Empire, alongside their trusted partners and vendors, created a mobile Illuminate Our Heroes experience at the doorstep of hospitals in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Yonkers, New Jersey, and Long Island, recognizing the many individuals serving at the frontlines of the COVID-19 response effort.

In honor of National Hospital Week, the tour was a means to deliver frontline workers a much-needed boost and a message of support from New York City’s live events, entertainment, and production community. The interactive 15 minute multimedia show thanked frontline workers for their dedication and sacrifice during this crisis, playing all-time favorites like, “Here Comes the Sun", and “New York, New York".

Upon special request, Empire arranged an intimate performance by America’s Got Talent Golden Buzzer & The Apollo Theater’s Grand Prize Winner, Christian Guardino, who delighted essential workers at Mather and Stony Brook University Hospitals with his renditions of “Rise Up” by Andra Day, “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel, and “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey.

“In a time when our live entertainment and event industries have been so deeply affected, we know that our ability to recover quickly and bounce back is largely thanks to the heroic efforts of frontline workers. Empire and our partners have come together to deploy our production capabilities to show our gratitude to the heroes that come together every day to protect us”, said Matt Stevenson, Empire’s SVP of Production.

Stops included St. Joseph’s Wayne Medical Center in Wayne, New Jersey; Bergen New Bridge Medical Center in Paramus, New Jersey; NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi in the Bronx; BronxCare Hospital Center in the Bronx; NYU Langone Sunset Park and University Hospital of Brooklyn; SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn; NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst in Queens; St. John’s Riverside Hospital in Yonkers; NYU Langone Health: Tisch Hospital; Kimmel Pavilion & Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital in Manhattan; NYU Winthrop in Long Island; Mather Hospital in Port Jefferson, Long Island; and Stony Brook University Hospital in Stony Brook, Long Island.

We couldn’t have been more moved by the spirit of our heroes throughout this experience. Thank you to everyone involved in making this possible, including a special thanks to our partners: AVS Production Group, 4Wall Entertainment, Aggreko, Boum Creative, AV Trucking, and BNW Rigging.

Empire is a leading producer of live experiences. We strive to deliver the same high production value, immersive and interactive qualities we are known for in live events to virtual audiences.

Please contact us for more information on Virtual or Socially Distant Events.

Empire secured comedian Patton Oswalt to host the Webbys From Home. With Covid-19 still keeping people at home, the Webbys decided not to call the event the 24^th Annual Webby Awards, but instead “Webbys From Home”. Patton opened the show with hilarious opening monologue video taped in his home garden, telling the at-home audience to get comfortable in the“black sweatpants you’ve been wearing for the past month” and to enjoy a nice glass of “pinot bleachio” during the show.

The Webbys From Home then continued in the tradition of the usual live show, with an incredible array of celebrities, luminaries, and web personalities taking turns honoring the best of the internet over the past year. Michelle Obama presented a Webby Special Achievement Award to D-Nice, and Demi Lovato presented one to Miley Cyrus. Comedian Judah Friedlander presented Tom Hanks with an Award for his work on #nicetweets, and everyone’s favorite doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, presented to Avi Schiffmann as the 2020 Webby Person of the Year for the Covid-19 tracking device and website the young man brought to the internet (over 600 million visitors so far!). Schiffmann honored the Webbys' tradition of sticking to a 5-word acceptance speech, stating, “You can learn anything online”. When Ellen Degeneres was honored for her "Heads Up” online video game she quipped “Wow, what a wonderful Webby Award!”.  Others who appeared on the show as presenters and winners included Trevor Noah, James Corden, FKA Twigs, John Krasinski, Jill Scott, and even Sesame Street’s lovable green icon, Oscar the Grouch.

As always, the Webbys also had several poignant moments along with the lighter ones, and honored several groups that they deemed“Covid-19 Heroes”, including Shopping Angels, Nextstrain.org, Invisible Hands, Black Fairy Godmother, and The Swab Squad. To see all of the above moments and more, visit https://webbysfromhome.com

Empire has been honored to produce the previous 15 live Webby Awards programs with appearances by Prince, Anna Wintour, David Bowie, Jerry Seinfeld, Ben Stiller, Lisa Kudrow, David Letterman, Sarah Silverman, Gillian Anderson, and dozens more, and to have contracted Patton Oswalt for this year’s special Webbys From Home presentation.

