Holovis has appointed Howard Newstate as Vice President of Experience Innovation. Newstate will initially be focused on the company’s expansion of its Extended Experience software, programs and platforms.
Most recently, Newstate spent three years at Cedar Fair Entertainment Company developing and leading multi-discipline innovation projects across the company’s 11 amusement parks in North America, reaching an audience of 24 million guests annually. He served as the creative and technical lead for Cedar Fair on major immersive experience projects such as Mass Effect: New Earth, a 4D Holographic Journey. In addition, he developed the content strategy and production facilities for FunTV, a national in-park media network and worked on digital wayfinding, retail and strategic planning initiatives.
Newstate also developed and concepted multiple immersive Virtual and Augmented Reality projects during his time with Cedar Fair including Cedar Point VR and the award-winning Battle for Cedar Point, a collaboration between Cedar Fair and Holovis.
“Howard brings a mix of end-client insight and operational experience to our team along with his extensive technical expertise, this is already adding greatly to our innovation and development projects for our next-generation attractions and guest experiences,” explains Stuart Hetherington, CEO of Holovis. “His previous accomplishments with a major American operator combined with his passion for utilizing technology to expand consumer experiences make him a great addition to our rapidly growing US team.”
“I am excited to join such a dynamic team at Holovis that will enable me to bring my work to a global audience,” says Newstate. “Together, we will continue to explore new ways of combining technology and storytelling to immerse the guest throughout their consumer journey.”
Newstate will be based in the new Holovis US office alongside Amy Steele, Holovis’s VP of Attractions, to better serve the needs of North American clients, while providing support globally to the Attractions, Brands and Enterprise sectors.