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$60 million Digital Media-Based Waterpark Planned for Toronto

Joe Kleiman
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$60 million Digital Media-Based Waterpark Planned for Toronto

[quote]marbleLIVE would provide visitors and guests with an additional attraction adding to our industry’s growing list of new, expanded and reinvigorated products.  The combination of a water-themed venue combined with an impressive event space will also give meeting and event planners more options that will help distinguish us as well.” — David Whitaker, President & CEO, Tourism Toronto[/quote]

Toronto, ON, CANADA — A massive indoor/outdoor water park and event complex is being planned for the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The $60 million dollar facility is scheduled to begin construction in the spring of 2015 and be fully operational by the fall of 2016. The 100,000 square-foot attraction will feature a retractable roof, allowing it to operate 365 days a year. The development group behind the project, marbleLIVE, is led by Toronto entrepreneur John Barrack and marblemedia, one of Canada’s leading multiplatform content creators. The water park and event complex will fill a significant void in the GTA’s tourism market – a market that before the opening of the Ripley’s Aquarium last fall, had not seen a new attraction established in over 25 years.

“People in the GTA are hungry for new entertainment experiences,” said John Barrack, Managing Partner, marbleLIVE. “We’re going to give them a dynamic year-round attraction that’s part-water-park, part-theme-park and all fun, all the time.”

Mark Bishop, Co-CEO marblemedia said, “This attraction will be far from your typical waterpark. We are going to bring our company’s expertise in digital media and storytelling to create a purpose built digital media experience that will be the first attraction of its kind.”

Barrack and Bishop are in discussion with city officials in Mississauga and Toronto about potential sites. They have also been briefing Ontario’s Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport about the boost the attraction will have on the tourism industry in the GTA.

Barrack said, “We now have a short-list of three locations. Our final decision will be based on our intricate design and operational needs, as well as visitor accessibility.”

The all-season, indoor/outdoor water park will bring significant employment opportunities to the GTA during the development stages of its creation. Once fully operational, the attraction will employ 230 full-time personnel and expects to attract over half a million visitors within its first year of operation.

In addition to Barrack and Bishop, the development group includes New Jersey-based Jerry Merola of Amusement Entertainment LLC and EFA Partners of New York. marblemedia’s multiplatform content is seen in over 120 countries, with leading broadcast partners worldwide including Disney XD, Nickelodeon, YTV and BBC.

marbleLIVE.com

Electrosonic Brings Stonehenge Into the Modern Age

Joe Kleiman
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Electrosonic Brings Stonehenge Into the Modern Age

[quote]Electrosonic brought a can-do attitude to this complex and high profile project. This was essential in getting the exhibition open on time and working well.” — Robert Campbell, Stonehenge Head of Interpretation [/quote]

Los Angeles, CA, USA (March 19, 2014) – Since its opening on the 18th December 2013, the new Stonehenge exhibition and visitor centre has welcomed over 50,000 visitors. The centre makes dramatic use of high resolution projection technology to help visitors learn about one of the world’s most important prehistoric monuments. Electrosonic was responsible for the audio-visual systems design and integration.

The centre, located 1.5 miles from Stonehenge itself, is the first phase of English Heritage’s £27-million project to transform the visitor experience of this iconic site. To date, it is their largest ever capital investment project.

The visitor centre uses audio-visual technology extensively to give visitors an enthralling introduction to the legend of the stones, exploring the history and debate surrounding this ancient monument. One of the main highlights is the ‘Standing in the Stones’ exhibit, a 360-degree virtual experience. Installed by Electrosonic, the exhibit lets visitors stand in a virtual Stonehenge as it is today and in the past. The three-minute film, based on state-of-the-art laser scan images of the stone circle, transports viewers back in time through the millennia, enabling them to experience the summer and winter solstices.

