Kids love this simple and fun party idea! Plan a movie-themed birthday party with these practical and helpful tips. The pictures and ideas will inspire you!
It's sometimes hard to come up with that "original" birthday idea for your youngster.
How often can you go to the bouncy, gymnastics, or trampoline place, and it still feels special and unique? We brainstormed ideas for my daughter's birthday and came up with a movie-themed birthday party. She was into making movies on the iPad with her friends, so we thought, hey, let's make it into a fabulous and interactive celebration!
A movie-themed Birthday turned out to be the best idea! The kids really got into it. Here are some ideas to inspire your party.
Invitations
There are usually some great invitation ideas at tiny prints, and Vistaprint or an Evite works well. Especially if you don't want a printed invite, they have great predesigned templates.
Decorations
It's was fun to shop for the special details that made the movie theme come to life!
Most of them came from Dollar Tree, so the decorations were inexpensive! We purchased movie theatre-style candy and made a candy bar with various jars and trays. Popcorn containers doubled as decorations as well.
We used small popcorn boxes for the goodie bags that the kids could take home.
We made a sign for the entryway announcing the birthday party and the "VIP" entrance. We also ordered a red carpet online to set the tone for an exciting event when the kids arrived.
Games
As we were waiting for the other kids to arrive, everyone got a movie character or celebrity taped on their back, and they had to guess who they were by asking others questions about their character.
Think, Taylor Swift, Elsa from Frozen, etc. The girls thought this was really entertaining and got into it way more than I thought they would!
Once everyone arrived, we divided into two teams ( about 4-5 per team) to make a movie with iMovie on iPads. The birthday girl helped each group develop their storyline from the idea given to the team.
We gave them something to start with, like Sleeping Beauty waking up in high school. Then they could take it from there. It was super cute to watch them pick out characters and make their "story" come to life while making their movie.
Once we filmed it, the girls went on to the next activity while my husband downloaded the videos to Vimeo (with only minor technical difficulties) so that the girls could watch them on the big screen a little later. {Tip - make sure your iPad or recording device has enough memory to film a short movie!}
Party Treats
We gave each child some "play money" to visit the candy bar when it was time to go outside and sit at the VIP table to eat. We priced each item, and they could spend it until their money was gone. This way, they got exactly what they wanted, and it was really interactive, as well as a way to use their math skills!
My daughter's older brother's worked the "concession counter," taking the money and handing out the treats.
One of the goodies for sale at the concession counter was mini cupcakes that looked like popcorn bags. Adorable! The kids thought these were great. 
These were homemade and turned out adorable!
It was easy to find cupcake papers that matched our movie theme and colors, and we made the popcorn topping from yellow marshmallows. They turned out better than we thought and really brought the whole theme together.
{Tip - cutting the marshmallows for the top of the cupcakes will take longer than you think! They stick to your fingers!}
After snacks and treats, the kids got to go to the photo booth that we set up with cute props.
They had a lot of props to choose from, such as cowboys hats, boas, glasses, etc., so that they could make their pic as cooky as they wanted. For the backdrop, we got different color tickets (again, found some at the Dollar Tree) and taped them to the wall so that the kiddos had something movie-themed to stand in front of.
Take-Home Goodies
We handed out goodie popcorn boxes, and then the guests went on their way! So simple!
In the end, our daughter thought this was an entertaining {and original} way to celebrate her birthday, and we hope you do too.
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doris says
i like this so much
heather says
this is so adorable, great work. we are planning to do this for my son's 7.5 birthday party this July. Wondering where you found the yellow marshmallows. thanks!
Erin says
Good question, Heather. I found a bag of multi-color marshmallow at our local grocery store and just picked out the yellow ones 🙂 Have fun at the party!
Ashley says
Super cute idea!! love it! Thanks for sharing at FTAF!
Erin says
Thanks Ashley! It was fun to plan and execute!!
Margie says
Looks like so much fun! I think the most original party we've come up with was an alien theme for his 8th birthday. My son drew a picture of a three headed alien that I made into a cake and we planned lots of fun alien themed activities. The kids had a blast. I've pinned this onto my party ideas board for future reference!
Erin says
This party was so fun and came together so easily. Your son's alien party sound really fun and original too. I love having parties the kids will remember for years and years.
Ilka says
This is such a fun post Erin! You really copied a movie theater with great detail! I bet this is party is a great success!
Pamela Smith says
Great party idea! I loved doing different types of parties when my girls were small too. We had a tie-dye party, miniature party, carnival party and many more. Your ideas are so cute!
Erin says
Thanks, Pamela! It was a fun party to throw! Sounds like you had some good parties too!
Kati says
This is awesome! My son was talking about doing a movie theater birthday this coming May. Thanks for the ideas!
Erin says
I'm glad you got some inspiration! I hope his Birthday is a fun one. Thanks for stopping by, Kati!
Kelli says
You are a way fun mom! And so creative. Great idea for a fun party with friends or kids. Good job making your daughter feel special. 🙂
Erin says
Thanks for the kind words, Kelli! It was a fun and memorable party.