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blooloop Innovation awards 2022

The blooloop Innovation Awards 2022 presented with AREA15

blooloop is delighted to announce the launch of the second Innovation Awards. Once again, we are supported by our friends at AREA15.

We have been leading the way in reporting on the latest news, trends and developments within the visitor attractions industry since 2005. blooloop.com is now read by over 2 million attraction professionals from around the world each year.

AREA15

AREA15 is the world’s first purpose-built experiential entertainment district located minutes from the Las Vegas Strip. The complex is designed to be an imagination box and a place of wonder, where creativity and content flourish through best-in-class experiential entertainment companies such as Meow Wolf, Lost Spirits Distillery, Wink World, and Illuminarium.

What are the Innovation Awards?

blooloop innovation awards

The Innovation Awards celebrate the incredible dynamism, imagination and creativity that drives the attractions business.

Our judges are well-known thought leaders and industry experts, who will be looking for the most innovative products and projects driving the future of the visitor experience.

Our 2022 judges include experts from Merlin Entertainments, Universal, Mall of America, Eden Project, Meow Wolf, AREA15, Paramount, Saudi Entertainment, California Academy of Sciences, reefLIVE and more.

innovation award list of judges 2022

The winners will be announced at our virtual event, the Festival of Innovation, taking place from 6-8th December 2022.

What are we looking for?

blooloop innovation awards 2022

From the design of the next generation of rides and attractions and the very latest exhibitions, to the creation of the transformative technologies and game-changing advances in sustainability, marketing and leadership, the blooloop Innovation Awards will shine a spotlight on what the industry is doing and where it is going.

We welcome entries from across the visitor attractions industry worldwide.

Innovation Award categories

Sponsor the blooloop Innovation Awards

Individual category sponsorships are available this year.

Sponsors will receive high profile logo placements, links, a judging position AND will lead a panel discussion at the Festival of Innovation.

Find out more here and contact Alice at events@blooloop.com for more information.

Why enter the blooloop Innovation Awards?

What are the benefits of entering the blooloop Innovation Awards?

  • Raise your profile and showcase your work in front of the world’s biggest audience of attractions industry professionals.
  • All entries are seen by Blooloop’s editorial team and our expert judges.
  • All entries will have their own dedicated page in our Innovation Awards Gallery on blooloop.com (10,000 views a month).
  • Your entry will be included in our Innovation Showcase at the Festival of Innovation in December.
  • Celebrate your work with your team and your clients. Leverage your award entry for marketing and to boost team morale.
  • Use your award to attract new business and new talent.

What do previous winners say?

“We’re so proud to have participated in this year’s Innovation Awards, we’re so impressed with the calibre of the entrants, speakers, and judges.

It’s been a very memorable and thought-provoking symposium! Blooloop V-Expo 2021 has been highly inspiring, and very elucidating to see the future of industry events unfold before us, with such guts and skill to boot. Very, very nice work”.

William Duignan, CO-ORDINATOR | LOCATION BASED EXPERIENCE, Weta Workshop, 1st Place Storytelling 2021

“Applying for the Blooloop/Area 15 Innovation Awards last year was one of the best things I’ve ever done for my company, Worldbuildr. Winning the inaugural Rise Award gave us tremendous exposure to the global attractions industry, driving tremendous new traffic to our website and instantly leveling up the credibility and perceived legitimacy of our revolutionary software.

As a result of this award, we’ve been able to develop a closer relationship with the folks at Area 15, and are now able to pursue projects of a larger size and scope.”

Michael Libby, Founder and CEO, Worldbuildr, 2nd Place Digital 2021, 1st Place Rise Award 2021.

How to enter the awards

blooloop Innovation Awards 2022 presented with AREA15

Entry is now closed for the 2022 Awards. Winners will be announced at the Festival of Innovation, December 7-8.

Festival of Innovation

The blooloop Festival of Innovation celebrates the most innovative projects, technologies, and companies within the visitor attractions industry.

The online event will showcase all of this year’s Innovation Award entries. Attendees will also be able to vote for their favourite entry in the Public Vote Award.

Attendees will also hear from many of the world’s leading operators such as AREA15, Merlin, The National Gallery, Universal, Disney, Paramount and more. We’ll be asking all our operators what innovations they want to see. The event is unmissable for anyone who wants to know the latest trends and future direction for visitor experiences. A full list of speakers can be found here.

