Orlando, FL, USA — Alcorn McBride demonstrated that it’s on the leading edge of 4K technology with the introduction of CARBON 4K at InfoComm13.
The new High Frame Rate (60 fps) UltraHD 4K player delivers a viewer experience to large video and LED walls; museum exhibits; theme park attractions; corporate centers; 4D theater; and digital signage. It joins the single channel model, CARBON 1080p 60 player, in Alcorn McBride’s CARBON product line.
CARBON 4K taps growing interest in emerging 4K technology by offering true image playback at resolutions up to 3840 x 2160 in a rock-solid package synonymous with the Alcorn McBride brand. Designed for applications where smooth high-resolution playback is a must, CARBON’s ability to natively play 60 fps content means jitter-free video playback in a rugged, maintenance-free package.
True to Alcorn McBride engineering, CARBON is a solid-state player with no hard drives. Simple, removable CompactFlash media stores hours of HD content. Content can be uploaded remotely via Ethernet.
CARBON supports many of the easy-to-use, flexible control features that come standard with Alcorn McBride products, such as Playlisting, Ethernet, Serial and GPIO. Features include frame-accurate video synchronization, quad 3G HD-SDI and Quad HDMI output, and genlock input.
The new player occupies 3RUs and weighs 25 lbs (11 kg).
The life and career of Marty Sklar are so rich and far reaching in scope that a proper introduction to the former Imagineer would require a book. And such a book, Dream It! Do It!: My Half Century Creating Disney’s Magic Kingdoms, will hit shelves August 13 (presales now available at Amazon). Sklar started at Disneyland in 1955, where he created The Disneyland News, an in-park newspaper, and wrote most of the park’s marketing materials. In 2006, he transitioned from being Vice Chairman and Principal Creative Executive of Walt Disney Imagineering to become its International Ambassador, a position he retired from in 2009, after 54 years with the company.
Between the starting point at Disneyland’s opening year and his retirement were many adventures and life experiences. But we leave it to the book to continue on that journey – a journey has made Sklar one of only two people to have been awarded the esteemed Lifetime Achievement Award from the Themed Entertainment Association, an IAAPA Hall of Fame inductee, and a Disney Legend.
Retirement card designed by former Imagineer Hani El-Masri
Retirement has not kept Sklar down. He remains busy in themed entertainment design as the head of Marty Sklar Creative, a TEA member. At a presentation last year at the Walt Disney Family Museum, another Disney Legend, Bob Gurr, spoke about witnessing Sklar working on a recent project. He called it a “wild night of charrette and martinis at Marty’s house.”
InPark News Editor Joe Kleiman asked Marty Sklar five questions. Here’s what he had to say:
Four Disney Legend recipients of the TEA Lifetime Achievement Award (L to R): Harrison “Buzz” Price, John Hench, Marty Sklar, Don Iwerks. Courtesy Marty Sklar.
1. How have changes in technology affected the creative design process?
Technology in general, and new technologies in particular, are great enablers and change-makers in the theme entertainment business. However, at Disney, we are a story-driven creative organization, and Imagineers always start by striving to create a great story-experience. It’s rare that a new technology comes along that drives the creation of an attraction. One exception that comes to mind is the flight simulator development that enabled us to work with George Lucas in creating the first Star Tours adventure at Disneyland. Now that I’m retired, I confess to some envy at the availability of new technical developments in sight, sound and even smell that talented storytellers and production teams have at their disposal.
Childrens Hospital Los Angeles lobby. Courtesy Lexington Design.
2. Over the years, Imagineering has worked on a number of non-theme park projects around the world, ranging from Circlevision films at Canada’s Expo 67 and EXPO 86, to an airport transit system in Houston and a bowling alley in Denver. Do you have a favorite non-Disney project that Imagineering developed?
This may surprise you, but my personal favorite was the creation of the new lobby area a few years ago for Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles. Imagineering was so busy that I was only able to do this with volunteers, as a “Lunchtime Project” – Disney bought the munchies and we worked on our own time for weeks coming up with the ideas and generating the designs – mostly by John Horny and Zofia Kostyrko. We created a family/kid friendly environment where parents and brothers and sisters could feel welcome when they visited their children/brothers/sisters in the hospital. Lexington did a great job executing our concepts.
(L to R) Marty Sklar, Collin Campbell, John Hench during construction of Epcot Center. Courtesy Walt Disney Imagineering.
It’s wonderful that Collin Campbell and Tony Baxter are being honored this year as Disney Legends! I have a vivid memory of watching Collin take an iron chain and bash it against the structure to get the look we wanted for a building in the U.K. pavilion at Epcot – the contractor was frantic that he would be blamed and forced to do it over, but we got “the look” we wanted! Collin’s field work was extraordinary. He also painted a key piece which helped Bob Weis communicate our concept for the Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney’s Hollywood Studios).
(L to R) Mickey Steinberg, Marty Sklar, L.F. ”Fred” Benckenstein, Tony Baxter at Disneyland Paris. Courtesy Walt Disney Imagineering.
Tony, of course, is one of the great achievers in our industry – think Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones, Journey Into Imagination, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, etc. etc. The park Tony quarterbacked from day one, Disneyland Paris, is a design gem. One thing I always appreciated about Tony was his mentorship of young talent; he never forgot how Disney Legends like Claude Coats took him under their wing when he was just getting started.
(L to R): Minnie Mouse, Disney CEO Bob Iger, Marty Sklar, Mickey Mouse, and Jay Rassulo (now Disney CFO) celebrate Marty’s 50th anniversary with company. Courtesy Marty Sklar.
4.What lessons did you learn from working with Michael Eisner and Frank Wells?
In my book (Dream It! Do It! My Half-Century Creating Disney’s Magic Kingdoms – published by Disney Editions) I tell a lot of stories about working with Michael Eisner and Frank Wells. Perhaps the biggest lesson I learned from them was about partnership – that two great executives with very different skills added up to much more than double your pleasure when it came to running a company. Of course, those of us who worked with Walt and Roy O. Disney had that lesson at Disney long before Michael and Frank. My partnership with Mickey Steinberg in running Imagineering for about five years was the best I experienced – and I see that kind of partnership now between Craig Russell and Bruce Vaughn at Imagineering. I used one of my favorites Michael Eisner quotes in my book: “This is so large and impractical – that’s what appeals to me!”
5. Are there any memoirs that influenced your approach to writing Dream It! Do It! My Half Century Creating Disney’s Magic Kingdoms?
I’m always amused at the contrast in my home between my wife, Leah, and me when it comes to reading materials – she reads nothing but fiction, and I read mostly biographies. I’m currently reading Walter Isaacson’s biography of Albert Einstein, and I just finished one about the baseball DiMaggio clan, and the great tennis champion, Jimmy Connors. I can’t say any one style has influenced my writing, but I’m a great admirer of Isaacson’s work – the Steve Jobs biography, and especially his compilation called American Sketches. I think I have developed my own style through the years, especially early on when I wrote practically everything that came out about the Disney parks, and many things for Walt Disney’s signature until he passed away. After all those years running a creative organization (which I loved!) I’m truly enjoying the opportunity to use my writing skills again. You haven’t seen the last of my efforts with “book number one!”
Marty (L) and John Hench (R) lounging on the scale model of Epcot Center
Tampa, FL, USA /PRWEB/ — Sea Monsters Revealed, the most comprehensive and interactive exhibition on the deep sea, has added human anatomy specimens to the experience. The exhibit, which features the largest collection of plastinated deep sea creatures, has added human anatomy specimens, including a head, heart and lungs, to offer visitors a side-by-side comparison between humans and specific marine specimens to further deepen their connection to life in the sea and to better understand their own bodies.
The human anatomy specimens were added to the exhibition on Thursday, July 25.
“Adding human anatomy specimens to Sea Monsters Revealed furthers the exhibition’s goal of bringing the life of the deep sea into clearer focus,” said John Zaller, the exhibition’s creator and the mind behind the Bodies exhibit. “By seeing the human form presented in this context, visitors will develop a more profound connection to the majestic and mysterious creatures of the deep and realize that we are not so different from them.”
The human anatomy specimens being added to the exhibition include a head, brain, heart, hand, stomach, intestines, a liver with gallbladder, and lungs. The lungs, for example, perfectly illustrate the similarities and differences between humans and marine life. Like fish, humans require oxygen to survive. Fish extract oxygen from water through their gills, while humans draw oxygen from the air we breathe. Given our different mediums containing oxygen, humans and fish have developed different methods for extracting it. A total of nine comparisons like this one are being added to the exhibition.
