‘Trip down memory lane:’ Saskatoon church shares massive movie library

The days of picking out a movie at Blockbuster may be a distant memory, but a Saskatoon church is working on a creative way to keep those memories alive.

Judy Anderson, the rector’s warden for Christ Church in Caswall Hill, said that when the COVID-19 pandemic started, some members of the church came up with a “crazy” idea to help bring the community together through movies.

After receiving thousands of DVD and VHS donations, Anderson said the church transformed part of its basement into a video rental library called “Nutflakes,” a parody of the popular streaming service Netflix.

“Nutflakes” movie library at Christ Church provides thousands of DVDs and VHS tapes for rent by donation.

Access to the library is free, and all of the videos, including the machines to play them, have been donated. The church has about 2,000 films in the rental library and another 4,000 in storage, she noted.

“It’s a bit like Blockbuster,” Anderson said.

But why would anyone watch DVDs and VHS tapes instead of using a streaming service?

Anderson said some people might want to “take a trip down memory lane,” while others want to watch older movies that aren’t always available for streaming. It’s also more affordable, as the church’s library doesn’t charge for rentals.

“A lot of people can’t afford the streaming costs,” she said.

Initially, Anderson said, she thought the idea wouldn’t work. But the grand opening brought in 40 people, and some regular borrowers have been coming back ever since.

One elderly couple comes in every Saturday at 11 a.m. to borrow three movies, she explained, and they always bring three toonies with them as a donation.

The church welcomes donations for the service, and all of the proceeds go towards Chep, a food insecurity program in Saskatoon.

“Nutflakes” at Christ Church in Caswell Hill provides a free movie library service for the public.

So far, around $1,000 has been raised through donations.

Anderson said the church gives back in other ways as well, including hosting Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, yoga, and free community meals. There’s also a bread program that donates up to 400 loaves to the community every week.

“We’re really trying to find ways to engage the community,” she said. “We want to open the doors to the church for people to use this as a community centre.”