'I want to bring Blockbuster back': B.C. teen creates free movie lending library
'I want to bring Blockbuster back': B.C. teen creates free movie lending library
Tucked away on a residential street in Langley, there's a blue cabinet filled with VHS tapes and DVDs bearing the once-familiar logo of Blockbuster video.
"It's a passion project," said Walnut Grover Secondary student Matthew Reed who created the free lending library for his Grade 12 capstone project.
"Pick a movie, leave a movie, take as many movies as you like, leave as many movies as you like."
He designed and built the 'Free Blockbuster' because he says renting movies and video games with his family is one of his fondest childhood memories. Unlike the now obsolete r stores, there are no late fees or penalties for failing to rewind – but there are membership cards available for anyone who wants to take one.
"He delved right in," said Michelle Watson, Reed's mother. "Every weekend he'd ask 'When can we paint? When can we get supplies?"
After doing a little research, he learned he wasn't alone, and is part of a movement growing across North America. A website that maps the free movie exchange boxes says Reed's is the first in B.C.
In just a few weeks, Reed says he's had hundreds of customers and has received boxes of donations from complete strangers.
"Everyone loves it," said Reed.
Neighbours told CTV news they liked the novelty and nostalgia of being able to take a stroll and select a movie.
"I think this is fantastic," said Amelia Rousseau. "A real interesting and unique way to bring the community together."
They also said they appreciated the effort to give the used movies a second life.
"I think it's a neat idea to make sure things are re-used," said another neighbour.
Dog-treat libraries and small food pantries have also popped up around the Lower Mainland recently, modelled on the concept of the popular little free book libraries.
The 17-year-old says he hopes to inspire others to keep the movement alive.
"I want to bring Blockbuster back!" Reed told CTV News.
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived Thursday evening in Ottawa for a whirlwind 27-hour visit expected to focus on both the friendly and thorny aspects of the Canada-U.S. relationship, including protectionism and migration on both sides of the border.
Canada and the United States are negotiating a deal that could see asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
As the federal government looks to renegotiate the Safe Third Country Agreement with the U.S., an eastern Ontario mayor says his city needs more help from Ottawa to deal with the influx of asylum seekers arriving through irregular crossings like Roxham Road.
Amid renewed questions over the pervasiveness of alleged interference by China in Canadian elections and affairs broadly, opposition MPs voted Thursday afternoon to affirm a parliamentary committee's call for the federal government to strike a public inquiry.
A majority of Canadians have seen a mistake on their grocery receipts in the last year, according to a new survey conducted by Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University.
An asteroid discovered just last week will pass closer to the Earth than the orbit of the moon this weekend, an occurrence so rare it happens only once in a decade, according to NASA.
The number of Canadians receiving employment insurance benefits are at record lows and down 44 per cent from last year, new figures from Statistics Canada show.
Two Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) sisters from Montreal are on a mission that is close to their hearts: to save their ancestors' first language by developing video games young and old can play.
A Victoria man’s life of crime has turned into one of survival, hope and advocacy amid ongoing conversations in the community about how best to tackle public safety matters.
The Alberta Energy Regulator has cited an energy company for causing a series of earthquakes, including the largest recorded tremblor in the province's history.
The Alberta Energy Regulator has cited an energy company for causing a series of earthquakes, including the largest recorded tremblor in the province's history.
An Ontario man said he was shocked when his truck was stolen not once but twice, and the second time it was taken he was surprised to discover he was no longer covered for theft.
For the first time, the owner of a building in Old Montreal has responded to questions about the fire — through his lawyer — addressing allegations that the building was unsafe.
The political class at the National Assembly has condemned the 'violent' and 'hateful' remarks that columnist Gilles Proulx allegedly made about Quebec solidaire MNAs during Richard Martineau's show on Qub radio in recent weeks.
Manitoba First Nation police have arrested a man connected with a shooting on March 19 on Long Plain First Nation that resulted in the community going on lockdown.
Manitoba’s labour force is growing at a rate to supply enough workers for available positions into 2026, according to the province’s labour market outlook.
An alleged victim of a former staff member of Legacy Christian Academy can now be identified after she successfully petitioned in court to have a publication ban lifted.
In the weeks leading up to Wednesday’s provincial budget, school divisions in Saskatchewan were expecting funding levels to increase, with the province repeatedly touting its $1 billion surplus.
A recent report from the province’s privacy commissioner says the Métis Addictions Council of Saskatchewan Inc. (MACSI) failed to take appropriate steps after patient treatment files were discovered in a recycling bin.
The Tim Houston PC government remains firm in their promise they'll fix the health-care system by spending more taxpayer money on health than any previous government before.
Potato farmers on Prince Edward Island are taking the federal government to court due to the decision to restrict the movement of P.E.I. seed potatoes.
The new provincial budget features items specific to southwestern Ontario, including a new English public elementary school in London, Ont. that will serve 556 students and include 88 licensed childcare spaces.
A young Strathroy, Ont. man believes there's a promising way forward in the effort to fight his disease. But, he's being told, right now, that path isn't open to him. Friends and family are stepping up to try and make a case for Kyle McPhee to receive immunotherapy treatments.
The co-owners of a new liquidation store in North Bay, Samuel Quesnel and Chloé Boivenue, say they want to bring a treasure hunt shopping experience to the city.
The ‘Catch the Ace’ jackpot is still up for grabs in Hagersville. There was no winner Thursday night so the total prize money is now an estimated $1,526,067.
The resurrection of Zellers is officially underway with the Cambridge location opening its doors to eager shoppers who lined up ahead of the store's official reopening.