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Solve at MIT, the flagship meeting of MIT Solve, was hosted virtually this year. Nearly 800 Solve community members gathered on the virtual meeting platform, Hopin, to engage with each other and work to solve global Challenges using technology-based solutions. In the last three years, Solve and its partners have brokered commitments of over $25 million in funding for social entrepreneurs. At Virtual Solve at MIT 2020, they announced $1.7 million in prize funding available for 2020 Solver teams.

The closing plenary was livestreamed to the Solve website and drew thousands of viewers from around the world. The day-long event featured a performance by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, an exercise break led by Olympian Pita Taufatofua, and discussions with notable speakers including General Motors Chairman and CEO, Mary Barra; MIT President, L. Rafael Reif; and former Astronaut, Cady Coleman. In the virtual environment, guests attended a series of plenary and breakout sessions. Facilitated sessions and social entrepreneur expo booths allowed the community to share ideas on-camera, while the networking function of the site paired event attendees and Solver teams together for one-on-one discussions.

In the wake of COVID-19 shuttering campus, Empire worked with the Solve team to shift quickly from an in-person to wholly virtual event. Empire’s scope of work included consulting on run-of-show development, speaker advance, graphics package build-out, Hopin system buildout and testing, staff training, how-to video creation, technical production, broadcast, simulcast to multiple outlets, and the guest’s virtual experience.

Empire is a leading producer of virtual and digital events and we strive to deliver the same high production value and immersive and interactive qualities we are known for in live events to virtual audiences.

Please contact us for more information on Virtual Events and to request a copy of the Empire Virtual Events Guide.

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As part of the campaign showcase for the original Netflix anime “Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045,” the latest installment in the long-running Ghost in the Shell franchise, Shibuya 5G Entertainment Project and Empire co-produced the “Shibuya Ghost in the Shell Night by au 5G”.

Produced in response to social distancing measures, Tokyo’s famous Shibuya high streets were transformed into a futuristic entertainment showcase with mixed reality content, the “Virtual Shibuya”. The use of 5G and the latest cutting-edge technology connected the real Shibuya to a virtual space, combining the realms of the digital and real world. Visitors were able to walk around freely, visiting the stage and iconic Shibuya landmarks. “Shibuya Ghost in the Shell Night by au 5G” garnered over 50,000 viewers.

Viewers tuning into “Virtual Shibuya” with their own avatars using smartphones, PCs or VR devices, found a variety of online events held inside the virtual event space. Talk shows and performances included SEKAI NO OWARI’s DJ LOVE, virtual YouTuber and member of Nijisanji Ange Katrina, Chinatsu Wakatsuki of Future Design Shibuya, and Naohiro Ukawa of S/U/P/E/R DOMMUNE.

Empire’s scope of work included implementation planning, run-of-show direction, and the performers and staff briefing.

Empire is a leading producer of virtual and digital events. We strive to deliver the same high production value, immersive and interactive qualities we are known for in live events to virtual audiences. Please contact us for more information on Virtual Events and to request a copy of the Empire Virtual Events Guide.

Empire’s recently-launched Virtual Gallery has evolved into a truly groundbreaking platform. The high-tech collaboration is between Empire Artists and the augmented reality (AR) app PictPop. Featuring illustrator Chika Takei and artist Shinpei Kashihara, the experience challenges you to think beyond your senses with works that celebrate the particular style of these two contrasting artists. ​

The Empire-produced Virtual Platform 360° allows you to view art online as if you were walking through a real life gallery with the option to purchase works on the spot through e-commerce links.

Virtual Platform 360° is a versatile platform that can work with any event including product launches or virtual seminars. Check out the gallery here: https://empirearts.in3sixty.com/

With the help of Empire, The Clinton Foundation hosted the 12th annual Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) meeting. William Jefferson Clinton, Founder and Board Chair of the Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, and Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation, brought together leading voices in government, public health, and philanthropy to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic and how everyone can work together to overcome the complex health, economic, and social issues that it presents.

The CGI U meeting was initially slated to take place at the University of Edinburgh. In response to social distancing measures, the Clinton Foundation worked closely with Empire to swiftly transition to a virtual program that was publicly broadcasted to thousands of viewers worldwide.

Empire’s scope of work included run-of-show development, speaker advance, pre-recording sessions, technical production, broadcast, and the guest’s virtual experience.

