Walking the Blue Carpet at the Paramount Sonic Movie Family Day and Screening Event in Hollywood

Do you remember playing the Sonic the Hedgehog game when you were a kid? My sister had it on her Sega Game Gear and I was always totally envious that she had one but we had a lot of fun playing it together. Now Sonic the Hedgehog also has a movie and it opens in theaters on February 14th! I had seen a bunch of previews for the Sonic Movie recently and I was so excited when I received an invite for my family to attend a Blue Carpet event in Hollywood for the Sonic Movie Family Day in my inbox. Not only was it a Blue Carpet event, but it was happening miles and miles away from Seattle in sunny California so it couldn’t have been a more perfect escape.

Staying with Kids at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

We started the weekend on an early morning flight from Seattle to Los Angeles where we left gray rainy skies and ended up in glorious sunshine. There is nothing more special than seeing endless blue after seeing rainy day upon rainy day since November! And we flew American Airlines for the first time in ages and we had really great flights both ways.

We picked up our rental car (PSA: make sure you always take pictures of your car when you get a rental-it helps just in case you have a problem when you bring it back) and drove to the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. This hotel couldn’t feel more Hollywood classic and it opened in 1927 making it nearly 100 years old. Marilyn Monroe apparently lived here for two years and the first Academy Award presentations took place here in 1929. The pool at the Hollywood Roosevelt is also quite stunning-it’s designed by David Hockney who is currently the most expensive living artist in the world. This hotel felt like the best place to stay to feel totally immersed in Hollywood glory-the TCL Chinese Theatre is even right across the street and the sidewalks nearby are all adorned with golden Hollywood stars!

Before visiting, I wasn’t sure how kid-friendly the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel would be, but our room was really comfortable, there is a 24 hour restaurant on-site (for snacks anytime) and there is a fabulous pool so that’s pretty much all our kids need. We also saw many other kids not affiliated with our group staying here too. We tried both the 25 Degrees Diner and Tropicana Cafe by the pool for breakfast and our food was delicious and plentiful. The hotel is also walkable to In-N-Out burger which is such a big hit with kids too. If we were there without kids, I totally would have wanted to see the bowling alley in the “Spare Room” the upstairs bar. But that will be for another time and we had plenty to do on our trip.

A Press Conference with Junior Reporters for the Sonic Movie

The coolest part about my journey in blogging is that I’ve been able to bring my kids with me on so many of my adventures. For this adventure, my kids and I got to attend our first ever press conference at the very same time. I get nervous in big crowds and wasn’t sure if I would actually ask any questions (I didn’t this time) but it was so incredible to be in a room full of other bloggers and their families waiting to hear Jim Carrey, James Marsden, Jeff Fowler and Ben Schwartz talk about the movie they made.

I had my kids write their questions down in notebooks ahead of time just in case and I did too. Practicing for something like this together was one of my unexpectedly favorite parts of this whole experience because it felt like something we would remember for a long time. Hearing the actors and the director talk about the movie made my kids really connect with the idea of how movies are made. My kids even got a picture with everyone at the end. And without even seeing the Sonic Movie yet, my kids told me that this was one of their best days. (I also had a really delicious carrot cake while we waited for the stars and that made my day spectacular too.)

An Epic Parmount Blue Carpet Family Day in Hollywood

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to watch another movie without thinking about the magic of our day on the Blue Carpet for the Sonic Movie. We started the morning with a tour of Paramount Pictures Studios. Anyone can go on a Paramount Studio tour and if you are into learning how movies are made or shows are filmed, this is a really cool place to go. One of my favorite stops was a room full of movie memorabilia and we were able to explore this room for a little while. We also learned about how Paramount Pictures has filmed some fantastical water scenes in a big parking lot beside a really tall wall and even though I’ve seen the lot and seen many of the movies they’ve filmed here, my mind is still blown at how this movie magic actually happens.

While walking past Paramount’s version of New York City and past the trailers for the cast of This is Us, we could see the Blue Carpet party being set up. When we finally arrived at the Blue Carpet Family Day, the party was over the top.

Everywhere we looked there was something cool to do. From a DJ spinning Sonic Movie tunes, to carnival games with fun prizes and booths with yummy food EVERYWHERE, we had a hard time figuring out where we wanted to start. The kids enjoyed the tiny tacos made by Jack in the Box and me too so we’ll look for them the next time we stop to charge our car on our way to visit family (There’s a Jack in the Box in the parking lot where we often charge our car.).

We ate pizza and churros and drank fancy water in boxes. We tried to lineup for cotton candy shaped like Sonic but ran out of time. My guys loved the Puma Sonic Race where they were timed to see how fast they could run. And one of my guys won me a Puma waist pack so I can use it to hold my phone when we go for runs together.

It was fun just being at this event and taking in all the sites and sounds. We even walked the Blue Carpet for a moment and felt like we were superstars. And then we arrived at the movie screening which was in a gorgeous theatre. What a way to watch a movie! So thank you Paramount Pictures for such an incredible weekend and we are so excited for the Sonic Movie to come out on Feb. 14th!

And I have a few Free Sonic Movie Printable Valentines that you can print, cut out and share too

(PS. As stated above we were the lucky guests of Paramount Pictures for this incredible weekend and as always the viewpoints and ideas in this blog are always my own.)

Terumi

Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys.  She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live.  She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)