{"id":18450,"date":"2019-08-27T15:02:54","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T22:02:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/Becomeimmersed.com\/?p=18450"},"modified":"2019-12-11T19:01:27","modified_gmt":"2019-12-12T03:01:27","slug":"designing-immersive-environments-scout-expedition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/becomeimmersed.com\/designing-immersive-environments-scout-expedition\/","title":{"rendered":"Designing Immersive Environments – A Process By Scout Expedition Co."},"content":{"rendered":"

Below is a creator-focused article on Designing Immersive environments, aimed to educate creators about production design. It is based on Scout Expedition Co’s<\/a> class of the same name at Midsummer Scream<\/a>, but is refracted through the lens of the author, employing many examples from a fan and creator’s experience that is separate from Scout Expedition. Where appropriate, examples Scout discussed are mentioned. Thank you to Lacey Rae for reviving this article, helping draft it, and ensuring that it was released.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

An environment can set the mood, often taking on a life of its own within an immersive experience<\/a>. A well-thought-out aesthetic creates a sense of place and time, even before a narrative begins. Music can bring you to tears, lighting can frighten you, and sets and props can provide authenticity to a given world. Think of The Willows<\/em>\u2019 elegant and historic manor, the groovy and lived-in house of Safehouse \u201877<\/em><\/a>, the minimalism and unknown in the black tarps of Blackout<\/em>, or The Sideshow<\/em><\/a>\u2019s carnival tents and smells. Lighting, sound, props, sets, and costumes all came together to establish beautifully nuanced settings for some of the best immersive experiences in Los Angeles. Where a fleshed-out environment can transport audiences into other worlds, lazy and haphazard environments can either take audiences out of an experience, or hinder them getting into the world at all.
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Immersed attended a presentation by Scout Expedition Co.<\/a>, another highly impressive immersive theater company whose debut experience, The Nest<\/em><\/a>, wowed audiences with a gorgeous and detailed set design. Creators Jarrett Lantz and Jeff Leinenveber have had long and prosperous professional careers in theme park and scenic design that have led them to create rich environments and tell fun stories all over the world. Their work with the talented teams of Walt Disney Imagineering, Third Rail Projects, Cirque du Soleil, and Delusion<\/a> have provided them with the precise know-how to bring new worlds to life through engaging and unique experiences. Here, they share how to create successful environments \u2013 even minimalistic ones \u2013 that are not only memorable, but that serve the narrative and themes of the piece.<\/p>\n

\"ScoutThe Nest has gorgeous set design<\/em><\/p>\n

Design Process<\/strong><\/h2>\n

There are numerous different ways to design an experience – it’s actually one of my favorite questions to ask in an interview. But Scout Expedition presents a wonderful process that is filled with helpful questions, distinct sections, and a series of interdependencies that only serve to strengthen any experience. These can be applied to a haunted house, an immersive experience, an escape room, or even a theme park. So if you’re just getting started or just strengthening something already designed, let’s dive in.<\/p>\n

Scout’s design process is organized into a Design Triangle<\/em><\/strong>. This triangle consists of:<\/p>\n