‘The Excitement is Unbelievable’: ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’ Has Special Screening at Fort Macleod | The Canadian News

No ghost was safe at Fort Macleod on Saturday night.

A red carpet was rolled out, a replica of Ecto-1 parked on the street, and more ghostbusters than one person could count filled the main street of the city.

It was a special screening of Ghostbusters: Another Life six days before the film’s scheduled release date.

“I couldn’t even sleep last night,” said Candace Schneider of the Calgary Ghostbusters. “I was so excited that I thought, ‘I need to get up early to get ready,’ because I worked today, but I couldn’t sleep because it felt like it was Christmas.”

Schneider recalls seeing Ghostbusters When i was a child. He grew up with movies and admits that he thought he was going to marry Egon from the cartoon.

While that didn’t happen, Schneider is not alone when it comes to Ghostbusters fandom.

Winnipeg Ghostbusters co-founder Kris Rutherford said he remembers a Halloween where his parents put him in a white painter’s suit and wrote “Ghostbusters” on him.

“It’s very exciting,” Rutherford said. “We’ve been waiting for what, three years for this.”

The movie was shot all over Alberta, landing in small towns and large cities.

Carson, Jaxon and Cooper Baugeois are from Calgary. The brothers say there was a week their family drove around the province after filming.

“I am a huge Ghostbusters fan, ”Carson said.

“I’ve probably seen the first movie more than any other, and it’s so cool that I’m going to get to see this one. I saw the footage and everything, and I feel like everything is coming together now, and I can’t wait to see it. “

The brothers had tickets to the special screening at the Empress Theater.

But the event was not just a movie premiere. It was also a fundraiser for the 109-year-old theater at Fort Macleod. The theater must undergo renovations and improvements to the floor and ceiling.

Tickets were sold for $ 100, and while it may seem like a steep price for a movie ticket, they were sold out in 45 minutes.

“This is the first major fundraiser for that as we move forward, and the support has been overwhelming for us,” said theater director Margaret Ann Bianco.

Bianco added that ticket sales caused his system to collapse. But she wouldn’t do it any other way.

“The excitement is incredible and it is growing. Just walking down the street and listening to the Ghostbusters song and all the lights flashing, it’s quite remarkable. “

Ghostbusters, young and old, small and tall, came from all over Canada. Bianco said that people from England and the United States even attended the event.

“Knowing that people care so much about our jewel on Main Street, we are very excited,” said Bianco.

Kathryne and Stephanie Patterson were dressed to the nines as they walked the red carpet. The sisters are from Beiseker, a town with a population of less than 1,000. They were extras in the movie and they were excited to see not only themselves, but also their friends and family on the big screen.

“It’s great that [Alberta] it’s on the big screen, ”Kathryne said. “This is our home and it’s amazing that he comes here.”

“We are also from a small community, so that is really important to us. See everyone come together and do something good for the community. “

Brandon and Emma Mindel are the owners of the Ecto-1 replica. They brought the iconic ship from British Columbia. It is part of their collection of cars that they rent for special events and photo shoots through their business called BC DeLorean. They have only owned the cars for about six months.

“It was a really big one, literally, what we wanted on our list, and we are so happy to have it,” Brandon said. “And we are very excited to show it to everyone here at Fort Macleod.”

When the Mindels found out about the event at Fort Macleod, they knew they had to be there. Arriving on Friday, Brandon said they woke up at dawn on Saturday to reenact scenes from the movie in front of the Empress Theater and the grain elevator in Dorothy, Alta.

“For me personally, it’s the history of Canadian cinema,” Brandon said. “Dan Ackroyd, Ivan Reitman, and now he’s back in Canada filming in Alberta. I’m just proud Ghostbusters it’s partly Canadian. “

Despite the last Ghostbusters movie with the original cast that was released more than 30 years ago, there is a message that has never faded.

“Anyone can be a ghost hunter. That’s the thing. You don’t have to have a superpower, you don’t have to be extremely handsome, you can have a little beer belly, ”Schneider said.

“Most of the people here are going to have their last names on their flight suits because we are not playing characters. We are ourselves as ghostbusters. “

Ghostbusters: Another Life premieres on November 19.