The military aircraft is staring at you, they think you have a play
Editor’s note: This article comes from the WeChat public account “NeXTSCENE” (ID: theNeXTSCENE) by ZIGGY.
All fans in the world have such illusions: watching the space warships burn around the Orion constellation in the misty, neon-scarred city of Los Angeles; in Verona, in post-modern Verona, with Romeo or Juliet The Buzzer Luhmann-style madness is in love with the summer; in the casino, holding the vodka and martini, and the MI6 gentleman or the femme fatale destroy the notorious criminal master… However, all this is to think about it – until the emergence of “Secret Cinema”.
Since its birth in London in 2007, the immersive film experience “Secret Theater” has partnered with more than 70 IPs, including “Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back”, “Budapest Hotel”, “Moulin Rouge”, “Silver” Wing Killer, “Modern Edition Romeo and Juliet”, etc., the cumulative number of participants as many as 600,000 person-times. The influence of “Secret Cinema” was so great that its immersive film-watching activities allowed some of the original films to reach the top ten in the UK at the box office. The Secret Theater: 007 Battle of the Royal Casino, which was staged in London this summer, sold for 120,000 tickets, the highest record for secret theaters so far. At the end of the year, the production will land on the Magic Capital and make the first show in Asia.
“secret Theater 007 Battle of the Royal Casino
Image source: The Hollywood Reporter
So, what kind of theater is this, the price of the ticket is as low as 600 yuan. When the information before the opening is completely confidential, it still enjoys the favor of the participants all over the world.
Not a movie in life, but a life in a movie
The experience of “Secret Cinema” has actually started from the moment you grab the ticket: in addition to the movie name and release time, Other informationKnown, including where, what to wear, how to play. The first task of the participants is to crack these “secrets” through official invitations and clues before the film is released.
Image source :thestage.co.uk
In London’s “Royal Casino”, for example, you will pass the quiz after purchasing a ticket, get a virtual identity (mostly a MI6 agent), department, assign tasks, and solve the address mystery. When the secret night falls, the costumes need to be dressed according to the character. Maybe put on your most expensive suit/dress, insert a rose in the neckline, or step on the dagger shoes.
As soon as the appointment comes, the play begins.
Image Source: Daily Express
Before entering the market, the phone is blocked in a special bag. This step makes the participants truly isolated from the world and immersed in the world before them.
After entering the venue, Digital Spy commented: “Even a regular movie theater guest, it will still be shocked by where you are. Because everything here makes you feel that you are a casino in a drunken movie, dangerous. The spy is born.” The scene is far more than vodka Martini and other well-known classic scenes, even the sound and smell in the environment will let you enter the show for a second.
Different roles for different roles determine that Every participant’s experience is unique. Keeping your own in-character is the key to getting the best experience. In the process of completing the mission, you will interact with other characters, including professional actors, you may play poker together (virtual gambling), drink together, chat together, but always remember that you have a mission – this is quite “Bond”.
Image Source: 007.com
The experience is not over after the mission is completed. Since it is to participate in immersive film-watching activities, it is definitely not a matter of watching movies, but it is not a “look” in the traditional sense. The plot will lead you to the scene of the film. Here, actors staged the classic bridge on the screen in real time, and the dramatic effect of breaking through the barriers was maximized.
After leaving the venue, the fans ended this virtual 007 trip, but the acquisition was truly enjoyable and satisfying.
How immersive viewing is done
In fact, the original idea of ”Secret Cinema” was very simple: Come to a secret, party-like film screening. The original intention of the theater was to get people out of the shackles of technology and to stimulate the exploration of the real world.
Fabien Riggall , Founder of Secret Cinema
Image source: independent.co.uk
The founder of Secret Cinema Fabien Riggall is a short film and graduated from the New York Film Academy. In 2003, Riggall founded Future Shorts, focusing on short film creation and promotion, combining a variety of art forms to create a multi-dimensional viewing experience for the audience in a reshaped space. From his early experience, it is not difficult to see that he has been exploring the phenomenon of watching movies, but there is no clear concept of “secret cinema”. Until one time, he was commissioned by a friend to select a film for the club event, please DJ to set off the atmosphere. At the event, people exchanged movies, enjoyed music, and made friends. The event was well received by the participants. Riggal therefore found himself with a unique talent for creating a culture, and more importantly, the idea of a “secret theater” sprouted.
