With more access than ever before to movies and television, you can enjoy a great night of cinema at home. In fact, plenty of excellent films are released straight to streaming services these days. Still, you might miss the event feeling of going to the movies, even if all too often it meant you found yourself in a too small theater with an audience more interested in texting than watching what was on the screen. You can elevate movie watching at home and potentially have an even better experience.
Create Your Perfect Atmosphere
One way to enjoy movies and TV as an event at home is to take advantage of all the things you can’t do at an actual cinema. Cook a terrific meal that you can eat while you watch or just have some snacks on hand. Have some wine, your favorite beer or a comforting cup of tea. Invite your cat to share the couch with you. You can also buy a few things to improve the atmosphere, such as scented candles. If you like to vape while you’re relaxing with a film, consider getting something that is ultra-portable and high quality. For example, you can buy a PAX 3 vaporizer that offers great quality for flowers and concentrates to enhance your experience.
Have Theme Nights
Following a theme can be a fun way of experiencing film, and this approach is versatile enough to allow you to do it on your own, with a partner, with your family or with friends. If you love foreign cinema, cook a meal from the country where the film is set. If your friends are into cosplay, invite them over to dress up as their favorite superhero or other franchise character. If you are in college be sure to check all these must watch before graduation films off your list by hosting movie night in your dorm. Another way to approach this is by doing a series of theme night, focusing on the work of one director or on a country or theme. You are only limited by your own imagination.
Make a Home Cinema
It’s the dream of every cinephile: an actual home cinema. This can be as elaborate as doing a home theater renovation and installing stadium style theater seating or as low key as making sure you have comfortable furniture and investing in a bigger screen TV or a projector. If your room is big enough, you can build platforms to create a stadium seating feel. You can often pick up used cinema seats, but if you really want your audience to be comfortable, consider recliners with drink holders instead. A few other things to keep in mind are lighting, your sound system and having the right connections and adequate bandwidth if you plan to do a lot of streaming.
Family Time
If you’re watching movies or TV shows as a family, make sure that everyone has the opportunity to get involved. Let everyone in the family take turns choosing which movie to watch. Let your kids plan theme nights or even entire theme days, where you have various activities related to the night’s entertainment. And when you’re watching, make sure that everyone in the family puts their phones and any other devices away.
