WXO

Engineering Belonging: How to Turn Product Launches into Living Worlds (Early)
2025-11-26 09:55 - 11:30 (Europe/London) | Zoom
A practical Campfire on using story, symbolism, ritual, and sensory design to build brand worlds people choose to join.
What if a car launch wasn’t just a moment – but the start of a culture?
In this Campfire, The Hanging House co‑founders Anam Ahmad and Husam Haris will take you inside Nissan NISMO’s Red Ring Society – an experiential world where two very different cars live under a single emotional universe.
Anam and Husam will detail how their Dubai-based experimental agency transformed a ‘simple’ product reveal into an unforgettable brand experience into something more.
You’ll learn the key choices, frameworks and sensory signatures on how what started as an audience became a genuine tribe…
Inside the case study: NISMO Red Ring Society

The challenge: How to build one emotional universe from two distinct cars
The approach: Story architecture > Symbol & ritual design > Multi-sensory world‑building
The result: An experience that felt alive, coherent, and repeatable—giving fans identity, not just information

What you’ll learn:

What it takes to build a cinematic, emotionally-driven brand world
How to engineer belonging through story, symbolism, and design
Tools to unite multiple products under a single emotional framework
Practical takeaways to elevate the impact and longevity of your experiences

Who this Campfire is for:

Experience designers
Brand + creative strategists
Experiential producers and world-builders
Brand leaders ready to go beyond campaigns

About Anam & Husam:
Anam Ahmad (Founder and CCO) and Husam Haris (Co-Founder and COO) are co-founders of The Hanging House, an experiential studio reimagining how brands build worlds people want to live in.
She leads the instinct: inventing worlds through story, psychology, and play.
He leads the intelligence: scaling those worlds into reality through strategy, production, and systems.
Together, they’ve built brand ecosystems with cult-like loyalty, from Nissan’s NISMO tribe to GUGU, a rising cultural movement designed to unboring adulthood. Their work proves that when creativity and operational mastery collide, brands stop selling and start shifting culture.
About The Hanging House:
The Hanging House is an independent omnichannel experiential studio working at the intersection of art, tech, and people. Born eight years ago in a garage with four people and a few laptops, it has since delivered 200+ experiences across industries and borders for brands, governments, and culture‑makers—most recently earning shortlists at Campaign Middle East Agency of the Year.
Visit: thehanginghouse.com

How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Engineering Belonging: How to Turn Product Launches into Living Worlds (Late)
2025-11-26 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
A practical Campfire on using story, symbolism, ritual, and sensory design to build brand worlds people choose to join.
What if a car launch wasn’t just a moment – but the start of a culture?
In this Campfire, The Hanging House co‑founders Anam Ahmad and Husam Haris will take you inside Nissan NISMO’s Red Ring Society – an experiential world where two very different cars live under a single emotional universe.
Anam and Husam will detail how their Dubai-based experimental agency transformed a ‘simple’ product reveal into an unforgettable brand experience into something more.
You’ll learn the key choices, frameworks and sensory signatures on how what started as an audience became a genuine tribe…
Inside the case study: NISMO Red Ring Society

The challenge: How to build one emotional universe from two distinct cars
The approach: Story architecture > Symbol & ritual design > Multi-sensory world‑building
The result: An experience that felt alive, coherent, and repeatable—giving fans identity, not just information

What you’ll learn:

What it takes to build a cinematic, emotionally-driven brand world
How to engineer belonging through story, symbolism, and design
Tools to unite multiple products under a single emotional framework
Practical takeaways to elevate the impact and longevity of your experiences

Who this Campfire is for:

Experience designers
Brand + creative strategists
Experiential producers and world-builders
Brand leaders ready to go beyond campaigns

About Anam & Husam:
Anam Ahmad (Founder and CCO) and Husam Haris (Co-Founder and COO) are co-founders of The Hanging House, an experiential studio reimagining how brands build worlds people want to live in.
She leads the instinct: inventing worlds through story, psychology, and play.
He leads the intelligence: scaling those worlds into reality through strategy, production, and systems.
Together, they’ve built brand ecosystems with cult-like loyalty, from Nissan’s NISMO tribe to GUGU, a rising cultural movement designed to unboring adulthood. Their work proves that when creativity and operational mastery collide, brands stop selling and start shifting culture.
About The Hanging House:
The Hanging House is an independent omnichannel experiential studio working at the intersection of art, tech, and people. Born eight years ago in a garage with four people and a few laptops, it has since delivered 200+ experiences across industries and borders for brands, governments, and culture‑makers—most recently earning shortlists at Campaign Middle East Agency of the Year.
Visit: thehanginghouse.com

How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Quantum Narratives: The Science Move that Destroys The Old Narrative Playbook in Experience Design (Early)
2025-12-03 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
In her new book Quantum Narratives, acclaimed creative technologist and experiential innovator Stephanie Riggs reveals how deeply our stories rely on Aristotelian Poetics – and why that limits us.
She introduces a bold framework that fuses principles from the physical sciences with today’s generative tools to finally overcome the long-standing narrative paradox.
Revolutionary, research-backed, and practical, this talk reframes everything we think we know about storytelling and offers interactive and spatial creators a transformative new way to build narrative.
What you’ll learn:

Nine techniques from Ancient Greece to Renaissance
Their adaptation into modern methods
Examples of contemporary applications of these methods from around the world
A design toolkit for memorable experiences

Who this Campfire is for:

Experience designers
Creative technologists
Storytellers
AI-haters & AI-lovers

About Stephanie:
Former Disney Imagineer, classical storyteller, and creative technologist Stephanie Riggs has led narrative innovation and immersive tech for more than 25 years. Called “the renaissance woman of the immersive era” by the VRAR Association, she has led ground-breaking work across theatre, theme parks, film, experiential, VR, AR, and AI.
Her approach blends classic storytelling, research-driven development, and world-class technology. Stephanie has collaborated with major media companies (Instagram, Google, Netflix, Amazon), start-ups, non-profits, and universities including Yale, CMU, and NYU. She is the author of the acclaimed books ‘The End of Storytelling’ (SXSW 2019) and “Quantum Narratives’ (SXSW 2025).
———-
How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Quantum Narratives: The Science Move that Destroys The Old Narrative Playbook in Experience Design (Late)
2025-12-03 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
In her new book Quantum Narratives, acclaimed creative technologist and experiential innovator Stephanie Riggs reveals how deeply our stories rely on Aristotelian Poetics – and why that limits us.
She introduces a bold framework that fuses principles from the physical sciences with today’s generative tools to finally overcome the long-standing narrative paradox.
Revolutionary, research-backed, and practical, this talk reframes everything we think we know about storytelling and offers interactive and spatial creators a transformative new way to build narrative.
What you’ll learn:

Nine techniques from Ancient Greece to Renaissance
Their adaptation into modern methods
Examples of contemporary applications of these methods from around the world
A design toolkit for memorable experiences

Who this Campfire is for:

