New exclusive coverage from Blooloop looks at fulldome video, the hottest digital technology for immersive education and entertainment outside the home. Upcoming events in Chicago and Philadelphia showcase fulldome.
Fulldome video technology has gone largely unnoticed by industry sectors outside the specialized world of astronomy-oriented, educational facilities, but that is about to change. This rich, versatile, immersive digital presentation format has reached a turning point.
Within the international planetarium community it has been growing rapidly – and internationally - since 2002. The total number of fulldome installations is now close to 400 and includes such high-profile venues as the Adler Planetarium (Chicago), Hayden Planetarium (New York), Intech Science Centre (Winchester UK), Griffith Observatory (Los Angeles) and the California Academy of Sciences (San Francisco).
In addition to its utility for planetariums, fulldome is being eyed by operators, designers and consultants as a platform for presenting other kinds of immersive experiences within museums and entertainment venues.
Fulldome theater systems are capable of showing both real-time and pre-rendered CGI color graphics. Prominent manufacturers include Evans & Sutherland, Sky-Skan, Spitz and Global Immersion. The systems provide, at relatively low cost, the ability to navigate 3D databases in real-time, and a common playback platform (Domemaster) that enables all systems to display shows from the same pre-rendered content library. Projection domes range from portable to mid-size setups of 20-feet to 40-feet in diameter that are popular with schools, to major venues having domes up to 70 feet across.
The growth of fulldome systems and of content creation for those systems is being driven by creative collaboration among hardware and software developers, scientists, artists and educators in the community.
Upcoming Events for the FullDome Community
IPS 2008, 27 June – 2 July and the FullDome Summit & DomeFest 2008, 3 July
Hosted by the Adler Planetarium, Chicago USA
With the theme of “Explore the Edge,” the International Planetarium Society’s biennial conference will include Dr Edward Kolb’s keynote on “Cosmology Through the Ages,” a vendor showcase and presentations on such topics as “How Will Planetaria and Their Shows Remain Viable in the Future?”
IPS 2008 will be followed immediately by the FullDome Summit and DomeFest 2008. These events are in partnership with IPS but require separate registration. The Summit will be a “Future of FullDome” daytime program presented by the IPS FullDome Committee and the Adler. DomeFest is the evening program, described by DomeFest chair David Beining as “one smash-eye night in Chicago,” including a juried show premiere, the Domie Awards presentations, “making-of” presentations and software demos.
ASTC 2008 including the E&S Spitz FullDome Showcase, 18-21 October
Hosted by the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia USA
The annual meeting of the Association of Science-Technology Centers has the theme “In the Public Eye – Science Centers at the Crossroads of Science and Culture.” ASTC includes a trade exhibition and a full program of sessions. The FullDome Showcase will present fulldome content: trailers, experimental work, art pieces and visualizations, on a state-of-the-art system. It will be held in the Fels Planetarium at the Franklin Institute on the morning of 20 October, and requires advance signup. For more information on the FullDome Showcase, contact Scott Huggins, director of marketing for E&S Spitz.
Over the next few months, Blooloop will present Fulldome Focus: a special editorial section with continuing coverage of fulldome video – looking at the technology, the providers, the applications, the content library and the community. We’ll provide a series of articles, interviews with key people, news items and previews of relevant industry events.
The Blooloop Fulldome Focus is edited by Judith Rubin. Her extensive background covering special venue theater and immersive technology, and long-term relationships with key people, associations and companies in the field, make Judith the ideal choice to head up this section. Email Judith with your fulldome-related news and suggestions.
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ASTC 2007 Conference Review by Judith Rubin