San Diego, CA
PlainJoe: A Storyland Studio partnered with Dr. David Jeremiah of Turning Point Ministries to create an immersive kids’ ministry for his church, Shadow Mountain Community Church. This ministry would align with Turning Point’s Airship Genesis IP, while standing as its own unique experience.
The Big Idea we landed on during our brainstorming session was called AIM: Academy of Intergalactic Missions. AIM aligned with Airship Genesis’ space exploration aesthetic, and the underlying concept is that Christ and discipleship are our aim. From there, we developed a story of missionaries sharing the Gospel intergalactically with space explorers who are looking to populate Mars and the rest of our solar system.
Next, it was time for the mission to begin. Taking cues from 1950s-1960s NASA, our team went to work designing a space that fit loosely with the Airship Genesis concept, yet stood on its own.
We fashioned the available areas in the building into themed workspaces where the space-traversing missionaries would carry out the functions of space travel. Each of these spaces integrates the story of AIM with intentionality and purpose.
The basement became the bay, where ships went for repair. Mission Control, where the voyages launch, is located in the lobby. Travelers can hear a countdown to launch, feel the rumbling of a ship, and see the lights on the craft come to life. Our team transformed the playground into the kids’ training facility where they’re physically preparing for their space missions.
Outside, members and visitors alike will find a rock mountainside fabricated by the Storyland Studios team. Within the story narrative, Mission Control is located inside this mountain, inspired by the name of the church itself.
