A year ago, there weren’t any.
But after taking stock of the amount of requests from parents who wanted an appropriate environment for their sensory-sensitive children and a few months of research, the library debuted autism family movie nights earlier this year.
On Thursday, the library showed “Mulan” as part of the program.
In the auditorium, the lights were dim — but not too much. The sound system, made to project into the far back of the auditorium, played lower than normal.
All of this was intentional.
“We talked to experts in the community and talked to parents about what the environment needed to be like,” program coordinator Chris Hosler said. “It took about three months to figure out.”
If most movie showings are meant to have mostly silent audiences, then Thursday’s movie screening broke the mold. Light chatter and giggling wasn’t frowned upon — it was prevalent, but not overwhelming. A girl in the front row raised her hands as Mulan sang, appearing to direct the musical number.
Ellen Arnholter, the librarian on duty during the movie, said that’s how it’s supposed to be.
“We try to keep things predictable and have few interruptions,” Arnholter said. “We keep the lights up and the sound low for anyone who has sensory sensitivity.”
With the lights and sound in check, children with sensory difficulties are less intimidated by the movies. However, Arnholter said that since the environment doesn’t discourage speaking, it draws a more diverse audience than one would expect.
“We get English-as-a-second-language speakers in here sometimes because they feel comfortable enough to speak during the movie and kind of talk about what’s going on with their children,” Arnholter said.
Sometimes, parents whose children don’t have sensory issues decide to come to the movies as well.
“It’s a non-threating environment,” said Mary Ulmet.
She had taken her daughter and two of her daughter’s friends to the movie since it was their favorite.
During the movie, they’d been able to sing along and dance with some of the music on screen.
“But not too much,” Ulmet said. “We didn’t want to disturb anyone.”
Ulmet said she comes regularly with her daughter and is thankful for the space the movie nights create.
“It’s a great way for parents and children to practice going out in public,” Ulmet said.
The library is still looking for volunteers to monitor October and November’s movie nights.
