1. AFS Cinema

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Austin, TX

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AFS Cinema

4.6 (45 reviews)
Open • 4:00 pm - 10:30 PM

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Airon A.

Visited the AFS Cinema for a movie screening during the Austin Film Festival. It is a bit like going back in time. Although the theater doesn't have all the bells and whistles of a typical theater, the mission makes it unique. The AFS Cinema is Austin's only nonprofit art house theater, with a mission to bring the community together around great film. On one screen, they present new releases from international narratives to documentaries and independent films. They are always showing unique and non main stream films with a focus on films from Texas filmmakers. The second screen is repertory, programmed with special series covering the gamut of film culture and history, from movements in international cinema to director retrospectives, restorations, classics and more. This evening was a screening of the Unexpecteds. The theater has a full bar with rotating draft beers, local and imported wines and craft cocktails. I had a mezcal spicy margarita and it was one of the best cocktails that I have had from a cinema. They also offer a variety of other concessions including popcorn and grab and go candy and snacks. I had the popcorn which was seasoned perfectly with the right amount of salt and butter. The best part about the concessions are that they are reasonably priced. The theater is comfortable but they don't have reclining seats. This screening they had displays set up in the lobby celebrating the films release. There was also a question and answer session after the film to learn more about the director and actors perspectives on the film project. Overall a very enjoyable and comfortable movie watching experience, I just wish the location was closer to me because it is quite the drive coming from down South. Highly recommend this cinema and everything it stands for to offer alternate perspectives from corporate and mainstream media, and support a culture that values art, artists and personal expression.

Medleys
Ronda K.

This whole experience was awesome! The medleys were great, musicians interacted with the audience. I would definitely go to another one. The only negatives is booking the ticket, it made it seem as if it was 3 levels to choose for seating. Also paid extra for photo and is was horrible (even when she took it with our phone).

Mike R.

Had an amazing experience at this niche cinema. We attended a movie screening followed by a Q&A with the actors, which made it such a unique and memorable event. The atmosphere was intimate, they have a nice bar, and it's the perfect place to connect with the film and its creators. Very cool place!

The librarians.
Wendy K.

The service is always very good here. I like it a lot. The movie selections are always interesting.

Corridor to theaters
Eric H.

The Austin Film Society runs a cozy two theater cinema at the Linc, just west of I-35 S and north of 290. It's near Pluckers. AFS generally plans their screenings up to 2 months out; so in the December timeframe you'll be able to see what they are showing through the end of February. Their movie selection appears to be a diverse mixture of movies from a variety of time periods, international movies, those which have competed at film festivals, etc. Their selection typically does not overlap with movies played at commercial theater chains such as Alamo Drafthouse, AMC, Regal, etc. Thus, if there is a movie you're itching to see that isn't shown locally in other theaters, AFS may be a good choice to check. At AFS, I recently saw "All We Imagine as Light" and "Flow" both of which had been awarded recognition at Cannes this year. They were shown in Theater 1 and Theater 2. Both theaters have clean, plush, open seating. Theater 1 is clad with red curtains, and it is slightly better lit. Theater 2 is dimmer and has black/grey walls. Seating is open seating, non-stadium seating, but the screen is elevated, so for the most part there are no bad viewpoints unless you are really short and someone really tall happens to sit in front of you. The down side of this is the need to slightly elevate your head at an angle during the entire duration of movie. Tickets can be purchased when you arrive, or online, and will be scanned in at the theater doors. Posters adorn the walls of the corridors leading to the theaters, as well as the common areas, including the bathrooms. According to their policy, they strongly suggest arriving no later than 15 minutes past the scheduled show time, as unscanned tickets will be released to general seating. In terms of food, this theater features popcorn with real butter, an assortment of candy, as well as a bar with several cocktail options, including three NA cocktail options. As for coming back in the future, most definitely. I'd plan to see at least "Once Upon a Time in the West" (Jan 3 and Jan 5) and "Tampopo" (Feb 10 - Feb 16).

Lobby Curtains
Alex V.

