A look back at 2019
1. Queens of Egypt 3D Media Experience
In March, the National Geographic Museum in Washington D.C. opened its doors to a new exhibition, Queens of Egypt. The exhibition features a 3-D experience, produced by Falcon’s, that takes visitors on a unique virtual tour through one of the most well-preserved tombs discovered in the Valley of the Queens– the tomb of Queen Nefertari. In this stunning virtual reconstruction, visitors experience the tomb as archaeologists believe it may have looked when originally constructed in Egypt’s 19th dynasty around 1250 B.C.
“This exhibition pushes the boundaries of what visitors to the National Geographic Museum can experience without actually traveling all the way to Egypt to stand in the tomb of Queen Nefertari. Through our collaboration with experience designers like Falcon’s Creative Group we’re finding new and exciting ways to enhance storytelling and guest immersion to create the next-generation of technology-forward exhibitions,” says Alan Parente, Creative Director at National Geographic.
2. Office Renovations
From day one, our President and Chief Creative Officer, Cecil D. Magpuri, has strived to cultivate a creative studio distinguished by both its outstanding body of work and its consistently warm and collaborative methodology. Our office space was thoughtfully designed to reflect this while meeting team members’ professional needs of working in a welcoming space that excites and inspires them to be their best.
This year we made several upgrades to our space including an expansion for our growing team, but one of our favorite changes is our new video wall. Using ultra-short-throw projectors our theater’s E-Glass wall serves as the canvas for a massive video wall. Media that we have created for our world-class projects such as Dragon’s Treasure and Turtle Trek® is displayed on the approximately 30-foot-long wall.
3. Giving Back
Supporting our local and global communities is a key part of the culture at Falcon’s. Throughout the year involvement in both group and individual volunteer activities is encouraged with paid time off and organized team events. This year we had several opportunities to volunteer to support incredible organizations such as Second Harvest and Give Kids The World Village.
One volunteer highlight of the year was working alongside the Second Harvest team to help prepare more than 11,000 pounds of food to be sent to those in need in the Orlando, Florida area. We were also proud to participate in this year’s Footprints from the Heart 5K and the IAAPA Motorcycle Ride supporting Give Kids The World Village.
4. Launch of a New Website
After months of research and development, we launched our new website in August. The goal of the new site is to provide an improved user experience that caters to users looking to engage with our latest work and services. The overall look website was also updated to better align with the Falcon’s brand. We encourage you to take a look around our site and explore all our new features!
5. Halo: Outpost Discovery
Halo: Outpost Discovery, a touring fan experience, that brought the Halo video game universe to life had its opening day in July. Traveling to 5 different U.S. cities in 2019, the experience offered a wide range of thrilling and authentic in-universe encounters for the whole family to enjoy. The Halo universe was expanded through captivating museum shows, detailed exhibits, interactive ‘training’ games, and more. Falcon’s worked closely with Herschend Live and 343 Industries to provide the narrative, story development, live-action film production, CG animation, visual effects, motion graphics, sound design, and interactive audio for a wide array of experiences throughout Halo: Outpost Discovery.
6. Jurassic Island – 4D Immersive Tunnel
Falcon’s Digital Media provided custom media and audio content for Jurassic Island, the ‘world’s first’ Immersive Superflume ride at the new Trans Studio Cibubur indoor theme park in Indonesia. In the experience, riders are taken on an intense journey through Dinosaur Island, a dense jungle that serves as the home for genetically resurrected rulers of the prehistoric world.
The attraction was built in virtual reality so we could “sit” inside a virtual replica of the venue and get a good sense of lighting, action, and scale throughout the experience. Our animation team spent many hours researching reference to get the dinosaurs’ movements just right. They worked independently on various elements of the show for faster iterations, and then seamlessly combined their work. Watch the behind the scenes video below to learn more about how this experience was brought to life.
7. Katmandu Partnership
Katmandu Group announced a new collaboration with Falcon’s Creative Group to produce a series of Katmandu branded attractions beginning with a dynamic new entertainment venue in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The new Punta Cana theme park will also feature the debut of Falcon’s Suspended Theater™ system.
We have already kicked-off the master planning and the attraction and media design for the unique environments and are excited to continue this project and work with Katmandu into 2020!
Find out more about the partnership announcement here: https://falconscreativegroup.com/news/katmandu-partnership
8. Cecil Honored in Blooloop Top 50 List
For the second year in a row, Falcon's own President and Chief Creative Officer Cecil D. Magpuri was named in Blooloop's Top 50 Theme Park Influencer List. This list celebrates innovation and creativity in the global theme park industry and recognizes 50 key individuals who are helping shape the future of the visitor experience in this huge, multi-billion-dollar industry.
View the full list here: https://blooloop.com/blooloop-50-theme-park-influencer-list-2019/#influencer-blooloop-50
9. Jane Goodall’s Story Brought to Life Through Multi-Media Experiences
Falcon’s Creative Group proudly collaborated with the National Geographic Museum and the Jane Goodall Institute to provide six multimedia experiences for the “Becoming Jane: The Evolution of Dr. Jane Goodall” exhibition. The goal was to immerse visitors in Jane Goodall’s remarkable story of becoming the first person to live among and study wild chimpanzees, humankind’s closest living relatives.
This project also marks the debut of Falcon’s Vison, our augmented reality headset and our fourth project with the iconic National Geographic brand.
10. Experience Imagination Podcast Releases 20th Episode
Since Experience Imagination’s launch in 2018, our podcast has continued to grow and gain traction in the themed entertainment industry. Our latest episode, “Retailtainment: Enchanting the Buying Experience”, marked the 20th episode of our podcast and was also our season 2 finale. Throughout this journey we’ve had the opportunity to discuss a multitude of exciting topics with some of the industry’s top professionals and would like to say a special thank you for our listeners and guests for the love and support.
Tune in to the first episode of Season 3 on January 27, 2020, on your favorite podcast app. You can also subscribe and listen to all 20 episodes here: https://falconscreativegroup.com/podcast/
