2. A new media experience-the immersive theater
The dazzlingly lit globe in the center, which is 12 meters in diameter, has a surprise inside as well.
Ticket-buyers take an elevator up four floors to enter the globe to see a presentation on an 8k digital-video, 720-degree dome screen in 4D (1k is 1024 x 1024 pixels, 8k is 8192 x 8192 pixels; "4D" is 3D with added sensory elements).
According to Wu, the worldwide success of the 3D film Avatar has led many pavilions, including Germany's pavilion and the SAIC-GM "Drive to 2030" pavilion, to imitate it and use 360-degree dome theaters as selling points. However, only Taiwan's has a completely immersive theater, and moreover the resolution of the video is higher-more than six times those shown at the Expo in Aichi, Japan, five years ago.
"The special thing about the spherical screen is that images can be projected onto it horizontally and vertically for a total of 720 degrees," says Wu. She adds, confidently, "When viewers stand on the bridge that crosses through the theater, the 12 projectors and eight-channel sound system provide them an auditory and visual experience from all directions-it's something that most people have surely never experienced before!"
The immersive film that is shown was directed by the famed Taiwanese documentarian Lai Fong-chi. He took "the natural city" as his theme for the four-minute-long film, which shows beautiful cityscapes and expresses the hopes of the Taiwanese people to live in harmony with nature.
The film begins from the vantage point of outer space, looking at the Earth. The camera moves to East Asia, then to Taiwan. It zooms in on the sea of clouds around the peak of Yushan as the sun rises and sets, then it cuts to the untouched forest of Alishan, with native animals like sambar, Formosan clouded leopards, and Swinhoe's pheasant darting through it. Then, moving to lower elevations, it shows delicate orchids, flitting butterflies near a stream, and a pool of blooming lotuses in the summer sun.
The marine environment is another part of Taiwan's natural beauty that can't be left out, so the film takes viewers to the bottom of the ocean to watch tropical fish play and witness the magical moment when the coral spawn. Then the camera returns from nature to city life, and viewers take a seat on the MRT for a tour of Taipei. They can also bathe in a beautiful sunset at Kaohsiung Port. Finally, they fly upward with the sky lanterns.
Lai says that the most special part of the immersive theater is that the picture has no "frame" around it. That makes the audience feel a part of it, floating within the scene. The feeling of the ambience is powerful.
The other special characteristic of the film is that it is in "4D." That's 3D with added sensory elements. "When the film shows the forest or orchids," Lai says, "there is the scent of cedar or orchid. When the audience sees dolphins jumping in the water, they actually feel the ocean spray, too. It's really fun!"
3. Sky lanterns and cups of tea
After the audience has been wowed by the Taiwan Pavilion's multimedia show, it can experience the quintessential Taiwanese activity of lighting a sky lantern.
Of course, due to safety considerations, the "sky lantern lighting ceremony" is replicated by computer animation, but the pavilion's designers have kept a fine eye to detail so as to give an authentic experience.
First, the sky lantern platform has two concentric pools, with water from the Pacific Ocean in the outer ring and from Sun Moon Lake in the inner ring. In the center of the pool is a piece of the type of rose stone found on Yushan. Visitors lighting lanterns feel as if they were really among the natural wonders of Taiwan.
The pavilion takes 40 visitors at a time, and at the 40 lighting stations with touch panels they can choose from 12 blessings for their lanterns. The blessings, which were selected by online poll, include messages such as "Prosperity to the nation and peace to the people," "To a bustling economy," and "Travel the world." When they press the button, the lantern is projected onto the LED globe and flies upward. It's a satisfying virtual experience.
After the sky lantern lighting ceremony, visitors come to the end of their experience at the Taiwan Pavilion. Their last stop is a city square, which is formed out of a large tree woven from bamboo by craftspeople from Nantou. As visitors come together to "cool off" under the tree, they are served tea from Alishan by 16 "friendly ambassadors" chosen from 2,137 applicants. Once they've finished their tea, they can take the sky-lantern-shaped cups home with them as souvenirs-a souvenir of Taiwanese hospitality.
"In just 20 minutes in the Taiwan Pavilion, visitors can get a good impression of Taiwanese technology, culture, and friendly attitude," says Wang with a smile.
"Taiwan is big because of its heart" is this year's touching slogan. It captures a sense of the nation and the pavilion. Despite limited time and space, Taiwan's team pulled it off, and the "Mountain, Water, & Lantern of the Heart" will be a burst of radiant light on the expo stage!