OdySea Aquarium unveils immersive lobby experience

PHOENIX — Stepping into the lobby of the OdySea Aquarium in Scottsdale will soon feel like diving into nature through immersive ocean experiences.

A 360-degree digital projection mapping display showcases six aquatic sequences of animals like jellyfish, sharks, otters, sea lions, and penguins, with animations bringing their lives to towering 23-foot walls.

OdySea Aquarium founder and CEO Amram Knishinsky envisioned a space filled with vibrant marine life, allowing visitors to explore the ocean’s depths without getting wet.

“We want guests to feel like they’re in the middle of the deep blue sea the second they walk in,” Knishinsky said in a Monday announcement. “Not watching it — in it.”

How will immersive ocean experiences change OdySea Aquarium?

Paul Washburn, Creative Director at Malvern Entertainment, was brought onto the project to animate the scenes on the curved lobby walls. He and a team of over 12 animators, art directors and digital artists worked closely with OdySea’s animal care experts to make the animations realistic.

It was a challenge to provide cinematic detail and clarity for an animation that spanned the entire length of OdySea Aquarium’s curved lobby walls, requiring a resolution nearly ten times that of standard high-definition.

“When you’re animating at that scale, there’s no room for shortcuts,” Washburn said in the announcement. “Every frame, every shadow, every flick of movement has to hold up at 30 feet wide.”

Immersive ocean experiences also added to OdySea Aquarium cafe

The display consists of 12 ultra-bright laser projections from Christie, an advanced projection technology company. The projects produce a total of 282,000 Lumens. It’s the same brightness of 350 household lightbulbs turned on at once, according to the announcement.

Mesa-based CCS Presentation Systems led the installation and integration of the projection system to infuse the exhibit with immersive ocean sounds and sights.

The company also installed a massive LED video wall in the upstairs cafe. The 16 foot by 9 foot wall shows various visuals of beaches and lighthouses. Paul Gallagher, an account executive at CCS Presentation Systems, said the lobby installation project was a technical challenge.

“From the complex projection mapping and immersive audio to solving some tricky power challenges, we made sure every element worked exactly as promised,” Gallagher said. “It’s a perfect example of how technology can truly become an experience.”

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