Block Party

I had spoken with Terry, one of our wonderful neighbors, about doing a block party.  "Give me dates and I will make it happen." she said.  And she did, to the delight of the neighborhood!  Everyone came out for food, crafts, s'mores and a kid friendly movie.

Here are some key planning steps and ideas from our event:

Close your Street
In our town you are required to get 50% of the people on the block to agree to close the street.  A $30 permit and many signatures later Terry had collected the required amount.  The City then drops off signs to close your street.

Check with you local city for requirements in your town.

Spread the Word 
We used the social media site Nextdoor to invite our neighbors.

It's important to remember that not everyone in the neighborohood is online.
Terry created a flyer and placed it in everyone's mailbox.  The Block Party invitations were also distributed to neighboring streets.

On the day of the event, reminders were placed in everyone's mailbox on the block.

Food 
Potluck is a great way to bring the community together.  In our multicultural society the array of food can be fascinating and delicious.  Our potluck table was overflowing!

We had neighbors roll out their BBQ's and people brought their own meat to grill.

A fire pit was set up in a driveway for S'mores and of course, there was Popcorn!

The Movie
As our Block Party was in October we chose Wallace and Gromit - Curse of the Were-Rabbit.  Be sure to keep it Family Friendly.  Don't forget that showing a movie in a public location requires a licence.  We had a group of local small business owners, and neighbors, sponsor the licencing.

Our  movie was sponsored by Terry (organizer extraordinaire and local Realtor), FunFlicks (that's me) and GoWithSlim (a local Plexus natural weight loss ambassador).  Have a table with info for these businesses.

Before the movie we had music and a slide show thanking the sponsors

Your local Police
We invited the local police to come talk about neighborhood safety. It's great for the neighborhood to see local officers in a friendly environment.  They even brought free swag for the kids.  We had a table available for neighborhood safety information and exchange of phone numbers and email addresses.  We even had a brief, unofficial visit from the major!

Kids played tag, we got to see our neighbors and made some new friends.

"Let's do it next year!"
Sounds like a plan.
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Girls Night Out Movie Night

A Girls night out movie night is a great way for ladies, young and old, to relax, giggle and unwind from the constant "go go go" of their busy appointment-filled lives.

Here are some great ideas to help you plan a fabulous evening with your gal pals:

Invites
Get the word out!  You can use a service like Evite to invite your friends.   Evite has a number of movie night and girls night out invitation templates (and it's free!).

Seating
Indoors or out, your guests need somewhere to sit.   If indoors, rearrange furniture and clear out tables to make room for more seating.  If you are outside, consider a BYOCAB -- Bring Your Own Chair and Blanket.

The Film
It's Girls night out, here's your chance to watch that chick flick!  Here are 5 great suggestions:

Grease  It's the word.  Go on sing... no one will judge

Thelma and Louise Road trip for Girls

The Notebook Don't forget the tissues

Love Actually Great movie for the Christmas Holidays

Notting Hill  Hugh Grant at his bubbling best

Not Just for Movies
How about a season premiere or season finale on the big screen?  Parenthood, Bachelor/Bachelorette, Downton Abbey or coming soon the Outlander series.

Food
Popcorn and movie snacks are a must!  You can always theme your food with what you are showing. "Drink tea, there's lots of tea"  with your Notting Hill or Downton Abbey party.

Cheers
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy (and his wife)

5 SPOOKTACTULAR Tips for Outdoor Movies

Spook up your Halloween movie night with these great ideas... 

1. Food and Drink... Make fun themed labels for your beverages.... True Blood labels for wine or  Butterbeer for your sodas!
2. Show a movie in a similar location to where it was shot... Imagine the Blair Witch Project near the woods.  Scarrrrry!
3. Halloween is one time of year where you can dress up.  Have your guests come as their favorite character from the film you are showing
4.  Music - Before your movie starts have a fun playlist of movie themes... Ghostbusters, Adams Family, Nightmare before Christmas and Jaws
5.  Videos and Gaming - Get the party started with the Thriller Video, plug in your console and shoot zombies or dance with Just Dance 3 to This is Halloween

Remember to look at your audience and keep it Kid-friendly if you need too.