Experience designers
Creative technologists
Storytellers
AI-haters & AI-lovers

About Stephanie:
Former Disney Imagineer, classical storyteller, and creative technologist Stephanie Riggs has led narrative innovation and immersive tech for more than 25 years. Called “the renaissance woman of the immersive era” by the VRAR Association, she has led ground-breaking work across theatre, theme parks, film, experiential, VR, AR, and AI.
Her approach blends classic storytelling, research-driven development, and world-class technology. Stephanie has collaborated with major media companies (Instagram, Google, Netflix, Amazon), start-ups, non-profits, and universities including Yale, CMU, and NYU. She is the author of the acclaimed books ‘The End of Storytelling’ (SXSW 2019) and “Quantum Narratives’ (SXSW 2025).
———-
How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

The Event Transformation Blueprint: 10 Steps to Events People Trust (Early)
2025-12-10 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
When so much online is uncertain, people trust what they experience together in person. Well‑run events can change minds, build relationships, and lead to real action.
At this Campfire, Sasha Frieze – an award‑winning event strategist with 30+ years of experience and 1,000+ events – shares a clear, 10‑step blueprint you can use to plan and run events that deliver results.
She will detail the three categories to consider when exploring customer journeys, share how to establish your event’s ‘ikigai’ plus strategies to put your participants at the heart of the story.
Her clients include the United Nations Foundation, The Guardian, The BMJ, the Open Data Institute, Raymond James, Incisive Media, and the Royal College of Anaesthetists.
The session draws on her book, The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook – a blueprint for the next generation of events: purpose-led, outcome driven and aligned to organizational goals.
What you’ll learn:

Set a clear purpose and success measures everyone understands
Map three key journeys – before, during, and after – so each stage works together
Put participants at the centre with formats that invite real conversation, not just one‑way talks
Choose speakers and content you can trust, and prepare for honest Q&A
Design practical next steps so the event leads to action, not just applause
Show how your event supports your organisation’s goals without turning it into a sales pitch

Who this Campfire is for:

Event and meeting professionals
Marketers and strategists
Anyone shaping business or professional events who wants clear steps and real outcomes

In a time where events can inspire world leaders, change government policy and redefine the conversation in sectors ranging from immunology to technology, we need a guidebook that helps us create authentic, trustworthy events and experiences that meet these high expectations – for both the organiser and the audience. Welcome to The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook.

About Sasha:
Sasha Frieze is an author and event strategy consultant. Over three decades, she has delivered more than 1,000 events for organisations including the United Nations Foundation, The Guardian, The BMJ, the Open Data Institute, Raymond James, Incisive Media, and the Royal College of Anaesthetists. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and the Royal Society of Arts, a non‑executive director of the British Society for Haematology, and a visiting lecturer in event management at the University of Westminster.
She is the author of The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook – How to Create Transformational Events.
Learn more: https://mybook.to/TCEOP

How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

The Event Transformation Blueprint: 10 Steps to Events People Trust (Late)
2025-12-10 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
When so much online is uncertain, people trust what they experience together in person. Well‑run events can change minds, build relationships, and lead to real action.
At this Campfire, Sasha Frieze – an award‑winning event strategist with 30+ years of experience and 1,000+ events – shares a clear, 10‑step blueprint you can use to plan and run events that deliver results.
She will detail the three categories to consider when exploring customer journeys, share how to establish your event’s ‘ikigai’ plus strategies to put your participants at the heart of the story.
Her clients include the United Nations Foundation, The Guardian, The BMJ, the Open Data Institute, Raymond James, Incisive Media, and the Royal College of Anaesthetists.
The session draws on her book, The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook – a blueprint for the next generation of events: purpose-led, outcome driven and aligned to organizational goals.
What you’ll learn:

Set a clear purpose and success measures everyone understands
Map three key journeys – before, during, and after – so each stage works together
Put participants at the centre with formats that invite real conversation, not just one‑way talks
Choose speakers and content you can trust, and prepare for honest Q&A
Design practical next steps so the event leads to action, not just applause
Show how your event supports your organisation’s goals without turning it into a sales pitch

Who this Campfire is for:

Event and meeting professionals
Marketers and strategists
Anyone shaping business or professional events who wants clear steps and real outcomes

In a time where events can inspire world leaders, change government policy and redefine the conversation in sectors ranging from immunology to technology, we need a guidebook that helps us create authentic, trustworthy events and experiences that meet these high expectations – for both the organiser and the audience. Welcome to The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook.

About Sasha:
Sasha Frieze is an author and event strategy consultant. Over three decades, she has delivered more than 1,000 events for organisations including the United Nations Foundation, The Guardian, The BMJ, the Open Data Institute, Raymond James, Incisive Media, and the Royal College of Anaesthetists. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and the Royal Society of Arts, a non‑executive director of the British Society for Haematology, and a visiting lecturer in event management at the University of Westminster.
She is the author of The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook – How to Create Transformational Events.
Learn more: https://mybook.to/TCEOP

How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

R.E.V.E.A.L. – Why Value-Engineering Is a Creative Superpower
2025-12-17 09:55 - 23:30 | Zoom
When a £285K immersive experience became an £850 school-library prototype, experience designer Skye Von discovered that constraint can sharpen creativity rather than limit it.
From that experiment emerged The R.E.V.E.A.L. Framework – a creative pressure simulator that transforms limitation into clarity and confidence.
In this Campfire, experience designer and artist Skye explores how reducing scale and resources can expose blind spots, validate emotional logic, and amplify what connects most deeply with audiences.
“The R.E.V.E.A.L. Pressure Simulator isn’t about tearing down what you have,” says Skye. “It’s about proving what’s strong – and revealing what’s still waiting to emerge.”
Value-engineering isn’t about reduction – it’s about revelation.
What you’ll learn:

How to reframe value-engineering as a creative process of revelation, not reduction
What happens when you take an idea down to 1% of the budget and 25% of the space
How stripped-down prototyping becomes a pressure test that reveals the core mechanics and emotional spine of an experience
Why designing with less can validate your strongest ideas and sharpen their impact
Show how your event supports your organisation’s goals without turning it into a sales pitch

Who this Campfire is for:

Experience designers and creative directors
Brand strategists, marketers, and producers
Storytellers and educators exploring participatory design
Anyone using constraint, creativity, or story to move people through experience\n

About Skye:
Skye Von is an experience designer and artist with over 15 years’ experience shaping immersive environments, brand storytelling, and educational experiences that invite people to play, connect, and transform – from art exhibitions exploring human connection and belonging to family experiences that inspire curiosity and collaboration, and brand activations that spark wonder and shared meaning.
Her work – spanning collaborations with Paramount, Google, and Bulgari, as well as organisations like the Malala Fund and UNHCR – blends storytelling, design, and often emerging technology to create spaces where emotion meets innovation.