Agenda

Tuesday 6th December 2022

Join blooloop as we welcome you to The Festival of Innovation

Join Jonathan Nowak Delgado, CEO and Co-Founder of SPREE Interactive, Michael Beneville, Chief Creative Officer of AREA15, Bakit Baydaliev, CEO and Co-Founder of DOF and Andrew McGuinness, CEO of Layered Reality in a panel discussion about innovation in immersive attractions and experiences.

Plus, the winners of the Immersive categories are revealed.

Join Alan Mahony, Executive Director Attractions at Saudi Entertainment Ventures, as he discusses the latest innovations in Splash, from aquaria to water rides.
Plus, find out the winners of the Splash Innovation Award category.

Hear from Ty Granaroli, Executive Vice President, Themed Entertainment at Paramount Parks and Resorts, and Marie Marks, Senior Vice President of Themed Entertainment at Paramount as they discuss what’s new with Paramount and what innovation and trends they are seeing.

Plus, find out the winners of the Thrills Innovation Award category.

Hear from Jordan Renda, CEO of Otherworld, as he talks about immersive art experiences and future trends.

Join Jenefer Brown, Executive Vice President and Head of Lionsgate Global Products & Experiences, as she explores innovation and future trends.

Hear from Yizan He, Founder & CEO of ARTiSTORY, as he discusses the importance of storytelling in immersive experiences, and future trends.

Join Ben Thompson, Partner & Chief Strategy Officer of Storyland Studios, Elisabet Pons, Creative Director at Mediapro Exhibitions, Victor Schade, Creative Lead at Jora Vision and Michael Casper, Vice President Business Development at AREA15 as they discuss top trends and the future of storytelling.

Plus, we will be announcing the winners of the Storytelling Innovation Award category.

Wednesday 7th December 2022

Join blooloop as we welcome attendees to day to of the Festival of Innovation

Plus find out the winners of the Inclusion Innovation Award category

Join Steve Drake, SVP Global Initiatives, accesso, Mary Coriano, Head of Products and Corporate Portfolio, Merlin Entertainments, Mark Locker, Founder & CEO, Attractions.io and Kemal Arin, President & CEO, Showtime Pictures as they discuss the future of the guest experience.

Plus, find out the winners of the Guest Journey Innovation Award categories.

Join Chad Kunimoto, Global Business Development for LBE & Immersive UX, Panasonic Connect, Mark Stutzsman, Chief Technology Officer, AREA15 and Thomas Hale, VP of Creative, Spatial as they discuss the future of technology.

Plus, find out the winners of the Creative Technology Innovation Award categories.

Join Martin Howe, Chief Executive Officer, Dapper Labs, Asa Kalama, VP, Executive – Creative & Interactive Experiences, Walt Disney Imagineering and Yiannis Cabolis, Director of Technology Innovation, Electrosonic as they discuss experiential technology.

Plus, find out the winners of the Experiential Technology Innovation Award categories.

Thursday 8th December 2022

blooloop welcomes attendees to the third day of the Innovation Awards

Join James Dwyer, Design Director, Lumsden Design, Sarah Roots, Executive Vice President, Warner Bros. Studio Tours & Retail at Warner Bros. Studio Operations and Julie Molloy, MD, National Gallery Global as they discuss about themed environment.

Plus, find out the winners of the Themed Environment Innovation Award categories.

Hear from Helen Lockhart, Conservation & Sustainability Manager at Two Oceans Aquarium as she talks about sustainability.

Plus, the winner of the Sustainability Innovation Award is revealed.

Hear from Steve Tatham, Executive Creative Director, Universal Creative, as he explains the art of the pitch.

Plus, find out the winners of the Spectacular Innovation Awards category.

Justin East, Global Senior Creative Director, Research and Developments, Merlin Entertainments, Chris Grap, Vice President Experiential, Mall of America and
Kimberly Beneville, Co-Founder, Beneville Studios will discuss blue sky trends and innovations, and share what they look for in new experiences.

We will be announcing the winners of the Blue Sky Innovation Awards category.

Winston Fisher talks AREA15, plus Best In Show & Public Vote Award winners revealed

If you have further questions, please email Alice at events@blooloop.com.

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