by Marty Shindler

In graduate school, I read case studies that presented examples of what to do, and sometimes what not to do, to succeed in business. Certain factors seem necessary, if not always sufficient, to assure success.

Location, for example. Being in the right place at the right time is obviously important, but we have all seen businesses with great locations that failed anyway.

Innovation is another critical variable. There are instances too numerous to mention of innovative products and services becoming instant blockbusters. But others have failed, despite being highly innovative.

Good management, bringing the right teams of players together, is needed to make the most of a product or service. As is creativity on the part of those players.

Imax Corporation’s motion simulation ride, Race for Atlantis, at the Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, brings together all the ingredients needed in a recipe for success. As far as location is concerned, it is placed near a spectacular free animatronic multimedia show featuring the sea god Neptune, presented every other hour. Neptune is fun and brings crowds to the entrance of RFA.

RFA is one of the most innovative attractions I have seen in quite some time, both in its parts and as a whole. For starters, a simulator in an IMAX Dome is a great idea. Audiences have yet to tire of the first: Back to the Future, The Ride. An innovation when it opened, BTTF is still innovative by today’s standards. Why haven't others taken this concept to market?

RFA has the advantages of being completely computer generated (unlike BTTF) and visually stunning, with a story line that can be followed.

Six-degree-of-freedom motion bases are not brand new, although their use is far less widespread than three-DOF bases. RFA’s bases, each seating 27 people, are open, not cabins, adding to the immersive feeling.

Imax’s electronic 3D headsets with Personal Sound Environment are not new, although they will be to most of RFA’s riders. For that matter, RFA may be the first 3D film experience of any kind for many riders.

Combine the dome, simulator, and film, and present it in 3D, and the result is bound to knock your socks off. (Pardon the cliché.) While the combination of dome, simulator, and film has been done before, it is 3D that puts RFA over the top, in my book.

It took the right team to bring the conceptual innovations to fruition. I am very impressed with the computer graphics work done by Rhythm & Hues under the superb direction of Imax's Arish Fyzee. For those who follow such matters, Fyzee played an important role in Back to the Future: The Ride. His experience, along with that of production teammates Barry Kemper and Hart Getzen, shows through as soon as one enters the RFA premises, well before the ride starts.

Innovation is not new for R & H. Their computer graphics and visual effects work have been wowing audiences for years, winning them an Academy Award^â for Babe and numerous other awards. Many readers will be familiar with R & H’s simulator rides, including Seafari, another truly innovative creation.

For RFA, R & H had to rewrite their rendering software to handle 3D as well as projection onto the dome. In the end, the creative and technical team put together some of the most visually stunning images ever seen in a simulator ride. Many people contributed significantly to RFA’s themed environment, and it shows. My congratulations to all.

Marty Shindler is a freelance industry consultant who provides a business perspective to creative and technology companies. Marty may be reached at shindler@aol.com.

ã 1998  by Cinergetics, LLC. All rights reserved. Used by permission.