On Wednesday, November 8, 2023, I, along with 29 other students from Parmiters School, received an amazing opportunity to take part in the BIMA digital enterprise competition. The competition is organised by the British Interactive Media Association designed to give children an insight into the world of digital pathways in which children have the opportunity to form groups and collaborate to find a solution that would address a problem a major corporation is now facing by utilising the rapidly expanding field of technology.
The day started at 9:55 and ended at 3:20, with a presentation by the BIMA representatives outlining the agenda for the day and our objectives. The problem we were given concerned the business giant Vue, which explained how many young people are choosing to watch movies at home instead of going to the movie theatre because of a variety of different considerations, including convenience. Our task was to determine how technology may be applied in this situation to enhance the number of the younger audience who have opted to go to a cinema venue and watch a movie.This was a challenging assignment at first because all the ideas we had were already being used by rival companies like Odeon and Cineworld, including loyalty cards and in some cases virtual reality. But, our team aimed to offer a concept that would stand out in this fiercely competitive market and distinguish streaming a movie from attending to the movies in person at home. Following the idea-forming process, each group was required to prepare a presentation and deliver it to the entire group. "The task was challenging but enjoyable because it was unlike anything I've done before. It was challenging because we had to come up with an original concept that no one had previously considered, but it was also enjoyable because the challenge made it exciting ," Laura Luczynska said in her day-end reflection.
Each team had different ideas. Ours involved building sensory theatres; on the website, you could choose to eat like a certain character from the movie you were going to see, with the ingredients listed (for allergy purposes). The food would remain hidden, creating a mystery that would heighten the suspense and excitement for seeing the film. This would set it apart from streaming movies and incorporate technology so that, for example, in action movies, the chairs in the theatre would move to simulate running, giving the experience of going to the movies a distinct feel. Senomee Kosgallana, who was part of the idea generation within our group, says, "I feel like the concept behind our idea was to find the one thing which would set the films apart from streaming but also set vue apart from its competitors."However a range of ideas were presented, for example the winning group proposed the idea of having a private streaming room available for groups of people to host parties or attend private performances, which would greatly increase earnings while also fostering a sense of community because people frequently host parties. But there were also a lot of other suggestions offered, including creating games after buying movie tickets and loyalty cards! Overall, it was a great opportunity to learn many new skills, including collaboration and presentation skills. In my opinion, since this day was unlike anything I had ever experienced before, I thoroughly enjoyed it and, based on the feedback I received from others, I know that I'm not alone in feeling this way!
