Free Movies in the Park Debuts on Friends Field: ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet,’ To-Go Discounts at The Cantina

The third screening in the 2019 edition of Movies in the Park, the free series of film screenings under the stars on a giant inflatable screen as part of a collaboration from Mill Valley Recreation, the Mill Valley Chamber and the California Film Institute, is going to be a doozy.  

For the first time ever, on Friday, Sept. 13, Movies in the Park is happening on Friends Field outside the Mill Valley Community Center. The film is the 2018 hit Ralph Breaks the Internet, which follows Wreck-It-Ralph characters Ralph and Vanellope, now friends, as they discover a wi-fi router in their arcade, leading them into a new adventure on the World Wide Web as they risk it all to must risk it all to find a replacement part to save Vanellope’s video game, “Sugar Rush.”

And in a delightful addition to the event for anyone who wants to grab dinner before or during the screening, The Cantina at 651 East Blithedale Ave. – across the street from Friends Field – is offering 10% off (to-go orders only) to anyone attending Movies in the Park who mentions the event. 

To close out the series on Oct. 13 as part of CFI’s 42nd Mill Valley Film Festival, the Halloween classic Coraline takes over Old Mill Park. The 2009 stop-motion animated film is based on Neil Gaiman’s 2002 novel of the same name and tells the story of a girl named Coraline (Dakota Fanning), who moves into a new home and discovers a secret door, behind which lies an alternate world that closely mirrors her own but, in many ways, is better. She rejoices in her discovery, until Other Mother (Teri Hatcher) and the rest of her parallel family try to keep her there forever. 

Seating is general admission, and attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket and/or low beach chair. The main feature begins at sunset, which is around 7:30pm on Sept. 13.

The Movies in the Park series kicked off in 2014 and has gotten bigger and better every year since. In 2018, the Mill Valley Chamber organized a successful fundraising campaign to raise enough money to purchase all of the equipment required to produce the series, propelled by a $5,000 grant from the Outdoor Art Club.
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“Watching the Movies in the Park series blossom into such a popular, cherished community event has been fantastic,” says City of Mill Valley Arts and Recreation Director Jenny Rogers. “Our collaboration on this series with the Mill Valley Chamber and the California Film Institute has been incredible – the City simply could not do it without the generous support of our awesome partners.”

The 411: On Friday, Sept. 13, Movies in the Park is happening on Friends Field outside the Mill Valley Community Center with a screening of the 2018 hit Ralph Breaks the Internet. The Cantina at 651 East Blithedale Ave. – across the street from Friends Field – is offering 10% off (to-go orders only) to anyone attending Movies in the Park who mentions the event. ​Seating is general admission, and attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket and/or low beach chair. The main feature begins at sunset, which is around 7:30pm on Sept. 13.
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