2024 Themed Attraction Student Showcase Registration Now Open!

Registration now open for 2024 Themed Attraction Student Showcase Each submission will receive constructive feedback Your work will be reviewed by season industry professionals who are there to help you! Compete for “best in show” and other awards! Registration Dates Registration Opens: February 20th, 2024 Zoom call to meet panelists and answer questions: First week…

Global Experiential Planning and Design Firm BRC Imagination Arts Announces New President

Recognizing decades of leadership and expertise, the independent strategy, design and production company has named Carmel Lewis President, unleashing a new era of experiential imagination, innovation, and leadership at BRC   LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Bob Rogers, Chairman and CEO of BRC Imagination Arts (BRC), a global experiential planning and design firm, has announced that Carmel Lewis,…

ted Announces Partnership and opens RWS Global Studios London

ted, part of RWS Global, Announces New Partnership with Luxury Cruise Line Cunard As It Launches RWS Global Studios London NORTHAMPTON, UK – ted, part of RWS Global, recently announced a four-year partnership with Cunard, elevating and modernizing onboard entertainment for the luxury cruise line. Through this collaboration, ted will produce and manage a custom-created…

IDEAS Brand and Experience Design Announces Joining The Summit and Expanding Leadership Team

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 in Collaboration with SottoStudios

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…

Themed Experience and Attractions Academic Symposium is coming

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…

book by theme park designer on the various attractions he's created over the years

Theme Park Designer Rick Bastrup shares stories behind beloved attractions in new book

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…

Zeitgeist Presents The Spirit of the Time Zoomcast with Tony Baxter Part II

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…

Katapult and Aardman to launch new themed attraction at IAAPA Asia

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,…

ZEITGEIST DESIGN + PRODUCTION’S ‘SPIRIT OF THE TIME ZOOMCAST’ KICKS-OFF YEAR 3 WITH DISNEY LEGEND TONY BAXTER

“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…

Kituwah, LLC breaks ground on ‘Smoky Gap’ Entertainment District at The 407: Gateway to Adventure

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. – April 11, 2023 – Kituwah, LLC began the development of “Smoky Gap” today, a unique entertainment district located within The 407: Gateway to Adventure in Sevierville. Smoky Gap will be the first of several phases of development and is expected to open in 2025. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is funding…

tiNiWorld Entertainment Center Celebrates an extra 2,500 players with the opening of SPREE Interactive’s X6 kid-friendly VR Arena

Munich, Germany, 5th April 2023: SPREE Interactive, brings tailor-made multiplayer virtual reality for the lucrative 6-12 demographic to tiNiWorld activities center in Vietnam. The highly successful installation of the X6 Arena in the Asian market is a proven success story for the SPREE Arena, delivering over 2,500 players for tiNiWorld in the last month and…

SPREE Interactive and Amusement Services International (ASI) Partnership Proves Success with Multiple Sales of the VR Playground at the Deal Expo 2023

Nuremberg, Germany, 29th March 2023 – SPREE Interactive, a leading provider of virtual reality gaming experiences for location-based entertainment, and Amusement Services International (ASI), a leading and award-winning supplier of amusement arcade attractions and games, are pleased to announce the successful partnership in selling multiple systems at the recent DEAL Show 2023.   The partnership…

SPREE Interactive Partners With ASI to Launch the New VR Playground at the DEAL Expo

SPREE Interactive Launch New Multiplayer VR Arena with ASI at DEAL Expo 2023   Dubai, UAE, 7th March 2023: SPREE Interactive, a leading manufacturer of VR attractions for Family Entertainment Centers and Trampoline Parks, is excited to announce the release of a new multiplayer VR attraction, the VR Playground, accompanied with the new kid-friendly VR…

RWS Entertainment Group to Produce Thea Awards Gala

Themed Entertainment Association Selects RWS Entertainment Group to Produce the 2023 & 2024 Thea Awards Gala RWS Creative Team to Re-Envision Show as Part of TEA’s New INSPIRE Week  New York, NY, USA – January 30, 2023 – The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), the international non-profit association representing the world’s leading creators, developers, designers, and…

Former Disney Imagineer Patrick Brennan Joins UCF Themed Experience Program Faculty

After a 32-year career with Disney Imagineering, Patrick Brennan will join UCF’s Themed Experience graduate program as a visiting instructor. Brennan previously worked as an adjunct instructor in the program but will transition to a full-time teaching role for the next year while a search is conducted for the permanent position. Students in the themed…

SplashBotix SplashValve Proportional Flow Control Diverter Valve Receives UL Listing

SplashBotix, a leading supplier of aquatic controls and submersible mechatronics to the show fountain, aquatic play and themed entertainment industries, today announced that its SplashValve, the fountain industry’s first diverter valve flow control device, has been UL listed for use with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, spas, and interactive fountains.

