Don't think it's out here yet either. They got an advance showing of "Red Tails" last year. I don't see anything unusual in getting an advance on "Zero" this year. It's good PR for the producers...
This certainly falls within my area of knowledge...
It's been out in limited release since December 19th, in order to qualify for the 2013 Academy Awards. Nominations for the Oscars closed on January 4th, and the nominations will be announced on January 10th.
The film goes into wide release on January 11th.
So, Columbia's PR department has a bunch of ads with "Nominated for X Academy Awards" ready to blitz on the 10th in time for the wide release. Also, the film will have been wide for 6 weeks when the awards are handed out on February 24th, and will still be in wide release to get a bump in attendance if it wins Best Picture.
And yes, a distributor's marketing department will gladly supply a screening for the free advertising that it provides.