“Water and Air, the two essential fluids on which all life depends have become global garbage cans.”

- Jacques Cousteau

LIQUID VOYAGE is a visceral theatrical experience, touring LIVE PERFORMANCES of an ultra high-definition OCEAN FILM with a SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA score.

EARTH'S OCEANS are having a rough go right now. They're oily, hot, acidic, full of dead fish—and their levels are rising. But even though these things are true, it can be difficult to understand (or muster up the will to care about) the oceans' subtle changes over decades. We go to the beach, in most cases, everything's still as blue and salty and vast as it ever was. But be warned, these changes do directly impact human life (just ask the Marshall Islands).

So to make the ocean's plight more relatable, we present LIQUID VOYAGE an audio-visual experience. By exhibiting our oceans in large format with a live orchestral score, we strive to awe and inspire, empowering and motivating audiences of all ages.

Check out this little teaser for “what could be”…

THE CINEMATIC ADVENTURE

Curated and directed by filmmaker Jason Baffa (known by surfers worldwide for his emotional ocean themed documentaries “Singlefin: yellow”, “One California Day” and “Bella Vita”), LIQUID VOYAGE will be a visual epic combining the scope of film’s like KOYAANISQATSI, Disney’s OCEANS and the BLUE PLANET with a live music score.

Showcasing intimate animal behavior stories and jaw dropping scenes of nature, the film will embrace state-of-the-art technology advancements capturing footage in ULTRA-HIGH DEFINITION and IMAX FILM. This “large format” capture will allow the finished film to be toured in select cities or at theme park installations on a MASSIVE and immersive screen… pulling the viewers into the imagery and making the viewing experience AN EVENT.

Baffa, who remembers a behind-the-scenes tour of a Dolphin tank at age 8 that inspired his life work about promoting ocean stewardship, wants young viewers to be gifted with the same profound experience he had by attending a LIQUID VOYAGE concert.

Baffa writes, “I think the music industry is one step ahead of filmmakers, where they see the appreciation audiences have for a live experience. I want to take something like a visual and heart stirring ocean documentary but expound upon it by pairing it with a live symphony score. Years ago, I saw STAR WARS LIVE and it really had an affect on me. The combination of visual storytelling with live music was where filmmaking began and it is a prefect time to return to our roots. If every screening inspires just a few kids, then we are doing so much more than creating entertainment… we are building stewards for the future of this planet.”

The OCEAN film has certainly been explored before, Baffa’s goal is to curate “awe-inspiring” moments, either from existing catalogues or principal photography and balance them with emotional story-telling all framed around where our oceans are at today. Presenting topics like… What is the current state of the planet? Where are we headed without change? What are positive things happening now that we can build on?

PLAY IT LOUD: FILM SCORE

What makes this film different is producing a LIVE PERFORMANCE of the film score. No longer is LIQUID VOYAGE just a movie… it’s a concert. It delivers all the emotion of the great symphonies and pairs it with stunning film footage. The production would intend to partner with a world-renowned composer early, crafting the audio version of the experience simultaneously with the visual. This would allow music to drive editing choices, themes and scenes. It is in this synergy that LIQUID VOYAGE will feel different, capturing the excitement of audiences worldwide.

TAKE IT ON THE ROAD…

Producing a world-class touring show is the daunting challenge of this adventure. But imagine theater runs in London, Sydney, Tokyo, New York, Los Angeles, Honolulu, where audiences excitedly await a LIQUID VOYAGE CONCERT series to come to their town.

LIVE NATION, the leader in LIVE CONCERT events released a report noting that, in the United States alone, over the past 10 years consumer spending on experiences has grown $5 billion per year. The March 2018 report also noted confirmed arena, amphitheater and stadium shows up 7% from the same time in 2017. Additionally, since early 2017, per-fan spending at events grew by 9% to a $24 per head average.

IBIS World writes that over the past five years, the Concert & Event Promotion business has grown by 6% to reach revenue of $32bn in 2018. In the same time frame, the number of businesses has grown by 3.1% and the number of employees has grown by 4.8%. This would include Fairs, pageants, ethnic-festivals, theatrical performances, non-franchise sporting events and public appearance speeches. Of that group, LIVE MUSIC CONCERTS generate 69.4% of the industry revenue and have been both the most lucrative and fastest-growing.

The report further notes that traditionally, Live Event markets have reflected general economic swings including disposable income, affected by interest rates, wages, taxes and employment which can influence demand for, and expenditure on entertainment. Calculating that data, IBIS World summarizes further growth for 2019 and beyond (April, 2018 IBISworld report).

The Bizzabo Blog notes that 30% of all people surveyed said that they would have purchased a ticket to an event if they were aware that it was happening in their area (Google & Ipsos Media CT, 2018).

It should also be noted that data lends itself to an increased appeal in Event Marketing to brands and sponsors. Creating an open platform to integrate key sponsors into the experience. LIVE NATION writes that in its high-margin sponsorship division revenue is up 18% labeling marque clients like American Express, Samsung and Amazon Web Services. We will discuss this further below.

KEEP IT INTERACTIVE

LIQUID VOYAGE would look to partner with local non-profits, or other ocean-related entities to trigger key market support. By joining like minded individuals to celebrate the beauty of the natural world and importance to protect it, the series becomes more than an entertainment event. This allows LIQUID VOYAGE to access further sectors of the market share like ethic-festivals, fairs, and environmental speakers.

SIZZLE REELS and TEASERS would be shared with market partners allowing them to post JAW-DROPPING or AWE-INSPIRING clips on their own social media. These clips can link to online ticket purchase centers, where 71% of all event ticket buying happens (Google & Ipsos Media CT, 2018).

The concert series also begs for top tier technology partners like RED DIGITAL CINEMA for 8K Resolution film capture and presentation. SAMSUNG for interactive, pre-event booths; imagine a lobby filled with Samsung VR booths, where audience members can wear goggles and DIVE with SHARKS, WHALES or DOLPHINS all in 3D VR. Tablets could line the walls, allowing a child to click through information on the Norwall, Giant Squid or California Urchin. These “value adds” make this more than a film screening and a concert, it becomes an experience. Imagine eco-friendly outdoor brands like PATAGONIA clothing, COLUMBIA, CLIFF BAR, FLOW WATER and TOMS shoes, all curating presentations or interactive exhibits on site.

Furthermore, an environmental theme should run through the entire experience; Paperless tickets perhaps? Souvenir stainless steele cups from the snack-stand? A percent of profit benefits SAVE THE OCEANS or another global charity? LIQUID VOYAGE shouldn’t just share a message of environmental awareness, it should BE the message.

FINAL THOUGHT

As content producers, we find ourselves on a tread-mill playing catch up to where and how people digest their media. Simultaneously, our Planet suffers from the single-minded human agenda. The very agenda that slaves many to their “personal device” consuming the very media we produce. LIQUID VOYAGE takes from our ancestral past where tribes gathered to bond, entertain and inspire. It is time to make a stand. We can be both entertaining and inspiring, not just in the media but by using the media as a message. By creating an EVENT that brings people together to celebrate the beauty of our natural world and also displays an ethos of conservation within its frame-work, we can bring people together. Two + hours of entertainment is the goal… but a lifetime of conscious behavior should be the vision we strive to inspire.