How to Do a Movie Night on a Sheet Outside

A white sheet makes a suitable outdoor movie screen.

A movie night can be an interesting twist for a home party. To make it even more exciting, show movies outdoors on an old sheet, inviting friends and family to enjoy the films. With snacks and beverages, your movie night can be even more fun than going to an old-fashioned drive-in, and you won't have to pay to enter the property. A theme can add extra thrills to your night, too, such as the latest children's movie for a kids' sleepover, or cheesy horror movies for a Halloween party.

Things You'll Need

• White or light-colored nonpatterned top sheet
• 2 curtain rods or dowel rods longer than the width of the sheet
• Safety pins
• Pencil
• Screw hooks
• DVD projector with speakers
• Chairs

Instructions

1. Set the sheet on the ground and spread it out completely to remove any wrinkles. Position the sheet so it is wider than it is tall.

2. Place a curtain rod or dowel rod at the top edge of the sheet. Fold the entire top edge of the sheet over the rod, creating a pocket for the rod. Pin the corner edges of the pocket in place using safety pins, and then pin the sheet in four or five more places along the length of the rod.

3. Repeat Step 2 for the bottom edge of the sheet.

4. Ask a friend to hold up the top edge of the sheet in front of a garage door or wherever you plan to place the screen. The screen should be held so the bottom edge is just off the ground, with the top completely horizontal. With a pencil, mark on the doorframe of the garage where the top left and top right edges of the sheet rest.

5. Insert screw hooks into the wood doorframe of the garage at the position of the pencil marks. Position the hook openings up.

6. Set the top sheet rod into the hooks so the sheet resembles a movie screen.

7. Plug in the DVD projector with a DVD in place. Turn on the projector and aim it at the screen. Adjust the projector and its position until the projected image is the desired size and clarity.

8. Adjust the projector's speaker volume so the movie will be audible to your guests, yet not disruptive to the neighbors.

9. Arrange chairs around the yard for optimal movie viewing, but set them out of the beam of the projector.

Tips & Warnings

• For an extremely simple screen, staple the sheet over a garage door or other span large enough to hold an outstretched sheet. You could also tie corners of the sheet to tree limbs or hang your sheet movie screen from a clothesline.

• Thrift stores and resale shops are a good source for sheets to use for projection screens. Some even carry used projectors.

• If you aren't able to mount hooks to your garage, you can build a screen stand out of PVC pipe. Fold the sheet along the sides to make pockets rather than the top and bottom, and insert PVC pipe into the pockets. Create a base from PVC elbow pipes.

• If you live in a neighborhood with homes close together, be mindful of the noise from the movies and your guests.

References

• The Scope: DIY Cinema
• Halloween Alliance: Scary Video Projections On Your Window; David Lay

Resources

• BackyardTheater.com: Outdoor Movies at Home