ORLANDO, FL (November 30, 2023) — IDEAS, The Orlando-based brand and experience design firm – is building on a 20-year history of creating branded immersive experiences around the world. From new, imaginative destinations to better healthcare, IDEAS is poised to grow its abilities to innovate the future of storytelling with two new announcements. In…
Sub Sea Systems and SottoStudios have joined forces to create the “perfect storm” of leading-edge attraction design Jim Mayfield, President & CEO of California-based Sub Sea Systems and Eddie Sotto, founder and President of SottoStudios, announce their collaboration to bring state-of-the-art “submersible” storytelling and innovation to the growing water theme park industry. Sub Sea Systems…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Come See Us LIVE at IAAPA 2023 This quick episode gives you all the details of our LIVE Episode Recordings during IAAPA! Come visit the Storyland Studios Booth #1373 at 11am on Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday (11/14-17) to listen in on LIVE recordings of the Themed Attraction Podcast. Jeffrey Burton – Former WED Imagineer: Tuesday…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Our guest is Architect and Theme Park Master Planner, Jeff Damron. Jeff is a 30+ year veteran of themed entertainment and destination design providing his expertise as an architect, designer and master planner in theme park projects, hotels, resorts, casinos, and many other mixed-use projects where people can live, work and play. Most recently he…
The 6th Annual Themed Experience and Attractions Academic Symposium is coming on Friday, November 17th, 2023 to the Orange County Convention Center. TEAAS 2023 is the only academic event that brings together academic scholarship on themed experiences and attractions in an exciting one-day symposium featuring presentations from a variety of academic fields. This year’s Symposium theme, “The…
For the past six years, industry veterans have gathered to hear industry leaders speak about the role that faith plays in their lives. Past events have included leaders like Sea World CEO Joel Manby, former Disney Imagineers Theron Skees and Dave Durham. Last year the event featured former Sea World chief creative officer Anthony Esparza.…
Katapult has become the world’s first themed attraction design company to be awarded the coveted B Corp Certification, for its high standards for social and environmental impact. Speaking on the announcement, Co-Founder and CEO of Katapult, Dawn Foote said, “We are incredibly proud to be part of the B Corp community of businesses that are…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Our guests are David and Valeria Beaudry of Beaudry Interactive. This dynamic duo of dynamic experiences have developed the technology to bring to life in voice and personality some of our most beloved walk-around characters in parks today, including that tallest of yellow friends, Big Bird. They were honored with a TEA Thea Award for…
Matt Dawson as Vice President of Business Development Dawson & Other Key Hires Reflect Expansive Growth of JRA Cincinnati, Ohio – October 10, 2023 – JRA, part of RWS Global and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, has announced the hiring of former FORREC executive Matt Dawson as its new Vice President of Business Development. Dawson’s…
LEGENDS 2023 PANEL AT IAAPA EXPO: UNIVERSAL BEIJING RESORT – THE UNTOLD STORY OF TRIUMPH OVER TRYING TIMES; COVID, LOCKDOWNS, QUARANTINES, AND MORE Theme and guests announced for the Legends 2023 Panel at IAAPA EXPO, Orlando ORLANDO, FLORIDA (October 10, 2023) — Each year for 26 years, the Legends Panel at IAAPA EXPO, moderated and…
PASSENGER 28: Walt Disney Animation director (“Oliver & Company,” “The Prince & the Pauper”), Walt Disney Imagineer (“Mickey’s PhilharMagic,” “Gran Fiesta Starring the Three Caballeros”), and fine artist (Panama Canal Expansion, Shanghai Disneyland, Disney Cruise Lines”), George Scribner! Renaissance artist George Scribner lives three distinct lives: traditional animator and former Walt Disney Animation director, responsible…
Boomers Parks announces today that eight of its Family Entertainment Centers (FEC) and Water Parks have achieved the Certified Autism Center™ (CAC) designation, accredited by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES). This milestone sets a new standard, as Boomers Parks becomes the first family of FECs to earn this certification at…