How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

What Is Experience Strategy – And What It Definitely Isn’t…
2025-12-17 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
When Dave Norton asked a very distinguished CX leader the question, ‘What is experience strategy?’ he looked at back at him and said, ‘It’s the part of the business strategy that the experience people execute against.”
He was serious. And, according to Dave, he was wrong.
Over to Dave to explain why and what he’ll be preaching at this exclusive Campfire:
“Experience strategy is not CX. It’s not the part of the business strategy that designers, solution providers, technologies, or operations gets done. No, experience strategy IS business strategy – or at least the part of business strategy that describes how value is created for the customer. Which is the most important part.
“The WXO community should remember that the basic premise of The Experience Economyis that experiences create value. Experience strategy, as I shall define it, is all about helping a company to create the most value possible for the customer and the company.”
Aimed at anyone who is or wants to be a better strategist, this session is essential for anyone launching, reimagine or running an experience business – and that means you.
You’ll discover

The four principles of experience strategy
How experience strategy is different from other forms of strategy
Why experience strategy is not design, innovation, creativity, or solutionising
How to articulate your role as a strategist in a business setting

About Dave
Dave Norton is the founder and principal of Stone Mantel, an insights consultancy focused on helping companies create meaningful experiences for their customers. For decades he has been at the forefront of experience strategy. His clients include Coca-Cola, Marriott, Disney, Nike, Walmart, Johns Hopkins, Blue Cross, Royal Caribbean International, and many other well-known brands.
He is also the founder of The Collaboratives, a subscription-based research program that companies participate in annually. The program is designed to conduct primary research into the lives of consumers and discover how technology, meaning making, human behavior, and design will continue to evolve and take shape.
As lead researcher and director of both Stone Mantel and The Collaboratives, Dave Norton has guided thousands of in-depth interviews and in-home observations that are the basis for these insights into modes. His research includes 10 years of quantitative research into the role of technology in consumers’ lives.
Dave is also the author of Digital Context 2.0: Seven Lessons in Business Strategy, Consumer Behavior, and the Internet of Things. Digital context is the data that resides in and between the wide variety of tools that people access. His book helps companies think about their strategy for smart homes, cars, and work environments.
Dave has lectured at Harvard, Columbia Business School, and other academic institutions. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 2002 in Rhetoric, Scientific, and Technical Communications, and currently lives in Utah.
How to watch this Campfire:

Link to sign up for this Campfire (WXO members only)
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:
London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Unpacking The Uncertainty Toolkit: From kitchen table to Netflix documentary to behavioural change framework
2026-01-07 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
In this session, authors and neuroscientists Sam Conniff (Be More Pirate) and Katherine Templar Lewis (Kinda Studios) chart the journey of their new book The Uncertainty Toolkit.
From a kitchen COVID project to the world’s first interactive documentary, The Uncertainty Experts, funded by Netflix, scientifically proven to change people’s uncertainty tolerance (with an immersive neuroaesthetic soundtrack by Morcheeba) and finally turned into a book, Sam Conniff and Katherine Templar Lewis discuss the journey of bringing together unforgettable stories of smugglers and gangsters with cutting edge neuroscience to create an multimedia experience like no other.
What started as a passion project has now become a fully-blown, evidence-based behaviour change framework perfect for experience designers, whether you’re looking to understand your own audiences or testing your approaches to creativity and business.
Looking to grow your work in 2026? Uncertain of how to approach that challenge? The Uncertainty Toolkit can help.
Come along to a thought-provoking and practical session to kick off Season 15 of WXO Campfires.

About The Uncertainty Toolkit:
What can an ex-gangland boss, a recovering addict and a refugee teach you about thriving in the face of uncertainty?
It’s the ‘Do you have five minutes?’ message from your boss. The ‘We need to chat’ from a loved one. Those spiralling thoughts at 3 a.m. and buzz of yet another breaking news alert. The potential coming waves of AI, climate change and unstable governments.
For most of us, uncertainty is paralysing. But learning to navigate it effectively means more confidence, less anxiety and deeper connection with others.
The Uncertainty Toolkit is a pioneering, evidence-based guide to doing just that. Drawing on the world’s most extensive study into ‘uncertainty tolerance’, led with professors from University College London, it explains the science behind how we cope with the unknown. This research is combined with the radical expertise of an unlikely group of experts – former addicts, hostages, gangland bosses and prisoners – who’ve turned their experience of extreme uncertainty into major mainstream success.
The result is a detailed, practical blueprint that will help anyone turn unpredictability into personal and professional growth.

About Sam Conniff:
Sam Coniff is the author of the international bestseller and ‘modern life-bible’ Be More Pirate, and the writer and co-presenter of Uncertainty Experts. He was the Co-Founder of multi-award-winning social enterprise Livity, pan-African youth empowerment program Digify, and Bafta-winning content studio, Don’t Panic. Sam has won Entrepreneur of the Year, Agency of the Year, The Queens Award and turned down an MBE in 2020.

About Katherine Templar Lewis
Katherine Templar Lewis is a cognitive scientist, neuroscience consultant and science communicator. Co-presenter and lead scientist on The Uncertainty Experts and Audible Originals podcast Beyond Five Senses, she often appears as an expert and contributor across media outputs, including Sky, BBC, NBC, The TODAY show, Radio 4, VICE and the HuffPost. She is co-founder of women-led Kinda Studios and Lab, which translates neuroscience into design to drive wellbeing.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Why Escape Rooms Are More Than You Realize (And How Everyone Needs To Learn From Them)
2026-01-07 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Escape rooms have come a long way from the days of being locked in a room filled with padlocks and riddles.
So says David Spira, co-founder of RoomEscapeArtist.com and the escape room industry’s most prolific voice.
These live action, site-specific adventures are defying genres by cross pollinating with immersive theater, haunts, board games, and video games.
Join David for an exploration of the breadth and depth of escape rooms and a breakdown of the core lessons that creators across the immersive arts are ignoring at their own peril.
Who should attend

Experience creators and designers
Experience business owners
Aspiring business owners in the immersive industry

What you’ll learn

The lay of the land of the global escape room market
An understanding of the underlying business models of escape rooms
Exploration of the difference between art and product design
Tips for how to suck less as an immersive creator!

About David Spira
David is the co-founder of RoomEscapeArtist.com and the escape room industry’s most prolific voice. For over a decade, he has been shaping the immersive games ecosystem through his writing, event production, and podcasting.
He co-hosts the Reality Escape Pod and leads the Reality Escape Convention, a gathering for immersive creators. David’s work spans humanitarian design for the UN, to puzzle-led branding campaigns for tech companies, and designing educational escape rooms.
Known for his clarity of thinking and his deep respect for both creators and players, David brings expertise in the psychology, business, and mechanics of real-world games.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

How Experience Design Can Transform Corporate Events (Early)
2026-01-14 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
Most corporate events consist of endless PowerPoint slides and business strategy that gets forgotten the minute the attendees remove their lanyards.
So what if we added experience design into the mix?
Projectory turns corporate events into interactive, strategy-internalizing, and smile-inducing fun experiences. By staying mostly analog, we help people get their heads out of their phones and into conversations with their peers.
Through in session facilitated sessions using individually controlled helium balloon devices (?!) to magic word spewing Venting Machine fridge-magnet-poetry gone wild, Projectory fosters the rarely seen at corporate events: Genuine Smiles.
This Campfire session is all about what happens when you combine distinctive expertise from three very different co-founders with a shared passion for experience design. It’s about how real magic is technology agnostic. And it’s about how corporate strategy doesn’t have to be mind numbingly boring.
Who should attend:

Corporate Event Planners
Heads of HR, People, or Culture
Strategy and Innovation Leaders
Learning and Development Teams
Experience Designers and Creative Producers
Corporate Communications Teams
Executives running Offsites or Retreats

What you’ll learn:

Why analog-first experiences unlock deeper engagement
How Projectory turns corporate strategy into something people actually feel
The surprising power of playful tools like helium devices and “Venting Machines”
What happens when three distinct disciplines collide around experience design

About Paddy Harrington:
Paddy is a design innovator and storyteller who helps organizations discover and express their core purpose and long-term ambition. He is the founder of Frontier, a Design Office that collaborates with clients to creates strategic stories, brand strategy and identity, and physical and digital experiences.
Paddy is also co-founder of Projectory, a live event engagement company. He is also a member of WXO, a global network of experience leaders and practitioners who shape the future of human experience.
With nearly 20 years of experience in the design field and degrees in literature and architecture, Paddy has worked with diverse and influential clients, like PepsiCo, Unilever, the Sacramento Kings, and the Holy City of Mecca.
He is design and brand strategist, an award-winning writer and filmmaker, and has spoken at Harvard, Brown, and the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He is passionate about creating strategic stories that inspire, guide, and empower businesses, people, and the planet to thrive.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

How Experience Design Can Transform Corporate Events (Late)
2026-01-14 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Most corporate events consist of endless PowerPoint slides and business strategy that gets forgotten the minute the attendees remove their lanyards.
So what if we added experience design into the mix?
Projectory turns corporate events into interactive, strategy-internalizing, and smile-inducing fun experiences. By staying mostly analog, we help people get their heads out of their phones and into conversations with their peers.
Through in session facilitated sessions using individually controlled helium balloon devices (?!) to magic word spewing Venting Machine fridge-magnet-poetry gone wild, Projectory fosters the rarely seen at corporate events: Genuine Smiles.
This Campfire session is all about what happens when you combine distinctive expertise from three very different co-founders with a shared passion for experience design. It’s about how real magic is technology agnostic. And it’s about how corporate strategy doesn’t have to be mind numbingly boring.
Who should attend:

Corporate Event Planners
Heads of HR, People, or Culture
Strategy and Innovation Leaders
Learning and Development Teams
Experience Designers and Creative Producers
Corporate Communications Teams
Executives running Offsites or Retreats

What you’ll learn:

Why analog-first experiences unlock deeper engagement
How Projectory turns corporate strategy into something people actually feel
The surprising power of playful tools like helium devices and “Venting Machines”
What happens when three distinct disciplines collide around experience design

About Paddy Harrington:
Paddy is a design innovator and storyteller who helps organizations discover and express their core purpose and long-term ambition. He is the founder of Frontier, a Design Office that collaborates with clients to creates strategic stories, brand strategy and identity, and physical and digital experiences.
Paddy is also co-founder of Projectory, a live event engagement company. He is also a member of WXO, a global network of experience leaders and practitioners who shape the future of human experience.
With nearly 20 years of experience in the design field and degrees in literature and architecture, Paddy has worked with diverse and influential clients, like PepsiCo, Unilever, the Sacramento Kings, and the Holy City of Mecca.
He is design and brand strategist, an award-winning writer and filmmaker, and has spoken at Harvard, Brown, and the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He is passionate about creating strategic stories that inspire, guide, and empower businesses, people, and the planet to thrive.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Magic Memory: The Art of Memory as Experience Design
2026-01-21 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
For millennia, people used the art of memory to remember what mattered.
During the Renaissance, it converged with the Hermetic tradition, an esoteric knowledge stream that braided memory with ritual practice, natural magic, astrology and alchemy, forming what is known as Magic Memory.
This session shows how we can translate principles of Magic Memory into a contemporary method of designing experiences that stay with audiences.
On this Campfire, London-based creative producer, strategist and storyteller Victor Lander will unpack the core techniques of Magic Memory, reveal how they work and understand how they can be used in experiences nowadays.
Who should attend:

Experience designers
Experience strategists
Spatial designers
Architects

What you’ll learn:

Nine techniques from Ancient Greece to Renaissance
Their adaptation into modern methods
Examples of contemporary applications of these methods from around the world
A design toolkit for memorable experiences

About Victor Lander:
Victor Lander is a London-based creative producer, strategist and storyteller with focus on all things immersive.
Researcher into creativity, narratives and memory structures, he is the founder of Secret Society, a visionary circle of creatives, and Landerlander, a family partnership specialising in cultural placemaking and destination marketing.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Magic Moments: How to Intentionally Engineer Transformative Experiences
2026-01-21 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Every magic moment, every deeply positive experience, has psychological roots.

In this WXO Campfire, we explore how extraordinary experiences don’t happen by accident – they are intentionally designed.
Drawing from decades of expertise in Disney Imagineering and global UX leadership, authors Joe Lanzisero and Johannes Robier reveal how extraordinary moments can be crafted with intention and how anyone can apply these methods to business, leadership, customer relationships, and everyday life.
Grounded in scientifically proven research from psychology, behavioral science, and experience design, this session introduces the Magineering Framework, which brings all these insights together into one practical model.
You’ll discover the essential elements and dimensions to include in your stories, products, and experiences to intentionally create extraordinary, transformative moments with lasting emotional impact.
What you’ll learn:

Foundations to know before designing for a positive experience
The 5 Dimensions of Enthusiasm, a framework that helps you break down the complexity of human experience into practical levers you can use.
The 5 Experience Boosters, simple yet powerful tools to elevate ordinary interactions into extraordinary memories.

About Magic Moments:
Magic Moments: How to Intentionally Engineer Transformative Experiences is a groundbreaking book that blends storytelling, science, and strategy to show how unforgettable experiences can be designed – not left to chance.
Drawing from decades of expertise in Disney Imagineering and global UX leadership, authors Joe Lanzisero and Johannes Robier reveal how extraordinary moments are crafted with intention and how anyone can apply these methods to business, leadership, customer relationships, and everyday life.
Through a unique “two-sided” approach – magical narratives on one side, practical frameworks on the other – Magic Moments gives you the tools to transform ordinary days into memories that last a lifetime.

About Joe Lanzisero:
• 37 years at Walt Disney
• Started at Walt Disney Animation
• Grew to SVP of Walt Disney Imagineering
Joe’s creative career can simply be described as magical spectacular journey with 37 years at Disney, Joe began as an animator and worked his way up to the top of Imagineering. He’s served as creative lead on over $9B in marquis projects to date but more importantly his work inspires and brings joy to generations of guests around the globe.
Joe played a key role in bringing projects like Mickey’s Toontown, Toy Story Land, and Mystic Manor to life. Now retired, Joe continues his storytelling journey with Magic Moments and his new children’s book, Lemonade the Yellow Bear.