“Sea Monsters Revealed continues to unveil the mysteries of the deep,” said Wit Ostrenko, President of MOSI. “The addition of human specimens adds the educational element of comparative anatomy to the exhibit, and allows visitors an opportunity to better understand their own bodies.”
Sea Monsters Revealed, an exhibition of the world’s largest plastinated sea creatures, is now open at the Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI). Like the human anatomy exhibits that now circle the globe, Sea Monsters Revealed uses the revolutionary polymer preservation technique commonly known as plastination to bring real sea animals onto dry land for an up-close and personal look at the most mysterious creatures the deep sea has to offer. In addition to the newly added pregnant silky shark, visitors will see a 6-foot-wide manta ray, a 15-foot-long mako shark, a giant squid, an 18-foot-long, 3,000 pound whale shark, and more.
Glendale, CA, USA — Founded in December 1952, Walt Disney Imagineering (known as WDI in-house) is celebrating 60 years of innovation this year. Walt Disney once said “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible,” and making the impossible real is WDI’s specialty. To celebrate, the Imagineers are throwing open the doors (at least a crack) of their magic factory to the public at next month’s D23 Expo. The Walt Disney Parks & Resorts Pavilion at the event will give visitors a rare chance to explore the world of WDI and see how the innovation happens. Read on to see what to expect if you can be there, and get a peek at the event if you can’t make it.
“People always want to come to Imagineering, and we constantly get requests for tours. So we thought instead of bringing everybody to our campus in Glendale, what if we bring Imagineering to people so they can visit it?” explains Dave Fisher, show producer of the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Pavilion. “We have created a huge replica of the Imagineering façade right there in the Anaheim Convention Center, and inside is a world of Imagineering. It’s focused on what we do and who does it, so you’ll see some of our tools and actually get to meet Imagineers. We’ll have Imagineers from many departments and disciplines – many Imagineers have volunteered to come out and meet the fans and show off what they do. We don’t usually get to strut our stuff because, as we like to say, there’s only one name on the door here and that’s Disney. So the chance to show off what we do is as thrilling for us as it is for fans to meet us!”
Dave says the pavilion has been designed to give visitors a real look at how Imagineers work and even a peek at hush-hush works in progress. “We have a technology called DISH, which stands for Digital Immersive Showroom, and we’ll show how it’s helped us design several attractions — visitors will be able to virtually ride two attractions, the same way we do when we’re testing them. There will be teasers for Avatar and Star Wars at the Disney Parks, as well as Disney Springs, the reimagining of Downtown Disney at Walt Disney World Resort. We’ll have a play test for a project called Adventure Trading Company, and there will be an outlet of Mickey’s of Glendale, the Imagineering Cast Member store, because like all great attractions we end with a gift shop! There will be some exclusive merchandise there for Expo visitors to take home.”
There will be even more than this to see, as the pavilion will showcase Imagineering history and some outstanding recent accomplishments. “We set the bar very high four years ago at the first D23 Expo, and we feel we have to meet or exceed it every time out,” laughs Dave. “This year we are actually going to have a meet and greet with Captain America at our space; he’s part of Marvel’s Avengers Academy on the reimagined Disney Magic. We are also going to be showing off iconic pieces from the Imagineering art library, including a piece by Peter Ellenshaw that is rarely seen under blacklight, the way he painted it to be viewed. And we’ll have some old models on display – things we rediscovered in the Imagineering warehouse. Some of them were mislabeled, so even we didn’t know what we had! So they hadn’t been seen in a long time, and they’ll be on display. Those include a Western River Expedition attraction intended for Magic Kingdom Park, and an early model for a space pavilion at Epcot that was worked on by Ray Bradbury.”
As amazing as these displays are to look at, WDI’s greatest treasures aren’t artifacts – they’re people. And some amazing ones will be there to celebrate. Panel discussions with Imagineers past and present will take place all weekend, and all day Sunday will be dedicated to marking the 60th Anniversary. “Some Disney Legends, including Marty Sklar and Bob Gurr, will be on hand to talk about working with Walt Disney himself,” Dave tells us. “It’s great to have these guys around because they can share perspectives and stories that will never be forgotten. People work here a long time, so the links between generations are pretty strong. I’m a Marty Sklar guy myself –Marty spent a lot of time writing for Walt, and I spent a lot of time working with him in the ‘90s.”