San Diego, California – Sept 21, 2023 – Four winners were announced at the annual Surf Park Summit event held in San Diego this past weekend. The event, hosted by Surf Park Central, is the premier event for surf park developers, operators, and industry professionals and took place September 18th – 20th, 2023. Held annually…
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 22ND at 12PM PST! PASSENGER 28: Industry icon, Thea Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient, Professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of the Arts, tutor of 3rd grade reading at an underserved inner-city school, and the founder and namesake of Cincinnati’s JRA , part of RWS Global, Dr. Jack Rouse. Jack Rouse rides a motorcycle, holds…
This year at IAAPA Europe Expo in Vienna, international themed attraction design company Katapult, will be showcasing their themed resort design expertise. For over 10 years, the UK-based team has worked on both new-build and existing themed resort projects, helping to bring a magical guest experience to destinations around the world. As well as designing…
Please join us Friday August 25th at 12pm PST! PASSENGER 26: Thirty-three year veteran of Universal Destinations & Experiences who served as creative lead on dozens of groundbreaking parks and attractions, including Universal’s Islands of Adventure, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, and the upcoming Universal’s Epic Universe, Dale Mason. And…
What’s behind your favorite regional park attractions? Rick Bastrup, forty-year veteran of the theme park industry, reveals all in his new book Adventures of a Theme Park Designer. Very few park-goers realize how their favorite rides and attractions actually got there—they just know they love ’em and miss them terribly when they’re gone. So how…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE– Kile Ozier, an admired leader in the themed entertainment industry, has finally put to paper the techniques and philosophies behind his decades of show and spectacle production in his new book Creative Catalyst: Empowering Experience Design Teams From Ideation to Production. Prodded by colleagues to spell out how he works his…
Best In Show Ayong & the Magic Stone – Heriot-Watt University Dubai Best In Category 1 Master Planning / Area Development & Place Making Ayong & the Magic Stone – Heriot-Watt University Dubai Best In Category 2 Use of Technology, Ride & Show Systems Time Loop – University at Buffalo Best In Category 3 Storytelling,…
PASSENGER 25 – Part II: Forty-seven-year Disney Imagineer, Disney Legend, Thea Lifetime Achievement recipient, and Main Street Window honoree responsible for creating some of Disney’s most beloved parks and attractions, Tony Baxter. How do you time travel to all of the milestone moments in Tony Baxter‘s nearly five-decade career in one hour? You don’t. Join…
International themed attraction company Katapult and award-winning animation studio Aardman, are set to launch a new themed attraction concept featuring the studio’s much-loved characters. ‘The World of Aardman’ is a hands-on, fun visitor attraction concept that aims to empower creative talent in every guest. The turnkey concept features a studio experience, interactive elements, themed cafe,…
CONCEPT In an imagined world where the gods and religions of old were allowed to progress to the modern day, X-VOTO is Blade Runner meets Neil Gaiman’s American Gods meets speakeasy – neo-pagan neon-noir episodic automat experiences that are contemporary temples to different deities. Utilizing mythology as a modular overlay to promote cultural appreciation…
“World’s most famous theme park designer” will board the time machine to travel back through career highlights and discuss the closing of his Splash Mountain attractions in California and Florida at 12pm PST on Friday, June 16, 2023 Pasadena, CA – The world’s preeminent experiential design agency, Zeitgeist Design & Production, will launch its third season and…
In partnership with Cognizant and Macy’s, the Star Lounge is a research and human-centered driven concept for the future of retail experiences for department stores. As “The Top Golf of Retail,” our experience brings the fitting room experience to the center stage of retail, allowing for “stars” to socialize with their friends while owning their…
