On Thursday, Nov. 7, ASPB hosted a Pop Culture Movie Night for students at the AI Knoll. The event was simple but memorable. Even before the event began, early movie fans were waiting excitedly to see the double screenings of the popular 80s films, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street.” The AI Knoll was blocked off by a fence with the movie screen near the front of the lawn and ASPB’s tent near the back. This made it easier to keep track of how many people were visiting the Knoll for the event and allowed for ASPB to run their different stands off to the side and away from where the actual movie was playing.
Before the first movie began, there was time for people to take a quick Polaroid picture at the photo booth. The movie related props, ranging from the iconic red Ferrari to the “Save Ferris” slogan, helped make the event unique. There was no limit on the number of photos, which was perfect for larger groups. There was also an option to decorate the Polaroid photos with markers and border trims.
There was a light game of trivia before the start of each film with questions related to the movies where winners could take home a blanket or lawn chair. As promised, there were plenty of candy, chips, popcorn and soda for everyone who came. People were even allowed to run back for seconds at the start of the second film.
There was a good turn out and the audience was attentive during both films. The crowd was quiet except for the occasional shrieks, laughter and friendly banter relating to the film itself. People who came in late could still catch a good view of the films from the back of the AI Knoll. There was no need for subtitles because the speaker system made the audio easy to hear.
The only notable issues were that it did start to get chilly as the night went on and the ground was a bit damp. This did not, however, ruin the experience. Overall, the event was a success and would be fun to repeat with different films.