The highly informative program consisted of opening and closing remarks by President Clinton and Chelsea Clinton, three panels, two one-on-one conversations, a town hall with President Clinton and Chelsea Clinton featuring questions from CGI U students, and virtual breakout sessions hosted on Zoom for CGI students and alumni to discuss their Commitments to Action and responses to the pandemic. Program highlights and notable speaker participants include the following:

• One-on-one conversations by President Clinton with California Governor Gavin Newsom and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on the response to the pandemic
  
• Two panels moderated by Chelsea Clinton featuring:

• Devi Sridhar – Professor & Chair of Global Public Health, University of Edinburgh Medical School
• Dr. Vivek Murthy – 19th U.S. Surgeon General
• Chen Kuan – Founder and CEO, Infervision
• Ophelia Dahl – Co-Founder, Partners in Health
• Jenny A. Durkan – Mayor of Seattle
• Dr. Syra Madad – Senior Director, System-wide Special Pathogens Program, NYC Health + Hospitals
• Dr. Paul Farmer – Co-Founder, Partners in Health
• Christelle Kwizera – Founder and Managing Director, Water Access Rwanda

• Karen Bass – U.S. Representative, State of CA, 37th Congressional District, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus
• Joaquin Castro – U.S. Representative, State of CA, 37th Congressional District, Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
  
• Ambassador Eric Goosby, M.D. – U.N. Special Envoy on Tuberculosis, Former U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator

Empire is a leading producer of virtual and digital events. We strive to deliver the same high production value, immersive and interactive qualities we are known for in live events to virtual audiences.

Please contact us for more information on Virtual Events and to request a copy of the Empire Virtual Events Guide.

A recording of the CGI U 2020 broadcast can be viewed here: https://events.clinton-foundation.org/cgiu2020/

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Empire was proud to help Dartmouth College host its first-ever virtual gathering of the President’s Leadership Council, Board of Trustees, and core community. The purpose of the event was to share how Dartmouth’s leadership, faculty, staff, and students are navigating the impacts of COVID-19, and to showcase how Dartmouth is holistically addressing this complex global challenge.

Working together, Empire and Dartmouth swiftly reimagined this previously scheduled in-person meeting as a highly-engaging, informative virtual event that would deliver high-caliber production value to over 100 participants in locations around the world.

Using a Zoom Webinar technology platform, the virtual event was managed by the Empire team from a secure control room designed with redundant network connections, master and backup computers for graphics and videos, and a production team that could direct the program similar to a live news broadcast. A broadcast switcher outputted the Zoom event and recording devices captured the content and speakers. Empire set up a separate communication line between the control room, production team, and presenters to create a direct line of communication for timing and cueing for all remote participants. In conjunction with Dartmouth, Empire provided Zoom credentials to delegates (presenters) and participants (guests) to enable secure log-in and to control access to the event.

Event highlights included a State of the College Report by Dartmouth College President, Philip Hanlon, an update on remote learning and innovations by Scott Pauls, Director of the Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning, and Douglas Van Citters, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education,Thayer School of Engineering. Elizabeth Smith, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, delivered remarks on undergraduate research in this new era, and Lee Coffin, Vice Provost for Enrollment & Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, provided updates on Dartmouth admissions.

A live, moderated Q&A session offered event participants the opportunity to submit questions through the Zoom platform which allowed each of the presenters to respond to them in real-time. Laurel Richie, Chair of Dartmouth’s Board of Trustees, provided closing comments and urged Dartmouth Alumnae to remain engaged with the Dartmouth Community during these critical times. The event concluded with an uplifting video performance of the Dartmouth Alma Mater and Dartmouth Faculty offering well wishes.

Empire worked closely with several Dartmouth departments and teams, as well as with its Senior Leadership, to execute the virtual event including managing concept, run-of-show development, scripting, presenter advance, screen content production, technical production, budgeting, and the guest’s virtual experience.

Empire is a leading producer of virtual and digital events and we strive to deliver the same high production value and immersive and interactive qualities we are known for in live events to virtual audiences.

Please contact us for more information on Virtual Events and to request a copy of the Empire Virtual Events Guide.

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Jerusalem Venture Partners celebrated the Grand Opening of the International Cyber Center at 122 Grand St in SoHo, New York. The international venture capital firm partnered with NYC Economic Development Corp. to establish a state-of-the-art center to champion New York City as the next global cybersecurity capital.

Empire was proud to serve as overall producer for the Grand Opening celebration. Over the course of the evening, JVP welcomed hundreds of guests to view the modern center and interact with the 28 companies calling Margalit Startup City their home.

Dr. Erel Margalit, Chairman and Founding Partner of JVP and of Margalit Startup City, welcomed New York City Deputy Mayor of Housing and Economic Development, Vicki Been, a valued partner in the development of the Cyber Center, and James Patchett, President and CEO of NYCEDC, to remark on the ongoing relationship with JVP and the future of New York City as a global epicenter for cybersecurity development.

