How to Create Transformational Experiences with Film Tourism

The Quest TV Series is a great example of how to use film tourism in creating a transformational experience for the participants and also help promote a destination. The Quest was developed by a production team who had produced The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Amazing Race and Queer Eye. The series are a new film genre that combines a staged immersive fantasy world with a reality show competition. In terms of better defining the experience I believe that it creates, films and broadcasts a competition with real participants that live action role play (larp) in a fictional universe (see the College of Wizardry blog post as an example of how to use larps in tourism).

The Quest was filmed at a castle estate close to Vienna in Austria. Here the participants faced a variety of fantasy-themed challenges in the fictional kingdom of “Everealm”. The season aired starting with (July 31, 2014) on the US network of ABC and all ten episodes had an average of 2 million viewers when they were aired.

What I find very interesting about the experience is that it manages to create a transformational experience for the participants but also it creates a great desire for the series viewers to want to join.

“If I would be at home and be watching the show, the first thing I would figure is how to be cast for the second season” – Rob Eric – Executive Producer of The Quest

Similar concepts

Live Action Roleplaying – The College of Wizardry
The Crystal Maze Experience
KidZania – One of the World’s Fastest Growing Edutainment Brands
Competitours – Amazing Race for Normal People
How to Create an Immersive Museum Experience