The streets of California are quiet these days as residents safely isolate themselves from the outside world. Making the quarantine a little bit less painful, a coveted group of Hollywood insiders are a part of the ultra-exclusive Bel Air Circuit where they have the opportunity to screen first run films in the privacy of their mansions.
With the prolific entertainment options available On Demand and with Netflix and Amazon, the rest of us can now enjoy the privilege of watching new theatrical releases. With the current Coronavirus pandemic forcing the public to stay at home, we are consuming more content than ever before, but for the rich and famous with private screening rooms in their homes, the experience is better than going to the neighborhood movie houses.
Home designers and architects have been incorporating extravagant private screening rooms into large mansions for years, and the trend is growing so fast that real estate agents are finding buyers expect the luxury amenity in all new builds.
Jade Mills is one of Hollywood’s most famous luxury estate realtors, and she tells me, “Homes over $10 million are where you normally find a great screening room. Lately buyers are looking for theaters that are comfortable. One of my listings is on a lower level with a gym, bar, and wine cellar attached to the screening room. Families are looking for spaces where they can spend time together, and I think that this whole pandemic has made us more conscious of really not spending a lot of time with our family.”
Luxury estate realtor Aaron Kirman has seen a significant increase in customer demand for these luxury build-outs and says, “The home theaters are the main components in a luxury sale right now. People love that escapism, and it’s been one of the main features for years, but they have certainly gotten bigger and better, and the money that people are spending on them is outrageous. What we are seeing as a trend is that people want to make their theaters more informal and make it super loungey.”
West Los Angeles theater by Slayman CinemaSLAYMAN CINEMA
Private cinema designer Lisa Slayman of Laguna Beach, California based Slayman Cinema creates stunning and often outrageous theaters in unique, high-performing entertainment environments for private residences. She explains the popularity of the desire for screening rooms at home, “Historically, a home theater was designed as a room dedicated to one thing and one thing only: watching movies. What’s become increasingly common are home theaters that facilitate other forms of recreation. For many families, a multipurpose entertainment area makes a lot of sense. They may not have the free space or the funds to allocate a large chunk of their homes to movie viewing, so designing the room to accommodate other activities—watching sporting events, playing video games, listening to music, practicing yoga, you name it—offers more bang for their buck. Rather than outfit the space with stadium-style seating, for example, it’s become more important to provide large, open floor space for exercising and interactive gaming.”
Among Slayman’s extravagant home theater projects is a Saudi Palace in Riyadh for a member of the Royal Family with an opulent designed subterranean home theater. Special custom features include a separate lobby with a concession stand, an Art Deco marquee, Ebony Italian millwork, illuminated Amethyst stones, and Swarovski crystals woven into the wool and silk carpeting and tufted velvet of the back wall.
The award-winning Lady Luck Theater in Laguna Beach includes Damask fabric with Swarovski crystal inlays, a lobby with full-motion movie posters, balcony, and main auditorium to seat as many as 45 people. The 18-foot-wide screen offers a 3D projection system. Total cost for the project is around $3.5 million and took four years to complete.
The $2 million West Los Angeles Theater project features a 17th century Spanish, Moorish gothic design. There is a custom Mudejar ceiling with back-lit leaded glass, 150 hand-painted panels and back-lit leaded glass. The arches on the back and side walls are framed in wrought iron and hide 28 speakers behind woven horse hair fabric.
This article was originally written for Forbes Magazine (ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE)