Throw a Holiday Movie Marathon Party in 5 Easy Steps!

Fortunately, cold weather brought about with winter months also provides the perfect excuse for hot cocoa, warm cookies and curling up on the couch for a holiday movie classic like Charlie Brown’s Christmas. Of course it wouldn’t be the holidays, if all your friends and family weren’t also by your side to enjoy that movie with you. Here’s how you can throw a Holiday Movie Marathon Party in 5 easy steps.

Step 1: Pick your Favorite Holiday Film

The holidays are about, warmth, family and familiarity so it makes sense to stick to the classics—It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, and a Christmas Carol. Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to limit yourself to movies before 1990, you should instead strive to captivate your intended audience. For family feels, Elf and The Santa Clause work great, for the more artsy crowd, add an out of the box film like The Nightmare Before Christmas, and for the kids think Polar Express or Frozen. If it’s a movie marathon you’re after, it’s often best to let things develop organically over the night, start with an opener to draw in the crowd and have a store of movies on hand to keep the momentum into the night.

Step 2: Deck the Halls with Holiday Decorations

While all you really need to host a holiday movie marathon is some movies and a screen, it’s the details that make a holiday party truly memorable. Whether it involves stringing up christmas lights, hanging paper snowflakes, or dangling a strategically placed mistletoe, decorations can go a long way towards setting the atmosphere for your holiday movie event. Since you’ll likely be serving snacks, consider making a trip to the party store for some holiday plates, utensils, napkins and cups. Alternatively you can get creative and make your own table decorations. There are many ways to take the holiday spirit and emblazon it across your halls—go wild, get creative and above all have fun.

Step 3: Get a Big Screen TV

You can’t have an epic holiday movie marathon night without the proper equipment—and by far the most important item for your entertainment venue is the big screen. Got a big crowd visiting for the holidays, but not sure if your 14 inch 720p HD TV is quite up to snuff—it may be time for an upgrade. Fortunately, BuyDig has a few options to help you recreate that movie theater magic. If you want darker blacks, whiter whites and better color accuracy overall, an OLED like the 55 inch LG 55EG9600 Curved OLED will bring your entertainment venue to life. If better brightness, faster refresh rates (read reduced motion blur), and features like HDR are more your game, a 4K Ultra HDTV like this 55 inch Samsung UN55HU9000 will do nicely. Regardless whether you choose to side with futuristic OLEDs or the latest in LEDs this holiday season, your friends and family are sure to be left impressed with your new entertainment center.

Step 4: Seal the Deal with Holiday Party Essentials

So you’ve picked a roster of holiday movies, prepped your viewing venue, picked a date and sent out invitations—it’s time to stock up on the holiday essentials. For beverages: hot cocoa, apple cider, and eggnog form the holy trinity of holiday drinks, but depending on your guests, red wine and a seasonal beer are also safe bets. Snacks are a more diverse affair, think to your favorite holiday parties of the past and pick the delectables that tickled your palate—rice krispies, gingerbread men, holiday cookies, chocolate fudge brownies and jelly filled doughnuts—the list could go on, so have fun and show off your baking skills .

Step 5: Party On!

Once you’ve gathered everything you need, there’s only one thing left to do and that’s to throw a holiday movie marathon that everyone will remember. Actually hosting the event is as simple as designating a spot for food and drink, grabbing some pillows and blankets and curling up on the couch for a night of holiday cheer on your big screen TV. Of course there are a few things you can do to up the ante for holiday movie marathons to come. Consider setting the ambiance and mood with some scented candles. If you’re going to serving popcorn anyway, why not go the extra mile for movie theater authenticity with a professional popcorn maker complete with iconic red trolley. Start the night with your opening movie and let the audience democratically determine the rest of the evening. Follow these 5 simple steps and you’ll have successfully pulled off a holiday movie marathon party to remember.