A night out at the movies is a common pastime for many families today, but for some it’s not an option.
Turner Valley mom Heather Colvin says crowded theatres and loud speakers are too much for four-year-old son Zeno. Her daughter Marissa, now 11, also couldn’t handle the environment when she was younger. Both of Colvin’s children have autism.
“Now that my daughter is a bit older her sensory issues aren’t quite as pronounced,” she said. “She learned to be able to cope with them. When she was younger she was very similar to what my son is now. He doesn’t like loud noises and large crowds can overwhelm him.”
It became a challenge for Colvin and her husband Craig Grillo to do family activities outside of home.
“It does limit you,” Colvin said. “It creates a sense of, as a parent, loneliness and isolation.”
The couple has found a solution to the problem and is offering families facing similar challenges a place for a movie night.
They are opening a private movie viewing space in the upper level of their business Rizzo’s Games and Rentals, which they opened last summer on Turner Valley’s Sunset Blvd.
“My husband and I put our heads together and said, ‘How can we benefit our community?’” said Colvin. “It was an epiphany for me because of our son. I thought, I can now take him to a movie. He can run around if he wants to.”
Visitors are invited to tour the movie viewing room from Dec. 18 to 20 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and it should be open to the public in a week, said Colvin.
Once it’s open, she said parents will be able to adjust light and sound to whatever levels their children are comfortable with.
“Movie theatres are very loud and that’s what limits parents taking their sensory sensitive children so we decided to give people control of all of that,” she said. “You decide how light or dark you want the room, how loud you want the movie. You are not in there with strangers.”
While the movie viewing room was inspired by Zeno and Marissa’s autism, Colvin said anyone can use it, whether they have sensory sensitivities or not.
“It’s going to be very similar to a movie theatre experience where you get to pick out your concession items and enjoy your show,” she said.
“There are a lot of adults who just don’t like going out - a lot of people overwhelm them. This would be a perfect option for them as well. They don’t have to sit in a theatre full of 100 other people. It could be just them and a friend.”
The room features a 70-inch 3D television with comfortable seating including pillows and blankets so patrons can sit or lie down together.
Turner Valley mom Mary Clarke said she plans to rent the space for her own family.
The few times they went to the movies with her six-year-old son who has autism was a challenge.
“He gets very overstimulated and he gets very wiggly,” she said. “Lots of times when he’s in loud situations he gets loud to cancel it out. He’s usually running up and down and standing on the seats. My son gets really overwhelmed in big spaces like that. You feel awful for the other patrons who also paid lots of money to see the movie.”
Clarke said a private setting will be much more fitting for her family.
“This will be a space for him to stretch out,” she said. “He doesn’t like being very close to other people.”
Clarke said this type of movie viewing environment will benefit many children with sensory sensitivities in the region.
“It’s a nice treat,” she said. “I feel like families in the rural community are kind of forgotten about. We are used to driving to Calgary all the time but it’s nice to have something here for us. It’s literally down the block from me - not an hour’s drive.”
Colvin said the movie viewing room will give High Country area residents a break from having to drive into the city.
“It’s an opportunity to stay local, support a local business, have a similar experience to a movie theatre,” she said. “The people that live in this particular area are happy that they don’t have to drive all the way into Calgary.”
Colvin plans to obtain a public movie viewing license to access movie titles before they are sold in stores, in addition to the movies they rent out.
To learn more go to Facebook.com and search Rizzo’s Games and Rentals.
