'Anybody can be a Ghostbuster': Fans flock to Fort Macleod for 'Afterlife' movie premiere

LETHBRIDGE -

Fort Macleod was oozing with excitement over the weekend as the Canadian premiere of Ghostbusters: Afterlife hit the town.

Officials rolled out the red carpet on Saturday, as movie fans, ghostbusters and residents flocked to Fort Macleod's main street.

"I couldn't even sleep last night, I was so excited. It felt like Christmas," said Candace Schneider, a founding member of Calgary Ghostbusters.

"I'm a massive ghostbusters fan! I've probably seen the first movie more than any other movie," said 16-year-old Karson Vaugeois.

The premiere of Afterlife happened nearly three years after portions were filmed in Fort Macleod, which doubled as a small town in Oklahoma.

Directed by Jason Reitman and starring Paul Rudd and Finn Wolfhard, the movie was shot all over southern Alberta.

On Saturday, hundreds of fans from across Canada visited Fort Macleod for the premiere, including members of real-life ghostbusters groups.

"It's about the fact that anybody can be a ghostbuster," said Kris Rutherford of the Winnipeg Ghostbusters.

"If you look around, most of the people out here are going to have their last names on their flight suits because we're not playing characters. We're ourselves… as ghostbusters."

The Canadian premiere of 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' in Fort Macleod, Alta.

There was also lots to see including a replica of the Ghostbusters' car, the Ecto-1.

It was brought out for the event from the group British Columbia Delorian, located just outside Vancouver, which makes replicas of movie cars.

"As soon as we heard about Fort Macleod getting to have this special screening, we contacted them right away," said spokesperson Brandon Mindel.

"They said, 'that's great, we want you, we just need approval from Sony.' We got that approval from Sony, and here we are, 14 hours later."

Not only did the screening give fans a chance to come together, it also served as a fundraising opportunity for the Empress Theatre, which opened in 1912.

"The theatre is 109 years old this year and we're going to eventually need new flooring and new seating," said Margaret-Ann Bianco, the Empress Theatre's director.

"This is the first big fundraiser for that," she said. "The support has been overwhelming."

The tickets to watch the screening cost attendees $100 and all 327 seats were sold out within the first 45 minutes.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife hits theatres everywhere on Nov. 19.