C360 HB and instructions thereon

11Oct09

Today was the first full-on sunny day we’ve had and it was vitamin D-tastic. We found an incredible place called Rooftop Cinema. It’s like a pub garden on top of a tall building with a view all across the city. The plastic grass is dotted with deckchairs and lounging hipsters supping pints of cold beer. There is a large screen at one end where they project an eclectic mix of interesting, obscure, classic films on hot summer nights.

Basically it’s the physical manifestation of my ideal place. There is a very good chance I will be frequenting this particular establishment on a semi-permanant basis.

Beer, cinema, rooftop, skyline, sunshine, hot evenings? Not really my thing, thanks all the same.

Talking of films, I’m a major movie fan and it was with a heavy heart and a cheekily exposed midriff that I had to leave my projector back in Blighty. There is something about film projected onto a screen that lends it a special quality that you just don’t get with any other kind of media. In fact I bought a mini-projector with the intention of bringing it with me so I could continue with my big screen schtick. Unfortunately, when I road tested this tiny cinema in a box on our recent holiday to Sicily, I discovered that while it had many merits, it was just too temperamental and fiddly to use regularly so I sold it.

This means I’m having to rely on my trusty PowerBook for filmic action. The trouble with this is that I am unable to focus on the film properly as there are peripheral distractions in my field of vision. Last night I planned to watch ‘Inland Empire’ by David Lynch and felt it deserved my full attention and a solid three quarters of a bottle of red. What to do?

That’s right, I built myself a ‘Cinematic 360 Home Bubbletron’ (C360 HB) ensuring David Lynch could tickle my brain lobes with absolute abandon. I know what you’re thinking – this isn’t about living as a Location Independent Professional in Melbourne, get back to the point. You’re also thinking how do I engineer my own C360 HB. Relax, I have put together a full set of instructions below:-

1. Put a blanket over your head and laptop.

The photograph below is for illustration purposes only and any colour of blanket will suffice. However, I recommend fawn. 

The C360 HB in action. Available from all good Youth Hostels. Possibly.

I am happy to report that the first use of the C360 HB under these rigorously enforced test conditions was a raging success. If you do choose to watch ‘Inland Empire’ (and you should, you won’t regret it. Well you might. Lets face it, I don’t know you) then I suggest you watch it with a blanket over your head in a Youth Hostel.

Please send me photos of your own C360 HB setup. I can’t guarantee they will all be published but I can guarantee they will all be mocked by Susie.

 

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Tags: Cinema on the Roof, Home cinema, Melbourne, Rooftop Cinema Melbourne