Join us at 9 am GMT on Thursday 16 January for our Innovation in Storytelling session at the Festival of Innovation.
Our guest speakers are Julie Swanston, executive creative director of Merlin Magic Making, and Nick Moran, co-founder / creative director of Phantom Peak.
They will discuss the importance of storytelling in attractions and how to maximise guest engagement. In addition, they will explore trends such as actor-led experiences, IP, and the use of technology.
The session will be available on demand for 30 days.
blooloop’s Festival of Innovation is taking place from 15 to 16 January 2025. The free online event invites the global visitor attractions community to explore the most innovative projects, products, and organisations that are shaping the future of the sector.
Meet the speakers
Julie Swanston is the executive creative director of concepts and new product development for Merlin Entertainments. As a member of Merlin Magic Making, Merlin’s in-house creative team, she has led the development of engaging attractions for the resort theme park and gateway divisions.
Her portfolio includes Thorpe Park’s Hyperia rollercoaster, the tallest and fastest coaster in the UK. This ride is inspired by the story of Hyperia, the daughter of an ancient river God. She also worked on Alton Towers’ Wicker Man ride, which is regarded as the world’s most immersive rollercoaster.
Swanston formerly served as VP of commissioning at BBC Studios, where she led original programming across the BBC’s global channels.
Nick Moran is the creator and co-founder of Phantom Peak, a one-of-a-kind open-world immersive experience which debuted in 2023.
The experience is billed as a hybrid of immersive theatre, escape room, and real-life television series. Visitors can spend up to four hours exploring the enigmatic location, playing approximately 100 games and challenges, and interacting with the residents. Highlights include a boat trip, saloons, and dining options. Following its success in a 30,000-square-foot Wild West-themed town, Phantom Peak is expanding into the United States, with five new locations planned in the first phase.
Moran seeks to develop, script, and structure immersive experiences, and construct richly complex universes that reward and encourage audience participation and agency.
He has spent 10 years working in experiential and escape rooms, entertaining hundreds of thousands of guests with games and activations. In 2020, Moran founded Spectre & Vox, a new genre of at-home entertainment experience that raised more than £250,000 on Kickstarter. He served as the creative director of Time Run, a London-based live gaming experience company, from 2015 to 2019.
The Innovation Awards
The blooloop Innovation Awards presented with AREA15 celebrate the extraordinary dynamism, imagination and creativity that drive the attractions sector.
The winners of the 2024 Storytelling category will be revealed at this session. Attendees can browse all the entries during the event, and vote for their favourite to win our Public Choice Award.
Register to attend here.
