In July of 2019, I put in my application to work at the College 9 Movie Theater in State College, PA. Being my first job, I was nervous but excited. The perks really made up for the minimum-wage pay; free popcorn, soda, and movies pretty much whenever I wanted. Plus, we were dreadfully slow half the time, so I could play on my phone while watching the dust collect all throughout the lobby.

During my free time that year, I came to watch the newest flicks, including Us, The Lion King, Spiderman: Far From Home, Just Mercy, and The Lighthouse. All of my coworkers were so passionate about movies, but I had (and still do have) a short attention span. So often, especially when watching movies at home, I would get distracted by my phone or use the movie as background noise while doing homework (bad idea). Because of this, its meaning gets lost on me. I was in a rut and needed to step up my movie-watching game.

That was accomplished with one movie: Parasite. Sitting in the movie theater with my coworkers, Winter and Josie, I was so enthralled by a movie that was entirely in Korean. This Oscar-winning Best Feature Film was so gritty, with an intriguing story that made the watcher unable to look away. All of the characters acted with spite, which combined with a fantastic pacing and beautiful cinematography. Walking out of that theater, it was like my whole perception about movies and the entertainment industry changed. Movies, entertainment, theme parks, etc. can be fantastic, but there needs to be something else when watching them: a viewer’s connective spark.

This spark can come from anywhere, whether it be a fascination with a look of an actor in one particular scene, a resemblance to someone’s personal life, or a familiar setting. That is the beauty of movies, and entertainment as a whole. When watching Parasite, my connective spark was the background music. I so heavily enjoyed its addition to the film and it pacing that it kept me interested in the movie while making me find other aspects I loved. This spark created a building block system that I have used to fall in love with so many other films.

In March of 2020, I was laid off from my job at the theater due to the pandemic, but I kept watching movies to pass the time. In 2020 alone, I watched over 120 movies and limited series. I used a spark from one film to move to the next, whether that be a particular director, actor, composer, or set location. I, like so many others, was devastated when films kept being pushed back due to the current state because of connective sparks I had already bonded. I just wanted that movie-watching experience that I loved.

I returned to College 9 in late 2020, but the industry was in a rough spot and I made the very difficult to finally say goodbye to the place I fell in love with movies. I am fortunate to have had that opportunity to find my entertainment-loving spark.