SALA Event Center Owner Allen Saenz, in front, last Thursday discusses his business and the plans in place to convert one of his theater spaces into an immersive, virtual reality experience. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com
SALA Event Center Project Leader Kevin Holsapple discusses the immersive experience and all the possibilities it offers the community during last Thursday’s presentation. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com
By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
Imagine slipping on a headset and suddenly being transported half-way around the world. Turn in any direction and see something beautiful – cascading green hills, a sparkling ocean or a flowing waterfall. You might be sitting in a chair but with the headset on, you are soaring above this fairytale landscape – gliding over valleys or small, European villages and thinking for a second your feet will bump up against a church’s steeple. Now imagine seeing and experiencing all this wonder not just from the confines of a virtual reality headset but in an entire theater.
SALA Event Center, 2551 Central Ave., plans to bring such a venue to Los Alamos. Last Thursday afternoon, SALA Owner Allen Saenz hosted a presentation to a group of community representatives on a plan to bring an immersive, virtual reality experience venue to SALA. SALA introduced its design team, 4Pi Productions from Wales. 4Pi built and operates one of the first immersive venues and studio in the UK called CultVR and has been involved with multiple projects in Northern New Mexico for more than a decade. Their local collaborative partner, Los Alamos Visualization Associates (LAVA) also is playing an important role.
The plan, said SALA Project Leader Kevin Holsapple, is to make over one of the event center’s four movie theaters into a flexible, immersive theater.
The possibilities for such a space are limitless but examples include custom developed experiences, touring science, art, and cultural exhibits, a virtual reality Escape Room, hybrid live performance, digitally sharing live immersive performances in real time, and educational and development uses. There will be opportunities to rent the space.
Just what would the space look like? It was described by Matt Wright of 4Pi as, “like a holodeck”. Large screen panels will be mounted on all four walls, with six ceiling mounted projector systems to bring them to life and two additional projectors for the floor. The space will be very open and with an easily changed configuration.
As far as the path to achieve this multi-use immersive space, Holsapple said the objective is to have a starter facility and an immersive experience online by as early as this summer.
Additionally, Holsapple said he will be doing outreach with potential users and collaborators to further characterize their interests and needs.
“Our research has already connected us with a variety of potential users who are excited about the prospects,” Holsapple said.
Regarding financing this project, Holsapple told the Los Alamos Daily Post that SALA is funding the development work on the project. When asked during the Q&A session last Thursday what obstacles there are to opening the starter facility, he said securing financing is the next big step.
The 4Pi visit to Los Alamos this week will result in completing feasibility and design work and generating a proposal for the theater modifications. In turn, that will provide the basis for exploring and pursuing financing alternatives whether that be grants, a loan, or some combination – for the project.
There are several players involved in this effort. For his own part, Holsapple said when SALA opened he thought, “This is exactly what a non-profit I am involved in – Places & Spaces Los Alamos – is about – helping places and spaces for the community to take root and be successful.”
Holsapple connected with Saenz to see how he could help and now volunteers on this and other projects for SALA.
“I see SALA as a ‘little engine who can’ if our community gets involved and helps it to thrive,” he said.
Wright and Janire Nájera of 4Pi Productions also are working with SALA. They are providing the technology that makes these immersive experiences possible.
“What drives us is how do we make the digital real … how do we put people in the middle of it,” Wright said. “It’s always been our dream to capture the world in immersive ways so we can share them physically with people later.”
This is not the first immersive venue 4Pi Productions has been involved with; Nájera gave a digital tour of CultVR. She also highlighted their prior work in Los Alamos at Fuller Lodge and Northern New Mexico.
“We truly, truly believe that immersive arts are here to stay and by having more spaces and facilities that can accommodate the mix between arts and sciences to come together, the medium can be pushed forward,” she said.
Wright added that they jumped on the opportunity to work with SALA.
He said when they learned about SALA’s story – how the Reel Deal Theater closed during the pandemic and SALA was created to not only bring movies back to town but to become a broader community venue, they thought it was “brilliant”.
Plus, the idea being proposed was right up 4Pi Productions’ alley, Wright said.
“The space will be potentially game changing but it’s going to be game changing when the community exploits it and sees it for what it is, which is an opportunity … to push through boundaries … it’s going be a facility that will have the community at its heart …,” he said.
Holsapple told the Daily Post that he believes this kind of venue will be a great fit for Los Alamos.
First, Los Alamos has deep interest and experience in visualization technologies and immersive spaces, he said. It is not widely known since it is mostly done “behind the fence” at the laboratory. 4Pi’s local collaborator, Steve Smith of LAVA is a former LANL employee who worked on many of these activities.
Holsapple added that SALA will explore how an immersive venue outside of the fence may be a useful resource to complement LANL work. Secondly, immersive experiences at SALA could become a great tool to enhance visitors’ experiences in town. He pointed out that this technology can take people anywhere: back in time, to locations used during the Manhattan Project that are not easily physically accessible, or even into the center of the volcano and geologic processes that formed the Valles Caldera and Pajarito Plateau.
“Although we are a small market, small community, we are a technology community, a science community – a community with many rich stories and this capability can help us tell those stories,” Holsapple said. “Tens of thousands of visitors come to Los Alamos each year – mostly day visitors to Bandelier. We can give them another compelling reason to visit our Creative District and spend more time in our community.”
Saenz agreed.
“How I see it is that not only will it be a cool (thing) to have but it is more of the potential that the community can start using,” he said. “We can have something with the Pueblos … that other kids from other schools can come and present. (We can) start creating a culture for creative people to start using this technology.”
To be able to have virtual reality in this theater, “I think it is a logical thing to do,” Saenz added.
Saenz noted during the presentation that just as immersive technology is cutting edge, movie theaters now need to be cutting edge, too. Being a conventional movie theater isn’t viable anymore, Saenz said, pointing out that Regal movie theaters are shutting down including one in Santa Fe. It is time to think out of the box and immersive technology may just be the ticket since it can take you anywhere.
The immersive theater has been part of SALA’s vision since the beginning, he added.
SALA’s vision is to reclaim an under-utilized property in the downtown and Creative District for the community, Saenz said.
He explained they collaborated with local investors to re-open the movie theater and offer newly released movies as well as family, classic, and alternative film series, and host live public events like karaoke, a dinner dance, World Cup telecasts, and the Superbowl viewing.
Additionally, Saenz said they have hosted numerous private events including community fundraisers, lectures, presentations, receptions and birthday parties. Also, a “Friends of SALA” program was initiated to build community involvement and support SALA.
For more information, visit https://sala.losalamos.com/
Ryan Ramaker of the Pajarito Environmental Education Center tries out 4Pi Productions’ virtual reality tour of Wales after last Thursday’s presentation. The movie screen shows what Ramaker is seeing in the headset. This is just a taste of what the public could see in SALA. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com
Community Representatives listen last Thursday to a presentation on bringing an immersive, virtual reality experience venue to SALA, including front row from left, Los Alamos MainStreet Event and Social Engagement Coordinator Vai Reddy-Kruse, Chamber Member Services Manager Sam McRae, Chamber Director Ryn Herrmann, LACDC Executive Director Lauren McDaniel, County Marketing Specialist Kelly Stewart and Councilor Suzie Havemann. Councilors David Reagor, second row, third from the left, and Melanee Hand, not pictured, also attended. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com