Digital Dome-Ocracy: Bayley Silleck Enthuses about Fulldome Presentation Media

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Bayley Silleck (Cosmic Voyage, Wired to Win) delves into the world of fulldome digital immersive presentation and likes what he finds. It's good news for science education - and more. -JR

"I found myself sprawled out on the floor in the pitch-dark. A tall, gangly figure loomed in my field of view. I had a brief flashback to the years I lived in London - could this be Dr. Who, the British television wizard, come to re-ignite my energy
field, rescue me from shape-shifting aliens, or transport me to other worlds?

Despite the flowing mane of Sixties-style hair, the multiple strands of African glass-bead necklaces, and the long silk scarf, this was a new, very modern breed of wizard, whose wand is a mouse and whose lab is a digital dome. It was Carter Emmart,
director of astrovisualization for the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of
Natural History in New York City."

Read the full story in IPM Magazine.

TEA Hosts SATE 08 Conference Sept 18-19 in Orlando

"Through an examination of the basic components of the guest experience - Story, Architecture, Technology, and Experience (SATE) - and how they can be orchestrated to work together for a compelling effect, TEA's second annual SATE Conference on Sept 18-19 in Orlando offers a valuable perspective that members of the international attractions industry can put to use in their own creative efforts," says Larry Tuch, SATE co-chair.

Online registration for the SATE 2008 Conference, in Orlando Sept 18-19, is now open at www.teaconnect.org/sate.htm. The two-day conference, hosted by TEA (Themed Entertainment Association) offers delegates the opportunity to significantly expand what they know about creating guest experiences for guest attractions such as museums, heritage centers, theme parks, retail complexes, resorts, casinos, and corporate visitors centers... [read the full article here]

Inside Chuck Roberts' (BRC) Head: Space Shuttles and Presidential Libraries

A revealing and personal article by a very creative person, Chuck Roberts, who is director of design for BRC Imagination Arts. -JR

Chuck writes...
'I have had the privilege to be involved in the design and production of more than twenty themed experience projects. Once you look at themed entertainment through the eyes of a designer, there is no going back to being a normal visitor. Going to a theme park or museum with family and friends becomes a study in how sensitive, clever and aware other designers have been. The family and friends become lab rats, observed covertly so as not to sway the findings.

At theme parks, I sometimes witness the emotional meltdowns that occur in visiting families. There comes a critical point where the desire to go on one more ride and the idea of waiting in one more line collide like a pair of freight trains. I’ve seen it happen almost anywhere in a park, but usually it occurs in the middle of a large crowded pathway, in the still hot, late afternoon sun. The spectacle slows the surrounding foot traffic like a fender bender on a Los Angeles freeway. People slow to gawk and see a child wailing and trembling, the parent trying to yell and whisper simultaneously, “We can just leave right now. Is that what you want?” I usually side with the kid....' click here to read the full article.