Movie Theatre Promo – Serge Ahead Sewing

I worked at a local movie theatre for 3 years! These are some of my favorite promotional displays and creations I’ve done in my time there!

**Please note that I do not own any of the franchises you’ll see on this page. These are also my own thoughts and opinions, which may not reflect those of the theatre I worked at.**

Cotton Candy Art

To this day, I am known as the Cotton Candy Queen in the theatre I worked at. I could write pages on my love for cotton candy (and maybe at some point I will), but just know that I had a special relationship with the cotton candy machine. Or as I liked to call her, Dulcinea 🙂

Most people didn’t really like to make cotton candy where I worked. It was a sticky mess that took a long time. And to be fair, when I first started my employment there, we had to make it in a cramped hallway that got really warm. But over time it became my “thing” there. I loved to use cookie cutters to make fun shapes to advertise upcoming movies. Mixing colors and doing “rainbow bags” (layers with every color of the rainbow) was my signature. Before I quit, I made sure to make an inclusive guide explaining how to make it. I also taught several people who I felt I could trust. One of the most hated jobs became one of the most popular by the time I left. If you ever wonder if something you’re doing can be done even more creatively, the answer is yes!

The Millennium Falcon (Solo: A Star Wars Story, 2018)

I tend to be a bit… ambitious. When I get an idea in my head, no matter how extreme, I just know I have to pull it off or I’ll be disappointed in myself. This makes things kinda stressful at times, but it also makes some pretty amazing things. One of my favorite things I’ve ever created was a replica of the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon. The bigger theaters got an official display, but we didn’t. So I took it upon myself to fix that. The backdrop includes colored gels, so I could put lights behind the whole thing and it would light up in the proper colors. I had to cut out the little holes with an exacto knife, and it took forever. Like to the point where I almost gave up.

I was lucky enough to have my dad’s help with the dashboard section. His workplace had a lot of woodworking tools that we couldn’t fit in our garage, so we went there to construct it. The seats came from an old car in the junkyard where you can buy parts. It was extremely muddy, but I was grateful that my dad and Dayne were there to help. After a thorough cleaning, we attached it to the dashboard! I also insisted it included moving handles and steering wheels, so that was one of the last elements that we added. Given the excitement of some of our (younger) customers, it only lasted about a day before it started to fall apart. But it’s the thought that counts, right?

Part of the reason that project meant so much to me was because Star Wars was the first nerdy thing I was ever interested in. It really gave me the confidence to embrace who I was and come out of my shell. The first character I ever fell in love with just so happens to be Han Solo himself. He was one of the few characters who didn’t have anything “special” going on with him. He was just a witty pilot who knew his way around a blaster. He could even be a little awkward at times despite his charm. Recreating the Falcon was really the best homage I could’ve hoped to make.

Agrabah Sunset (Live Action Aladdin, 2019)

One of my coworkers wanted a backdrop to go with her Flying Carpet display, so I painted this! I made an ombre sunset (moonset?) to encompass the lovely city of Agrabah. I didn’t have any good pictures of what the castle would look like at the time, since I was doing this months in advance. I ended up using the design of the castle from the original film instead.

Another display piece I made for Aladdin was a sign to go on a starry background. I recycled one of the boxes we put popcorn tubs in, and painted it in one afternoon. I had to hand-stencil all the tiny designs with a sharpie. The outside of the sign is covered in gold paint and glitter – it was a messy project for sure!

The Cliffs of Ahch-To (Star Wars IX, 2019)

This mess of a thing is 22 cans of gray, textured spray paint and around 10 cans of Great Stuff expanding foam. But that’s mostly it! This was my very last promo project I made before leaving the theatre. I actually made it months in advance because I knew I wouldn’t be coming back over winter break. Nonetheless, this was a really great project to end on. Not as stressful as the Falcon was, but still representative of my love for Star Wars.

A lot of the porgs on the cliff were made years prior, which was super convenient for me. But there weren’t ay baby porgs! And that needed to be fixed. So here are my two nests of baby porgs made with some sticks from the parking lot! I also made some porg eggs, but those aren’t pictured here. I had a lot of help from my coworker Paj, who spent numerous days with me coating this beast! She even ventured to the hardware store whenever I needed, like a trooper 🙂

Chalkboard Drawings

Our theatre’s little restaurant had a chalkboard we liked to use for advertising! We would try to include movies that would be coming out in our drawings, as well as every relevant pun we could think of. Here are some of the ones I did!