You can make your family room feel like a theater without a separate room. Paint it a dark color, face the seats toward the screen, and add wall sconces and theater trim. Small changes add the movie theater feel.
Not everyone has the luxury of dedicating a room solely for big-screen movie viewing. More often, that space is shared with a family room, a den or a guest bedroom. And that’s OK. Your family room is already finished and furnished. Plus, it probably already has a good-size TV and modest surround-sound system. If your family room is like most, it may not look or feel much like a theater. What it’s likely lacking is ambiance – something in the arrangement and design of the room that gives off a theater vibe. You can go as simple or as complicated as you want to produce the desired cinematic effect. Here are 10 ideas to consider.- Re-paint: Dark, rich colors like burgundy and navy blue scream theater. Plus, because light doesn’t reflect off dark colors like it does off light colors, the video on your TV will look better.
- Rearrange the Furniture: The screen at your local cinema sits directly in front of the seats; your TV should, too, which may require a slight adjustment of your family room furniture.
- Add Architectural Details: Decorative moldings, pillars and other theater-inspired details are widely available at home improvement stores.
- Incorporate New Lighting: Most of the pre-show lighting in a commercial theater is produced by sconces on the wall. Put a few on the walls of your family room for additional lighting that looks like the real thing. Rope lighting is also very theater-esque.
- Install Dimmers: If you don’t want to run new electrical wiring for the sconces, at least swap your existing light switch for a dimmer. You’ll be able to fade out the lights before the movie starts.
Want the family room ready for game day? See our family room game day page.
What One Sound Choice clients say
The service was timely, the process was easy and I’m very satisfied…the theatre came out phenomenal. The picture (quality) is phenomenal. The equipment (Ryan) recommended was fantastic and he was involved in the entire process (from the very beginning).
– Mr. & Mrs. Shatz (1 Sound Choice client testimonials)
Ryan listened to us – he understood what we wanted to accomplish. (The 1 Sound Choice team’s) commitment to post-installation support and service has been unbelievable. They are professionals in every aspect and have gained our trust throughout the completion of our project.
– Mr. & Mrs. Maytin (1 Sound Choice client testimonials)
Very fortunate I met Ryan. I had been looking to do a home theater install for a while but after bad experiences with just design guys who told me to find my own contractor to do the work I had started to give up on the idea. I wanted someone who knew all the design elements but was also familiar with construction using the specialist materials I wanted to incorporate. From start to finish it’s been great. He listened to my ideas, suggested some of his own, we came up with a design, we worked on budgeting, always trying hard to stay close to my number. Once construction started I had the pleasure of dealing with Kenny, one of the most considerate guys you could hope to work with. Start to finish took just over 2 weeks…they kept surrounding areas very clean, always closed doors behind them, and able to work around my schedule if anything else was going on in the house. As for the finished product, its exactly how I wanted it to turn out. I’ve got a full 7.4 speaker setup, 125″ 2.35 screen, acoustic paneling, custom lighting, all running on Control 4. Kenny has already been back touch up some paint work. Ryan will be back again after speakers are full broken in and to tweak the picture after the projector settles in. I will have a few other AV projects over the next couple of years..not going to look anywhere else than these guys. Top professionals.
– Jey (Houzz review)
Family room theater questions
What paint color helps a home theater?
Dark, rich colors like burgundy or navy. They reflect less light, so the TV looks better.
Where should the seats go?
Right in front of the TV, like at the movies.
What lighting feels like a theater?
Wall sconces, and rope lighting for a theater look.
Do I need a separate room?
No. These tips work in a shared family room or den.
One Sound Choice, 8 Tilley Ave, Pompton Plains, NJ 07444. Call or text (973) 945-5275. We work in homes across Morris, Passaic, Bergen, Essex, Somerset, and Hunterdon counties. Written by Ryan Herd, founder of One Sound Choice.