Created by Brendan Assaf- recent Entertainment Design Graduate from Ringling College Special thanks to Ross Osterman, Colt Sammons, Joe Lanzisero, Kevin Primm, Jamie Deruyter, Seongwoo Nam, Greg Randle, Chelsea Bruner, Nadine + Jamie Assaf, Meg and Cait, and Hailey Bair Made with Revit, Maya, Autocad, Unreal Engine, Sketchup, Substance Painter, Zbrush, Enscape, Adobe Photoshop,…
Overview Expanding upon concepts from J. R. R. Tolkien’s essay “On Fairy-Stories,” Return from Faerie is a narrative escape game that sees players recruit the five Sages- each associated with a different storytelling medium: film, video game, theatre, music, and print. Players travel across five kingdoms to convince the Sages to return from the Realm of Faerie and face the Darkness that has…
This is a graduate-level team Student Showcase submission. Team Members are listed at the end of the article. UF students delivered professional-level scares on a collegiate budget Video above by Avery Lotz Swamp Haunters, a student-lead haunted house design team, premiered its first full-scale haunted house at the University of Florida this…
Grimm's Enchanted Kingdom – SCAD Grimm’s Enchanted Kingdom: a magical destination based on the stories of the Brother Grimm Individual Entry: Edellaine Legawa Graduate Student: MFA in Themed Entertainment Design (SCAD) This project can also be found in: GRIMM’S ENCHANTED KINGDOM The theme of the park is morals of life similar to the message of…
By: Alex Tylor, Colin Phillips, Kewalin Lerdprapapong (Mint) Overview of Operation 3’s World Our world, Operation 3 is a kitchen sink style land design. The story is about 3 distinct factions who were living in separate parts of their own country, Clade. They came together when one of the factions discover a precious material, and…
The project was aimed at implementing a gadget in the setting of Costa Rica’s museums. We focused our project on the Museo de los Niños. The project was consulted and worked with permission of the museum. Thanks for reading! The Team Olman Arias Valverde Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/olmansei Portfolio: olmansei.myportfolio.com Maria José…
Background Distant Paradise was a group project for the Introduction to Themed Entertainment Design Class at IUPUI. Having backgrounds in design, art and engineering, together we were able to collaborate in creating a land for a theme park. Members: Bryant Rahadian – Themed Entertainment Design Certificate Program Portfolio: www.bryantrahadian.com/ Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/bryantrahadian/ Zoe Law –…
Tian Tang Dim Sum [天堂点心] Created by Isabel Li, Katherine Arcinue, Katherine Tan Affiliation: Claremont Colleges (All Second-Year Students) Themed Entertainment Association @ 5Cs Tian Tang Dim Sum is an interactive three-part indoor attraction that allows guests to build community through food, performances, and adventures in an RPG-styled traditional Chinese setting. Inspired by rural, pastoral…
A Technology Concept to Increase User Experience for Disabled Guests Introduction: My name is Stacia Meconiates, I’m finishing up a master’s at Arizona State University in Interdisciplinary Digital Media Composition, and I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. This genetic condition affects how my body creates collagen, and leads to frequent pain, joint dislocations, heart issues, and…
Team Members Lori Kipp: Set and Theming Engineer, responsible for set design, puppet design, fabrication, puppeteering, art direction Tsai-Yen (Cleo) Ko: Software Engineer, responsible for show programming, A/V programming, hardware installation, digital puppeteering Ivy Liu: Art Engineer, responsible for concept art, storyboarding, graphic design, video production, prop fabrication Nolan O’Keefe: Hardware Engineer and Producer, responsible…
Team Members: Daniel Ruiz – Graduate Queue: Guests leave behind a small Viking village in medieval Scandinavia and enter the long home of the village’s oldest member and keeper of Viking history. Passing along weapons, paintings, clothing, and pieces of armory brought back from past battles as Nordic war tunes made from woodwind instruments fill…