An exhibit like ‘Standing in the Stones’ requires great care in execution. An important part of its development was the ability to preview it in a full scale mock-up at Electrosonic’s workshop at its head office in Kent. This procedure helped the producers, Centre Screen Productions, assisted by Studio Liddell, check the content at full size, whilst ensuring English Heritage could be confident in the outcome and be aware of audience circulation issues.

“Standing in the Stones” uses six Panasonic PT-DZ770 single chip DLP™ projectors with 1920×1200 resolution and nominal 7000 lumen light output. These are sourced from a 7th Sense Delta server via Atlona extenders. The audio chain includes a BSS BLU 100 DSP, four Crown CTs600 amplifiers and seven Tannoy Di5 loudspeakers augmented by a ceiling mounted sub bass loudspeaker.

Visitors move from ‘Standing in the Stones’ into the next exhibition area housing more audio-visual elements. The ‘Meaning’ section includes four portrait format 32-inch LCDs showing a linear programme on the debate around the ‘Meaning of Stonehenge’. ‘Landscape’ the largest audio-visual element, is a giant image of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site projected onto a wall screen which shows how people changed the over the pre-historic period by building different monuments. The exhibit uses three Panasonic PT-DX610ELKsingle chip DLP™ projectors with XGA resolution and nominal 6500 lumen output sourced from a 7the Sense Delta server via Atlona extenders.

The visitor centre also contains an education space which is equipped with appropriate room control and audio-visual facilities. The space can be divided into two, one half has a ceiling mounted Panasonic VW435NEA LCD projector with WXGA resolution, and the other half has an 87-inch Smartboard touch screen. Room control is by a Crestron MC2E controller and wall panels allow the connection of “Bring Your Own” sources.

Haley Sharpe Design managed the production of the exhibition, with The Hub as exhibition fit-out contractor and Goppion as the supplier of the display cases. ‘Standing in the Stones’ was produced by Centre Screen productions, assisted by Studio Liddell and with a sound track by Peter Key. The content for the “Meaning” displays, the LCDs within the display cases and for the ticket office audio guide was produced by ISO Design, and the “Landscape” content was produced by Squint Opera.

Electrosonic engineered the AV system under a direct contract with English Heritage.

www.electrosonic.com

Shanghai Disney Resort Announces Entire Land to Be Dedicated to Pirates of the Caribbean

Joe Kleiman
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Shanghai Disney Resort Announces Entire Land to Be Dedicated to Pirates of the Caribbean

[quote]With a combination of new cutting-edge technology and innovation, Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure will take our Guests at Shanghai Disney Resort on a first-of-its-kind pirate adventure you will never experience anywhere else in the world.” — Mike Crawford, General Manager, Shanghai Disney Resort[/quote]

Shanghai, China (March 19, 2014)– Shanghai Disney Resort today announced that the first of its Magic-Kingdom theme park’s six themed lands will be dedicated to characters and stories inspired by the blockbuster movie franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean. This first-ever Pirates-themed land in a Disney park, to be named Treasure Cove, will be unique to Shanghai Disneyland and include a major attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure, an all-new high-technology boat ride attraction. Today’s announcement coincides with the completion of key structural work on the Pirates attraction, and marks another exciting milestone in the resort development.

Seamlessly blending Disney’s storytelling and state-of-the-art technologies, Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure will be the first attraction built since the release of the Pirates films, and the first to heavily feature the characters and scenes derived directly from the movies. Employing many never-before-seen effects and technologies, Guests will be enlisted to go with Captain Jack Sparrow on an epic journey to find Captain Davy Jones’ treasure. The ride will take Guests down to the ocean depths, through the bellies of pirate ships, and straight into the heart of a ferocious naval battle, all the while braving the nautical twists, spins and turns of a pirate adventure.

“We are excited to celebrate this new milestone in Shanghai Disney Resort’s development,” said Bill Ernest, President and Managing Director, Asia, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “And we’re thrilled to announce that the resort’s theme park will be home to a first new themed land and attraction, inspired by the phenomenal Pirates of the Caribbean movies that were originally inspired by a Disney attraction. It is truly unique to Shanghai Disney Resort!”

“We are excited to see the Disney Imagineering team continue to bring the most advanced technologies and construction techniques to China, working collaboratively with local talents, in building this modern and innovative park,” said Fan Xiping, Chairman of Disney’s Chinese joint venture partner in Shanghai Disney Resort, Shanghai Shendi Group.

“We are committed to creating experiences which honor both Disney heritage and appeal to our Chinese Guests,” said Mike Crawford, General Manager of Shanghai Disney Resort.

Progress continues with construction at the Shanghai Disney Resort’s build site in Pudong Shanghai and the resort remains on target to open at the end of 2015.

en.shanghaidisneyresort.com.cn

accesso Division Siriusware Announces Five New Attractions Contracts

Joe Kleiman
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accesso Division Siriusware Announces Five New Attractions Contracts

[quote]We are honored to be working with such a distinguished collection of attractions, and look forward to partnering with all of them to help them optimize their sales strategies, and prepare for peak season” — Mark Danemann, Siriusware President[/quote]

Taos, NM – Siriusware, a division of accesso Technology Group plc (AIM: ACSO), the premier technology provider to the global attractions industry, today announced five major contract wins.

Agreements have been signed with iFLY Virginia Beach, Jasper Tramway Acquisition Corporation, African Lion Safari & Game Farm LTD., Holocaust Museum Houston and the National Aquarium in Baltimore for a variety of Siriusware Salespoint Solutions that include eCommerce, Front Gate, Access Control, Group Sales, Memberships, Kiosks and Retail.

The flexibility of Siriusware’s solutions combined with the software’s ability to integrate with existing data systems were key drivers that led all five venues to select Siriusware as a vendor.

Taos-based Siriusware was acquired in December by accesso.

Giant Screen Films and D3D Enter Formal Partnership with American Exhibitions

Joe Kleiman
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Giant Screen Films and D3D Enter Formal Partnership with American Exhibitions

[quote]A packaged exhibit/film experience has certainly proven to be a terrific way to maximize revenues and attendance.  Both certainly work well independently, but the bundle is greater than the sum of its parts.” –Marcus Corwin, President, American Exhibitions[/quote]

Evanston, IL, USA (March 19, 2014) — Giant Screen Films, D3D Cinema and American Exhibitions are pleased to announce a formal partnership to promote and tour blockbuster exhibition Mummies of the World with the highly successful large-format film Mummies 3D: Secrets of the Pharaohs.  The scalable 12,000 sq. ft. bundled experience will kick off in May 2014 at the Buffalo Museum of Science.  GSF’s sister company, D3D Cinema, will provide the museum cinema technology and touring theater system integrations.

“We have seen time and time again that exhibition/film pairings can significantly bolster revenue for host venues as well as create a richer experience for schools and families,” said Don Kempf, President and Founder of Giant Screen Films and D3D Cinema.

Mummies 3D, also available in all giant screen and dome formats, has informally toured with exhibitions in the past, including Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, Lost Egypt, CSI: The Experience, and Body Worlds.

“While Mummies has paired well with exhibit topics that run the gamut, Mummies of the World is an incredible fit,” added Kempf, “one that will further enhance two attractions that have been very popular in their own right.”

Marcus Corwin, President of American Exhibitions agreed, “Our mission is to present exhibitions that optimize ticket sales and contribute the bottom line of our host museum partners. ”

D3D Cinema will provide traveling digital 3D theater technology and integration services at host sites not equipped with a theater.

“D3D is a specialist in traveling exhibition theaters,” said Andy Wood, Senior Vice President at D3D Cinema.  “We can retrofit auditoriums, convert film-based pre-existing theaters, integrate theaters into exhibit spaces, as well as erect outdoor pop-up systems.  The model is very attractive because it allows museums to dip their toes into the 3D cinema business without making a capital investment.  Most of our clients end up integrating a permanent system at the end of the trial.”

Inquiries about the Mummies experience should be directed to Jamie James at American Exhibitions, Jjames@americanexhibitions.com

www.d3dcinema.com

Celebrity Conservationist Jeff Corwin Narrates “Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland” from nWave Pictures

Joe Kleiman
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Celebrity Conservationist Jeff Corwin Narrates “Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland” from nWave Pictures

[quote]When you bring nature’s wonder to this medium in a powerful and compelling way, it engages and inspires the audience. ‘Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland’ perfectly captures what makes this archipelago, and its creatures, so special and so resilient to our fast-changing world.” — Jeff Corwin[/quote]

Brussels, Belgium and Burbank, CA, USA — nWave Pictures Distribution is pleased to announce that wildlife conservationist and Emmy Award-winning television host and presenter Jeff Corwin will be the narrator of a new IMAX 3D theatre film “Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland”. The film takes the audience on a spectacular exploration of the Galapagos archipelago with its remarkable collection of unique plants and charismatic animals suchas black marine iguanas, blue-footed boobies and giant tortoises, all filmed for the very first time in 4K 3D.

“I was thrilled to provide the narration for this amazing project written by my longtime hero David Attenborough,” said Jeff Corwin. “During the film’s post-production, I had a chance to watch it in 3D at Montreal Science Center’s TELUS IMAX Cinema and it literally took my breath away… and I have to admit that despite traveling the world for twenty years hosting and producing films and documentaries, I was thoroughly impressed with this incredible giant screen achievement.”

“I am truly honored and delighted to have Jeff Corwin lend his storytelling to this fascinating film that brings to the giant screen the extraordinary world of the Galapagos in a way that has not been possible before,” said Eric Dillens, Chairman of nWave Studios. “I am also pleased to report that the film in its initial few weeks of release has been very well received by museum leaders, audiences and reviewers, including receiving a four-star rating from La Presse of Montreal.”

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“Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland” is currently playing at the Houston Museum of Natural Science (TX), Montreal Science Center (QC) and will be launched this May both at the Tennessee Aquarium (Chattanooga, TN) and Moody Gardens (Galveston, TX) followed later this year by the Arizona Science Center (Phoenix, AZ). In February, the film made its international debut in Denmark at the Tycho Brahe Planetarium in Copenhagen. It will premiere March 14th in Mexico at Planetario Alfa in Monterrey before opening in Guayaquil,Ecuador at the Malecon Foundation 3D Cinema. Additional sites will be added as the footprint expands domestically and internationally over the coming weeks, with the Asian premiere set for April during the prestigious 4th Beijing Film Festival held in association with the China National Science and Technology Museum in Beijing.

As one of the leading voices for the conservation of endangered species and ecosystems around the globe, Jeff Corwin has been a tireless environmental advocate for more than twenty years.  Jeff began his work in conservation at an early age, spending much of his youth exploring tropical rain forests and advocating for their protection. He received Bachelor of Science degrees in both biology and anthropology from the Bridgewater State University. He further developed his expertise in tropical ecology while completing his graduate work at the University of Massachusetts, where he studied bats and snakes. Jeff’s television career began 1996 with the Disney Channel, where he produced and hosted the ground breaking series “Going Wild with Jeff Corwin”, then partnered with Animal Planet and Discovery Communications to produce and host the internationally acclaimed “Jeff Corwin Experience” and”Corwin’s Quest”. He has also written “100 Heartbeats: The Race to Save Earth’s Most Endangered Species” and featured in the MSNBC documentary”Future Earth: 100 Heartbeats”. Beyond television, Jeff has authored more than 10 critically acclaimed books on wildlife and conservation, including”Living on the Edge, Amazing Relationships in the Natural World”.  He is currently featured in “Ocean Mysteries with Jeff Corwin” a documentary series which explores the ancient connections between life in the sea and life on the rest of the planet, airing weekends on ABC stations nationally.