Showing off what WDI does is fun, but Dave hopes that visitors will find it inspiring as well. “I would like people to find out just what it takes for Imagineering to do what it does. People think of us as the dreamers, but I think just as important is the fact that we are doers. It’s not just coming up with ideas, but making them come true. Meeting the Imagineers can give people a sense of what it takes to educate, entertain, and inspire visitors to the Disney Parks around the world.”
“When Walt formed the company and designed and built Disneyland, a lot of it was done by the seat of their pants because no one had done anything like it. We’ve learned from the Imagineers who’ve come before and all the accumulated knowledge leads to bigger and better projects. I’ve been with Imagineering for more than 26 years and we do some things differently than when my career began, but ultimately we’re still here to educate, inspire, and entertain; to create magic for the people who come to the Parks,” Dave concludes. And that gives WDI a lot to celebrate – and a lot to work toward for the next 60 years and beyond.
As summer passes the halfway point and stores begin stocking their back-to-school wares, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on how the industry is reaching out to the next generation of creators, designers and doers. Over the past 18 months, the Themed Entertainment Association’s Next Generation Committee has been striving to better engage tomorrow’s industry professionals, and leading the effort is independent Creative Director and Producer, Kile Ozier.
Ozier has built a solid reputation across a spectrum of industries with effective, experiential storytelling as a key component. He is well known for exceptional, tightly-run experiences of high-energy and style, and his successful background in corporate film-making, creation of compelling spectacle, evocative writing skills and creative approach to staging set him apart. His work includes landmark fundraising campaigns for Stanford University that left “rooms full of weeping millionaires, coast-to–coast,” a litany of inaugurals and state visits of foreign leaders, Fleet Week events and numerous live shows in varying formats around the world, most recently opening Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi in January of 2013.
Ozier’s relationship with the TEA began at the association’s nexus 21 years ago, when he stopped by a booth at a showbiz expo and met Technifex’s Monty Lunde and ETI’s Roberta Perry. Back then, the aim of the TEA was to help the “little guys” navigate an industry dominated by Disney and Universal. Ozier, who lived in LA at the time, thought involvement with the TEA would provide professional and social networking opportunities. As the years went by, his relationship with the Association and its members deepened.
But it was advent of TEA’s SATE (Storytelling, Architecture, Technology, Experience) conference that inspired Ozier to dive into the organization in a leadership capacity. He felt the conference provided an intimate experience where you could see someone on stage and didn’t have to fight the crowds to ask a question afterward. He also appreciated that the conference engaged not only fabricators and designers but also writers and producers. He was so impressed with the conference’s concept that he volunteered for the planning committee immediately, so he could help build the event and shape its content. “I’m always pushing it to be edgy,” said Ozier. “I want it to be a forum where people can present ideas and technologies that we might never think to see in a theme park…yet.”
Christine Kerr of BaAM productions served as the founding fulcrum of the TEA Next Generation Committee and had worked with Ozier on SATE, so when the Board appointed her as President, she tapped him to succeed her as Next Gen Chair. For him it seemed a natural progression from his experience teaching workshops at Apple. “I like to teach,” Ozier said. “Whenever I build a team, I recruit people who are smarter than the jobs they are already holding, and usually smarter than me. The instructions I give are: ‘here’s the job, here’s the result and here’s how I would do it. If you want to do it your own way, go for it, but as soon as you see something wrong, let me know, and we’ll work on it together.’” The rest of the committee is comprised not only of industry veterans, but also students, recent graduates and those inside the field but outside the industry world, such as professors and university administrators.
Kerr told Ozier to “take the committee on and make it grow,” and the committee has made a variety of strides thus far to meet that mandate, from bringing industry leaders to speak at universities, to creating student-centric programming at TEA conferences to setting up Twitter and Facebook pages, where students interested in themed entertainment can engage with each other. Ozier said that the committee’s impact on the sheer number of Next Gen members has been significant, and the committee has even taken on a global reach, with interest and membership coming not just from the US but from across Europe as well. “It’s not only poised to grow or primed to grow, it’s growing,” he said. Many of the committee’s past and present projects have actually been run by students, giving them the opportunity to shape the committee’s efforts into what they, the target market, want to see, learn and do.
