Beyond All Boundaries
National WWII Museum | New Orleans
Large-format immersive theater experience blending archival media, physical effects, and environmental storytelling.
Daren served as Production Designer and Creative Executive for the highly-acclaimed theatrical experience Beyond All Boundaries at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans. Working closely with Phil Hettema of THG/The Hettema Group and Tom Hanks, Daren and his team recrafted the story and cinematic experience to create a 45 minute emotional journey that tells the entire war story from an American perspective, but notably focuses on how the war pushed all limits and changed history forever.
The film combines custom matte painting artwork, archival footage, and CGI recreations along with a brilliant orchestral score composed by Bruce Broughton and Tim Williams. In theater show action, effects, and lighting blend seamlessly to place the audience in unique environments so that they can connect with compelling points of view from the "citizen soldiers" on the frontlines, rather than feel as though they are being taught history.
The audience and critical reception have been extraordinary with Tom Brokaw ("The Greatest Generation" author) calling it "the most important and effective film about World War II" and former head of Walt Disney Imagineering calling it the best historical attraction he's ever experienced and a worthy successor to "The American Adventure" at Epcot.