“I have always had a keen interest in movies, drama, music, and I like to go to the club, party, clubbing. If you like theseWill the joyful experience be put together in the cinema, will there be a wonderful spark? “
“secret Lawrence’s Arabian Lawrence
Image source: Mike Masaro
In 2007, Riggall founded the “Secret Cinema” and expanded several branches in its development: Tell No One, which features classic cult films, and Secret Cinema Presents, which is produced by Big IP. Bottom), Secret Cinema X for small-cost movies, Secret Music for music experience, and Future Shorts for short films. In the past 12 years, “Secret Cinema” has evolved into a immersive movie experience project with each project has been released for nearly half a year and has tens of thousands of people participating in a secret movie-watching event that lasted only two nights.
“Pre-confidentiality” and the use of anti-tech products are the traditional rules of “secret cinema.” Riggall believes that people are born with suspense and mystery. This design, “not telling what happens at the event that night,” will give them a “feeling of surprises” when they arrive at the scene. The use of anti-tech products enhances the social attributes of “secret cinemas”. Riggall believes that digitization is sensitizing people’s perceptions to some extent. He hopes that “secret cinema” is a counterattack against the era of information-saturated information, cutting off all media and political noises that connect with the outside world, and connecting people to resonate. This sense of responsibility is the biggest difference between art and entertainment.
“secret The Moulin Rouge of the Theater
Image Source: UK Film Review
“Secret Cinema is a new form of art.”He said in an interview with Dezeen.
In order to achieve the artistic conception of the film experience, aesthetics has taken a large part in the selection process. The selected movie must have a unique aesthetic that allows the viewer to experience a “non-realistic” texture. “The core decision comes from every time you want to plan a different experience,” Riggall said. “For example, we tried the dark, dystopian, cold and thrilling elements of the “Blade Runner” to the “Romeo and Juliet” in Baz. Luhrmann’s bright and warm colors.” In order to make the “mirror” effect more appealing, the original film must first have a unique style (*mirror effect is the above mentioned “the movie is played simultaneously under the stage of playing the classic picture” On-site simultaneous performance” setting of the viewing link).
Therefore, not all classic films are suitable for the production of “secret cinema”. Vision is the key to inclusion.
“secret Theater” Romeo and Juliet
Image Source: Secret Cinema
Since it’s creating vision, Building becomes a carrier—the choice of venue usually lays the foundation for the entire experience design. Leaping Insane House is located in a dilapidated hospital in a secret theater version; “Shawshank Redemption” has two locations, one is the Bethnal Green Library Renovation Court, and the other is the old school remodeling Ohio. In the state reform institute, the bus is transported by the power-off bus (ie, participants); “Back to the Future” is their “first big production” in Riggall’s mouth. The site of the virtual town Hill Valley is London. In the Olympic Park, there are plenty of secret passages in the space that allow participants to “sand time and space” back and forth.
“secret Shawshank’s Redemption in the Theater
Image source: RhiannonNewmanBrown.com
In all productions of “Secret Cinema”, The Blade of the Blades is the most technically challengingof. The film requires a dark lighting environment and continuous rain, and without these two elements, it is impossible to reproduce the classic visual wonder of “Blade Runner”. Producer Andrea Moccia explained that because the rain-fighting device is closed-loop, the rainwater is recycled.
“We spent three weeks filling the display tank and need too much water!”
In addition, clothing and make-up should be waterproof and maintain 86 performances in the rain. The key is to look beautiful. The light that creates the gloomy effect of “Future Los Angeles” is handled by Terry Cook of Woodroofe Basset. Woodroofe Basset has previously participated in the lighting design of large-scale performances such as the Rolling Stones concert and the Olympic ceremony. The professional design team finally realized a highly difficult proposition of “anti-Utopia” in the hearts of fans. The “Single Theater” version of “The Blade Runner” successfully greeted more than 70,000 people, pushing the original movie back to the top ten in the UK box office and maintaining it for eleven weeks.
“secret The Silverwing Killer of the Theater
Image source: PollockLifts
In addition to the state-of-the-art scene design as a precondition, “Secret Cinema” also makes the audience feel immersive from the narrative level. The “prequel” episode setting (prequel) is an important part of the “secret cinema” work. For non-fans, “watching the movie again” may be repetitive and boring. But if you are guiding them to tell a story and telling why support some of the characters in the film, experiencing a well-known movie world with such an independent, refreshing narrative perspective, the effect will be very different.
The “Secret Theater” version of “007: The Royal Casino of the Wars” is also presented as a “prequel”. The production team includes not only in-house professional creative staff (including Angus Jackson, who was the director of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s performance season), but also the 007 series film company EON Productions.
