Eric Gradman, left, and Brent Bushnell founded Two Bit Circus to bring science subjects to life
Entertainment engineering collective Two Bit Circus has been causing a real buzz in the US with its STEAM Carnival. And now that success has been recognised by a trio of venture capital firms, who are putting up $6.5m (€5.9m, £4.3m) in investment for the high-tech circus to expand and develop the concept.
“We’re thrilled to be bringing our crazy circus to a broader audience,” says Brent Bushnell, CEO of Two Bit Circus.
The Los Angeles, California-based company was founded in 2012 by Bushnell and Eric Gradman, who wanted to create a positive narrative around the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects to “convert non-STEM kids into STEM kids”. The investment is coming from Techstars Ventures and Foundry Group, with additional funding from Intel Capital.
The funding will mainly be used to grow STEAM Carnival – a touring pop-up-style event that gets kids to engage with STEM topics plus art topics in a project-based, hands-on way – into a national brand.
The first STEAM Carnival took place in an LA warehouse in October 2014, and has gone from strength to strength. The next STEAM Carnival was planned for Pier 48 in San Francisco from 6 to 8 November.
“If LA was our prototype, San Francisco represents version 1.0 of the event,” Bushnell says. “We’ve had hundreds of requests for the event from all over the world, so the response has been awesome, with guests staying an average of five hours in LA. We’re excited to take it across the country and then scale it internationally.”
“With the investment we’re focusing on three core areas,” he says. “First, we’re scaling the carnival up across the US and building out the ecosystem around it, such as the YouTube channel. Second, we’re building on our work in 360-degree video capture for VR, and we’ll be creating original VR content. And third, we’re completing our other out-of-home game platforms – stay tuned for more!”
Two Bit Circus is also working on home solutions and a series of interactive solutions for other out-of-home venues.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2015 issue 4
Attractions: Gone, Not Forgotten
We find out what people thought of
Dismaland, Banksy’s twisted theme park
and contemporary art attraction – and
talk to one of the Dismal Stewards
Promotional feature: IdeAttack
Mysteries of China’s rich culture are at the heart of IDEATTACK’s new mixed-used tourism destination
Zoos & Aquariums: Turn over a New Reef
The Florida Aquarium is teaming
up with the National Aquarium of
Cuba in a bid to save and restore
the region’s precious coral reefs
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
Eric Gradman, left, and Brent Bushnell founded Two Bit Circus to bring science subjects to life
Entertainment engineering collective Two Bit Circus has been causing a real buzz in the US with its STEAM Carnival. And now that success has been recognised by a trio of venture capital firms, who are putting up $6.5m (€5.9m, £4.3m) in investment for the high-tech circus to expand and develop the concept.
“We’re thrilled to be bringing our crazy circus to a broader audience,” says Brent Bushnell, CEO of Two Bit Circus.
The Los Angeles, California-based company was founded in 2012 by Bushnell and Eric Gradman, who wanted to create a positive narrative around the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects to “convert non-STEM kids into STEM kids”. The investment is coming from Techstars Ventures and Foundry Group, with additional funding from Intel Capital.
The funding will mainly be used to grow STEAM Carnival – a touring pop-up-style event that gets kids to engage with STEM topics plus art topics in a project-based, hands-on way – into a national brand.
The first STEAM Carnival took place in an LA warehouse in October 2014, and has gone from strength to strength. The next STEAM Carnival was planned for Pier 48 in San Francisco from 6 to 8 November.
“If LA was our prototype, San Francisco represents version 1.0 of the event,” Bushnell says. “We’ve had hundreds of requests for the event from all over the world, so the response has been awesome, with guests staying an average of five hours in LA. We’re excited to take it across the country and then scale it internationally.”
“With the investment we’re focusing on three core areas,” he says. “First, we’re scaling the carnival up across the US and building out the ecosystem around it, such as the YouTube channel. Second, we’re building on our work in 360-degree video capture for VR, and we’ll be creating original VR content. And third, we’re completing our other out-of-home game platforms – stay tuned for more!”
Two Bit Circus is also working on home solutions and a series of interactive solutions for other out-of-home venues.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2015 issue 4
Attractions: Gone, Not Forgotten
We find out what people thought of
Dismaland, Banksy’s twisted theme park
and contemporary art attraction – and
talk to one of the Dismal Stewards
Promotional feature: IdeAttack
Mysteries of China’s rich culture are at the heart of IDEATTACK’s new mixed-used tourism destination
Zoos & Aquariums: Turn over a New Reef
The Florida Aquarium is teaming
up with the National Aquarium of
Cuba in a bid to save and restore
the region’s precious coral reefs
Experience design company, BRC Imagination Arts, has completed a transition that sees founder
Bob Rogers pass ownership of the business to four long-serving senior executives, while
remaining actively involved with the company.
Movie Park Germany has opened a new Paramount Pictures-themed attraction as part of its 30th
anniversary celebrations, using immersive storytelling and adaptive reuse to reinforce the park’s
longstanding “Hollywood in Germany” positioning.
Therme Manchester’s 28-acre development, which will include interconnected glass pavilions
that measure 65,000sq m, will be the largest bathing and wellbeing attraction in the world once
complete, according to prof David Russell, CEO of Therme UK.
Efteling has opened Hooghmoed, a new family drop tower designed to broaden the appeal of its
recently launched Sirene Island themed area and introduce younger visitors to thrill attractions.
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’
planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–
Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism inv
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-
Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional
revenue opportunities.
The UK government has announced a temporary reduction in VAT on visitor attractions and
children’s meals as part of a summer cost-of-living support package designed to stimulate the
visitor economy and encourage family days out.
As designer Yinka Ilori prepares for his first solo gallery show in London, he speaks exclusively
to CLADmag about his mission to spread joy, the power of play, and his bold approach to using
colour (including the colours you won’t see in his work).
The government of Thailand is exploring plans for a THB300bn (£6.3bn, US$8.3bn)
entertainment complex in the country’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), with officials
proposing a large-scale theme park and sports destination as part of a broader tourism and
economic development strategy.
Royal Caribbean has revealed its Hero of the Seas cruise ship, home to the most pools at sea
(nine), and a record-breaking 28 dining venues, as well as attractions including a waterpark
with two new family raft slides.
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
