A to Z of 2024: Immersive experiences level up
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Members of the media exploring the Infinity Room during the Bubble Planet: An Immersive Experience media preview at Singapore Expo on Sept 2.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
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SINGAPORE – In a time when human beings can do most things on their smartphones – from streaming concerts happening halfway across the world to interacting with artificial intelligence bots like ChatGPT – getting their attention takes a lot of work.
This is probably why immersive experiences have continued to ramp up in the last year – and why Singapore has continued to lap them up.
Impressions Of Monet: The Experience at Gardens by the Bay,
Immersive experiences, as the name implies, transport visitors into different worlds. This could be through the use of audio-visual effects and physical stages and props, as seen in the newly opened Harry Potter: Visions Of Magic interactive art exhibition
The exhibit spans more than 3,700 sq m and boasts 10 environments.
Like most other immersive experiences, there is also an interactive element, which allows visitors to actively participate in the experience.
At Visions Of Magic, each person passing through is given a “magic wand”, which can be used to cast “spells” and activate special effects such as lighting a fireplace or unlocking a door.
The Chamber Of Secrets is one of the 10 environments in Harry Potter: Visions Of Magic at Resorts World Sentosa.
PHOTO: HARRY POTTER: VISIONS OF MAGIC
From Bubble Planet at the Singapore Expo to illumi at the Bayfront Event Space, many of these exhibitions are also limited-time offerings. There is little time for fatigue or boredom to set in before another new event emerges.
As Mr Phil Mallet, regional manager for Asia Pacific at Fever Originals, the company behind Bubble Planet, told ST in August: “I think Singaporeans are expecting new and differentiated concepts that don’t just feel like another iteration of something they’ve already seen.”
Even as 2024 draws to a close, more immersive experiences continue to pop up, such as the Gustav Klimt: Falling In Gold exhibition at the Sports Hub Library. The multisensory Behind The Canvas Series 1: Jean-Michel Basquiat showcase had its global premiere at Marina Bay Sands in mid-December, and will continue until March 2025.
You can probably expect a continuing stream of these exhibitions in 2025. According to India-based market research firm Mordor Intelligence, the immersive entertainment market is expected to reach US$334.3 billion (S$451 billion) by 2029, from US$116.82 billion in 2024.
Fever is taking steps to establish a permanent venue in Singapore, having recently leased a space at 25 Scotts Road for at least 18 months.
And experience design and entertainment company Supergiant has just opened an office here, with the aim of “delivering internationally iconic projects”, according to trade publication Marketing-Interactive.
