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Francesca Duncan and Nick Houston want you to play with your food—and have fun doing it. It’s far from the message their parents gave them at the dinner table as kids, but it’s now a mission statement helping drive the couple’s business.

Fork n’ Film offers an immersive culinary experience where you can watch a movie in a venue while being served food inspired by what’s on screen. The business idea came one night while Francesca and Nick were watching the movie Matilda and that infamous chocolate cake scene sparked a lightbulb moment.

“I thought, ‘I’m really hungry. I wish I could try that [cake],’” recalls Francesca. “How cool would it be to put on an event where people are able to eat what they see on screen?” (Spoiler: very cool).

At the time, the Los Angeles social scene was still recovering from the COVID lockdown and, according to Francesca and Nick, there wasn’t enough for young people to do in the city. That’s when they decided to put their unique idea to the test.

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DIY-ing their first event

After weeks of planning, the couple hosted a trial event on the rooftop of Nick’s apartment block showing Harry Potter. It was all hands on deck as Francesca, Nick and some friends scrambled to bake dozens of cakes and cook chicken in one oven while running up and down to the 34th floor to serve guests. “We were the chefs, managers, the servers and janitors,” jokes Nick.

Only he’s not joking. It was a true lesson in DIY events. Despite some initial teething problems with the sound system and running behind schedule, the pair managed to pull it off. Not only was it a success, but a social media post by an attending influencer went viral overnight.

“That's when we knew, ‘Wow, we have something really, really special,’” says Francesca. It prompted the duo to release tickets for their next event, which sold out in less than a second. “We ended up putting on a bunch of events that summer, and I had to quit both of my nanny jobs to give this our full attention.”

What started as a novel pop-up event in 2023 transformed into a self-funded events company hosting around 180 screenings per month across eight locations in the U.S. and one in London (plus pop-ups in Hawaii and Tokyo). In less than two years, Fork n’ Film has grown to a team of around 100 staff, amassed more than half a million followers on Instagram and generated over $11 million in sales.

Tapping into their superpower

Before becoming self-professed “multifunctional entrepreneurs,” Francesca and Nick were first and foremost creatives. Both are singer-songwriters, while Francesca has some notable acting credentials and a talent for social media. They describe this creativity as a superpower they regularly tap into for Fork n’ Film.

This superpower came in handy when the couple recognized that their startup needed a strong and professional online presence. “From that DIY to viral moment, we realized almost immediately that we needed a website,” says Francesca. “We wanted people to know that we were a legitimate company.”

The pair decided to build the website themselves so they’d have complete creative control and be able to turn it around quickly with minimal costs. Wix had been Nick’s go-to platform since college for creative projects, so for him, it was an obvious choice. However, it was the built-in event website capabilities, eCommerce platform and scheduling software that made it the right fit for Fork n’ Film.

For the site’s look and feel, the couple wanted to capture that same energy guests experience at their events. “When people first go onto our website, I want them to feel the magic,” says Francesca. “I want them to feel excited, like they're buying tickets to Disney World.”

Taking their magic online

Before building their website, Francesca and Nick immersed themselves in the world of cinema, drawing inspiration from movie posters, graphics, branding and typography. They chose four key characteristics to guide their design: cinematic, immersive, bold, and structured but playful.

The couple incorporated subtle yet quirky movie-themed design elements, such as ticket stub graphics, frame-like imagery and film-inspired fonts to give the website its cinematic feel. They also added a mix of layered visuals, close-up photography and full-screen sections to create a multi-sensory experience for visitors.

Inspired by iconic films like Kill Bill and Little Miss Sunshine, Francesca and Nick opted for a bold contrast of black and white, complemented by a vibrant yellow accent for their brand colors and chunky text for the headers. (It packs a punch on the website’s footer.)

Working with a large amount of content, the couple was mindful to keep things organized. To achieve this, they used a rhythmic, center-aligned flow across different pages, reminiscent of closing credits in a film. They also added image overlays and surprising transitions to make the user experience light and fun. Real footage from Fork n’ Film events added extra authenticity.

The final result: a highly engaging, easily navigable website bursting with that energy Francesca and Nick were looking for. So much so that it even surprised them.

