1.
T H E P O W E R O F S T O RY I N AT T R A C T I O N D E S I G N
S H A W N M C C O Y, J R A

2.
W H AT D O E S “ S T O RY ” M E A N ?

3.
Great attractions feature
the same components found in great stories

4.
ENVIRONMENTS NARRATIVE
GREAT STORIES HAVE
INTERESTING CHARACTERS
What are the
components of a great story?

5.
ENVIRONMENTS NARRATIVE
INTERESTING CHARACTERS
What are the
components of a great story?

6.
INTERESTING ENVIRONMENTS NARRATIVE
CHARACTERS
What are the
components of a great story?

7.
ENVIRONMENTS
A BEGINNING,
A MIDDLE
AND AN END
CHARACTERS
What are the
components of a great story?

8.
ENVIRONMENTS NARRATIVE
CHARACTERS
What are the
components of a great story?

9.
W H AT P O W E R D O E S “ S T O RY ” H AV E ?

10.
Stories have the power to make
you care about characters

11.
Which archaeologist would you
want to have a beer with?

12.
this guy?

13.
or this guy?

14.
probably Dr. Jones
(because you know his story)

15.
What if you found out
that Dr. Howard Carter
actually discovered
King Tut’s tomb?

16.
You’d probably want
to hear that story also

17.
Stories have the power to make
you care about content

18.
Would you look at this
chair for more than
10 seconds if you saw
it in a museum?

19.
What if you found out
that this was the chair
that Abraham Lincoln
sat upon when he
was assassinated?

20.
That story makes
this chair much
more interesting

21.
Stories have the power to make
attractions more memorable

22.
S T O RY T E L L I N G M E D I U M S

23.
Attraction designers have a lot of
mediums through which they can tell stories

24.
T H E M E D A R C H I T E C T U R E

25.
E N V I R O N M E N TA L G R A P H I C S

26.
E X H I B I T S

27.
I M M E R S I V E E N V I R O N M E N T S

28.
M E D I A

29.
R I D E S

30.
S H O W S

31.
Stories have the power to make
attractions more memorable
(really?)

32.
NO STORY
no story

33.
story

34.
U S E S VA R I O U S S T O RY T E L L I N G M E D I U M S

35.
T O I M M E R S E G U E S T S I N A S T O RY

36.
Great attractions provide time and space for
a story to evolve, allowing guests
the opportunity to understand and care

37.
NO STORY
W H I C H I S M O R E M E M O R A B L E ?

38.
Intellectual Property vs. New Stories
(To IP, or not IP)

39.
R ATAT O U I L L E : T H E A D V E N T U R E

40.
G R E AT R I D E B A S E D U P O N A G R E AT I P

41.
M Y S T I C M A N O R

42.
S I M I L A R R I D E , N O P R E - E X S I T I N G I P

43.
E Q U A L LY E N G A G I N G
G R E AT S T O RY G R E AT T E C H N I Q U E S

44.
The most memorable experiences immerse
you in the story with all of your senses

45.
W I Z A R D I N G W O R L D O F H A R RY P O T T E R

46.
Audiences have had over 17 years to
become familiar with the stories, characters and
environments of Harry Potter since
the first book was published in 1997

47.
7 BOOKS

48.
8 MOVIES

49.
Universal Studios used a variety of techniques
to completely immerse guests
within the world of Harry Potter

50.
E N V I R O N M E N T S G U E S T I N T E R A C T I O N
R I D E SS P E C I A L E F F E C T S

51.
F O O D & D R I N K

52.
S H O W S

53.
O N E - O F - A - K I N D AT T R A C T I O N S

54.
To bring a story that once..

55.
O N LY E X I S T E D O N A PA G E

56.
NO STORY to life…

57.
S T O RY I S C O M P R I S E D O F :
C H A R A C T E R S + E N V I R O N M E N T + N A R R AT I V E
K E Y M E S S A G E S
S T O R I E S H AV E T H E P O W E R :
C A R E A B O U T C H A R A C T E R S + C O N T E N T
B E S T AT T R A C T I O N S :
I M M E R S E A U D I E N C E S B Y E N G A G I N G A L L S E N S E S
A G O O D S T O RY N E E D S :
T I M E A N D S PA C E T O E V O LV E
I N T E L L E C T U A L P R O P E R T Y:
N I C E B U T N O T N E C E S S I T Y

58.
T H E P O W E R O F S T O RY I N AT T R A C T I O N D E S I G N
S H A W N M C C O Y, J R A
T H A N K Y O U !