New King Kong Attraction Created by Peter Jackson Launches at Universal Studios
Posted on June 29, 2010
The Universal Studios' King Kong exhibit in Hollywood burned down a couple years. Now it is back as a new attraction created by Peter Jackson, who directed King Kong in 2005. King Kong 360 3D was created using Surround Digital 3D film and thrilling special effects. King Kong 360 3D will open to the public Thursday, July 1.
In the new attraction, guests aboard Studio Tour trams are given special 3D glasses as they enter an enormous soundstage larger than a football field. Once inside, the trams are enveloped within enormous screens, their size equaling an area equivalent to 16 conventional movie screens and rest atop steel platens that provide a powerful motion base. Via the magic of Surround Digital 3D projection, guests are transported deep into a tangled jungle location. There, they survive a close encounter with a swarm of hungry raptors, only to be confronted by the terrifying presence of 35' tall dinosaurs. Suddenly, the 25' tall Kong gorilla appears. The trams roll and shudder as the guests find themselves caught in the middle of a titanic struggle between the great ape and carnivorous reptiles.
Peter Jackson said, "As a filmmaker, you're hoping to have the audience step inside your movie and become part of the experience...to create the illusion of reality in a way that is much more tactile and profound than can be done in the cinema environment of a normal theatre. The new King Kong 360 3D at Universal Studios Hollywood provided us with a unique opportunity to really push film and theme park technology to create that illusion. Our intention was to create a spectacular and immersive 3D experience and we're confident that we've achieved that. King Kong 360 3D is the largest most intense 3D experience on the planet."
Take a look: