Host a movie night fundraiser in 10 simple steps

Step One: Set your fundraising goal

Before you start planning anything else and get caught up in the excitement of the glitz and glamour of hosting a movie night let’s set some realistic expectations of what can be achieved. 

Ask yourself the following questions:

• How many people can one movie theatre at my local cinema hall seat?
• Will I be able to get enough people to buy tickets to fill that movie theatre?
• How much can I charge for a movie ticket, snacks, raffle tickets and other little add-ons in order to maximise revenue while keeping it affordable?
• How much money (at an estimate) will I be able to raise minus any expenses of organising this event?

On average, cinemas charge around $15 per ticket. This means you can charge your guests $30 per ticket (or more, if they have deeper pockets!) and raise $15 for each one sold.
 

• Break large projects into bite-sized tasks so that your team doesn’t feel overwhelmed
• Give every task a deadline
• Ask everyone to give you regular updates on their progress
• Tick off tasks as they’re completed 

Following these steps will help you to stay on track and there won’t be any last minute panic stations to contend with as the event date draws nearer.

Step Two: Choosing the right movie for your fundraiser

When choosing a movie, the main thing to consider is your audience.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Will kids be coming to see the movie?
• Will the film you choose need to be family-friendly?
• Do the people in your circle have a similar taste?
• If you’re inviting people from your broader community, what type of story will appeal to them?

There are so many genres and subgenres to consider – action, adventure, comedy, foreign film, musical, romance, horror, thriller, drama, fantasy, mystery, historical, science fiction, animation – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg! 

If you want your tickets to sell, choosing a “crowd pleaser” is important.

A highly anticipated movie that’s generating a lot of buzz is a great way to get people to open their wallets.

You know the ones we’re talking about – movies like Toy Story, The Lion King, Frozen, or any of the Marvel superhero movies.
 

Step Three: Pick a venue to screen your movie night

Now that you’ve chosen what to watch, it’s time to choose where to watch it.

Ask yourself these questions: will your cinema of choice be showing the movie you’ve picked? Does it have the day and time that’s suitable for your fundraiser?

Remember to consider accessibility for your audience.

Ask yourself: 

• Is the cinema centrally located, with plenty of parking and public transport options nearby? 
• Does it have the capacity to seat the number of people you’re expecting to turn up?

Another thing to consider: do you want your event guests to have a V.I.P. experience? Think gold class, v-max, lux, recliner seats, extreme screens. 

Remember, this will mean charging your guests more and you may not be able to seat as many guests but you could charge them per ticket.

You can also contact the cinemas directly and talk to their booking manager about your fundraising event to see if they have any special promotions or charity event options you can take advantage of. 

Be sure to ask them if they’ll have extra staff to help collect tickets and show people to their seats. 

You may want to ask them for some tips on maximising your profits too. They might be able to offer snack choices as part of their package, which you can use to raise extra funds.

Step Four: Recruit volunteers to help organise your event

Organising a fundraising event on your own can be stressful and time consuming.

It’s best to assemble a cast and crew of reliable volunteers who can help plan your event, rally guests, contact local businesses, and design flyers to promote the fundraiser.

Now is the perfect time to call in that favour your sister, best friend or work desk buddy owes you. Once you tell them about the great cause you’re raising money for, they’ll want to get involved for sure!

Here are some areas you may need volunteers for:

• Creating a budget and keeping a list of all revenue and expenses
• Calling cinemas to check date and session availability, ticket prices, special offers for charity events and any requirements you need to fulfill
• Calling local businesses to see if they’d be interested in offering freebies for your raffle prize
• Getting in touch with popular food vendors and asking them to donate their services at a discounted rate (if the cinema allows you this option)
• Creating a guest list and contacting them to generate interest
• Designing a theme and style for the poster, flyer, email and social media messaging to promote the event
• Handing out flyers on busy street corners or dropping them into letterboxes
• Sharing the event on social media and building excitement around the event
• Posting or emailing invitations to V.I.P. guests
• Volunteering on the night to collect tickets and show guests to their seats
• Helping ushers distribute snacks, especially to V.I.P. guests and anyone who bought a package deal
• Running the raffle and lucky door competitions
• Helping send out thank you notes or emails to everyone who came

Step Five: Get your Letter of Authority to fundraise

In some cases when you’re hosting a fundraising event, you might be asked to produce a letter of authority to fundraise.

This is easy to obtain – simply get in touch with us at [email protected] and ask us to send you the Fundraising Application form. 

As set out by Fair Trading, these details should be included in the letter:

• Your name or the name of the person who’ll be raising funds on behalf of the charity
• The terms and conditions under which the authorisation is granted
• A description of the appeal to be undertaken
• The specific period for which the authorisation will apply, including issue and expiry dates
• The date the letter was issued on
• Signature by an authorised delegate of the charity or organisation you’re raising funds for

Step Six: Use A Ticketing Platform To Manage Your Event

Make your event planning for your movie night fundraiser more manageable with an online booking system such as TryBooking, Eventbrite or StickyTickets, to name just a few. 

