A new flying theatre experience at the Changbaishan National Park visitor centre in China has officially taken it’s first flight, offering visitors an immersive and sensory perspective of the Changbai Mountain from the unique birds-eye view of a soaring bird of prey.
Commissioned by PEL Creative, the ride uses Brogent Technologies’ hydraulic I-ride seating system to suspend viewers in front of the 4K, 60-foot half-dome screen and immerse them in an aerial flight of the park and uninterrupted views of the sacred mountain.
Visual effects studio Moonraker VFX and natural history production company Talesmith joined forces as Flying Theatre Films to deliver the film, which was four years in the making.
In a single shot, the film takes visitors on an epic journey through the landscape in all it’s four seasons, soaring like a falcon across lush wide-open plains, rocky ravines and dense forests, eventually reaching a magnificent lake at the summit. Visitors are able to connect with the mountain in a completely new way, overcoming the usual harsh conditions of the natural environment, with a 4D out-of-this-world experience that defies gravity.
To capture this volatile landscape, the Flying Theatre Films team filmed multiple locations in 8k from helicopters and drones which they then used to model the precise details of the environment and animate significant moments of the flying ride back in the studio. Their 3D team used specialist software to track the camera allowing them to seamlessly blend computer generated elements with the real-life footage.