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Film Exchange helps film fans find specialty screenings (IMAX, 70mm, premieres, festivals) and pass tickets to each other across the US. You're buying from another fan, not from the venue. Here's the whole flow, start to finish:

1. Discover a screening. Browse what other members have listed, or add a film to your Watchlist and get told when a ticket appears.
2. Seller asking prices are capped. A seller can never ask for more than they paid: face value plus the original booking fees, never a markup. More on that below.
3. Request to buy. When you request, the seller is notified and can accept or decline. If they don't respond in time, the request expires and the ticket goes back on the marketplace.
4. Pay, directly or protected. With direct payment, once a request is accepted the app reveals the seller's payment handles (Venmo, PayPal, or Zelle) as tap-to-pay links and a QR code, and you pay them off-platform. When a listing offers protected payment, you can instead pay by card or Apple Pay through Trustap, which holds the money until after the screening. More on both below.
5. The ticket releases. With direct payment, you mark the payment as sent and the seller confirms the money landed; that confirmation releases the ticket. With protected payment, the ticket releases once Trustap confirms your payment. The platform never assumes a payment happened on its own.
6. Add it to Apple Wallet. The released ticket is yours to download and add to Apple Wallet. Confirm it works, and the exchange completes. Your ticket stays in My Tickets to re-download any time.

The same flow runs whether you're buying or selling: sellers list, accept requests (or let protected buyers check out instantly), and release the ticket once payment is confirmed.

A seller cannot ask for more than they originally paid for the ticket. The seller asking-price cap is face value (the established price on the ticket) plus the original fees the seller paid the venue or ticketing provider.

The listing form enforces the cap, so an over-cap listing can't be created.

The cap helps fans pass tickets on without a seller markup. If you can't use your ticket, another fan can get to the screening.

There are two ways to pay. Each listing shows which ones it accepts, and you see the total before you commit.

Direct payment (peer-to-peer). After a request is accepted, you pay the seller directly through their own Venmo, PayPal, or Zelle. Film Exchange coordinates the ticket handoff and shows the seller's payment handles and QR code; the payment goes from your account to the seller through your chosen provider. Direct payment has no Film Exchange fees.

Be clear-eyed about the risk. Because a direct payment happens off-platform, it is not covered by escrow or any refund guarantee. Film Exchange is not a party to the payment and cannot reverse, refund, or guarantee it. If a direct payment goes wrong, the platform can't claw it back. You'd resolve it through your payment provider, the same as any other Venmo or Zelle transfer. The full language is in Terms §7.

To keep a direct payment as safe as it can be:

• Only pay using the handles and QR code the app reveals after the request is accepted. Never a handle someone sends you in chat, email, or a DM.
• Never pay before a request is accepted. There's nothing to pay for yet.
• Send exactly the amount shown: no more (that would break the cap), and not in pieces.
• Expect the ticket only after the seller confirms your payment. The platform releases it at that point, and not before.

Protected payment (Trustap). When a listing offers it, you can pay by card or Apple Pay on the secure payment page of Trustap, our payment partner. Trustap holds your payment until after the screening and the ticket issue deadline; the seller is paid after that if no problem was reported. Protected checkout adds a buyer protection fee, shown with the total before you pay. Sellers pay no fee and receive their full asking price.

Protected payments are provided by Trustap and covered by Trustap's terms. How it works, the purchase terms and what sellers need to set up are on Protected payments.

The ticket is released to you through the app once your payment is confirmed: by the seller for a direct payment, or by Trustap for a protected payment. You download it and add it to Apple Wallet, then tap to confirm it works. It stays in My Tickets so you can re-download it any time before the screening, handy if you switch phones.

A caveat worth knowing: not every ticket can be transferred. Some tickets are bound to the original buyer's account, or use a rotating barcode that can't be handed off as a file: Ticketmaster “SafeTix” passes and certain festival or rep-house tickets, for example. Those can't move through Film Exchange as a Wallet pass.

If you're selling: only list a ticket you can actually transfer as a file or pass. Listing an account-bound or non-transferable ticket as transferable is a misdescription under our Terms, and the buyer is entitled to be made whole. When in doubt, check your ticket provider's transfer rules before you list.

If you got here from a request, this is the quick orientation. Every exchange lives on its request page under My Tickets, and the status line at the top tells you what's happening and what to do next.