“Galapagos 3D: Nature’s Wonderland” takes audiences to a paradise unlike any other. Located close to the equator in the Pacific Ocean, these remote volcanic islands have developed over millions of years in relative isolation. The result is a living museum of nature, with an abundance of curious plant and animal species that have adapted to thrive in this unique and challenging environment. Giant half-ton long-necked tortoises lumber among dancing blue-footed boobies and flightless cormorants. Penguins living thousands of miles from their natural habitats share the seas with unique marine iguanas that spit sea-salt. This is a story of discovery, of survival against the odds, and of nature’s ingenuity.

A presentation of Colossus Productions in association with SKY 3D, and distributed exclusively worldwide by nWave Pictures Distribution, the 40-minute film is written by renowned naturalist David Attenborough,produced by Anthony Geffen and directed by Martin Williams.

http://Galapagos.nWave.com

Koch Family Purchases Alabama’s Splash Adventure Waterpark

Joe Kleiman
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Koch Family Purchases Alabama’s Splash Adventure Waterpark

Bessemer, Alabama — The Koch family has acquired Alabama’s Splash Adventure Waterpark and will re-open the park for the 2014 summer season.  Dan Koch, who led the acquisition, is bringing his family’s seven decades of experience in the amusement and water park industry to his new home in Alabama.

“I am thrilled to be living and working in this community,” said Dan Koch. “Our family wants Alabama’s Splash Adventure Waterpark to be the number one choice for family fun and family memories for generations to come.”

Koch Parks, Inc. has purchased the water park with 89 acres of land, which will aid in future expansion. General Attractions, LLC, the park’s previous owner, will retain 150 acres surrounding the park for future development.

Kent Lemasters, President of General Attractions, LLC said, “We are pleased that the Koch family are the new owners of Splash Adventure.  We feel very confident that because of their very high reputation and experience of over 75 years in the amusement park industry, that they will continue to take the park forward to new, high levels of achievement for the benefit of the entire area including those who visit the park and the surrounding communities and we wish them every success.”

The Koch family has a reputation for superior customer service and will operate the park with a special focus on providing safe, family fun for all ages. New attractions include five new rides for kids including a Wacky Worm Coaster, Rio Grande Train, Junior Bumper Boats, Mini Helicopters, and Vintage Boats. A new Laser Maze Challenge will also be added for heart-pounding family fun as well as games to entertain the younger family members. All guests will enjoy free parking, free sunscreen, free access to inner tubes and free in-park WiFi. Additional expansion plans for Alabama’s Splash Adventure Waterpark are currently being developed. The park will re-open for weekend operations beginning May 17th.

A job fair will be held on March 22 from 8:30am until 4:00pm to hire new Splash Team Members to join the Koch Parks family.

www.alabamasplash.com

Just For Kids Festival Returns to SeaWorld Orlando Starting March 22

Joe Kleiman
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Just For Kids Festival Returns to SeaWorld Orlando Starting March 22

[quote]During ‘Just for Kids,’ SeaWorld’s year-long 50th Celebration will be in full swing. Park pathways will come to life with oceans of spontaneous entertainment. Guests will enjoy a Sea of Surprises featuring new interactive experiences and shows, even more up-close animal encounters and the SeaWorld ‘Surprise Squad’ treating park guests with prizes and special experiences every day.”[/quote]

Orlando, FL, USA – Shamu & Crew invites families to experience SeaWorld’s 50th Celebration through the eyes of a child.  Sing, dance and play the day away Saturdays at SeaWorld Orlando’s “Just for Kids” Festival starting March 22.

This kid-centric festival brings families together to enjoy fun rides, adorable animals and an all-new party zone. “Just for Kids” is included with park admission and takes place Saturdays from March 22 – April 12.

At “Just for Kids”, families can experience warm-hearted whimsical fun and make lasting memories as they dance along to jammin’ DJ’s at the NEW Rockin’ Rockhopper Party in Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin®, get up close with adorable animal friends at the all-new “SEA Garden,” and meet some of their children’s favorite television stars.