Riggall believes that the future of viewing will be a “secret theater.” After 12 years of popularity, “Secret Cinema” successfully moved fantasies into reality and redefines the “movie experience”: sensible, social, interactive, and entertaining. But the ambition of the “secret cinema”Not only that – Since London can attract thousands of people from all over the world, it is better to go straight to the world.
Next stop, Shanghai
“Fabien Riggall’s inspirational blood will of course remain. He is still the founder, shareholder, and creative director of the Secret Theater, but he is not directly responsible for the ‘presentation performance’.” Secret Theatre, CEO Max Alexander said. He has served as managing director of Really Useful Group, an international entertainment company that produces famous musicals such as “Phantom of the Opera” and “Cat”, and has had a cooperative relationship with Shanghai SMG Live (SMG Live) – this indirectly led to < Strong> China is ahead of the hotter United States and has become the first stop for the “secret cinema” to the world.
Max Alexander Secret Theater CEO
Image Source: Screen Daily
Max Alexander’s participation in “Secret Cinema” is clearly a step forward for investors Active Partners and Neon, with a view to a more professional and long-term brand strategy. Indeed, high fares and continued popularity have brought the company $10.5 million in annual box office revenue (2018), but turning these dream experiences into healthy profit growth is still a tricky task. . There is only one solution:Expanding business from London to other markets.
“secret Cinema” Top 5 at the box office
Image Source: NeXT SCENE
As China, which is about to become the world’s first box office market, it has become the primary goal of the expansion of “secret cinema”. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers forecast, to 20In 20 years, China’s box office sales will surpass the US for US$12.28 billion, occupying the dominant position in the world’s movie box office.
box office revenue Forecast
Image Source: The Hollywood Reporter
“Secret Cinema” held a press conference on September 4th, announced that the “Secret Cinema: 007 Battle of the Royal Casino” jointly created with Shanghai Wenguang Performing Arts Group met with Asian audiences on November 23. It is planned to transform the 10,000-square-meter building in Shanghai into the “secret theater” of 007. It is expected to welcome 100,000 immersive and film lovers, each of which can accommodate 1,200 people. At the same time, the two sides reached a strategic cooperation for five years – which also paved the way for the “secret theater” that will be adapted from the IP of Chinese film in the future.
CEO Alexander commented: “The secret theater is a unique product full of complexity, and it is very complicated to internationalize. We can’t just find a place, but need one to accommodate The venue of this scale, and then rebuild it. After working with Shanghai Wenguang Performing Arts in the past, I know that they are experienced and ambitious Chinese production teams in the real entertainment experience.”
Image Source : Blooloop
Shanghai Wenguang Performing Arts Group teamed up with Punchdrunk at the end of 2016 to move the immersive drama originator “Sleepless Night” to Shanghai. Shanghai Wenguang Performing Arts has thus become the first Asian company to participate in international immersive drama production. “Sleepless Night” has been in Shanghai since then, with more than 900 performances and 300,000 participants. The comprehensive cultural format developed with “Sleepless Night” as the core has completed a new round of exploration of the cultural and commercial cross-border in the Asian market. Shanghai has also become a new global immersive creative center.
The continued enthusiasm of “Sleepless Night” in Shanghai reflects the broad market prospects of China’s offline entertainment industry.
“PMQ Yuan Chuangfang | Secrets that can’t be said: The Secret Cinema.” n.d. PMQ Yuan Chuang Fang | Secrets that can’t be said: The Secret Cinema. Accessed October 11, 2019. “Secret Cinema.” n.d. Secret Cinema. Accessed October 11, 2019. “Secret Cinema Chiefs Talk Global Ambitions, Management Changes and ‘Casino Royale’ | Features | Screen.” n.d. Accessed October 11, 2019. “Secret Cinema Has Created a New Way to Experience Film, Says Founder Fabien Riggall.” 2018. Dezeen. September 5, 2018. “Secret Cinema Offers New Way to Experience Film, Says Fabien Riggall.” n.d. Accessed October 11, 2019. “Secret Cinema Taking ‘Casino Royale’ Production to China | Hollywood Reporter.” n.d. Accessed October 11, 2019. “STEP INSIDE BOND – Catching the Creative Directors of SECRET CINEMA PRESENTS CASINO ROYALE – MARK O’CONNELL.” n.d. Accessed October 11, 2019. Wiseman, Andreas, and Andreas Wiseman. 2019. “Brit Event Movie E