Summer is here, the weather is hot, the soda is ice cold and times are good! Watching a movie with your family or your buddies out in the open air is truly an awesome experience and to be honest with you, it is now easier than it has ever been before. Today we are having a little fun by sharing with you a few ways that you can go about planning an outdoor movie night.
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Big Movie Experience: Backyard Movie Night Projector
Ok so let us start with the way to really turn your backyard into an outdoor movie theater. What you need is a backyard movie night projector. Now before you start freaking out that you are going to have to spend hundreds of bucks on a projector. While if you want a full HD, 4K best of the best quality projector, you will have to spend a fair bit of money. But you can buy a micro projector these days for around 50 bucks, even less if you do some serious shopping around! All you then need is something that can play a DVD or even stream Netflix. Say a game console or just a basic DVD player if you want to do it on a budget.
DIY backyard movie screen
So you have your device that is going to play the movie and you have your projector that is, well going to project it, but what do you project it onto? That is easy you just use a bedsheet! No seriously if you want the cheapest and easiest way to beam a movie onto a big screen (well it is a bedsheet, but you know what I mean) then a bedsheet is the way to go. You can get an actual projector screen or a large whiteboard, but if you want to save money a white bedsheet pegged on a washing line will work just as well.
It may take a little fine tuning to set up the projector so that it is giving you the best and clearest picture possible, but do not worry it is very easy to set up. Apart from the projector (and the huge bag of popcorn and other snacks), the projector is really the only thing you have to actually buy to turn your backyard into a movie theater.
If you want a more professional experience, read our guide on the best
Small Movie Experience
If you have kids and want to let them have a little excitement with their friend during a sleepover, but you do not want to buy a projector or set up an outdoor theater (all though it is worth doing as they will love it!) you can still turn the garden into a movie theater. The easy way to do this is with a tablet. If you have strong Wi-Fi, you might even be able to stream into the garden. If not just download a movie directly onto it and let them have some fun that way. Sure it is not as great as having a projector and a large screen, but this for a kid the novelty of watching a movie outside, even on a really small screen is something they will really enjoy. You can actually use this as a way to gauge if watching movies outside is something the kids are into.
If they are then getting a projector and setting up a proper outdoor theater is a great idea. Family movie nights are awesome and they are extra magical when you can do it outside.
You Have To Be Comfortable
Some movies can last a couple of hours and as watching a movie outside is so much fun, you guys might even want to do a double feature! Well, you need to make sure that you are all comfortable and you have what you need so no one has to run into the house and miss part if the movie. If you have some outdoor furniture already then you are all set and ready to go as you can just use that. If not a blanket on the ground or even a bedsheet and some cushions get the job done. It is also a good idea to have a few blankets out there on standby in case anyone gets a little bit chilly.
Go The Extra Mile And Set The Mood Perfectly
Having all the equipment to watch the movie, the seating taken care off and of course a ton of snacks is great. But if you really want to make the backyard movie theater special, you have to set it up just right. Now how you do this is of course up to you, but a few easy suggestions are doing things like hanging up some lighting. You can get cheap strings of battery powered lights from pretty much any dollar store these days. If you do not want to set up lighting then at the very least, you have to make sure you start the movie at just the right time. You want to do it just as it is starting to get a little dark outside.
First of all, this is just really cool and the picture will be much easier to see. But also there is just something more magical about actually watching a movie when you can see the stars above your head. There is nothing wrong with just throwing up a bedsheet and watching a movie, but every once and awhile going that extra step and making it a magical movie night is well worth doing.
Backyard Movie Night Is Great For Families
Getting the whole family together these days is not all that easy. Suggesting that you all watch a movie in the living room will be most likely met with a “Nah” or have them be on their smartphones or 3DS the whole time! But there is just something cool about a backyard movie that most kids will get right on board and actually be excited to do it. You can even take it a step further by letting the kids get involved with picking the movie, setting up the seating and deciding what snacks to have!
As you can see setting up a backyard movie theater is really not much work at all and it can be done for well under fifty bucks! It is a great way to have a little fun as a family during the summer.
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