur. It’s our mission to present films to our members in a courteous way. If you have attended paid admission public screenings recently, you know how unruly theater goers have become. We want our members to enjoy their time in the theater and not have to put up with this rude behavior.

Why do you screen films?
We screen films for the purposes of determining award nomination consideration and helping to promote new film releases. We annually hold the Saturn Awards and must determine films and performances worthy of nomination. We have established close relationships with the studios and provide a service in helping to secure positive word-of-mouth on a new film release. We are a unique group and one of the final organizations to provide so many screenings to its’ membership. In today’s market, studios have begun cutting back on these types of screenings. So long as the studios feel there is a purpose in the organization, we will continue to provide you with the many benefits we have been able to offer you the past 30 plus years.