DUNLOP - The invisible cities
Client: Bluestone T.O. for DUNLOP
Why: The main aim of the client was to match the visit of the wonderful baroque island of Ortigia, the real heart of Syracuse, with “something” interactive and motivating, to make the excursion really unique!
The second purpose of the client was to motivate and make the participants live a real teambuilding experience.
When: March, 14th 2008
Where: Ortigia Island - Syracuse
What: The request and the goals the client wanted to achieve were brief and clear: a perfect occasion to make use of our most requested format - The Invisible Cities!
The format basically is an upgraded version of a “photo treasure hunt”: while exploring the island, the participants have to do or find something, according to custom-made booklets that have to be completed by means of Polaroid™ instant photos.
How: While seemingly fairly simple in its structure, this format is a perfect example of a tough behind-the-scenes work.
Our first job was (and always is) to research and review every and each known information, legend, or history about the chosen venue. In this case, for the island of Ortigia, over 20 books and 25 websites where consulted.
Next, we get involved in a thorough site-inspection: while we already know down pat the island of Ortigia, before planning anything, it’s always better to have a closer look, just in case something has changed… As a matter of fact, we found that the castle of Maniace was closed for repairs, so, while it was one of our favorite place to show, it had to be dropped.
In the meantime, someone else dealt with the authorities to obtain the needed legal permits.
We also wanted to add greater value to the event, so we asked and obtained (!) for our client a special opening of the Ipogei (an interesting ancient underground dungeon, that was also used as a bomb shelter during WWII), and exceptional authorizations to put branded banners all over the island.
Once all of this work was done, we carefully designed every detail of the customized tour and of the challenges chosen for the participants, taking into account the season, the number of hours planned for the event, and the number, age and sex of the persons involved.
While the artistic and graphic team translated the project into enthralling booklets, we chose to have the written text made both in English and German, to facilitate the great number of German-speaking natives involved. This was a very sensitive moment in The Invisible Cities’ production process: indeed, the booklet have an extremely important role in the economy of the event!
They are a map, to make sure no one will get lost, and contains the emergency numbers needed; they are a guidebook, to make the people know about the places and monuments they are visiting, ensuring a pleasant and enriching experience;
they give information about the trials the group is requested to accomplish;
they are a photo-album, to collect the Polaroid photos and ascertain each challenge has been cleared;
and, at last, they will become a perfect souvenir, a memory-book of the whole experience!
Eventually, we collected the artists, performers and facilitators needed for the event, and had a long and detailed briefing. We also established a dress code (the client brand colors were yellow and black) and custom-made yellow ties were produced, to make the people involved stand out of the crowd and be instantly recognizable.
A few days before the event, a new site-inspection was done, just to be sure that no significant changes have occurred.
Now, everything was right: Let the show begin!
The event world is not like the filmmaking world: You’ve got only one chance, and everything have to be absolutely perfect at your first shot!
Our big group (14 peoples, including coordinators, artists, crew, a photographer and a videomaker), left for Syracuse really early in the morning, to place all the banners and decorative elements all over the island of Ortigia.
A few hours later, the show had begun.