Kids can go on an educational treasure hunt as they look for the Sea Star icons throughout the park where they’ll discover fun, educational activities. At each location they will collect a stamp and a limited edition Explorer’s card.  After visiting all four locations, they’ll receive a coupon to redeem for a special SeaWorld prize at select gift shops.

Then end the night with Shamu & Crew at the Shamu Dance Party at the Village Square located at the front of the park. The party begins one hour prior to park closing with a stilt walker emcee who fills the square with music that the whole family can dance to, including popular line dancing songs and party favorites. The Shamu Dance Party continues until 30 minutes after park closing. Visit SeaWorldOrlando.com for complete details.

Just For Kids Festival Highlights:

ALL-NEW! Rockin’ Rockhopper Party

Starting at 11 a.m., families can experience warm-hearted whimsical fun and make lasting memories as they dance along to family-friendly DJ’s at the Rockin’ Rock Hopper Party in Antarctica – Empire of The Penguin®, play games, such as Rock Hopper Ring Toss and Penguin Plunge, enjoy live penguin appearances, snow moments, snacks, face painting, caricatures and meet the one and only Puck, star of Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin.

ALL-NEW! SEA Garden

Share the wonder of close-up encounters with amazing animal friends and learn how we care for our natural world at our all-new SEA Garden.

Shamu Dance Party

Dance the night away with Shamu & crew at the Shamu Dance Party at the Village Square located at the front of the park. The party begins one hour prior to park closing with a stilt walker emcee who fills the square with music that the whole family can dance to, including popular line dancing songs and party favorites. The Shamu Dance Party continues until 30 minutes after park closing.

Ocean Adventures Kids Program

Kids can go on an educational, card collecting program, also included with admission, starting at 11 a.m. Children will look for the Sea Star icons inside the park, where they’ll discover fun, educational activities. At each location they will collect a stamp and a limited edition Explorer’s card.  Once they visit all four locations, they’ll receive a coupon to redeem at select gift shops for a special SeaWorld prize.  Limit one prize per participating child.

www.seaworld.com

Big Tex Welcomes Back Fans of State Fair of Texas Thanks to Alcorn McBride

Joe Kleiman
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Big Tex Welcomes Back Fans of State Fair of Texas Thanks to Alcorn McBride

[quote]We needed a scheduler and interface to drive the motors, a very robust system that would run 24/7 and a system that allowed some audio mixing.  That’s how I wound up with Alcorn McBride.” — Louis Bohn, SRO Associates[/quote]

Orlando, FL, USA – A new and improved Big Tex was back welcoming guests to the 2013 State Fair of Texas thanks to SRO Associates and Texas Scenic and the innovative implementation of Alcorn McBride’s V4 Pro frame-accurate controller and AM4 Digital Audio Machine.

The iconic giant cowboy had been greeting fairgoers since 1952 when it was destroyed by fire near the end of last year’s State Fair.  The rebuilt Big Tex was bigger and better than ever tipping the scales at 25,000 pounds and towering over the fairgrounds at 55 feet tall.  He boasted a new red, white and blue outfit and boots decorated with the Texas and American flags, the State Capitol, bluebonnets, longhorns and other Lone Star State imagery.

Big Tex was no static figure.  He waved his hand, turned his head and spoke pointing guests to The Million Dollar Midway and the Texas-size fun and wonders that awaited them.  Over a period of 10 months SRO Associates designed and built the shape and visible parts of Big Tex at its studios in Boerne, Texas and partnered with Texas Scenic in San Antonio to engineer the structure and design the mechanisms that make the giant cowboy come to life.

Key to making Big Tex bigger and better was developing a new control system, says Louis Bohn, Lighting Designer & Technology Project Managerat SRO Associates.  “Before, the control was hydraulic: There was a button panel like you might see on any fairground ride,” he explains.  “But they wanted to add more movement to Big Tex and make those movements more fluid, so we elected to go with large industrial electric motors and a new user interface.”

