The Rainbows Children’s Hospice in Loughborough, U.K., recently became the 31st children’s hospice in the country to receive a free professional-grade theater room installation through the philanthropic organization Together For Cinema.

As founder Ian Morrish has conveyed to CE Pro during appearances on the CE Pro Podcast, sponsorships and products from custom electronics industry companies are vital to the success of its mission: to deliver joyful experiences to children and their families in hospices throughout the country.

For the Rainbows Children’s Hospice project and several others, Together For Cinema has been able to count on Snap One and its extensive family of brands for donations to the theater rooms.

“We began ramping up our outreach in 2021, and Rainbows contacted us in August to learn more about what we do and to discuss a possible installation,” Morrish says.

“Once I saw the room they had available, it was clear that we could deliver our standard Together For Cinema installation, but with extra lighting to help create a wonderful ambiance and visual experience. I envisioned downlights, LED lights, motorized blinds, and a fiber-optic star ceiling all combined through a Control4 automation system that would ensure a memorable cinema room experience.”

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Snap One Involved in 10 Together For Cinema Projects

Snap One learned about Together For Cinema’s noble mission in 2020, quickly joined as a Gold sponsor in 2021, and has since donated equipment and resources for 10 completed projects, the company notes. 

In the Rainbows Children’s Hospice cinema room, the Control4 system helps make movie time as easy as possible for staff and as fun as can be for the children and their families. Staff can easily turn everything on at once using a Control4 remote, including the special lighting, AV equipment, motorized window blinds and the Infinity Lighting starry sky ceiling panels.

The installation includes an Epson EHTW5910 projector, Sony UBPX70 Ultra Blu-ray player, KEF T205 surround-sound speaker package, Denon AVCX2700 AV receiver, Legrand Shading Systems automated shades, HDANYWHERE cables, and baluns, and Penn Elcom rack. The room seats up to 10 people, so entire families can schedule priceless movie time with their children.

“For many of those who stay at our hospice, going to a cinema might not be a physical option, or they simply may not feel comfortable making that trip,” explains Anne-Marie Rosak, head of Nursing and Clinical operations at Rainbows Children’s Hospice.

“Now families are able to use this dedicated room at any time during their stay and enjoy full control to make the space suit their needs, whether they want it fun and lively or tranquil and relaxed with the beautiful ceiling of twinkling lights.

“For many of our young people at the hospice it is about freedom, being independent and choosing whatever films they wish to watch. Previously we used our conference room as a cinema, but that never felt like a real cinema experience. This is much more intimate, and we know it will create wonderful memories for hundreds of families,” she adds.

Integrator Decorum Technology Ties It All Together

Together For Cinema contracted with Gary Mills at Decorum Technology, a local integrator, to donate labor and materials to support the Rainbows project. The estimated cost of donated equipment and labor for this project was £25,000 ($31,500), and the total so far across all 31 completed projects is more than £700,000 ($880,000).

“This is the second installation that we have helped Together For Cinema with, the first being at Acorns Children’s Hospice in Walsall which was completed in January 2012,” says Decorum Technology’s Mills.

“Both installations were a pleasure to be involved with and we are delighted to help make a difference to so many children and young adults in and around both Walsall and now Loughborough. The high-quality equipment enabled us to create a fabulous cinema room facility that will stand the test of time and provide meaningful experiences for many years to come.”

The charitable group also relies heavily on fundraising, something CE Pro recently discussed with Morrish and Chris Pinder, the managing director of Together For Cinema sponsor manufacturer HDANYWHERE. Pinder competed in the grueling Marathon Des Sables earlier this year and raised more than $55K for the organization.

The Rainbows Children’s Hospice installation only took one week, and the cinema room has its grand opening on May 17.

The special event even featured English actress Rakhee Thakrar, who has appeared in many BBC and Netflix series and will appear in the 2023 production Wonka.

“I was delighted to be asked to help open the new cinema room at Rainbow’s Children’s Hospice and witness what a difference this will make to so many children and young adults in the future,” Thakrar says.

“I think it’s amazing; I can’t believe how special it is! When you walk in, it is totally immersive and definitely has the wow factor.

“It will be a wonderful place for families to make memories together and that is what Rainbows is all about. The big screen cinema feel, the excellent audio, the lighting, including the wonderful infinity ceiling, really make this a special gift to Rainbows.”

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