Home Movie Theaters

This theater’s classy and tasteful design was an idea that had been rolling around in Joel Chasen’s mind for over 20 years. “I had always done all of my equipment purchasing, setup, configuration, programming, and tweaking on my own,” said Chasen. “For my ultimate theater, I wanted to go beyond the scope of what I could accomplish by myself and sought out professional help. However, it was important to find people willing to collaborate.”

It took several years for airline pilot Ian Rothwell to formulate the ideas for his ultimate home theater. However, once he collaborated with longtime friend Mark Imbesi of Trymark Enterprises, it only took eight months for them to complete that vision.

Out-of-the-box thinking among the homeowner, Donny Hackett Designs, and Jacob Abbott of Visual Concepts turned a less than appealing home theater into a magical masterpiece that can only be entered if you know the secret.

Life is slower and more relaxed in the Keys, and the homeowner of this theater wanted a space to reflect the region’s comfortable sensibilities, including the vibrant colors prevalent in the area such as teal, blue, amber, and especially purple, which was a departure from the more classical theater with dark woods and red walls.

Back in 2001, James Hollingsworth got the home theater bug when a sales consultant asked a very simple question: "Do you want a TV, or do you want a home theater?"

During what he thought would be a routine new-TV purchase, James was introduced to possibilities he never imagined. He thought the 65-inch TV he was watching looked impressive until the sales guy dropped down a 100-plus-inch projection screen.

DIYer Mark Pierson's version of the Ultimate Home Theater melds old world charm with a 146-inch screen and a $95,000 speaker system.

I built my home theater in the attic and created a dramatic entrance and a vestibule. The vestibule’s reverse wall is painted like a women’s hat store circa 1910 Paris, with a travertine cobblestone street. Behind the windows, there are built-in shelves for DVDs and Blu-rays.