Supplier Profi le
www.parkworld-online.com
Below: California’s Great America, CedarFair
Legoland Discovery Centre, Atlanta
toDinosaurs Interactive technology company MediaMation has been supplying and
producing 4D and 5D motion EFX theatres, seating, and systems integration for twenty-fi ve years. Its impressive back catalogue of projects includes creative solutions for rides, fountain shows, interactive exhibits and 4D
theatres, and spans most of the world. So how does all of this stem from two wannabe-musicians in LA in the 80s? Kathy Archer explains
Humble beginnings In the 1980s, as today, Los Angeles was known as the place for young people to get a start in the entertainment industry. Enter Dan Jamele. a musician with dreams of stardom. With virtually no money, Dan and his brother took what they had learned about electronics from their dad, built much of their own equipment, and played in bands around the LA area. The brothers scrounged up $100 to buy a used tape recorder, which they were sure would launch their music and recording careers. Whilst they never did become rock-and-roll legends, the $100 tape recorder was eventually sold for $200, and marked the beginning of a small business venture that consisted of buying and refurbishing stereo and music equipment. Several years later, the opportunity arose for Dan to take part in a major audio engineering project for the Sanrio
Puroland theme park in Japan. Finding himself fascinated with all of the aspects of show control, lighting, and technical interface. Dan fi nished the project and returned to LA in 1991, brimming with excitement about the prospect of automating amusement park attractions. His wife Alison caught the vision, and together they decided to take a leap of faith and start up MediaMation Inc., with Dan doing the programming and Alison running the business. With a ‘borrowed’ employee and a rented van, they set off to their fi rst IAAPA show in Dallas, where they were awarded two projects, controlling large animatronic dinosaurs.
Above: TCL Chinese Theater Hollywood 44
Creative ingenuity at its best From its rather humble roots as a modest start up with three employees, MediaMation has become a global entertainment systems integrator, with products and services now installed in over 21 countries. It has grown to encompass two facilities - the main facility in Torrance, California, which serves clients worldwide except for China, and a second factory (about twice as large, at 40,000 square feet) in Guangzhou, China, which handles sales, marketing, production, and installation for the burgeoning Chinese market. The fi rm has helped theme parks, museums, cinema chains, motion pictures, themed environments, and retail entertainment venues with a wide range of control systems, including show control, audio/video, lighting, systems integration, automation,
FEBRUARY 2018
From Dreams
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