About Johannes Robier:
• Founder & CEO of youspi Consulting
• Organizer of the World Usability Congress
• 20+ years in UX/CX strategy & design
Johannes’s career is defined by his passion for human-centered design and innovation. As Founder of youspi Consulting and Organizer of the World Usability Congress, he’s spent over two decades helping global brands bridge creativity, business, and technology.
Johannes’s work unites leaders, designers, and thinkers to build more meaningful, inclusive experiences. Together with Joe Lanzisero, he co-authored Magic Moments, celebrating the power of empathy, creativity, and collaboration in shaping a better world.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Collaboration Campfire #1 (Jan 2026)
2026-02-04 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
Introducing WXO Collaboration Campfires

A confidential, member-led clinic to workshop live projects and share practical advice. Bring a challenge, leave with practical next steps.
Alongside toolkits, frameworks and case studies from the Experience Economy’s brightest minds, WXO Campfires are also valued for the quality of the attendees as much as the guest voices. Practitioners who are generous with their thinking and direct with their advice.
A community of creators coming together, sharing the air about their current projects before taking practical insights and inspiration from that week’s sessions away to solve the challenges they’re facing right now
We hear of so many collaborations born from our Campfires. Attendees going from a scribbled note in a breakout discussion to a post-Campfire partnership that simply would not have happened without that Campfire.
And so to Collaboration Campfires.
This week’s early Campfire session is a test of a brand-new format.
Think of it as a practical working session, led by attendees rather than guest speakers. The aim is simple: help each other move current projects forward.

How it works:
• No special guests – the expertise is in the room.
• Bring one challenge from a live project. Keep it specific: what you’re doing, what’s stuck, and the kind of help you’re asking for (ideas, references, critiques, introductions, etc.).
• Simply share your challenge and exactly what help you need.
• No deck required. A clear brief is enough.
• This is time-boxed, chaired discussion. Each challenge gets the time it needs, up to 15 minutes.
• We’ll go round the group until we reach the end of the list or the 90-minute limit.
• No challenge this week? Come anyway – the session only works if people bring their experience, judgement and candour. We’d love you to come along and contribute your expertise.

A note on confidentiality: Because we’ll be discussing live work that may need to stay behind closed doors, recordings will be shared only with attendees, not released to the wider WXO community.

That’s it. This is a pilot. If it works, we’ll make it a regular feature (without over-engineering it). If it doesn’t, we’ll revert to the standard Campfire format. Either way, we’d like to test it properly – by getting the right mix of challenges and contributors in the room.

We hope to see you there.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

The Future of Storytelling: How Immersive Experiences Are Transforming Our World
2026-02-04 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Storytelling is currently undergoing a radical revolution, from narratives that are passively consumed to stories that you live.
It’s a shift that is already revolutionizing entertainment, communication, marketing, and more.
How can creators adapt to this change? Join Charles Melcher, founder of The Future of Storytelling and author of a new book with the same title, as he explores the key qualities of these “living stories” and explains how they can be used create more immersive, memorable, and transformative experiences.

Who should attend:
• Storytellers of all stripes
• Creative directors
• Producers
• Experience designers
• Marketers & communicators across industries
In this session, you’ll learn:
• How “the people formerly known as the audience” are evolving into an “actience” of co-creators, and why it matters
• A framework for understanding the six qualities that elevate an experience to a “living story”
• Practical pointers on how to tap into these qualities in your work, derived from the most successful examples to date
• How creating living stories has the potential to change the actience’s lives – and our world – for the better”

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:

Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

The Story Gap: Why Brilliant Experiences Fall Short and How to Fix Them (Early)
2026-02-11 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
Have you ever gone through a beautifully built experience—technically impressive and to all appearances flawlessly executed—that left you feeling nothing?
Drawing upon her experience pioneering narrative for global teams and experiences, writer and experience director Emma Oliver introduces a practical diagnostic tool to uncover why brilliant experiences fall short and how to fix them.
Designed for use across themed entertainment, live experiences, museums, and branded environments, her guide helps identify gaps between what an experience promises and delivers, arming creative stakeholders with narrative systems to close these gaps and create experiences not only immersive, but emotionally resonant, aligned, and repeatable.
Who should attend:

Creative Directors
Producers
Experience Designers
Marketing Strategists
Investors

What you’ll learn:

A diagnostic tool to identify story gaps undermining guest impact
Example narrative systems to help strengthen guest emotional engagement
Practical guidance for using story as a cost-effective design lever

About Emma Oliver:
Emma Oliver is a writer and director working at the intersection of story, space, and human experience. She creates narrative-driven entertainment designed to spark emotion, meaning, and memory—experiences that stay with audiences long after the lights go down.
With deep roots in themed entertainment and live experiences, Emma knows narrative is the system that makes moments unforgettable.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

The Story Gap: Why Brilliant Experiences Fall Short and How to Fix Them (Late)
2026-02-11 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Have you ever gone through a beautifully built experience—technically impressive and to all appearances flawlessly executed—that left you feeling nothing?
Drawing upon her experience pioneering narrative for global teams and experiences, writer and experience director Emma Oliver introduces a practical diagnostic tool to uncover why brilliant experiences fall short and how to fix them.
Designed for use across themed entertainment, live experiences, museums, and branded environments, her guide helps identify gaps between what an experience promises and delivers, arming creative stakeholders with narrative systems to close these gaps and create experiences not only immersive, but emotionally resonant, aligned, and repeatable.
Who should attend:

Creative Directors
Producers
Experience Designers
Marketing Strategists
Investors

What you’ll learn:

A diagnostic tool to identify story gaps undermining guest impact
Example narrative systems to help strengthen guest emotional engagement
Practical guidance for using story as a cost-effective design lever

About Emma Oliver:
Emma Oliver is a writer and director working at the intersection of story, space, and human experience. She creates narrative-driven entertainment designed to spark emotion, meaning, and memory—experiences that stay with audiences long after the lights go down.
With deep roots in themed entertainment and live experiences, Emma knows narrative is the system that makes moments unforgettable.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Behind the Mask: The Experience Strategy Behind a €260M Exit (Early)
2026-02-18 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
What makes a drinks brand go from “nice bottle on the back bar” to the name everyone is talking about?
Events designer, PR consultant and freelance journalist Patrick McAleenan spent 12 years doing exactly that with Don Papa Rum, building and leading the brand’s global events vision, turning its ‘Sugarlandia’ platform into a living, breathing universe.
From the create-your-own Mask Parties in 20+ markets to Dinner of the Dons and Paths to Sugarlandia, Patrick’s concepts became must attend moments on the global drinks calendar, helping transform a niche Filipino rum into a €260 million success story and a benchmark for how powerful experiential work can be when it’s done with story, daring and consistency.
Who should attend:

Experiential and events leads/designers
Brand and creative strategists
Storytellers
Anyone designing drinks experiences

What you’ll learn:

How bold experiential bets can pay off
The childhood creativity that inspired a global hit
Unlocking the magic of a singular brand platform
Untapped opportunities in the global drinks industry