Academy Award-winner and Entrepreneur, Gwyneth Paltrow, joined Dr. Margalit onstage for a fireside chat to discuss the importance of the increasing role of women in tech, and the expansion of cyber security protect governments, small businesses, and individuals.

Due to the popularity of the grand opening ceremony, Empire activated the retail space next door and transformed the raw space into a glittering afterparty space filled with food from Breads Catering and Israeli DJ, Omri, for guests to enjoy the rest of the evening.

The newly renovated 122 Grand office space offered a modern palette for Empire’s creative design. The windows facing Broadway and Grand were branded with the Margalit Startup City logo to create an impressively imposing presence on the iconic New York City street.

Empire is a leading producer of high-end corporate and tech industry events and we were honored to work with JVP to help produce the successful grand opening of JVP International Cyber Center.

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For more than 40 years, Robb Report has consistently transported its global community to the most extraordinary destinations, experiences, and events. In late 2019, it more than lived up to that reputation by hosting an exceptional event: a special invitation-only gathering of the world’s largest megayachts in the Red Sea, for a celebration of food, music, and culture.

Robb Report created a luxury resort on a former Egyptian outpost in the Red Sea (Sindalah Island, now part of the NEOM economic zone) to host 400 guests from 38 countries over four days. Invitees ranged from business leaders and politicians to oceanographers, artists, and philanthropists. A program of unique discussions and experiences was unveiled, from open-air concerts featuring a line-up of Grammy Award-winning musical names, to exceptional culinary events with some of the world’s finest chefs.

Empire was thrilled to work with the Robb Report to contract and deliver performances by John Legend and Norah Jones for this exceptional event.

Michelin-starred British chef Jason Atherton hosted an exclusive pop-up restaurant, serving a seven-course tasting menu inspired by the local region, while Egyptian-American, Michelin-starred Michael Mina and Saudi chef Almaha Aldossari welcomed guests to their own relaxed Beach House dining experience.

From art masterclasses with Lucy Freud, daughter of artist Lucian Freud, to cultural excursions with local guides, plus numerous sporting opportunities from kite surfing to fishing, guests enjoyed four days of unparalleled luxury and adventure. Exploring one of the great diving locations, all were able to experience first-hand the stunning marine world of the Red Sea—which has some of the best-preserved coral reefs on the planet—whether by transparent kayak, snorkeling, or scuba diving.

A bespoke spa was also created by luxurious Swiss specialists Waldhaus Flims, which took care of those who just wanted to relax.

By bringing over 65 of the world’s largest superyachts to the region, Robb Report has created the most rarefied, annual marine event in the world: the best of the best on the ocean.

With the help of Empire, Hilton Midtown UJA Federation of New York recently hosted their Annual Wall Street Dinner at the Hilton Midtown in New York City for over 1,900 attendees.

This year’s dinner honored Vice-President and Co-Founder of BlackRock, Barbara Novick, the first woman to receive the Gustave L. Levy Award; Co-Chief Investment Officer and Head of Real Estate, of Angelo Gordon; and Adam R. Schwartz, who received the Alan C. Greenberg Young Leadership Award. The evening also featured remarks from Keynote speaker, Andrew Ross Sorkin, financial columnist at the New York Times, as well as Lloyd Blankfein, Dan Och, Suzanne Peck, David Moore, John Paulson, Michael Gordon, Stacy Bash-Polley, and Rob Kapito.

Upon arrival at the New York Hilton, guests were greeted by staff holding UJA-branded paddles, along with a giant LED wall featuring the evenings honorees and keynote speaker. Once passing through registration, guests entered their receptions, which showcased the UJA brand and impactful signage featuring their “Stand Up. Stand Together” campaign. Guests then made their way into the elegant Grand Ballroom banquet hall featuring an attention-grabbing branded Dais set up at the front of the room.

Following the stage program, guests proceeded to the afterparty, dancing to a live set by DJ Taela Noemi, experiencing unbelievable slight-of-hand magic by Doug McKenzie, and enjoying desserts in the transformed cocktail space. Dessert stations and candy bars lined the room while partygoers played VR games, competed in a card toss for exclusive prizes, and posed in the photo booth. This year’s Wall Street Dinner raised over $31 million to tackle many of the major challenges facing people in need in New York, in Israel, and worldwide. Empire was proud to work closely with the UJA Federation and Wall Street Division to deliver a lively and memorable evening.