INTERVIEW: You42 Studios Merges Creativity with Community

Art Seen ATL tours Roswell's headquarters for creators

You42 Studios in Roswell (Photo by Mikey Smith)

In the heart of Roswell, You42 Studios is a brand-new hub for creatives of all kinds. Housed inside the old Andretti Indoor Karting on Alpharetta Highway, the space offers a Hollywood backlot-style setup with over a dozen filming locations, a myriad of dining options, and tons of ways to discover art in your own backyard.

Art Seen ATL had the pleasure of exploring You42 Studios alongside Community Director Brent Zaffino—you may recognize his name from countless Atlanta-based films and his work at Canton’s Peaberry Film Festival. “My job is community management, so I'm putting on programming for members and potential members or people who might use [the studio] to just come and be creative and learn,” he explained.

Zaffino led us through each and every corner of You42, showcasing the variety of rooms available for filming. From a courtroom and a game show studio (complete with working buzzers) to a bodega and a mock Oval Office, creators have access to a slew of setups to use however they may desire. No expenses were spared in making the spaces feel fully immersive— the jail cell’s bars are rock solid, the curbs on “Main Street” are actual concrete (Zaffino is looking forward to the day someone films a musical dance sequence on the stretch), and the bodega sells real snacks. In addition to the more out-of-the-box areas, You42 also offers the staples, including green screens and podcast studios. Visitors will soon be able to rent gear for content creation and source in-house services for post-production.

What sets You42 Studios apart from other creator spaces is its dual function as a community hub, featuring plenty of opportunities for locals to hang out, socialize, and explore what the spot has in store. By day, AJ’s Pizzeria serves as a restaurant set, but by night, it serves up Chicago tavern-style slices for the neighborhood. Top Chef’s Katsuji Tanabe is putting the finishing touches on “the last piece of the restaurant puzzle” at You42, an upscale fusion joint called High Horse—according to Zaffino, Tanabe’s cornbread is the real deal. When we toured, You42 had just opened Big Shots Country Bar, a Western-themed space with live music and a crafted cocktail menu. Even in the empty bar, you could feel the energy bubbling underneath—I can only liken it to how a well-orchestrated theme park design can whisk you away to another world. 

With lots more on the way—including a theatre for live music, comedy, and other ticketed events—You42 Studios is gearing up for an exciting summer. The organization is also launching their Creator Cohort, an exclusive program gifting artists with a series of seminar on content creation and development. Though applications for the cohort have closed, individual tickets can still be purchased per workshop, allowing neighborhood creatives a chance to join in on the magic.

Visit  You42 Studios' site for more info.

Article by Olivia Smith. Photos by Mikey Smith. Please credit @mts2.photo or @art.seen.atl if reposting on social media.