Bohn had worked with Alcorn McBride on a previous project and turned to the manufacturer for its V4 Pro frame-accurate controller and AM4 Digital Audio Machine, which “really filled the bill” for Big Tex’s audio needs.

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Big Tex’s moving mouth had to function with the live voice of the giant cowboy as well as with prerecorded audio.  “With the prerecorded audio we originally planned to do a timeline of mouth movements to audio.  When we decided to actually interface with audio we had to come up with a system to make it more dynamic,” says Bohn.

With five motors inside the head of Big Tex SRO devised the idea of using a light organ device to take the incoming audio signal and split it into low-, mid- and high-frequency signals and give them a visual orientation.  “We were able to convert that to numbers and go into the V4 Pro controller and apply numbers directly into SEW Eurodrive’s MOVI-PLC (Programmable Logic Controller), which controlled the motors,” Bohn explains.  “We added an audio delay to compensate for the latency of communication.  And everything worked fantastically well.”

He notes that “there was no textbook to reference” for solving the audio needs of the giant cowboy so ingenuity and innovation were essential to deliver his much enhanced audio capabilities.  With the solution SRO developed, “we could analyze the audio and move his mouth accordingly,” Bohn says.  “Based on amplitude, his mouth not only moved at the right time but also differently depending upon the audio.  Big Tex opened his mouth more and gestured more depending upon the live or prerecorded audio.  That way we didn’t have to preprogram the mouth movements for the prerecorded audio, which wouldn’t look the same – or as good – as the live audio.”

Alcorn McBride engineer Joy Burke says the V4 Pro served as the show controller for Big Tex, starting and stopping his performance via the Showtouch software interface from a touch panel.  “The V4 Pro is a very reliable system, rock solid with no chance of downtime.  It easily interfaced with the complex systems involved in this show and communicated with the MOVI-PLC as well as the AM4 audio player,” she says.

Specifically, the V4 Pro sent the MOVI-PLC “appropriate commands and toggle bits to allow it to follow the audio file and tell the PLC when to move Big Tex’s mouth up and down,” Burke explains.  The V4 Pro triggered prerecorded audio tracks with a timeline and audio tailored to particular times of day by reading the audio values and sending commands as needed.  For live audio, when the voice of Big Tex used the microphone the V4 Pro made the figure’s mouth movements coincide.

Bohn says he approached programming Big Tex as a lighting designer, making “individual modules to pull into different sequences.  Any single movement required at least 12 bits of data.  Big Tex had 80 prerecorded messages, and I didn’t want to do all that programming 80 different times.  So the operator simply pressed a single button on the computer to get the whole thing started.”

He reports that Big Tex’s audio “worked really well” and gives kudos to Burke for being “instrumental in helping us line up all these systems.  We all worked together to integrate everything, and Alcorn McBride updated firmware to tailor the system for us.  Alcorn and Joy were phenomenal and very supportive of the project.”

Bohn believes Big Tex may be improved even further by the next State Fair.  “We may add new movements other than his mouth, head and hand.  We’d like to be able to have his forearm move for a much more natural wave.  That will be a big upgrade.”

www.alcorn.com

VIDEO: Behind the Scenes of Aquatica’s New Drop Tower Slides

Joe Kleiman
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VIDEO: Behind the Scenes of Aquatica’s New Drop Tower Slides

[quote]You’ll never know who’s going to breakaway first – and the anticipation of who drops next is part of the wild ride!”[/quote]

Follow Aquatica Orlando’s Vice President Bryan Nadeau Behind the Falls for an insider’s look into Ihu’s Breakaway Falls – the tallest, steepest and only multi-drop tower slide of its kind in Orlando AND all of the southern United States – dropping only at Aquatica Orlando May 9.
 
At nearly 80 feet tall, Ihu’s Breakaway Falls is where you’ll face your fears and each other. Offering four unique slide paths, you’ll step into one of three “breakaway boxes” and watch each other fall one-by-one or test your bravery on a fourth open slide for a different but just as thrilling experience.

AquaticaOrlando.com.

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