About Patrick McAleenan
Patrick is an events designer, PR consultant and freelance journalist. He has spent more than 20 years helping brands and founders find their voice and claim space in the cultural and media conversation.
Through his consultancy, Jaw Dropping Ltd, Patrick blends events, PR and storytelling for drinks, luxury, fashion and culture brands while contributing regularly to national publications including The Times and The Telegraph.
Patrick is also Head of PR for the World Experience Organization.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Behind the Mask: The Experience Strategy Behind a €260M Exit (Late)
2026-02-18 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
What makes a drinks brand go from “nice bottle on the back bar” to the name everyone is talking about?
Events designer, PR consultant and freelance journalist Patrick McAleenan spent 12 years doing exactly that with Don Papa Rum, building and leading the brand’s global events vision, turning its ‘Sugarlandia’ platform into a living, breathing universe.
From the create-your-own Mask Parties in 20+ markets to Dinner of the Dons and Paths to Sugarlandia, Patrick’s concepts became must attend moments on the global drinks calendar, helping transform a niche Filipino rum into a €260 million success story and a benchmark for how powerful experiential work can be when it’s done with story, daring and consistency.
Who should attend:

Experiential and events leads/designers
Brand and creative strategists
Storytellers
Anyone designing drinks experiences

What you’ll learn:

How bold experiential bets can pay off
The childhood creativity that inspired a global hit
Unlocking the magic of a singular brand platform
Untapped opportunities in the global drinks industry

About Patrick McAleenan
Patrick is an events designer, PR consultant and freelance journalist. He has spent more than 20 years helping brands and founders find their voice and claim space in the cultural and media conversation.
Through his consultancy, Jaw Dropping Ltd, Patrick blends events, PR and storytelling for drinks, luxury, fashion and culture brands while contributing regularly to national publications including The Times and The Telegraph.
Patrick is also Head of PR for the World Experience Organization.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

How to Pitch (Almost) Anything: Worldbuilding, Stakeholders, Audiences – and Everything Between (Early)
2026-02-25 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
Your concept is solid. So why isn’t it landing?
Kendra Valentine is a Story Strategist whose work lives between business and story: development, creative briefs, and translating brand into story that connects.
Her book How to Pitch (Almost) Anything (Pearson Business) introduces Strategic Story Design, Kendra’s methodology for helping stakeholders find their story and tell it clearly, whether you’re building a story world, pitching it to stakeholders, or reaching audiences.
Experience creators and entrepreneurs pitch constantly: to clients, to teams, to guests, even to yourself to test if an idea is solid.
She’ll share three tools: the brand one-pager uncovers what your world or brand authentically stands for, the Pocket Pitch explains any concept clearly in any situation, and the H.E.L.P. checklist works on everything from scripts and creative briefs to guest-facing content.

Who should attend:

Experience creators, designers, and storytellers
Brand and creative strategists
Entrepreneurs and product or service businesses
Creative and story development teams at studios, agencies, and entertainment companies
Creators and teams working with established IP or original worlds
Institutions, nonprofits, and organizations with a story worth telling
Anyone with something valuable to communicate

What you’ll learn:

How to distill any concept, company, product, or service into two sentences stakeholders or audiences actually understand
A one-page strategic tool that translates brand values into creative direction and aligns teams without lengthy back-and-forth
A four-point quality check for any communication, from scripts and creative briefs to guest-facing content
Why worldbuilding and pitching start in the same place, and the tools that serve both

About Kendra Valentine
Kendra Valentine is a Story Strategist who helps businesses, brands, and creative projects communicate their value clearly by translating complex ideas into authentic stories that resonate.
Her book How to Pitch (Almost) Anything (Pearson Business, 2025) introduces Strategic Story Design, the methodology behind her work across film and TV production (Warner Bros., Universal, Nickelodeon), theme park story development, brand strategy, and startup consulting. Clients have included Electrolux, EU institutions, and Techstars.
An American based in Berlin, she works internationally across industries and cultures. When she’s not working, she’s probably deep in research at the world’s latest immersive experience or food concept. Someone has to do it.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

How to Pitch (Almost) Anything: Worldbuilding, Stakeholders, Audiences – and Everything Between (Late)
2026-02-25 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Your concept is solid. So why isn’t it landing?
Kendra Valentine is a Story Strategist whose work lives between business and story: development, creative briefs, and translating brand into story that connects.
Her book How to Pitch (Almost) Anything (Pearson Business) introduces Strategic Story Design, Kendra’s methodology for helping stakeholders find their story and tell it clearly, whether you’re building a story world, pitching it to stakeholders, or reaching audiences.
Experience creators and entrepreneurs pitch constantly: to clients, to teams, to guests, even to yourself to test if an idea is solid.
She’ll share three tools: the brand one-pager uncovers what your world or brand authentically stands for, the Pocket Pitch explains any concept clearly in any situation, and the H.E.L.P. checklist works on everything from scripts and creative briefs to guest-facing content.

Who should attend:

Experience creators, designers, and storytellers
Brand and creative strategists
Entrepreneurs and product or service businesses
Creative and story development teams at studios, agencies, and entertainment companies
Creators and teams working with established IP or original worlds
Institutions, nonprofits, and organizations with a story worth telling
Anyone with something valuable to communicate

What you’ll learn:

How to distill any concept, company, product, or service into two sentences stakeholders or audiences actually understand
A one-page strategic tool that translates brand values into creative direction and aligns teams without lengthy back-and-forth
A four-point quality check for any communication, from scripts and creative briefs to guest-facing content
Why worldbuilding and pitching start in the same place, and the tools that serve both

About Kendra Valentine
Kendra Valentine is a Story Strategist who helps businesses, brands, and creative projects communicate their value clearly by translating complex ideas into authentic stories that resonate.
Her book How to Pitch (Almost) Anything (Pearson Business, 2025) introduces Strategic Story Design, the methodology behind her work across film and TV production (Warner Bros., Universal, Nickelodeon), theme park story development, brand strategy, and startup consulting. Clients have included Electrolux, EU institutions, and Techstars.
An American based in Berlin, she works internationally across industries and cultures. When she’s not working, she’s probably deep in research at the world’s latest immersive experience or food concept. Someone has to do it.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Making Memorable Measurable: A Practical Toolkit for Understanding Emotional Moments (Early)
2026-03-04 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
In the Experience Economy, we talk about creating…
🧠 “Memorable moments”
🤯 “Unforgettable experiences”
😍 “Making people feel something”
We know that the emotions we make people feel can drive memory. And memory drives future behaviour.
And that translates into repeat visits, recommendations, secondary spend, brand loyalty… Right?
Not necessarily so.
Simplified metrics and scoring systems can often flatten rich experiences into headline numbers, ultimately having a negative impact on what we design.
Enter Joe Timson, founder of CAVEA. After a career spent helping big brands and media companies understand their audiences and de-risk creative/investment decisions with data, Joe founded Cavea to address a clear problem:
😩 Live experiences are really hard to measure.
This week’s Campfire sessions take on that challenge. Joe will explore how human memory evolved… around emotion, narrative and a sense of place… and why that matters commercially.
He will then introduce Cavea’s approach to making memorable truly measurable: a practical toolkit for understanding emotional moments, arcs and spaces without reducing experience to a single score.
You’ll leave with an understanding of what actually drives value, helping you unforgettable experiences for your attendees and unstoppable growth for your business.

