The city is taking inspiration from Derry, Northern Ireland, which hosts a massive seven-day Halloween festival that attracts more than 120,000 people every year. City council voted in 2019 to send five staffers to that year’s festival, in the city Mayor Mike Hurley grew up in.
At the time, Hurley spoke highly of his hometown’s annual event.
“They get so excited about it,” he said. “The community is so involved, and it's such a big attraction for all of Northern Ireland and, indeed, Europe. A lot of people come from all over Europe.”
The city began plans to launch the festival in 2020, but like all large, in-person events last year, the pandemic halted those efforts.
Now, however, the city is seeking to revive the project, putting out a request for proposals (RFP) for an event late last month.
“The city is focusing on this as an alternative Halloween experience that focuses on darkening days, the changing of the seasons, the spirit world and natural beauty and does not focus on haunted houses, jump scares or violent imagery,” reads the RFP.
“This event is an opportunity to celebrate Halloween together, allowing for visitor exploration through high production value digital storytelling.”
The RFP notes the city is seeking to build an inaugural festival that can still operate under COVID-19 restrictions.
The city has run Halloween events at the Burnaby Village Museum since 2004, according to the RFP, including the Haunted Village event in 2019 that ran for four days.
The city is seeking a contractor that can build a “family-friendly design that invites people to celebrate the Halloween season through the creation of a magical and otherworldly environment,” according to the RFP.
The contractor should create an “immersive multimedia design throughout (the) BVM site, with a focus on projection, lighting and sound elements.”
That includes photo opportunities, historical elements from the museum, touchless interactive installations and potential live performances depending on COVID restrictions.
“The city is inspired by the success of multimedia walkthrough events. Walkthroughs are a way to infuse an arts-centric combination of projection, sound, immersive environments and nature into a Halloween event,” reads the RFP.
The city is seeking an event design that could be re-installed for up to five years.
Follow Dustin on Twitter: @dustinrgodfrey
Send him an email: [email protected]
