Kickin’ back at the Pop Up Cinema at Vancouver Mall

With many entertainment events canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, people are yearning for activities outside the home.

That was evident on Friday night, when dozens of cars snaked around the north edge of Vancouver Mall, lining up early to get into a new pandemic-era outdoor movie experience: Pop Up Cinema.

By 8:30 p.m. about 40 cars had parked as more cars flowed in. Movie-goers set out lawn chairs, got cozy in the back of pickup trucks, and dug into bags of homemade popcorn. By 9:15 p.m. the screen lit up and nearly 100 cars filled the lot.

Local movie enthusiasts Jesse and Johanna Miller came up with the idea for offering drive-in movies earlier this summer and were quickly able to gain permissions needed to launch Pop Up Cinema.

The mall parking lot location allows for as many as 100 cars, and Friday was a sellout. The cars were not all parked 6-feet apart, but many attendees stayed in their vehicles and some people even kept their windows rolled up. The audio is projected over a local radio station so each car can tune in. Attendees are asked to wear masks if they leave their car to visit the concession stand.

Chelsea Owen and her two daughters Nixie Asbury, 10, and Lou Asbury, 14, drove down from Battle Ground for the evening. Owen said their family loves “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” the movie shown that night. Chelsea Owen wanted her daughters to experience drive-ins like she enjoyed as a kid.

“It was a cool vibe,” she said, “staying out late in the warm summer air.”

The Friday and Saturday night Pop Up Cinema will continue at Vancouver Mall through November — or until the weather turns or movie theaters reopen.

“We have enjoyed it so much, we are looking for ways to bring the drive-in back to Vancouver permanently,” Miller said.