I've been to this theater a few times and always enjoy it. Like tonight, it's usually been for an advance screening of an upcoming movie, or occasionally an obscure release that is only being shown here. Since this is run by the Austin Film Society there are always independent films, foreign films, classic films being shown. Since this theater is on the side of the Linc shopping center facing Middle Fiskville instead of I-35 it feels a little off the beaten path and cozy. The parking spaces are too narrow, but there's tons of parking so you can always park in the back of the lot where there's more room. I love the decor from the animated neon sign at the entrance to the fancy lighting and curtains in the lobby where there is also a small bar for cocktails and light bites. And I love the wall of LP soundtracks leading to the screening rooms! The theater rooms have comfortable seating and can accommodate a good crowd, so it's rarely full even for events like I've attended. And the shopping center has a good selection of restaurants too, so this is a great place for date nights.

Jennifer D.

Visiting from out of town and booked a candlelight event here which was a tribute to Adele. Not only was the concert itself amazing, but the theater was pretty cool. Love the concessions and bar area. It definitely has an elevated theater vibe.

lighting
Molly C.

You will not leave this place unchanged, here I saw Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas and Wings of Desire back to back. Since, I've returned several times, in any of my changing mental states, and have left with a new sense of belonging each time. Thank you AFS, for being a safe place to treat my desperate longing for escapism. Come as you are, never leave. Spread my ashes between the seats. M

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Reviews are largely positive. People highlight the unique film selection, intimate atmosphere, and friendly, knowledgeable staff. The quality concessions and bar are also appreciated.

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7 years ago

The best place in Austin to see art house movies. I go 2-3x a month and always love my experience.

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9 years ago

Oh how I love this gem! The best little theatre in town.

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7 years ago

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9 years ago

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8 years ago

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Review Highlights - AFS Cinema

“The Austin Film Society runs a cozy two theater cinema at the Linc, just west of I-35 S and north of 290.”

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IPIC Austin - Bison Burger

IPIC Austin

(799 reviews)

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I'm a big fan of IPIC Theaters, it's a great little theater in The Domain and one I really enjoy…read more It's feels very inclusive to me because of its wheelchair accessibility. It's always clean and the people working there are so nice and it makes a difference in the whole vibe of the place. They have a good drinks menu and food too. The recliners are comfortable, but they do run a little short. My feet hang off the end and I'm only 5'7". Thankfully they offer cozy blankets, which I love and definitely helps. Service is easy and convenient. You can push a button if you need something or just order from your phone without missing anything. The lobby is also a nice place to hang out before or after your movie with a full bar, a pool table, and plenty of family games to play. Prices are pretty comparable to other theaters of the kind, so it doesn't feel like a big splurge. Just a really enjoyable spot for a movie night.

PIC markets itself as a luxury cinema. Save your money and go to Cinépolis if you want a good…read moreexperience. Their systems were down when we arrived, so we had to stand at guest services and buy our own tickets online. We were then told the in-theater server buttons weren't working, but that a server would still come by as they stop serving 20 minutes after the start. Nobody did. After about 25 minutes, I had to leave the theater and find a server myself to order. It took another 20+ minutes to arrive, which was just a bottle of wine. After the movie, we sat through the entire credits waiting for a check. Again, nobody came. We could have easily walked out, but instead I went looking for someone because I wanted to pay for what we ordered. The employee I eventually found was a different employee entirely and didn't appear to have a check for us. She first said I don't know your tan and I had to prompt further "okay so then how should we proceed to which She asked what we ordered, and I honestly told her it was the $65 bottle. Then I watched her calculate the total on her phone and add gratuity before handing me the payment terminal. No itemized bill even though I pointed to the exact bottle we ordered. No clear disclosure that gratuity had already been added. The terminal then prompted me for an additional tip. Final wine charge: $82.06. A $65 bottle plus 8.25% tax is about $70.36, so roughly $11.70, or 18%, was added as gratuity. I tip well almost always 20% even if service is just ok . What I don't appreciate is an automatic gratuity being added without clear disclosure after I had to leave the movie to find service, wait another 20+ minutes for the order, and then hunt down an employee afterward just so I could pay. Between the two tickets and the wine, we spent $122.98. We go on roughly two date nights a week, and I rarely leave reviews. The fact that I'm writing this at 1 AM after getting home says plenty. If you're going to charge premium prices and call the experience "luxury," the service should at least meet the basics. This didn't