Peter Rabbit’s Secret Garden is an innovative edutainment resort designed for guests across all age groups. This contemporary adaptation of Beatrix Potter’s classic story has been reimagined by designers Beryl Wang, Lucas Carbone, and Tarana Pahlajani. （A video display for the clearer slides and a PDF file are attached in the end） Premise: In…
Created by Paige Billian – Purdue/IUPUI Junior The Story Brief: Like so many juggernauts of yesteryear, here at Susurrus Inc, in our heyday, we were one of the most innovative publishing houses and print shops. We made only the most creative designs and marketing for our brilliant clients, printing their writing right here in the…
A Concept Package and Scale Model by Sophie Kramer Portfolio: http://sophiekramerdesign.com | Ringling College of Art and Design, Rising Junior (’25) The Earth holds more to enjoy than meets the eye… Escape the urban world and join the Dryads in the heart of their sacred forest as an honored guest. Celebrate kindness to the Earth with…
It begins a while back when I wanted to do a Chinese themed ride, and I spent a lot of time and thought the best way to introduce the environment will be a Chinese take out place. It eventually turns into this. It’s not what I had in mind in the beginning, but I quite…
Time Odyssey: A Choice-Based Adventure through Time. By Josué Thur de Koos. Intro: There is a wide range of platforms that offer users the ability to enhance immersion by granting them the power to make impactful decisions with consequences within the narrative. Examples include role-playing and board games like Dungeons and Dragons, where the game…
Travel back to 1865 and join Marvin the Miner in a RUSH to find the lost gold of Thomas L Golden. The no good folks of Denver are on their way to claim it for themselves and take over the town, and it is up to you to work together, find the gold, and escape…
Behind the frame poster_2_final copy (3)-compressed Behind the Frame Autumn Taylor, Taylor Irwin, Jean Bachura, Sandra Lee, and Haley Burton Behind the Frame is an immersive art exhibit that brings guests into the world of some of New York’s most famous artists. Guests step into a three-dimensional recreation of paintings from Edward Hopper, Jean-Michael Basquiat,…
Candlelight Frights Unity 3D Game by Sydney Heller Portfolio: sydneyheller.org | LinkedIn: hellersydneyn | University of Notre Dame, May 2023 Graduate Introduction Ghosts are haunting this apartment! The residents have enlisted your help in expelling the ghosts. You must find and light a total of 13 candles across the apartment to send the ghosts away.…
Bake and Race Individual Entry: Angela Baek | Academic Level: Undergraduate, Junior Introduction Bake & Race is an interactive go-kart attraction tailored to individualizing guest experiences. Inspired by an existing film, this immersive themed experience allows guests to build their own kart via a series of mini-games in the queue, ride the same go-kart around a track,…
Hello, hello! I am Sarah Hicks, an English graduate student at Middle Tennessee State University. For the past two years I have been studying creative writing while also learning show writing for themed entertainment. “River Tour Rampage” started as an extracurricular project, but has grown into a fully developed story and attraction concept through my…
Individual Entry: Kentaro Yajima Academic Level: Graduate Premise This is my thesis project for M.F.A. in themed entertainment design at SCAD. This project aims to create a new themed venue by combining various methods to immerse guests, which can be seen in theme parks, cultural experience locations, and lightly themed shopping malls. The story takes…
James’ Giant Peach Adventure! a dark ride based on Roald Dahl’s “James and the Giant Peach” used with permission Individual Entry: Andrew Holcroft (Recent Industrial Design Graduate, Walt Disney Imagineering Intern) Project Context: University of Cincinnati, DAAPworks Capstone Project Website: www.andrewholcroft.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-holcroft/ Email: andrewholcroft2@gmail.com Introduction As my capstone coursework began in June 2022, I…
TIME LOOP Embark on an exhilarating adventure through the ages with Time Loop. Prepare to be catapulted across decades, as you encounter a mind-bending inversion, unexpected twists, and thrilling turns that will leave you on the edge of your seat like never before. Get ready to immerse yourself in a time-traveling journey like no other.…