“In the [design] process, we learned how capable we are of building a website, which is crazy,” says Francesca. “We literally built our website with Wix with our own two hands, and we’re proud of that. It’s really cool to say that we are the owners [of Fork n’ Film], but also the website developers.”

Finding their audience in the numbers

Apart from Wix’s website builder, its email marketing tools and website analytics have been central to helping the founders understand their audience and drive ticket sales. In fact, the latter prompted the company to launch in Portland after the city showed up as a location with high ticket demand.

“I love the analytics on Wix—it tells a big story about who we are as a company and who our customers are,” says Nick. “When it comes to expansion, we want to go off data. We don't want to just go off assumptions.”

The couple likes to drill down into the numbers to discover where their customers come from, how long they spend on the website and which movies they want to see. The analytics also tell them how successful influencer partnerships have been and who Fork n’ Film’s top customers are, including one loyal individual who spent over $16,000 in one year.

Today, there’s no shortage of die-hard fans within the Fork n’ Film community—one went as far as getting a Fork n’ Film tattoo on her ankle. As wild as that might be to Francesca and Nick, this super fan has been their go-to persona when channeling what it is their customers want.

Because that’s what keeps the couple motivated most—witnessing a customer’s inner child come out at screenings. “Seeing how even for one night we’re able to make people forget about any problems that they're having…and being able to bring people together is super motivating for me,” says Francesca.

“For me personally, it’s seeing the looks on people's faces, especially when the food comes out and matches the [movie’s] scene,” adds Nick.

Going big with the Fork n' Film brand

Whether it’s doing collabs with influencers, working with big food PR firms or co-hosting events with D23, the official Disney fan club, partnerships have formed a core part of Fork n’ Film’s growth strategy. Unfazed sitting at the same table as iconic brands like Pixar and Disney, Francesca and Nick have big ambitions for the company.

“In the past two years, we have proven to ourselves and everyone around the world how special a concept this is,” says Francesca. “We've done really well in all of our locations. So I think now, our goal specifically for this year is tightening a lot of things up, getting out of startup mode and moving into real business mode, hiring the people we need, automating certain processes and being more efficient.”

Nick has his sights on…well, something not far off world domination. “Fork n’ Film needs to be a household name in every single state and country,” he says. “At the end of the day, we want people to look at Fork n’ Film as they look at Disney—something you can bring your loved ones or friends to to have a nostalgic experience and reconnect.”

Francesca and Nick’s tips for running your own business

There’s no perfect guide on how to become an entrepreneur, as every entrepreneurship journey is unique. However, it’s always helpful to learn from those who have taken the leap and found success. Here are five tips from Francesca and Nick on starting a business:

• Just do it: “People have a tendency to want to perfect something before doing it,” says Francesca. “The number one piece of advice is ‘just do it.’ Even if you don't know how to do it, because you’re going to learn while doing it. Working at Fork n’ Film has been the best college class that I've ever taken. So, I think it's literally like the Nike slogan says—just do it.”

• Choose the right platform for you: “If we didn't have our website, we would not have a business,” says Francesca. She and Nick note that for them, Wix was the right fit for Fork n’ Film because of the built-in analytics, events and eCommerce solutions. The pair also cite Wix’s website templates as giving them a strong starting point for the design. The platform’s intuitiveness meant they could onboard staff quickly, while the dashboard makes it easy to manage the business across nine locations.

• Consider how your business name will translate online: Francesca and Nick took some time coming up with a business name, whittling it down to a shortlist of 12 that encapsulated the fusion of food and cinema. The deciding factor was having one that was available as a website domain and an Instagram handle. They didn’t want it to be a mouthful, either—hence the shortening of ‘and,’ which Nick says is a nod to Guns N’ Roses, too.

• Get advice from the experts: Francesca and Nick had to learn on the job fast (or, as Nick puts it, “build the plane while flying”). One of the biggest challenges they faced when the business took off was understanding film licensing. Luckily, they sought support from content licensing company Swank. “Long story short, we've built an amazing relationship with them and learned the ins and outs of movie licensing and how to do things right,” says Nick.

• Have fun: It’s clear Francesca and Nick have relished their business journey to date, so it’s no surprise they advise others to enjoy the ride. “If you fail, that’s okay,” says Francesca. “Just have fun along the way and do everything without expectations—literally [take it] day by day in baby steps.” Nick adds: “Trust yourself and have fun.”