has the buffy the vampire slayer film got a connection to the tv series?

becuse in season 1 she said that her old watcher died like the watcher
(Merrick) did in the film. and she all so said she burned down her old
school gym possibly the one at the end of the film and that she lived
in LA. but even if that was buffy from the film she would have been 15
at the time the film was set