Future initiatives call for a web portal to connect companies looking for interns to students looking for internship opportunities. Successful “graduates” of the Next Gen program will be asked to post their stories on the TEA website, TEA newsletter and social media once employed. In the next few weeks, TEA Next Gen members will receive information on how to apply for scholarships for SATE, and will be offered deeply discounted enrollment to Steve Alcorn’s Theme Park Design Workshop. “These young people have the desire to make things happen,” said Ozier. “They just need to tools to make things happen. It’s about getting the energy out of the students and connecting them and feeding their concepts and listening to what they are interested in. We are the opportunity openers – people to nurture and push and then get out of the way.”
When asked what success looked like for the Next Gen Committee, Ozier said he hoped it would become the go-to resource for students and recent graduates for what is going on in the industry. He added that awareness has thus far been the greatest challenge – not just awareness of the Next Gen Committee or even TEA, but awareness of all of the opportunities, career paths and places to work within the themed entertainment industry. Partnerships with IAAPA and scholarship programs with Disney have shown progress, but he said that there are too many people inside and out of the industry who don’t know that TEA and the Next Gen Committee exist. He likened the situation to that of TED, the set of conferences and videos that has now become a global online sensation. Vast numbers of people know about TED, even though they don’t attend. “For years, it was just a thing that happened for smart, rich people, and now it has this global level of awareness,” said Ozier. “We need to create a brand that brings people to us. Every campus should know who we are.” He added that Twitter and Facebook were crucial in communicating this brand message and that TEA members can help by following the Next Gen Committee on social media and sharing their content with the students.
According to Ozier, the key to supporting, recruiting and engaging the next generation of industry leaders is to think outside the “HR box”. “We need enlightened HR people in this industry so that we can get out of this niche of requiring specific talents and skills,” said Ozier. There are a host of talented people out there who don’t fit into boxes, and HR can be a formidable obstacle to the freelancer.” He himself recently encountered the “HR Factor” in a telephone interview, when asked how many of the shows he’s created were actually installed in theme parks. “My answer, ‘two’ that were actually IN theme parks, palpably took the energy out of the conversation…” even though he’s written, produced and directed over 100 live shows around the world in other venues. “It’s this over-describing and overthinking of the kind of person needed to accomplish a given task that will keep the brains that we want in our business away from our business.” The key to getting more young minds engaged? “Ramp up the ‘let’s see’ factor, shop for talent outside the brief or portfolio and relinquish the thinking that limits consideration of experience as having to be from within our contexts in order to apply to our contexts. An Art Director needn’t be the best artist in the world in order to inspire the artists. Not everyone needs to be able to draw.”
Ozier closed with a few words of wisdom for burgeoning themed industry talent:
Try anything. Try everything. Try not to be limited by expectations. Be passionate about what you are passionate about, but understand that it’s not going to be a straight line. Never say ‘no’ to an opportunity. Take the gig, the one that may not be what you thought you wanted. Dip your toe into a different pool. No project is so long that you’re going to get fired from it, and if you like what you’re doing and are good at it, you’ll probably end up being asked to do it again.
Charlotte, NC, USA (July 26, 2013) — John Mackay, president and CEO, Discovery Place, Inc. will retire from the science and technology center at the end of 2013, capping a long career at one of the region’s premier attractions.
In his 13 years at the helm of the organization, the 64-year-old Mackay expanded its reach and influence by launching a new, branded network of children’s museums, known as Discovery Place KIDS, with two initial locations in Huntersville and Rockingham; attracting world-renowned exhibitions to the uptown Charlotte facility; overseeing a complete overhaul of Discovery Place; expanding Charlotte Nature Museum’s outdoor and indoor experiences; and, most recently, announcing plans for a unique center dedicated to the professional development of educators in science, technology, engineering and math. During Mackay’s tenure, Discovery Place, Inc., has earned numerous accolades, recently being featured as one of the nation’s top 10 Great Family-Friendly Museums in USA Today.
“My life and much of my career have been intertwined with Discovery Place and Charlotte Nature Museum, and so the decision to step down is both sad and exciting. I am so proud of the learning experiences that we have provided, and will continue to provide, to people of all ages and diverse backgrounds throughout this region,” said Mackay. “With a new strategic plan, new facilities poised to grow and one of the most talented and passionate teams of professionals around, the time is right for the energy of new leadership to bring the organization to the next level.”
