Film evenings in Genesta Park - a good beginning

Last night was the first in what was billed as a series of family films in Genesta Park. This has the makings of a good idea and deserves Encino community support, but they need to go bigger next time.

There was a decent crowd of young families assembled around the food truck, the fire truck and the screen set up for SHREK; there was a musician to get things started; some retail involvement (My Gym gave the kids a warm-up); Councilman Paul Koretz gave a brief introduction and there were lots of community volunteers. All good. Numbers were a little low for an event of this kind but perhaps that should be no surprise. Residents are skeptical these events will be done well and everyone has seen SHREK, right?

Friends of Encino Park, the non-profit 501c(3) organization that ran the event had almost no budget to work with, I’m sure, but the event needs a little more class to make it bigger and better. Here are my thoughts.

One - screenings should occur only in summer. To hold this in September, after school has started, seems kind of late to me. Even with the advantage of being able to reach people through the elementary schools, the weather has turned cooler (we had thunderstorms yesterday!). There are always summer camps for spreading the word and the advertising and promotions should be started much earlier and should be more aggressive – not much Facebook support, not much buzz.

Two – why only one food truck (there were also two drinks trucks)? With an event of this kind you need several. Fast food is good for kids, but get a gourmet truck for the parents and close off Paso Robles to traffic to allow more vendors.

Three – this seems to be focused on the screening and aimed at families with young kids. That is fine, however how many movies can be found that will be crowd pleasers? What do we screen next summer? Old films? Why not find studios to partner with to show new films?

Finally, I find it a bit odd that this event is being held one month before Taste of Encino. The Chamber of Commerce need to get it into their heads that people attend Taste of Encino for the food and the entertainment, not the other vendors. So here is an idea: why don’t we ditch the once a year Taste of Encino altogether and integrate it into the summer screenings and make them once a month, one in June, one in July and one in August? Bring in as many vendors and forms of entertainment as possible – for all ages - and make it more like a farmers market or a massive block party in the park. You might even call it Taste of Encino.