Shaping the Nation’s Future Through Immersive Storytelling

THE CLIENT

Singapore Discovery Centre

WHAT WE DID

Stakeholder consultation & engagement
Community consultation & engagement
Audience research & engagement
Storytelling & strategy
Experience & interpretive design

The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre

The Singapore Discovery Centre (SDC) is a unique edutainment attraction that offers visitors a deep dive into Singapore’s past, present, and future. Through its interactive exhibits and immersive experiences, SDC aims to foster a greater understanding and appreciation of Singapore’s history, challenges, and aspirations. 

HOL was engaged to revamp the lower gallery at SDC. The objective of this space was to explore contemporary Singapore, focusing on the complexities of modern life and the evolving landscape of the nation. HOL conceptualised and developed content and interpretive design strategies that would allow visitors to interact with these critical narratives in a multi-sensory and emotionally resonant manner. 

SUMMARY

Giving ordinary Singaporeans a voice

We were able to give voice to ordinary Singaporeans through a total of 90 stories. Underpinning every story was the idea that everyone can contribute to co-creating the country’s future, regardless of their background and status in life.

The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre

ABOUT THE CLIENT

Singapore Discovery Centre

The Singapore Discovery Centre SDC) is a local attraction whose mission is to share the Singapore Story and inspire a desire to contribute to Singapore’s future.

CHALLENGE

A platform for ordinary voices

The Singapore Story is often dominated by stories about the feats of our strong and efficient government. Nation-building messages would sometimes stand out more than the voices of ordinary Singaporeans and their contributions. SDC’s objective was to get Singaporeans to imagine and create the country’s future together. We needed to create an experience that gives prominence to Singaporean voices and contributions. But how could we get citizens, who are used to taking the lead from their problem-solving and forward-looking government, to be part of the conversation?

INSIGHTS AND STRATEGY

Writing the next chapter for Singapore

Singaporeans are proud of their country’s achievements and want to play a part in the future of Singapore. However, they are not sure what part or role they can and should play in nation building. Some Singaporeans may even feel that their contributions are small and not impactful in any way. Nation-building is about getting good ideas from everyone and making the effort, big or small, to experiment and implement these good ideas. Afterall, no one has a monopoly on good ideas. Our strategy was to focus on making Singaporeans aware of this important aspect of nation building. This way they can feel confident that their ideas and contributions to the next chapter of the Singapore story will not be insignificant or unworthy.

The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre
The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre

The Sandbox

Our idea of a sandbox experience is related to our vision of what nation-building might mean to future generations. During the experience, each person or group should be able to create what they want in the sandbox based on their ideals and beliefs. Later, someone else can either build on it or reinvent the existing space to suit new conditions.

A key part of our strategy was storytelling because stories trigger and shape memories. Stories not only move the hearts of our target audience but create a deep and lasting change in mindsets. We wanted to convince Singaporeans that their voices matter, so our experience had to evoke their emotions as well as the treasured memories of Singapore’s past and present. Only then would visitors be able to envision themselves playing a part in shaping Singapore’s future.

What stories did ordinary citizens want to share? As we began gathering the stories of Singaporeans, we ensured that the content curation would take into consideration SDC’s main target visitors. Each one of the selected stories revealed citizens’ past and present contributions to Singapore’s security, economy, and social harmony. Every story was unique. Our goal was to invite visitors to think ‘If my fellow Singaporean can contribute to the Singapore story, so can I’. We wanted to get visitors to think about what they could do to make a difference to Singapore’s future in their own unique ways.

Common spaces are not just physical places for work and play. Our shared spaces are where we interact and build a strong community. Each one of our common spaces represent our collective identity and allow Singaporeans to share their experiences, memories, and values. Thus, when designing ‘The Sandbox Experience’, we knew how important it would be to feature shared spaces such as playgrounds, public libraries, and iconic places such as the Singapore Botanic Gardens and our neighbourhood coffee shops. The curated stories were designed to evoke cherished memories and remind visitors that Singapore’s future was theirs to co-create.

Throughout the gallery, we featured complex concepts surrounding nation-building and Singapore’s future challenges in simple but meaningful ways. Working closely with the design and development team, we presented the stories through augmented reality, video interviews, bite-size interactives, life-sized artefacts, 360-degree projections, and more.

“This is from my perspective as a Singapore Story Guide and also from feedback of many guests. The total revamp of Singapore Discovery Centre as a Singapore Story interactive edutainment attraction is most welcome especially during this pandemic. Many were awed by the Through The Lens Of Time upper gallery and the Sandbox lower gallery permanent exhibition gallery. There are so many things to learn and appreciate about the Singapore 🇸🇬 Story …”

TripAdvisor Contributor
The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre
The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre
The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre
The Sandbox Experience at Singapore Discovery Centre
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