Have you ever wondered who are the people behind theme park attractions?
And what about their office - what in the world does that look like?
For the first time ever, we got access to Falcon's Creative Group studios in Orlando. The guy in charge, Cecil Magpuri, also happens to be the mastermind behind rides like Twister at Universal Orlando Resort.
"We have over 1,000 projects we've developed," he said, including "about a handful" locally.
Falcon's employs about 55 people. Looking at the main image above, that tree (representative of the Falcon's Treehouse division) is the centerpiece of the studio. It's broken into several departments, from animation and lighting to graphic design and engineering.
"One of the things that's really unique that people might not know about what it takes to realize an experience is that there are so many design processes involved," he said. "Obviously you have artists who can help visualize and conceptualize the experience, but it also takes the technical team to actually make sure it can actually be realized and executed."
A current project is the Heroes and Legends attraction at Kennedy Space Center. That's where - by the fourth quarter of this year - guests will experience the thrills and dangers of our earliest space missions using high-tech elements like simulated holograms and augmented reality.
"We're introducing a reverse 3-D dome experience that allows guests to actually see through the eyes of the astronaut," he said.
Speaking of domes, Falcon's has it very own in a building just outside of their office. Using their Spheron Theater technology, Turtle Trek at SeaWorld Orlando was born. It allows for OmniView, which is 3-D & 360.
We stepped into the dome and put on our 3-D glasses, completely immersed. We could walk around freely, enhancing the experience of underwater exploration. But there's also a way to get a similar experience by just sitting down at a computer wearing a head-mounted display called Oculus.
"You put this on and you are actually being able to - real time - look around," he said. Pointing to the computer screen in front of me, he said, "These are films that we produced that people can license from us."
In other words, it's a 3-D-in-a-dome experience.
Magpuri also showed us technology that could enhance a queue line. It's called switch glass, which has gas in between two panes of glass.
"When it's electrified, it goes opaque," he said as he remotely changed the transparency of the panels in the board room. (So if you wanted a super private meeting in there, one push of a button and your glass walls are blocked out.)
Perhaps the biggest project they're working on right now is in Dubai.
"We're creating the world's largest indoor theme park," he said. "So if you can imagine Main Street and Tomorrowland and Adventureland all under one roof, that's what we created... It's actually being built and we're in the process of programming attractions there. It houses Cartoon Network as an intellectual property [and] it houses Marvel."
So all this is happening inside an Orlando office right now, and affecting theme parks everywhere.
Meanwhile, Falcon's is also designing the long range master plan for Fun Spot. This week, Fun Spot and Old Town USA announced a new partnership.
Fun Spot is moving and operating four of its rides to Old Town's south entertainment district, among other things. We will take you there this Thursday on Special Assignment.