Parks and Rec

Coming Soon to a Park near You – Free Summer Movies!

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Dust off those lawn chairs and find your picnic blanket – Summer Movies in the Park starts Friday and this series is bigger and better than ever before. 

This year, there will be 122 free family films compared to 113 last year and six additional locations.

The season premiere begins with the movie “Aladdin” at the Waterfront Park. All movies are shown on screens ranging from 26 to 40 feet and start at dusk. Many locations offer music, arts and crafts, games and other fun activities for children an hour or so before the show starts, so check the schedule to see what might be offered on your specific family movie night.

Locations range from Fallbrook and Oceanside in the north to Lakeside and Julian in the east, Chula Vista in the south, coastal areas like Point Loma, Mission Bay and Ocean Beach, and dozens of communities in between.

This is the ninth year in a row that County Parks and Recreation and sponsor cities have offered what is now billed as the largest free movie event in the country. All the films are rated from G to PG-13 and titles include recent movies such as “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and “Kung Fu Panda 3” along with  classics like “Mary Poppins” and “Back to the Future.” 

The movie series, sponsored by Wendy’s, runs into October this year and caps off the season on Oct. 29 with the film “Hocus Pocus.” For the entire list of films, dates and locations, visit Summer Movies in the Park.

Tracy DeFore is a communications specialist with the County of San Diego Communications Office. Contact