Edel Brosnan describes a year of watching grown-up movies at parent-baby cinema screenings, surrounded by her own and other people's children.

Cyril Connolly once said that the greatest enemy of art is the pram in the hall. Clearly, he never met Francis Ford Coppola, or Jim Sheridan – to name just two filmmakers who carried on being creative long after their children arrived. Making movies is one thing however; actually going to the cinema when you have a small baby is another matter entirely. But thanks to parent-baby screenings, I am still getting my weekly fix of first-run films for adults.

Toddle along to the cinema
Inspired by the success of parent-baby cinema clubs in New York, cinema chains in the UK and Ireland are now offering daytime screenings for the parents of babies and toddlers. According to the London-based independent Picturehouse chain, these screenings are 'a chance to catch a film… in a relaxed atmosphere… without finding a babysitter.' Multiplex giants such as the Odeon are also getting in on the act, while Huggies now sponsor 'Big Scream' screenings at mainstream and arthouse cinemas countrywide. Likewise, In Ireland, cinemas have signed up to 'Reel Parents': a movie-going opportunity where 'it's okay for babies to sleep, feed and cry' without being glared at.

Babies themselves tend to ignore the film – they are too busy sleeping, or eating, or testing the acoustics in the auditorium. My daughter was fascinated by the art-deco light fittings on the ceiling, but showed no interest in the films we saw together. According to child psychologists, children under a year old can recognise a TV screen image, but the oversized image on a cinema screen is, in their eyes, a random arrangement of colour and light. So you can take a baby to a film rated15 or 18 with a clear conscience.

The full article is printed in Film Ireland 108.