Medici XD is founded by former CEO of animatronics leader Animax Designs Chuck Fawcett and Mousetrappe founder and CCO Daren Ulmer. Medici Experience Development (Medici XD) is intersecting the latest technologies to provide physical, visual, interactive, and live elements as one holistic development.
Fawcett launched Animax back in his senior year of college. Animax grew over the 30 years into the leading creator of animatronics and puppet characters employing 165 designers and engineers. In 2020, Animax was bought by Cityneon. Fawcett has been transitioning the company into their leadership since his last day at the helm on November 8.
Chuck Fawcett is also the current International Board President of the TEA (Themed Entertainment Association).
“The work I’ve been doing for the TEA has been transformational, for me and the organization. By improving the relationship of the organization with its members, by getting to work on upgrading many of the internal systems and setting up a new legal entity in China,” said Medici XD founder and International Board President of the TEA Chuck Fawcett. “I remembered the excitement of building something. It reconnected me to my purpose which is to connect and to create. It is now time for me to build something new and bigger, which is why I’ve founded Medici XD with Daren”.
Ulmer founded Mousetrappe over 16 years ago after a decade with Disney in live entertainment development.
“Mousetrappe has produced award-winning experiences using a variety of audio-visual tools, including projection mapping because we see them as a vehicle to connect guests with the narrative and a deeper way to evoke an emotional connection,” said Ulmer.
But Ulmer’s vision is to take this guest connection to the next level, which puts the guest inside a convergence of platforms to create transcendental experiences for them.
To achieve this physical must seamlessly join with visual and technical interactions, all elements must tie into one wholistic production, which stretches beyond the visual boundaries offered by Mousetrappe, hence co-founding Medici XD with Fawcett.
Fawcett and Ulmer found themselves at similar life stages, and each with entrepreneurial successes backing them, discovered not only were their strengths complementary; but so, were their answers to the questions they both found themselves asking ‘What’s next?’ and ‘What could our attractions industry do better?’
“As industry insiders don’t, we all visit new rides and dissect the parts? We consider how successful is this as an experience, we look at what works well and just as importantly what doesn’t?” said Fawcett in their conversations. “So, we started considering, together, what is the difference between the most and least successful? And concluded it centers on the believability of the experience, which depends on how the components come together”
Most suppliers come from one core area of expertise, some have expanded from this, but the additions generally are secondary elements, and so truly integrated development across both visual, physical, and immersive factors is very rare. Changing this is what Fawcett and Ulmer have embarked upon by founding Medici Experience Development together, inspired by a vision for the creation of experiences which is more wholistic, collaborative, and centered on the guest from every sense.
Medici XD is an integrated software, ride manufacturing, and media production group able to develop venue concepts across physical, visual, and interactive disciplines, making a unified live experience that captivates an audience. Medici XD works with storytellers and designers, venues, and entertainment brands and tailors our multi-disciplinary solution to fit their project, perfectly, like a custom garment. Medici XD builds moving made to measure experiences.
Medici XD will be having an official press conference at IAAPA Expo Tuesday at 4 PM EST for announcements of the multidisciplinary lineup they have underway.
Check out Medici XD’s website here, and you can follow the company on LinkedIn.
Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