These platforms offer a centralised location for managing guest invites and RSVPs, and collecting funds.

Other features could range from selling different types of tickets to adding the logo of the charity you’re supporting onto the ticket.

Some platforms allow you to include an extra step in the ticket booking process so that guests can donate an amount they’re comfortable giving, which is great for keeping the actual movie ticket pricing low. 

This also means guests who aren’t able to attend the fundraiser can make a donation if they want to. Just remember to mention this option when you send out your invite so your guests are aware that they can donate, even if they can’t make it to the event.

Step Seven: Promote your movie event!

The best way to get a full house is to build anticipation.

In the same way blockbuster films use previews of movie trailers to create hype there are a range of marketing tactics you can use to create some buzz around your event. 

You’ll need to promote your movie night as much as possible. 

Here are a few things you could try:

• Flyers to slot into your neighbours’ letter boxes
• Posters to splash on the community notice board or at work
• An exciting email invite to send to your co-workers 
• A group chat amongst your friends and family circles (Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, or something similar)

Remember, it’s all about amplifying the message and advertising the event without having to spend a cent.

If you know an artist or a graphic designer, now’s the time to rope them into doing you a favour by creating some bespoke artwork to promote the movie night.

Otherwise, you could try Pinterest or Canva to find free design templates which will save you time and money.

Posting on social media is another great way to market your event for free. You could:

• Ask your Twitter followers to retweet the event
• Set up a Facebook page and/or event and invite your friends to like and share the event
• Post a captivating still image from the movie you’ll be screening on Instagram

Finally, don’t forget the power of word-of-mouth. Try these methods:

• Strike up a conversation in the lunchroom, in the coffee queue
• Use a school run as an opportunity to chat to others about the event
• Ask everyone you speak with to spread the word of your event, by sharing with their networks

Step Eight: Organise extra activities to boost funds raised

Raffles are a tried and tested way of quickly raising money without too much effort or cost.

If you can get people to donate goodies for the prize pool, even better. That’s why they’re a great little side hustle to boost the revenue generated on your movie night.

Across most of Australia, you don’t need a permit to run a raffle if the prize pool is under $5,000 but be sure to check with your local state or territory’s fair trading or consumer affairs website for details.

Give out a few lucky door prizes. When collecting the tickets, throw them in a popcorn bucket and draw names out before the movie begins. A snack or a gift voucher would make the perfect prize.

If it’s a superhero, fantasy or popular kids movie, you can encourage guests to come in costume, awarding the best-dressed with a small prize or even a trophy or certificate.

Another way to raise a little more money is having a bake sale. Get your foodie friends who know their way around a kitchen to make some snacks that guests can buy on the way to their seats (with permission from the theatre, of course).

Something simple like little bags of fudge, cupcakes, cookies and various flavours of popcorn would work well. 

Consider those who normally miss out due to dietary requirements and have a few vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free options available – they’ll be so thankful, they probably won’t mind paying more (to compensate for any special ingredients you might’ve had to use).

Step Nine: Ask for freebies from local businesses

Get in touch with local businesses (or even big supermarket and department store chains) in your area and see if they’re happy to donate some of their products or services for your fundraising event.

In return, you can give them a shoutout in your promotional material or when you send out your thank you emails afterwards.

If you can, keep the prizes entertainment related and see which stores are willing to donate items for your raffle. DVDs, popular snacks like Maltesers and microwavable popcorn, as well as some more grown-up treats like wine or spirits would make great additions to a movie themed hamper.

Your local cinema might even be willing to donate a couple of free movie tickets themselves. 

If you’re able to get your hands on some movie merch related to the film you’ll be screening, then even better.

Don’t be afraid to think big (and ask big) – now’s the time to get your local businesses to dig deep. 

Download our template letter for requests to businesses, and check out our other tips and tricks on asking for freebies for your fundraising events.

Step Ten: Share your success and say thanks

Once the credits start rolling and the lights come on after the movie, make sure to say thank you to everyone who came along.

You can even go one step further and send out thank you notes to all the volunteers, vendors and donors who made the event possible. 

The note should include a thank you message, including the amount you’ve raised. This will show them how they’ve impacted the fundraising event and how much you appreciate their contribution.

You may also like to show a video highlighting the work being carried out by The Fred Hollows Foundation so your donors can see how their donation is making a difference in restoring sight. 

There are lots of videos available on our YouTube channel.

One last thing...

Enjoy yourself!

We hope that the box office takings for your fundraiser are through the roof!

Don't forget to start your personal fundraising page so that you can track your fundraising progress, and feel free to contact us with any questions.

• Email: [email protected] 
• Phone: 1800 672 892