Vander Veer to host outdoor movie night
Families can enjoy the aroma of flowers on a warm spring evening and take in a film at the same time as one of Davenport’s most idyllic parks — Vander Veer Botanical Park — hosts an outdoor movie night on Friday on a huge inflated movie screen.
The laugh-out-loud movie “Over the Hedge,” by DreamWorks Animation SKG, will fill a 40-foot inflatable screen beginning at dusk. Before that, youth activities will begin at 6:30 p.m. It’s the first time Vander Veer has hosted an outdoor movie night.
Natasha Sottos, a spokeswoman for The Friends of Vander Veer, said the gigantic screen will seem “larger than life.” She said the group got the idea for the outdoor screening from its director, Susan Anderson, who had seen it done in Muscatine, Iowa.
“We’re always looking for new ideas and fun things we can do at the park, and we always try to have a lot of family-type activities,” Sottos said. “It’s kind of neat to see the community come together to do something like this.”
Youth activities before the movie will include potting plants, face painting and crafts. “The playground will be open, the conservatory will be open, the park store will be open,” Sottos said. “We invite people to enjoy the park and all it has to offer before the movie gets going.”
The primary sponsor of the night is IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union.
Although VanderVeer’s movie night is a one-time deal, Bettendorf will offer movies in Veterans Memorial Park each Saturday in June. That city also will use an inflatable screen, albeit half the size of the one used at Vander Veer.
Justin Miller, president and chief executive officer of Master DJ and Visual Effects Inc., East Moline, will provide Bettendorf’s screen. He said such screens can withstand winds of up to 18 mph. “If it’s above that, in the best-case scenario, we would put the screen parallel to the wind and it’s not that big of an issue. In a worst-case scenario, we would deflate and let the wind die down.”
Miller said the screen is made of material similar to that used for bounce houses set up at carnivals for children. The screens come with projection and sound systems.
Charlie Petrach, owner of The Party Company of Racine, Wis., will provide the Vander Veer screen. He said his screen also is made of a heavy vinyl material and can withstand winds of 15-20 mph. He said his company produces about 200 movie nights per year around the Midwest.
Several other area cities considered the idea of an outdoor movie night, Miller said, “but it doesn’t look like any of them are going to hit the calendar for this year.”
If you go
Vander Veer Botanical Park in Davenport will host an outdoor movie night beginning at dusk Friday on an inflatable screen. Youth activities will begin at 6:30 p.m. and “Over the Hedge” will be shown at dusk.
The City of Bettendorf will have movie nights every Saturday in June beginning at dusk at Veterans Memorial Park, 1645 23rd St.
The schedule is:
“Charlotte’s Web,” June 2
“Shrek 2,” June 9
“Field of Dreams,” June 16
“Happy Feet,” June 23
“Dreamer,” June 30
David Heitz can be contacted at
(563) 383-2202 or dheitz@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at qctimes.com.