The Discovery Place, Inc. Board of Trustees has formed a search committee led by Dr. Joan Lorden of UNC-Charlotte and Mark McGoldrick of Home Services Lending to conduct a national search for a new chief executive.
“With John’s leadership, Discovery Place has expanded, excelled and been recognized as one of the nation’s leading science centers. His vision to extend the region’s learning opportunities beyond the four walls of the Tryon St. museum will benefit generations through Discovery Place KIDS and the new STEM education center,” said Chris Perri, Discovery Place board chair. “He leaves both a legacy of innovation and big shoes to fill. The Board will need to work diligently to find a new leader for one of Charlotte’s great institutions.”
John Mackay began his Discovery Place career at the age of 12 when he and his father captured a rattlesnake and brought it to Charlotte Nature Museum for safekeeping and display. Intrigued by the Museum’s commitment to the natural sciences, the young Mackay quickly became a Museum volunteer and then moved into a part-time staff position where he remained for 9 years. Upon graduation from college, earning a master’s degree in biology, Mackay became the director of the office of environmental studies at Appalachian State University. He returned to Charlotte as part of the team that planned and opened Discovery Place in late 1981, where he developed the Museum’s iconic rainforest habitat and aquarium exhibitions. Throughout the years, he served as coordinator of biological sciences, director of educational programs and vice president of planning, research and development. In 1992, he left Charlotte to develop and launch the McWane Science Center in Birmingham, AL as president and CEO. Finally, in 2000, he returned to his roots, becoming the president and CEO of Discovery Place, Inc., just the second person to hold the office, following Dr. Freda Nicholson, since the Museum’s opening.
Discovery Place, Inc. operates Discovery Place and Charlotte Nature Museum and Discovery Place KIDS.
As one of the leading hands-on science centers in the country, Discovery Place offers visitors the opportunity to gain a greater understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in a fun, interactive and informal setting. Located in one of the nation’s fastest growing metropolitan areas, Charlotte, N.C., Discovery Place offers a family-friendly experience surrounded by the excitement of a bustling urban community.
Visitors also can get close to nature by visiting Charlotte Nature Museum, adjacent to Freedom Park and located in one of the community’s finest residential areas. Charlotte Nature Museum visitors may walk among free-flying butterflies, observe live animals, buzz around with insects or hang out in the natural world. Daily programming including puppet shows and hands-on activities provide the opportunity for structured learning and informal play for the young and old alike.
The first Discovery Place KIDS museum opened in Huntersville, N.C. in October, 2010 and is the first in a planned network of regional children’s museums. Providing an extraordinary and rich play experience that engages children’s imagination and inspires learning, the Museum is designed to serve children and their parents or caregivers. A second Discovery Place KIDS is currently under construction in Rockingham, N.C.
Universal City, CA and Orlando, FL, USA (July 25, 2013) — Fans with a voracious appetite for AMC’s “The Walking Dead” will have a chance to walk in the footsteps of human survivors when Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando Resort debut all new mazes inspired by Season 3 of the critically-acclaimed, award-winning television series at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights events beginning September 20.
The authentic and disturbingly real maze experiences will place “Halloween Horror Nights” guests at the heart of the show’s once impenetrable prison, the West Georgia Correctional Facility, now overrun by hordes of flesh-eating walkers. The mazes at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando will send guests cowering through the walker-infested wilderness that surrounds the prison and into the seemingly utopian town of Woodbury where gruesome secrets are concealed.
Universal Orlando is also dedicating its entire “Halloween Horror Nights” street experience to “The Walking Dead” – making this the first time ever that all of the scare zones throughout the park will be themed after a hit television series. Guests brave enough to walk the streets of Universal Studios Florida will encounter iconic scenes from all three seasons of the hit show – including the perilous city of Atlanta and Hershel’s dismal barn – and fleets of blood-thirsty walkers who are hungry for their next victim…
The Golden Globe-nominated, Emmy Award-winning series “The Walking Dead” is based on the graphic novel written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics. The series tells the story of the months and years after a zombie apocalypse. It follows a group of survivors, led by sheriff Rick Grimes, who travel in search of a safe and secure home. “The Walking Dead” is the first original cable series ever to end the broadcast TV season as the number-one show for adults 18-49. AMC’s “The Walking Dead” returns for season 4 on Sunday, October 13 at 9pm ET/PT.
