Free outdoor cinema targets families

ONE of the world's most beautiful outdoor cinemas is to launch in the park in Scarness, hoisting its big screen against a backdrop of a star-spangled sky and a glistening Hervey Bay.

And it is going to be free.

The venture is so elegant in its simplicity, so full of potential, as to be a “why didn't we think of this before” concept.

At least that is how it may appear to an outside observer.

The reality is this valuable new entertainment initiative represents hard work, long-term planning and considerable hip pocket pain for the organisers.

The guiding mind and will that sits behind the undertaking is the Scarness Business Group.

This increasingly influential group of Scarness business owners are starting to mark themselves as a real progressive force on the foreshore.

Group president Stuart Taylor said some Scarness businesses have agreed to sponsor the project and Venom Entertainment will run the event at cost.

“After meeting with the Fraser Coast Council and a range of other stakeholders, the Scarness Business Group is proud to announce that it will launch its monthly Scarness Movies in the Park on Friday, July 15,” Mr Taylor said.

The outdoor screening events will be held on the third Friday of every month from then on.

The first movie will be Tangled, which is a children's animated movie.

“The best thing is that it is free and, in these financially hard times, it is a great way to have a family night out and without the cost,” Mr Taylor said.

“The movies in the park are targeted towards local families and families on holidays and all movies selected for the outdoor screenings will be suitable for families and will have a no more than a PG rating,” he said.

Mr Taylor said the aim of Scarness Movies in the Park is part of a longer term strategy to promote Scarness as a user-friendly space along the Hervey Bay Esplanade and increase visitation.