Providence Movie Club Celebrates Three Years of Bringing Film-Lovers Together

At age four, Sean Flack’s mother brought him to a screening of Jurassic Park, introducing him to the magic of movies and the shared experience of seeing them on the silver screen alongside an enraptured audience. Now, through the Providence Movie Club, Flack spreads the magic of that shared movie-going experience through film-based community building.

Celebrating its third year, the club now holds four events every month, often including a group trip to a movie at Providence Place with a meetup afterwards, a social mixer event (for those who’d like to meet fellow movie-goers, but may not have time or money for a movie and dinner on the same night), screenings at AS220 programmed by Flack himself (a recent screening of Alien saw upwards of 40 attendees), and movie nights organized in partnership with other local groups. For example, one month the Providence Movie Club partnered with the West Broadway Neighborhood Association to screen Fantastic Mr. Fox in Dexter Park, or a screening of Bodies Bodies Bodies at Moniker Brewery with Queers and Beers of Rhode Island. For a hobby that often involves sitting silently in the dark, Flack has created a vibrant and all-inclusive community that seems to be constantly growing.

But it wasn’t always the lively and expansive network it is today. Flack, an Ocean State resident since 2017, wanted to make more friends after the pandemic, and began attending the twice-monthly Rhode Island Beer Club. “I saw all the benefits of having local friends and a community,” says Flack. “So I wanted to provide that for other people who, you know, may be like me.” While seven attendees participated in the inaugural club outing to catch a Studio Ghibli film at Providence Place followed by dinner at Nami, attendance dwindled in the first year, and there were meetings where nobody showed up, or perhaps more awkwardly, a film with only a single attendee. The movie? Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave. “Well, I ended up becoming kind of close friends with that person,” tells Flack, “Yeah, that was a good thing.”

What really spiked attendance in the club was working with a local artist to create a logo, starting an Instagram page where Flack’s unique voice lends authenticity to posts promoting upcoming screenings, and holding social mixers in addition to the movie-meetup combo events. The first of the club’s social gatherings, held at Kimi’s, saw around 40 attendees, a long way from Decision to Leave. Since then, the group has continued to grow. “A big part of that, too, is just consistency,” explains Flack, “So many people start meetup groups or groups around the city, and they’re very consistent with it, which makes sense.”

Providence Movie Club and Flack are largely one and the same when it comes to running the aforementioned Instagram page, organizing events, and running screenings. “It’s a lot of work,” admits Flack, “kind of emotionally exhausted too because you’re kind of like, oh is everyone having fun? When you’re doing your own screenings too, there’s also the AV issues which could go wrong.”

And yet, Flack has no plans of slowing down. When asked about plans for the future, he did not rest on the laurels of the three-year anniversary; instead, he excitedly outlined ideas for Providence Movie Club t-shirts, fliers, and even a movie-zine where local writers and artists could contribute pieces for themed publications. “People constantly are like, oh, you should start a podcast, but the world does not need another podcast,” says Flack, only half in jest. “But, you know, doing the zine, I think, would be a cool, cool idea. And I know there are some local people who are doing that kind of thing.”

At a time when so much engagement (with people, art, or otherwise) is mediated electronically, Flack’s Providence Movie Club has proven with its ever-growing attendance that people still seek out communal experiences bonding over art that matters. For those drawn to the light of this projector, information about future screenings can be found on the group’s Instagram page @pvdmovieclub.