How To Host An Unforgettable Backyard Outdoor Movie Night

Have you ever wanted to re-live the experience of a summer night spent at a drive-in movie? A backyard movie event is the perfect chance to enjoy a movie under the stars with friends and family, without even needing to leave the comfort of your own yard. Here is how to create an unforgettable movie event in your own backyard.

Theme
What type of event do you want to host? A date night to celebrate an Anniversary, a neighborhood block party, a birthday, family reunion or graduation are just a few occasions you can celebrate with a backyard movie night. A regular family film night can even be made extra special by making it into a backyard movie night with an inflatable movie screen.

Pick the Movie
Once you decide on the type of event you want to host and the guest list, you can choose an appropriate film. If you are celebrating a birthday or graduation, let the honoree choose the movie. For a romantic date night, choose a favorite romantic film. If you are having kids at your backyard movie night, be sure to choose a family friendly movie.

Equipment
Once you have decided on a motion-picture, it is time to make a budget and get in contact with a local outdoor movie production company. Many audio / visual production companies work with a wide variety of clients; from individuals who wish to host a small event at their home, to clients who need huge inflatable movie screens to accommodate thousands of guests.

The outdoor cinema production company you choose should have a screen size just right for your backyard flick night. The company should also be able to provide you with a projector and sound equipment to make your movie night an unforgettable, stress free experience much like a drive-in movie or movie theatre.

Food
It's not movie night without food. You have several options here. You might make your movie night a potluck and ask everyone to bring a favorite movie snack to share, or you might provide snacks or a light meal like popcorn, hot dogs or movie theatre style candy. To really get the drive-in movie experience, you might even consider renting concession equipment like a popcorn or hot dog machine. You could keep the snacks simple or have a little more fun with it. Consider themed snacks to go with your film; chocolate to go with "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" or a meatball appetizer with "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs".

Set the Scene
Decorating and setting up your yard are other areas you can have some fun. Use lighting like Tiki torches or even Christmas lights to set a pretty scene and make it safer for guests to walk around in the dark. Consider heading to a local party store or putting your craft skills to good use and setting up themed decorations to compliment your movie. Lanterns, for example, would add an extra special touch to a "Tangled" backyard movie night. If you have a pool, a poolside movie is just right for a hot summer night. You might host a late afternoon pool party and barbeque, followed by a relaxing poolside movie night.

Seating
There are several ways to set up the seating for your movie night. For kids, blankets or bean bags are a fun choice. Adults might prefer chairs or comfortable cushions. If you do not have enough chairs for all of your guests, you could either rent chairs or ask guests to bring a favorite chair. Consider low chairs like beach chairs so that everyone can see the movie.

Whatever the size, theme or reason for your backyard movie night; taking the time to carefully plan the details, decorate and choose the perfect movie will help ensure your movie night is one that will leave you and your guests with special memories.