Outdoor Movie Night with Scoob!

Hosting an outdoor movie night at home is a fun way to do something special with kids. It switches things up and makes for a great memory! This summer, we did a special night for our son by having an outdoor movie night with Scoob from Warner Brothers Studios. This was such a hit that I think we might make it a regular thing. Want to know how we pulled it off?

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First, a little story…

My oldest son is OBSESSED with Scooby-Doo. The whole family dressed up as the gang for Halloween last year because of him!

That’s why when we heard about the new movie Scoob, we knew that would be a perfect chance to introduce him to a movie theater. We were planning a special day to spend with him and then the pandemic hit and movie theaters shut down. This forced us to get creative and that is why we decided to do an outdoor movie night.

I contacted Warner Bros and told them our story and they were kind enough to gift us a free download of the movie along with some great toys, including action figures from the movie. This helped us create the most special movie night for our son (and also gave us an excuse to break out the costumes again)!

Back to the Outdoor Movie Night

Setting Up

The day of the big event! Little brother went to bed and it was time to set up. My husband spent the next couple hours setting up a screen for our outdoor movie night. While they do sell screens that might be easier, we were working on a budget and so instead, we used a white sheet. Hanging the sheet over a silver tarp made it a little more reflective and helped a lot.

Those Special Outdoor Movie Night Touches

With the projector and screen set up, I got to work making it comfortable and fun. I laid out some towels and made a couple of rows of chairs. Our kid’s sofa chairs were perfect for creating that movie theater feel. Then, I put blankets out (including our Scooby blanket) and some snacks. No movie night is complete without some candy and thanks to WB we even had Scooby Snacks! I put some of our older Scooby toys out on the stairs leading out and all the new toys that WB had sent us at the bottom. Our son couldn’t contain his excitement!

Outdoor Movie Night Success

We ate popcorn and watched Scoob for the first time together. I’d say that our first outdoor movie night was a big hit and will likely become a summer tradition! Some of our set up could be upgraded (see below) but the feel is the same. The love and the effort that went into making this happen was tremendous and 100% worth it for the smile on his face.

Supplies for an Outdoor Movie Night

The main thing is the projector.

You need one that is very bright which means a lot of lumens (to simplify things). Here are a few options that would be good for an outdoor movie night.

Next is the screen.

What are you projecting the movie on? We used a reflective tarp with a white sheet hung over it and that worked just fine, but if you have it in your budget, you can buy a screen that will give you a better picture. They even make one with a stand that would allow you to set up an outdoor movie night anywhere!

You can also find the projector and screens sold together in a package deal.

Jinhoo WiFi Mini Projector

DR. J Professional HI-04 Mini Projector Outdoor Movie Projector with 100Inch Projector Screen

Make outdoor movie night fun!

Snacks are essential! Movie night wouldn’t be the same without a few of those theater favorites.

We had:

• Popcorn (stovetop made in our whirly pop)
• Scooby Snacks (thanks WB)
• Raisnets
• Twizzlers
• Sour Patch Kids

If you are feeling even more extra, maybe try some fun popcorn boxes or other movie-themed decorations. Here are a few options that I found on Amazon. Click on any of the pictures for more.

What would you add? I hope this helps you make your first outdoor movie night a success!

Follow us on Instagram for more outdoor adventures and don’t forget to check out Ela Wild’s “What Nature Can Teach Us” for ways to learn while playing outside.

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