Theming
www.parkworld-online.com
Bringing the golden age of Shanghai to life
Louis Alferi, founder and chief creative officer of Raven Sun Creative talks to Park World about their latest gargantuan theming project at Hedgidan World Studios
expansion of their backlot, an extraordinary opportunity for our team to flex a lot of creative capabilities at once. Located in the town of Hengdian in the Zhejiang
R
Province of China, Hengdian World Studios is the largest movie production facility in the world, its vast backlot is home to a huge variety of 1:1 scale replicas of settings from throughout China’s history. In addition to being a busy film and television production facility, Hengdian World Studios is a hugely popular theme park and resort, with over 12 million visitors per year. Their latest expansion, which is set to open in 2018, is a
recreation of the Bund, the waterfront of Shanghai, in its golden age during the 1930s. We were tasked with the mission of creating five major
immersive attractions—an immersive media drop tower, 4D theater attraction, interactive shooting dark ride, and a studio tour on a replica of an old Shanghai trolley - incorporating a variety of immersive media and live theatrical experiences and an epic stunt spectacular. The attractions are all themed around the Old Shanghai setting, referencing the history and legends of the era.
aven Sun Creative was retained by Hengdian World Studios to develop conceptual design for five attractions at the upcoming Shanghai Bund
Our work began with an intensive period of research
where we explored wide-ranging subjects like Shanghai noir films, China’s pioneering animated films of the Wan brothers and the history of the devastating Battle of Shanghai. As well as the much-loved legends of China including Nezha, Nu Wa, and the Monkey King. Our exploration of the time period and historical figures
centered on discovering and developing characters and story arcs that would resonate with Hengdian’s guests. Our approach to creating the world of old Shanghai is based on cultural respect, sensitivity, curiosity, and a passion to bring these experiences to life in the most authentically entertaining way possible. Our goal was to craft a range of highly varied
experiences that together formed a romantic, thrilling, cinematic ideal of a bygone era. Independently, each attraction delivers a world class immersive experience, while balancing the telling of those stories in such a way that pays homage to the cultural richness of 1930s Shanghai. We want guests to leave feeling that they’ve become an immersive a part of a larger, fully realised world, where the experiences and thematic setting help to establish a romanticised perception and deeply emotional connection to a rich golden time in China’s history.
Symbolica Eftling
In attractions like dark rides, sets and props are only part of the story – animatronics and other figures can be the missing part of the puzzle that make a scene really come to life. Garner Holt Productions, Inc. (GHP) specialise in adding kinetic life and motion to themed entertainment and other projects and have created close to 5000 animatronic figures for parks and attractions across the world. The latest offering from Garner in the world of theme design is ten new animated characters, created especially for the spectacular new Symbolica: Palace of Fantasy dark ride attraction. The new ride opened on July 1, and is a tour-de- force of incredibly detailed sets, beautiful and fantastical props, gorgeous lighting and sound, and populated with fluid, lifelike animatronics around every corner. Symbolica reflects the best in Efteling's famous placemaking design that literally transports guests to another world.
Creative Design Director, Bill Butler, believes that
animatronics can transform a guest’s experience. He said: “Just like with a set or prop, animatronics must themselves have a clear style, age, era, costume, face, and often a voice or key prop. As much (perhaps more) than any other element in theming, animatronics give life to a space and can transform a guest's experience with action and sound. Imagine a 17th century village on the Spanish Main with no moving pirates! At GHP, we bring scenes to life!”
JULY 2017 49
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