Matthew McConaughey Cinema - Carnivore pizza $17

Matthew McConaughey Cinema

(311 reviews)

$$

Overall: 3.5/5 [dine in]…read more This theater is in a great location and is always clean. They also validate parking at the McBee garage which is a nice perk. The seats are a bit older than the Lakeline location and don't seem to recline as much, but the drinks come out faster here. They also have a nice upstairs outdoor patio to hang out on. We got the boneless wings with fries ($18.25). The fries were alright but the wings were not good, the taste and flavor just weren't for me. The portion was also pretty small for the price.

It's amazing how much private equity can sh*tify something up so badly that you can't even…read morerecognize the original business anymore. Needless to say a lot has changed since our last review of this Alamo location from 2017! Even though we hadn't written updated reviews, we nonetheless noticed (of course) that Alamo had consistently gotten worse over the years. However, our experience last week has confirmed that we will never ever be back here again. This place is the pits. The only reason we went is because someone got us a gift card. We bought our tickets, and there was a $7 "convenience fee" like we are in 1998. But then, we get to the theatre, and--JOKE'S ON US because we had no idea that this had happened--you do everything through a QR now. Are you kidding??? How much soul can you suction out of a business!?! The whole point of this whole enterprise was to use the fun little pencils, write your order down, and have the charming experience of HUMAN INTERACTION. Now, you have your phone out--yes, haha that they mention the irony after the bazillion ads we had to sit through!--and there is an automatic 18% tip included. Wowza! We were so disgusted that we only ordered beers. Our daughter had to get TWO kids pizzas because the portions were so small. The menu is way more limited and even more overpriced than one could imagine. Hope you liked Toy Story 5! Oh, AND FYI, if you forget to close out your tab, they add a 5% ADDITIONAL tip within 20 minutes of the movie closing. I mean, this place truly, truly hates its customers. And what greets you at the main desk? A Gen Z'er on her phone the entire time who can't be bothered to look up when folks come and go. We hate this place so much and we are SO excited for the day that we hear that they will have to shutter their doors because, honestly, no business deserves to go under more than this one. 1 star only because we can't give zero.

Bullock Museum IMAX Theatre

Bullock Museum IMAX Theatre

(56 reviews)

Downtown

Came to watch Mesmerica XL. What a wonderful production. I…read moreleft so relaxed and really present at the same time. I do recommend it while it lasts as it is amazing. Coming to the Bullock museum is such a plus being in the city, places like this need to exist for people to enjoy culture in community. My son really liked coming here. We had a blast!

I went to see The Odyssey tonight since I wanted a true IMAX experience and was extremely…read moredisappointed by the service we received from one member of your staff in particular. Her name is Gloria. Since you all don't have any assigned seating, I held our seats while my wife went to the concession stand first. When my wife came back with her items, I then proceeded to go get my concession items. As I'm walking down, I get a text from my wife saying that a concessions person came in the theater and told her she didn't pay for her items, and asked me to pay at the register. As I'm checking out, with tap mind you, my first attempt doesn't work on your scanner. I tried a second time and it goes through. I then told the cashier that I needed to pay for my wife a items as well and the cashier informed me that all items have been rang up and there weren't any missed payments. I said ok and went back to my seat. About 20 minutes later, the woman who I now know as Gloria comes into the theater raising her voice to my wife and saying that she needed to pay for food. She says this twice in a raised voice. I go down and get it taken care of. The lack of customer service skills by Gloria is beyond ridiculous. For one, communicate to your staff that someone is going to be coming down to pay, or how about this, let your customer know the transaction didn't go through before you let them walk away. It's beyond embarrassing to have someone berate you in a packed theater for ultimately a mistake on the theaters part. Side note, can you all get some other food options and teach Gloria how to handle customer service issues instead of raising her voice at patrons.

AFS Cinema - movietheaters - Updated October 2026

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