The setup is surprisingly simple. We hooked up our portable theater inside a 2007 Toyota Sienna minivan. Our projector was a 1280 x 720-pixel Panasonic PT-AX100 ($2999) that was, frankly, a bit of overkill for this project — the DVD source material we used was far below the projector's hi-def capabilities — but we were intrigued by its 2000-lumen brightness. Providing video was a Sony DVP-FX810 portable DVD player ($200) with a composite video output, a 6-hour battery and an 8-in. swiveling screen, which paled in comparison to the suggested maximum 200-in. screen of the Panasonic projector. For power, we used a Husky 750-watt inverter ($80). (Our projector had a maximum power requirement of 290 watts, but we figured that it couldn't hurt to at least double that to deliver consistent power.) Finally, we hooked up a C. Crane Digital FM Transmitter ($70) to the audio output of our DVD player to broadcast the movie soundtrack to the radios of other nearby cars.
For the screen, any white wall will do. But if no suitable wall is available, a large white bedsheet or dropcloth allows you to create a screen at will.
Labels: Movie Theater
