But a home theater room is more than just a sofa and a screen. Certain requirements, like controlling outside light and the ability to cast a large enough picture, should be met in order to call this a proper home movie theater. Requirements apply both to video projectors and screens as well as to large, flat-screen TVs. When there is an exception, it is noted.

When the home theater shares space with other activities, the cinematic experience is lessened. When the non-dedicated home theater shares open floor plan space with the kitchen, cooking sounds and smells invade. When the theater is the living room, kids run around and light is difficult to control.

Spare bedrooms work fine, but they do need to be long enough so that viewers can maintain a proper distance from the screen. This is especially important with video projectors. At the extreme end, a projector needs roughly a 14-foot throw distance in order to cast a 150-inch diagonal picture, though short-throw projectors are available.