Who should attend:

Experience creators
Designers
Producers
Strategists

What you’ll learn:

How simplified scoring systems abstract reality and make us do the wrong thing
How human memory has evolved and the role of emotion, narrative and a sense of place
Cavea’s approach to Making Memorable Measureable

About Joe Timson
After a career spent helping big brands and media companies understand their audiences and de-risk creative/investment decisions with data, Joe founded Cavea to address a clear problem:
Live experiences are really hard to measure.
As media fragments and the experience economy becomes increasingly central to people’s lives, that lack of measurability throttles investment and encourages short-term thinking—often resulting in a worse experience for guests.
Cavea helps experience creators measure what actually drives value, so they can deliver unforgettable experiences for guests and unstoppable growth for their business.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Making Memorable Measurable: A Practical Toolkit for Understanding Emotional Moments (Late)
2026-03-04 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
In the Experience Economy, we talk about creating…
🧠 “Memorable moments”
🤯 “Unforgettable experiences”
😍 “Making people feel something”
We know that the emotions we make people feel can drive memory. And memory drives future behaviour.
And that translates into repeat visits, recommendations, secondary spend, brand loyalty… Right?
Not necessarily so.
Simplified metrics and scoring systems can often flatten rich experiences into headline numbers, ultimately having a negative impact on what we design.
Enter Joe Timson, founder of CAVEA. After a career spent helping big brands and media companies understand their audiences and de-risk creative/investment decisions with data, Joe founded Cavea to address a clear problem:
😩 Live experiences are really hard to measure.
This week’s Campfire sessions take on that challenge. Joe will explore how human memory evolved… around emotion, narrative and a sense of place… and why that matters commercially.
He will then introduce Cavea’s approach to making memorable truly measurable: a practical toolkit for understanding emotional moments, arcs and spaces without reducing experience to a single score.
You’ll leave with an understanding of what actually drives value, helping you unforgettable experiences for your attendees and unstoppable growth for your business.

Who should attend:

Experience creators
Designers
Producers
Strategists

What you’ll learn:

How simplified scoring systems abstract reality and make us do the wrong thing
How human memory has evolved and the role of emotion, narrative and a sense of place
Cavea’s approach to Making Memorable Measureable

About Joe Timson
After a career spent helping big brands and media companies understand their audiences and de-risk creative/investment decisions with data, Joe founded Cavea to address a clear problem:
Live experiences are really hard to measure.
As media fragments and the experience economy becomes increasingly central to people’s lives, that lack of measurability throttles investment and encourages short-term thinking—often resulting in a worse experience for guests.
Cavea helps experience creators measure what actually drives value, so they can deliver unforgettable experiences for guests and unstoppable growth for their business.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Inside Shiva Immersive: How the First Immersive Show on Indian Mythology Came to Life
2026-03-11 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
What makes an experience linger in memory long after the lights fade?

At this WXO Campfire, we unpack SHIVA – a 20,000 sq ft multisensory, 360-degree immersive environment that blends projection architecture, spatial sound, atmospheric effects and VR into a spiritually charged narrative journey.More than spectacle, it was designed as scalable cultural infrastructure – commercially operational, modular and export-ready.

This session explores how myth, technology and audience psychology converge to create strong emotional impact, and why the future of immersive storytelling lies not in scale alone, but in what stays with you once you step outside the door.

And above all, this is a story of collaboration, belief, and courage – of how conviction and faith can transcend international boundaries, unite diverse minds, and bring people together to create something that may not be culturally central to both, yet profoundly meaningful to one.

What you’ll learn:

How to design immersive experiences that create lasting emotional residue
How to merge cultural depth with cutting-edge technology seamlessly
How to structure scalable, commercially viable immersive IP
Practical frameworks to elevate your own large-format experience design

Who should attend:

Immersive creators & experience designers
Festival programmers & venue operators
Brand leaders building large-format experiential IP
Producers seeking location-based entertainment projects
Cultural and Heritage Enthusiasts
Production Partners for Global Expansion
Anyone shaping experiences that aim to move people, not just impress them

About Samit Garg:
Samit Garg is the Managing Director & Co-Founder of E-Factor Experiences Ltd, a global experiential firm known for crafting transformative, large-scale environments.
A pioneer in organizing India’s luxury events sector, he has helped shape it into a structured creative industry.He is the creator of distinctive IPs including Shiva Immersive, The Bridal Retreat, ICWF (International Congress For Wedding Futures), and I AM GAME, each reimagining culture, celebration, and sport through immersive design.
As President of EEMA and a member of the World Experience Organization, Samit champions sustainable heritage tourism and living cultural ecosystems that transform static spaces into dynamic experiential marketplaces.

About Ludovica Arci:
Ludovica Arci is the Co-Founder of SARAVÁ Immersive Content Studio, an award-winning creative and production studio developing cinematic heritage immersive exhibitions and large-scale cultural experiences presented internationally.
With a career at the forefront of global experiences, she has led landmark projects for Milan Design Week, Fashion Week, Art Basel, NFT Paris, Asia Now, and the 36th America’s Cup, where she directed Branding and Experiential Marketing.
She previously led the Strategy & Experiential division for the leading Luxury agency Karla Otto and collaborates with CEOs and Creative Directors of leading global brands including Bottega Veneta, Moncler, BMW, Maserati, Sky, Belmond, shaping culture-defining experiences at the intersection of storytelling, technology, and cultural events.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

Designing Anticipation: The Hidden Half of Experience Design
2026-03-11 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Most experience designers focus on what happens during the experience itself. But neuroscience and tourism research suggest that the emotional journey actually begins long before arrival.
In this Campfire, Joseph Franklyn McElroy (Galileo Tech Media) will explore how anticipation shapes memory, meaning, and loyalty – and how experience creators can intentionally design the before phase of an experience.
Drawing from research on Memorable Tourism Experiences (MTEs), destination marketing frameworks, and real-world experiments from my hospitality and tourism work, he will look at how storytelling, sensory cues, and digital discovery influence how guests imagine an experience before it happens.
Jospeh will also discuss how emerging AI-enabled operational systems — what he’s been experimenting with as a Sovereign Operational System — can help organizations listen to anticipation signals and adapt experiences in more responsive ways, while keeping the human story at the center.
Participants will leave with practical ideas for designing pre-arrival touchpoints that deepen engagement, strengthen loyalty, and make experiences more memorable.

——–
About Joseph Franklyn McElroy:
Joseph is a hospitality innovator, marketer, and storyteller whose career bridges data, tech, psychology, and art. As founder of Galileo Tech Media and owner of the Meadowlark Motel in the Great Smoky Mountains, he studies how anticipation shapes memorable experiences and deepens brand loyalty.
Joseph’s “Experience Architecture” framework combines SEO strategy, behavioral insight, and narrative design to help organizations craft journeys people revisit, re-buy, and retell. He speaks on how marketing, done consciously, can make memory itself the ultimate ROI.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Inspiration to Innovation: How China's Immersive Entertainment is Finding Its Own Voice
2026-03-18 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
Ever wondered how the world’s largest consumer market is reinventing immersive entertainment?
Starting her career in LA and working across Disney, AI companies, and her own studio in China, Changting Lu has witnessed an evolution few international creators understand.
From martial arts theme parks drawing millions visitors to AI companies building theatrical experiences, China isn’t following Western models – it’s writing entirely new rules.
Join us for insights on three game-changing trends, cautionary tales of cross-cultural collaborations, and why “foreign monks chant better” no longer holds true in China’s maturing immersive landscape.

