Here are some pictures from my friend, Rebecca Gholdston’s 30th birthday party. A few months before she sent out a call for entries to all her friends asking for submissions of shorts under five minutes. Then she rented out the Victoria Theater in the Mission and hosted a film festival. It really was one of the best parties I’ve been to. Surprisingly Rebecca managed to do this party on a budget. It wasn’t cheap but by finding loopholes she was able to throw a once-in-a-lifetime party for an affordable price. Here is how she did it.

First, by renting the theater on a weeknight she was able to negotiate a good rental price for the theater. That was her largest cost. Then instead of serving dinner she held the party late-ish and served popcorn {popped in the theater’s popcorn machine} and then bought cases of bottled sodas at Costco and spent $100 on boxes of candy at Walgreens. She rented a long red carpet for $40 and then convinced two leggy friends to dress up as sexy “cigarette girls” who walked around the party with trays of gum, mints, and fortune cookies. The first hour people mingled in the lobby and had their picture taken on the red carpet or in front of the photo backdrop. Then everyone went into the theater and watched all the movies. There were so many great ones. It just reaffirmed my belief that the best parties include some aspect where you give guests a platform to be creative. When the films were finished we brought out a large fancy princess cake and sang happy birthday to Rebecca. Afterward everyone went up on the stage for a 30 minute dance party. It was such a fun party to attend and is such a great memory for all of her friends. See more photos here.