Outdoor Movies in North Vancouver

Hosted by the Polygon Gallery, Deckchair Cinema is a series of outdoor movies on the big screen at Cates Deck in North Vancouver.

Deckchair Cinema movies take place on Thursday evenings from June 27th until August 29th in 2024. Admission is by donation. There are also free movies with Sunset Cinema on Wednesdays in August at the Shipyards. See below for details about both of these two series of events.

SUNSET CINEMA IN DOWNTOWN VANCOUVER

In addition to Deckchair Cinema and North Vancouver’s Sunset Cinema movies, free films also usually take place in downtown Vancouver throughout the summer. To learn more about the series outside Queen Elizabeth Theatre, see our article about Sunset Cinema in Vancouver.

Deckchair Cinema Outdoor Movies in North Vancouver

Outdoor Movie Showings are popular in the summer as people bring their blankets and popcorn to see films on giant screens in parks and other venues.

A new summer series started up in North Vancouver in 2022. The Polygon Gallery hosted a weekly movie night on Thursday evenings between June and August that year. In 2024 the series began with a screening on June 27th. Deckchair Cinema takes place on Cates Deck which is on the water just in front the gallery. The movie nights start with music and local artisan vendors before the screenings themselves at around sunset.

There are snacks and drinks available for purchase from different local breweries. Cates Deck is one of the public spots where you can Drink Alcohol in North Vancouver. You definitely can bring your own blankets and chairs to see the movie, however, and that’s recommended!

(Note: Your donation also gets you into the Polygon Gallery which is open until 9:00 pm on Thursdays. There is a good chance you’ll get some free popcorn too.)

Admission Details

Admission to Deckchair Cinema is by donation so you can give whatever you want. The recommended amount is $10 per person. There are no tickets reserved in advance so it’s first-come, first-serve for available space. The venue isn’t very big, so be sure to arrive early to get a spot.

2024 Deckchair Cinema Schedule

The Deckchair Cinema schedule for 2024 is below. The events happen on Thursdays between June 27th and August 29th.

Shows in June & July

June 27th (9:30 pm): Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains – a cult classic musical about a teenager who shoots to fame with her punk band. As a neat bonus, the movie was shot in Vancouver!
July 4th, (9:15 pm): The Harder They Come – featuring famous tunes from Jamaica, the film tells the story of a young reggae artist who finds his fame through murder rather than music. (Note: tonight also includes a celebration of Bob Marley and his music before the show.)
July 11th (9:15 pm): Stop Making Sense – one of the most critically-acclaimed concert films of all-time, starring the rock band Talking Heads. The band funded the creation of the movie themselves.
July 18th (9:15 pm): Night Raiders – a award-winning Canadian dystopian thriller about an Indigenous woman who tries to free her daughter from a fictionalized version of the residential school system.
July 25th (9:00 pm): Scott Pilgrim vs the World – a visual, action-packed comedy movie about a garage-band musician who falls for a mysterious girl and has to defeat her army of evil ex-boyfriends in order to try and be with her.

Shows in August

August 1st (9:00 pm): Death Becomes Her – a fantasy comedy movie about two women who drink a dangerous potion in order to achieve immortality and appear beautiful and youthful forever.
August 8th (8:45 pm): Close-Up – an Iranian docu-fiction about a man who pretends to be a famous filmmaker and is put on trial for fraud. While the majority of the events of the movie are re-enactments, it’s based on a true story and stars everyone involved in the actual case.
August 15th (8:45 pm): Supercop – Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh star in an action-packed, slapstick adventure that follows two undercover agents who infiltrate a drug cartel.
August 22th (8:30 pm): Phantom of the Paradise – loosely based on The Phantom of the Opera, this comedy horror rock opera features a rock composer who seeks revenge on an evil record producer.
August 29th (8:30 pm): The Warriors – an action thriller from the 1970s, about a New York City street gang wrongfully framed for the murder of another gang’s leader.

Other Outdoor Movie Nights in North Vancouver

Sunset Cinema is a different series of outdoor movies in North Vancouver. The screenings are free to attend and take place on Wednesday nights at Shipyard Commons. Below is the schedule for 2024.

31st of July – Barbie
7th of August – The Princess Bride
14th of August – Top Gun: Maverick
21st of August – Finding Nemo
28th of August – Pitch Perfect

There are also two outdoor movie nights at Civic Plaza in 2024. These take place on Friday nights in July in between City Hall and the North Vancouver Public Library.

12th of July – Wonka
26th of July – Trolls

Finally, there is also an outdoor movie night at Ray Perrault Park on August 9th, 2024. The event is called Reel Magic.

9th of August – The Incredibles

To learn more about these events, see the City of North Vancouver‘s website. And for a list of other similar events in different parts of the Lower Mainland, see our article about Free Outdoor Movies.