Who should attend:

Anyone interested in Immersive Entertainment in China
Creative directors & producers seeking international collaboration opportunities
Immersive experience creators looking to understand or enter the Chinese market

What you’ll learn:

How China’s immersive market evolved from copying the Sleep No More model to creating entirely new formats — and what this means for international creators
Three breakthrough trends: heritage-at-scale, virtual-to-physical IPs, and bold tech adoption reshaping the industry
Why some international collaborations thrive while others spectacularly fail — through real case studies including a $100M+ project that closed in 6 months
The new rules for cross-cultural creative partnerships

About Changting Lu
As creative director and producer, Changting creates immersive worlds across media.
She was the creative director for Three Body Problem: Beyond Gravity, an experience that brings guests into the world of Three Body Problem with performance, interactive media and AI.
Her career began at Walt Disney Imagineering, where she was a bilingual show writer on Zootopia at Shanghai Disneyland.
Changting holds a B.Mgmt from Tsinghua University and an MFA in Creative Producing from California Institute of the Arts. In 2025 she founded Get Dreams Done Co., a Shanghai-based multidisciplinary design and production company that imagines transcendent worlds and build them into reality.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

How to Make Your Event More Accessible
2026-03-18 17:55 - 19:30 | Zoom
Are you designing experiences that truly include everyone or unintentionally leaving audiences behind?
Join Christopher Morrison for a powerful online session that redefines what accessibility can (and should) look like in live and digital events. From the most accessible metaverse musical ever built to a paradigm-shifting new way of thinking about storytelling, this session will equip you with both practical tools and big-picture perspective.
You’ll discover:
✅ The bare minimum every event should offer for accessibility + how to go far beyond it
✅ A case study of Vita Nova: building the most inclusive digital experience on the web
✅ A rundown of tools to make live and digital events truly accessible
Who should attend?
🎟️ Experience designers & producers
🎟️ Marketers & brand leads
🎟️ Accessibility advocates
🎟️ Anyone committed to designing work that reaches everyone it should
Featuring:
🎤 Christopher Morrison – award-winning narrative designer (Cirque du Soleil, AAA games, Vita Nova), digital storytelling advocate, and recent UK Parliament speaker
Don’t miss this chance to expand your understanding of what access really means, and how to design for it with intention and imagination.
Note: This is an updated repeat of the July 2025 session that Christopher unfortunately was not able to make. Come along for new insights on this essential topic!
This later Campfire is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25

Kinetic Power: Turning Motion Into Storytelling
2026-03-25 09:55 - 11:30 | Zoom
How do kinetic installations and immersive experiences create such lasting impressions?
Matteo Mosca, Leva’s CEO, explores how kinetic movement goes beyond decoration to become a powerful storytelling tool.
Drawing from projects ranging from exclusive Experience Briefing Centers to spectacular theme parks, he shows how physical motion can appeal to both reason and emotion.
The real impact?
Genuine participation: these installations invite people to explore and engage, disrupting passive observation and awakening curiosity. Join us for a journey inside what truly makes experiences memorable, in a world of constant distraction.
What you’ll learn:

What Matteo learned from 10+ years of creative engineering
All about kinetic technology as a language
Why you should stop selling and start storytelling
Takeaways for making spaces & experiences memorable

Who should attend?

Experience Briefing Center Managers & Program Leaders
Experience Designers
Strategy & Creative directors
Anyone shaping experiences that move people

About Matteo Mosca (he/him):
Matteo is a founder and media engineer obsessed with creative technologies, design and communication – and how they all work together to foster human connections.
As CEO of Leva, he leads an extraordinary team of explorers crafting kinetic and immersive experiences that blend mechanical movement, motion content and spatial storytelling – designed in Italy and deployed worldwide.
This unique blend of creativity, engineering and storytelling has earned the trust of global brands such as Aramco, Cartier, Puy du Fou, Seat and more.
Matteo’s focus is on building solid company foundations while leading business development, financial strategy, team growth, and marketing.

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #1 is suitable for those in the APAC region or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 9:55 – 11:25 (BST)
Paris: 10:55 – 12:25 (CEST)
Dubai: 12:55 – 14:25 (GST)
Mumbai: 14:25 – 15:55 (IST)
Shanghai / Singapore: 16:55 – 18:25 (CST/SGT)
Tokyo: 17:55 – 19:25 (JST)
Sydney: 18:55 – 20:25 (AEST)
Auckland: 20:55 – 22:25 (NZST)

How to Diagnose What Your Experience Is Actually Built to Produce
2026-03-25 17:55 - 19:30
“Transformational” has become the most overused word in experience design.
Immersive art walks use it. Brand activations use it. Festival websites use it. Certification courses use it. And almost none of them mean the same thing by it, because almost none of them have a structural definition for what transformation actually requires.
After fifteen years producing TEDxNaperville, testing, observing, and rebuilding what actually changes people versus what simply impresses them, Arthur Zards (Lab Z) developed a diagnostic framework that helps experience designers see exactly where their architecture has gaps, and what to do about it.
In this Campfire, you’ll walk away with a tool you can apply to your current work immediately: to name what your experience is actually built to produce, spot where the design falls short of your claims, and identify the structural changes that close that gap.

Three Questions:

Think about an experience you’ve designed that you called transformational. Using the two axes, where does it actually land? What was the real success condition you were designing for?
What is one element of your current or upcoming project you could redesign to transfer meaning-authorship from the system to the participant?
When a client asks you to “create a transformational experience,” what are they actually asking for? And how does your answer change after today?

About Arthur Zards:
Arthur is an original Internet entrepreneur founding an Internet company before the web browser even existed. He wasn’t learning about digital marketing, branding, innovation, and development; he was creating it. He is a self-described TED fanatic and is the founder and executive director of TEDxNaperville.
Arthur founded Lab Z, an Innovation Experience Agency that focuses on a new approach to speaking and conference production. His speaker clients get standing ovations and his clients conferences transform into memorable and engaging experiences.
In his spare time he carves Tiki Moai, jumps off cliffs in his paraglider and grills a mean Picanha on his home-built 850 lb wood-fired grill.
His mantra is to “create an idea, get people excited, do it, repeat.”

How to watch this Campfire:

Campfires are available for WXO members only
To join the WXO, please head to our Application page
The WXO is a global home for the leaders, shapers and doers in the Experience Economy
As a member, you’ll get live access to Campfires like this one plus unlock an on demand library of over 100 Campfire recordings

Timings:
Campfire #2 is suitable for those in the US or Europe, but everyone is welcome! Here’s when we kick off in your time zone:

London: 17:55 – 19:25
Paris: 18:55 – 20:25
Los Angeles: 09:55 – 11:25
Santa Fe: 10:55 – 12:25
Chicago: 11:55 – 13:25
New York: 12:55 – 14:25
São Paulo, Santiago & Buenos Aires: 13:55 – 15:25