Triotech and Lotte World Announce New Project in Seoul

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS I.P. to be Centerpiece of Custom-Designed Walkthrough Triotech, market leader in interactive attractions, just announced a new major project with LOTTE WORLD. Set for opening in Spring 2023, the innovative walkthrough attraction will be called “BATTLEGROUNDS WORLD AGENT” and will be set in the universe of PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS, KRAFTON’s widely popular I.P. Triotech…

SPREE Interactive Rejects Industry Narrative that VR isn’t for Kids

Pretty much every virtual reality headset manufacturer recommends their product to be used exclusively for those 13-and-over. But SPREE Interactive has spent the last 4-years successfully building games and attractions for families with kids aged 4-12. The SPREE Arena has been installed in over 50 global sites with more than 75 already scheduled over the next 12-months. 

Something Wicked (Fun) has Appeared at the Sally Dark Rides Exhibit for IAAPA Expo 2022

Globally Recognized Dark Ride Creator Reveals Details about “Haunted Hotel” attraction to Debut at Funtown Splashtown in 2023 JACKSONVILLE, FL (November 14, 2022) – Today, live from the tradeshow floor of IAAPA Expo 2022, Sally Dark Rides, the globally recognized leader in creating family dark rides and attractions, lifted the veil on its latest attraction.…

Martin & Vleminckx Acquires Patent Portfolio of Industry Innovator, Bill Kitchen

    Mont-Royal, Quebec, November 7th , 2022 – Martin & Vleminckx is thrilled to announce the acquisition of the patent portfolio of Bill Kitchen. Mr. Kitchen’s historic contributions to the industry have included the invention and formation of iFly (originally Skyventure), the inventor of Skycoaster, and most recently, a series of game-changing attractions as Founder/CEO of US Thrill…

JRA and Partners Create Dallas Mavericks Interactive Experience

JRA – Part of RWS Entertainment Group in partnership with the Dallas Mavericks, Dimensional Innovations (DI), Heritage Werks and DI Build, is proud to announce Mavs Vault, presented by ShiftKey — an immersive, public exhibition highlighting the organization’s 42-year history through never-before-seen artifacts, archival footage, merchandise, memorabilia and more. Located within the Hall of State at Fair Park at this year’s State Fair of Texas, the exhibit is open to fans now through October 23rd.

SPREE Interactive VR attraction proves to be a big hit

Munich/Nuremberg, Germany, September 1, 2022:    TELUS Spark Science Centre in Calgary, Canada, boasted a successful start to the summer with SPREE Interactive’s 6-player Arena as one of its newest educational attractions. The 6-Player SPREE Arena is filled with educational and family-friendly virtual reality interactive games, complementing the science centre’s existing experiences by taking the…

SPREE Interactive Enters the AR Market in Partnership with Deutsche Telekom Tech Incubator – hubraum and Qualcomm’s SPACES programme. Qualcomm is investing $100 million into Metaverse Technologies incl. AR

Among hundreds of companies worldwide, SPREE Interactive has been one of 17 to be selected for the joint Deutsche Telekom and Qualcomm Augmented Reality Program “Snapdragon Spaces” in efforts to drive metaverse growth with leading XR companies. The Snapdragon Spaces program, accredited in the millions, supply’s access to futuristic technology including high-quality AR glasses, exclusive business networks, and funding opportunities for the most innovative ideas. 

As the only location-based entertainment supplier chosen in the Snapdragon Spaces program, SPREE Interactive, German-based developers of proprietary patented sensor fusion XR technology, will utilise hubraums proven trust to develop a range of new products featuring AR technology and plans to commercialise AR into future product offerings & attractions. 

Premier Parks Acquires Canadian Resorts and Water Parks

Premier Parks, LLC, North America’s largest independent operator of visitor attractions and experiences, led by former Six Flags Chairman and CEO Kieran Burke, today announced the acquisition of operations of Valcartier-Calypso Group. The acquisition includes an all-inclusive four-star resort hotel with upscale spa and indoor water park, two premium outdoor water parks, a large destination campground, a unique ice hotel, and the largest winter games center in North America. These latest acquisitions increase Premier Park’s profile to fifteen properties.