INVNT - Atlantis Sanya Grand Opening Event

Name of Organization / Company: INVNT, Sydney, NSW Australia
Category: Award for Innovation in Entertainment Events

Entry Title: Atlantis Sanya Grand Opening Event

Essay:

BRIEF:

Fosun and Kerzner International were seeking to promote the launch of the new Atlantis property in Hainan, China in a highly impactful and meaningful way. They wanted to introduce the exclusive Atlantis Sanya resort to domestic and foreign tourists, as well as media, influencers and business people globally. They sought a unique and memorable launch event which would appeal to simultaneous local, global, live and virtual audiences.

CONCEPTION, DEVELOPMENT & PLANNING:

We first leveraged our proprietary creative and strategic methodology known as INVNTion™ – a process our teams across the globe utilise to extract a brand’s key messages, which are then used to inform the conceptualisation, design and production of an experience. The approach ensures brand consistency and importantly, cut through amongst the target audience.

On applying this strategy to our brief, we concluded that the new relationship between Atlantis and China inspired a sense of duality. We decided that the perfect way to express this dynamic would be through the story of a young couple in love. Taking inspiration from the Greek myth of Atlantis – the perfect way to honor the Atlantis brand – we re- contextualised it to appeal to a global, contemporary audience, incorporating Chinese mythology and blending old and new techniques with influences from the east and west.

EXECUTION:

Our Chief Creative Officer, Paul Blurton proceeded to write and produce a piece of original themed musical theatre especially for the one- night event. It featured a five- act, 40+ cast performance which was brought to life through the use of a dramatic original score, live instrumentation, custom- designed costumes, traditional life- sized puppets, drones flying overhead, bespoke lighting design, and state- of- the- art technology including high definition LED screens which displayed a custom animated piece of media throughout.

The story centered on two young lovers – played by Mimo and Walker – who are swept into the ocean, rescued by magical sea creatures, and taken to the amazing underwater city of Atlantis. There, they meet Queen Atlantia – played by leading musical theatre performer Prinnie Stevens – who blesses them and sends her message of love, peace and unity to the land for the crescendo moment of Atlantis Rising – symbolising the official unveiling of the property – and a spectacular fireworks display.

The event featured a highly intricate stage and set design, which took 15 days to build, and 150 cast and crew members were involved in the entire production.

RESULTS:

We delivered a highly memorable experience that took the art of live brand storytelling to new heights of engagement and emotion, and successfully brought the Atlantis Sanya brand story to life. From the beginning to the end, guests were in awe of the entire experience, which successfully attracted 600+ VIPs including influencers, journalists, politicians, celebrities and business people from China and around the globe.

The event also garnered the attention of those not in the room, with over 1.7 million people hailing from locations across the globe tuning in to the event’s live stream.

Heiko Schreiner, Atlantis Sanya's managing director, praised the event, noting in a press release: “It was a momentous opening celebration befitting a leisure development of this size and scale.

“It was also a taste of the kind of resort we want Atlantis Sanya to be known for – one that both amazes and inspires. We look forward to delivering an extraordinary holiday experience to travelers visiting our resort in Sanya.”

Links:

URL 1
https://vimeo.com/267992404
URL 2
http://www.thedrumexperienceawards.com/experience-awards-2018/brand-activation-with-invited-audience-of-the-year/atlantis-sanya-grand-opening-event-2018
URL 3
http://www.media-outreach.com/release.php/View/5413/Fosun-International-unveils-Asia-Pacific's-first-Atlantis-Resort-in-Sanya,-China.html
URL 4
http://www.cimmagazine.com/invnts-grand-opening-for-atlantis-sanya/