If you're buying:

• Waiting to be accepted? The seller hasn't responded yet. You don't pay anything until they do.
• Accepted? Pay the seller using the revealed Venmo / PayPal / Zelle options, then tap I've sent the payment. Pay only through those revealed handles.
• Paid with protected payment? Your tickets are released once Trustap confirms the payment. If they don't work, report it from your ticket before the deadline shown there.
• Paid, waiting on the seller? They need to confirm the money landed; that confirmation releases your ticket.
• Ticket transferred? Add it to Apple Wallet and confirm it works to finish the exchange.

If you're selling: for a direct payment, accept the request to share your payment details, watch for the payment in your own Venmo / PayPal / Zelle, and only tap Confirm payment received once the money is in your account. That releases the ticket and can't be undone. For a protected sale, Film Exchange accepts the confirmed payment for you and sends the tickets; you're paid through Trustap after the screening and the ticket issue deadline.

Something not right: no payment, no ticket, or a ticket that won't scan? Don't let it sit. For a protected payment, use Report an issue on your ticket before the deadline shown there. For a direct payment, message the other party from the request, and if you can't sort it out, open a dispute (section 7).

Before anyone has paid, either side can back out of a direct-payment request and the ticket relists. Once a protected payment is made, use the actions shown on your request; if none fit, contact us.

After you've paid a seller directly, Film Exchange cannot issue a refund. We never held the money. If the screening is cancelled (and not rescheduled), the ticket turns out not to work, or the seller never delivers, contact the seller first to make it right. If that fails, open a dispute so there's a record, and use your payment provider's dispute process (Venmo, PayPal, or Zelle) since they're the only ones who can reverse the transfer.

After a protected payment, Trustap still holds the money. If your tickets don't work, report the problem from your ticket before the deadline shown there. Trustap investigates the report and decides the outcome under its terms; the payment stays on hold until then. Your bank may take longer to show a refund. Film Exchange doesn't decide disputes and does not provide replacement tickets. If Trustap approves a refund, you get back everything you paid, including the buyer protection fee. If you pay $40.29 for a $35.00 ticket, an approved refund is the full $40.29. Details are on Protected payments.

If a screening is postponed rather than cancelled, the ticket is usually good for the new date. If you can't make the new date, that's between you and the seller.

Most problems are honest misunderstandings, so start by messaging the other party from the request. If you can't resolve a direct-payment problem there, open a dispute from the request page. The other side is notified, you both can attach evidence (screenshots, payment receipts, the ticket), and a Film Exchange admin reviews the record and makes a call. Outcomes are recorded on members' track records, which is part of what keeps the marketplace honest.

One important limit applies to a direct (off-platform) payment dispute: you paid and got nothing, or you were asked for more than the cap. A dispute creates a record and can get a bad actor removed, but the platform still can't reverse the payment itself. To get the money back, you also need your payment provider. See Terms §10.

For a protected payment, report a ticket problem from your ticket before the deadline shown there. Trustap investigates protected-payment disputes and decides the outcome, including any refund; Film Exchange doesn't adjudicate them. The payment stays on hold while Trustap reviews the report.

Spotted someone breaking the rules: a scalper, a counterfeit, a request to pay over the cap? Report it to support@filmexchange.app.

Log in with your email and password, or choose Email me a login code: we email you a link and a short code. Tap the link, or type the code where you started, which works even if the email opens on another device. You can also add a passkey in Settings and log in with Face ID, Touch ID, or your password manager instead of typing your password. A passkey is optional; your password still works. One account per person: keep your email address current so you can always get back in, and so we can reach you about a request.

Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA). In Settings you can add a code from an authenticator app (TOTP) as a second step at login, and, where Settings offers it, a code texted to your phone. We strongly recommend it. Money moves around this marketplace, even when it moves off-platform. Some sensitive actions may ask you to re-verify even after you're logged in. Adding your first method asks for your password. Text messages depend on your number and carrier, so keep an authenticator app too if you can.

Think someone else got into your account? Email support@filmexchange.app right away. You can close your account any time in Settings; what we keep afterward is covered in our Privacy Policy.

Film Exchange is an invite-only beta for specialty film screenings and film festivals in the US. To take part you need a valid invite, you must be 18 or older, and you must be in the United States. Invites are limited, and we may expire or revoke them while we grow carefully.

Being a beta means some rough edges: features may change, and we're still polishing. If you hit a bug or something confusing, tell us. Early feedback genuinely shapes what gets built. The full beta terms are in our Terms.

Can't find your answer here? Email support@filmexchange.app. A human reads it. Include your request link if your question is about a specific exchange, and we'll get back to you.

For a direct payment that's already gone wrong, your payment provider's support (Venmo, PayPal, or Zelle) is the fastest route to a reversal. We can't move money we never held. For a protected payment, report the problem from your ticket before its deadline.

The fine print lives in our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.