THE ASK

To produce a very personal birthday event in 5 days for superstar Pharrell, hosted by Nickelodeon. Since Pharrell is a big Spongebob fan, Nickelodeon thought it would be fun to utilize Spongebob as an event theme. The short timeline and big responsibility were challenging both on the creative and production side, but Fresh Wata rose to the challenge and accepted. Our 4+ years working with Nickelodeon enabled us to move quickly and confidently.

THE SOLUTION 

To secure a venue, design, fabricate, produce and manage a magical Spongebob themed birthday party for Pharrell in 5 days took serious strategy and problem solving. Our plan needed to be flawless to meet permitting, safety, logistical needs while not losing sight of the ever-important creative thematic details such as catering and custom bar/menu creations.

We chose to recreate Bikini Bottom as the overall birthday environment. Cipriani Wall Street with 70’ ceilings was the best available option to accommodate our expansive interior needs. We opted to push the boundaries with what we could achieve to alter the venue visually via floor to ceiling animated video scenes and projection mapping. This created the illusion of being under the sea in Bikini Bottom with Spongebob and pals. Utilizing our award-winning projectionist and all-star production team, we soon had a magical, immersive visual plan in place.

We designed the VIP area to mimic Patricks home which is a large rock. This plan utilized a 40’ dome with a custom printed fabric skin stretched over it with a carved out wooden stick that holds the rock up propping it open.

Pharrell and guests were over the moon with their sensory rich and fully immersive birthday event. From the overall event design to the Spongebob birthday cake, no details were overlooked as we welcomed in Pharrell’s 41st birthday.