“What’s great about working with a property like ‘The Walking Dead’ is that each season presents new environments and characters for us to draw inspiration,” said John Murdy, Creative Director for Universal Studios Hollywood. “With the prison as the main setting of Season 3, we seized this opportunity to recreate that very environment, down to the last detail, to be as genuine and authentic to the show as possible. Using movie-quality production value, our goal is to make guests feel as if they are mired in the world of blood-thirsty zombies, which is something you can only do at ‘Halloween Horror Nights.’”
“The goal is always to surround guests with authentic and terrifying experiences,” said Michael Aiello, Creative Development Director for Universal Orlando’s Entertainment team. “The combination of ‘The Walking Dead’ themed street experiences and the haunted maze will make it difficult for our guests to escape the hordes of ravenous walkers they’ve seen on their television. The moment you pass through our gate, you become a survivor fighting for your life.”
Universal Studios’ “Halloween Horror Nights” events have a more than 20-year history of creating incredibly entertaining, horrifying Halloween experiences that are consistently rated the nation’s best. The events on each coast feature highly-themed, disturbingly real, haunted mazes based on everything from films to nightmares — and streets filled with hundreds of specially trained “scareactors.”
For more information about “Halloween Horror Nights” at either Universal Orlando Resort or Universal Studios Hollywood, visitwww.HalloweenHorrorNights.com.
Anaheim, CA, USA — “World of Color − Winter Dreams,” an all-new holiday version of the popular “World of Color” after-dark spectacular, will debut at Disney California Adventure Park, Friday, Nov. 15, adding to the holiday season at the Disneyland Resort.
Hosted by Olaf the snowman, from the upcoming Walt Disney Pictures animated feature “Frozen,” the “World of Color − Winter Dreams” show combines new animation with classic winter scenes from such beloved Disney films as “Bambi,” “Fantasia” and “Toy Story.” The show will include new special effects and present some new methods for utilizing the massive “stage” of water, color and light on which “World of Color” is presented.
Steve Davison, creative director of the original “World of Color” show in Disney California Adventure, is also staging “World of Color − Winter Dreams.” Davison, vice president of parades and spectaculars, Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Entertainment, said: “I am so excited to be bringing new magic to ‘World of Color’ this holiday season. The brand-new show is filled with great music, new effects and, of course, all the magnificence of the ‘World of Color’ fountain and projection system. It’s going to be a very powerful and amazing experience for guests of all ages.”
Millions of guests have enjoyed “World of Color” since it opened to rave reviews in 2010, part of the five-year expansion of Disney California Adventure. The nighttime spectacular brings animation to life on Paradise Bay, as nearly 1,200 powerful fountains create one of the world’s largest projected water screens.
Along with the new “World of Color − Winter Dreams,” the holiday season will welcome the return of Disneyland Park holiday traditions such as “A Christmas Fantasy” parade, Sleeping Beauty’s Winter Castle, “it’s a small world” Holiday and “Believe…in Holiday Magic” fireworks followed by a holiday snowfall on Main Street, U.S.A., New Orleans Square and “it’s a small world” mall. Santa Claus will appear in the parade throughout the season and also will be greeting guests and listening to holiday wishes through Dec. 24.
Disney California Adventure gets its own seasonal makeover with festive – and often whimsical – holiday décor in Cars Land, “a bug’s land,” Paradise Pier and Buena Vista Street.
Disneyland Resort hotels will join in the holiday festivities with twinkling lights and ornaments, special entertainment and holiday dining with themed menus.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (July 26, 2013) – Resorts World Genting, the world’s largest destination resort operator, announced today a licensing partnership with Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products to develop its first international Twentieth Century Fox theme park. Opening in 2016, the new theme park at Resorts World Genting will fully immerse visitors in an entertainment experience featuring some of FOX’s most recognized and powerful film brands including ICE AGE, RIO, ALIEN and NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM.
Dato Lee Choong Yan, president and chief operating officer of Genting Malaysia Berhad and Jeffrey Godsick, president of Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products participated in a signing event solidifying the partnership between Genting Malaysia Berhad and Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products. The alliance was witnessed by Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, chairman and chief executive officer of Genting Malaysia Berhad.