Happy Halloween
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Another Gorgeous Outdoor Movie at Chappellet

We had another glorious night with the Napa Valley Film Festival at Chappellet Winery.  Blakesley Chappellet welcomed us to their stunning meadow for another movie night under the stars.

The movie was 20 Feet From Stardom.  "The untold story of backup singers in popular music. 20 Feet From Stardom is a celebration of the voices from the edge that brought shape and style to the soundtracks of our lives."

Amazing music, wine, food and company.

... more photo's

The Napa Valley Film Festival is under 2 months away and runs November 13th - 17th. For more information about the film festival check out their website.

"We could not have ordered a more magical evening!"  
I heartily agree

Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Too Stuffy indoors... Let's have an Outdoor Movie Night!

Last weekend it was hot, the house was stuffy, so we had an Outdoor Movie Night, much to the kids delight!  My wife made a quick trip to the store while I set up the screen.  It was time to introduce them to a classic 80's Flick. Back to the Future

We got the Blu-ray trilogy... image was great.  Every time I watch a film from the 80's I realize how film rating have changed over time (there is some strong language).  Being a skateboard kid from the 80's I love the scene in the square.

The kids loved it, half way through we paused for a family favorite, microwave s'mores.  Quick and easy.

After the movie I had to show my son a picture of the car I saw whilst I was visiting Texas... the OUTATIME De Lorean.  I remember geeking out just a little.

The Car

Cool use of an iPad

Now both kids are pleading to see the next movie... "Soon!"

Great Scott!!  That was fun

Paul the Outdoor Movie Night

Pairing Food with Film... Dinner and a Movie!

There are many movies that have a food or beverage tie in.  With a little creativity you can pair your movie with a fun food theme.  Here are some suggestions:

The Obvious Choice
Some movies are obvious and even have food in the title like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory or Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs.

The Foodie Movie
The food is lavish and its all about the presentation.  Julie and Julia, Babette's Feast or my favorite... Big Night

The Creative Choice
Other movies you can be creative with.  In the photo above there are 5 movies of various rating's and genres represented.  Can you guess what they are?

It's a Pinot noir...

Hey, you want a s'more?

Some more of what?

No, do you want a s'more?

I haven't had anything yet... so how can I have some more of nothing?

You're killing me, Smalls! These are s'mores stuff.

"Po-ta-toes! boil em', mash em', stick em' in a stew!"
( the actual LOTR movie should have been "The Two Towers"
but I ate said taters before I could retake the photo)

Tallahassee played by Woody Harrelson "There is a box of Twinkies in there. And not just any Twinkies, but the last box of Twinkies in the whole universe. And believe it or not, Twinkies have an expiration date, and pretty soon, life's little Twinkie gauge is going to go...empty"

The package says it all... Classic Bacon... Kevin Bacon in Footloose.
Everything is better with Bacon!

What movie would you associate with Reese's Piece's?

Eat up!
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy

Is this movie appropriate? There's an App for that!

I have often been asked if a film is appropriate for the target audience of an outdoor movie event.   I always pass on the great website www.commonsensemedia.org. They highlight the good stuff like educational value, message and role models as well as indicating what to look out for such as violence, sexy stuff, language, consumerism and drugs.  An age rating is suggested for each film.  This site is also great for TV, video games, music, websites, books and even Apps.

Common Sense Media also offers an app called KidsMedia which has many of the great reviews and recommendations stored on a local database on your device. So when little Johnny is begging to purchase a new movie or video game at the local big box store, you have access to all the great Common Sense Media information.

In addition, you can enter the ages of your children and the KidsMedia app will provide recommendations for each child, plus which films are appropriate for all ages entered... cool.

Setting up Child in KidsMedia

Easy to see what is appropriate for the whole family

You can also scan or say a movie name and the app will search for the movie, the majority of new popular movies are in the database.

You can create favorites lists for the next time you are looking for a movie.

Create Favorites 

KidsMedia is available for iPhone at the App Store,  Android at Google Play and Kindle at Amazon Apps

Appy Downloading
Paul the Outdoor Movie Guy