“For the first time, audiences will soon be transported into the worlds of their favorite Twentieth Century Fox properties,” said Godsick. “Brought to life by our partner Resorts World Genting, this theme park marks the launch of our global location based entertainment strategy.”
“Twentieth Century Fox is one of the world’s largest producers and distributors of entertainment content in the world,” said Tan Sri Lim. “The FOX brand is popular throughout the world because the studio has earned a reputation for quality, creativity and longevity. We’re honored to partner with Twentieth Century Fox to realize the vision of a world class integrated resort.”
The Twentieth Century Fox theme park at Resorts World Genting will feature rides and attractions based on a wide array of FOX properties including action, adventure, animation, family and sci-fi genres.
Highlights from the park will include:
More than 25 acres of land, featuring more than 25 rides and attractions from media based rides, thrill rides, dark rides, to children’s rides and water rides
Rides and attractions based on Twentieth Century Fox blockbuster titles like ICE AGE, RIO, LIFE OF PI,ALIEN, PREDATOR and NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM (additional film build outs to be announced)
The Dream Parade, featuring a one-of-a-kind, animatronics parade based on all characters and titles represented at the theme park
Retail merchandise and themed food and beverage outlets
Resort World Genting is investing more than r RM400 million (US$125 million) to develop the Twentieth Century Fox theme park. New jobs will be created, including cast members who will be trained to operate the rides and attractions, while representing the characters and stories from various FOX properties. The ultimate focus and goal: delivering a world-class customer experience.
The Genting Theme Park was opened in 1978 as Genting Amusement and Recreation Park. Today after 35 years, the outdoor theme park receives millions of visitors annually from Malaysia and all over the world. With the Twentieth Century Fox theme park targeting families and adults alike, the Resort anticipates a strong growth in visitors from both Malaysia and international arrivals, in addition from neighboring countries.
The Genting Outdoor Theme Park will be closed beginning September 1st 2013 to facilitate the construction of the Twentieth Century Fox theme park. The projected soft opening is scheduled to take place in 2016.
WASHINGTON (July 23, 2013) –“Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure,” a state-of-the-art animated and live action film made for large-format and digital 3-D and 2-D cinemas in museums, zoos, aquariums and science centers, surpassed $50 million in total worldwide gross box office, National Geographic Cinema Ventures (NGCV) has announced.
Funded in part through a grant from the National Science Foundation, the film is narrated by Tony Award-winning actor Liev Schreiber, with an original score by long-time musical collaborators Richard Evans, David Rhodes and Peter Gabriel. “Sea Monsters” has been exhibited in more than 400 theaters in over 30 countries in 17 languages since its release in 2007. On 3-D digital and large-screen platforms, the film takes audiences back 82 million years, following a family of Dolichorhynchops, known informally as “Dollies,” as they traverse ancient waters populated with saber-toothed fish, prehistoric sharks and giant squid. The film weaves together spectacular photorealistic animation with standout finds from paleontological digs around the world — discoveries that shed light on the film’s incredible cast of characters.
“‘Sea Monsters’ is the quintessential giant-screen film, with appeal to all ages,” said Mark Katz, president of NGCV distribution. “Its success and longevity in theaters around the world is a testament to that appeal, as well as to its outstanding story and stunning visuals, not to mention its ability to transport audiences to a world they can only imagine.”
Directed by Sean MacLeod Phillips and produced by Lisa Truitt and Jini Durr, “Sea Monsters” has received worldwide critical acclaim since its release in 2007. Described by The Washington Post as “‘Finding Nemo’ with a ‘Wow’ factor of about 100,” the film offers audiences a state-of-the-art 3-D experience unlike any other.
“Sea Monsters” has won numerous international awards, including Best Film from GSCA, Golden Reel for Best Sound Editing from Motion Picture Sound Editors and Outstanding Visual Effects Special Venue from the Visual Effects Society.
For more information on “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure,” updates on where it is opening and links to preview the film, visit nationalgeographic.com/seamonsters/index.
Orlando, FL, USA — Alcorn McBride demonstrated that it’s on the leading edge of 4K technology with the introduction of CARBON 4K at InfoComm13.
