No flowers needed to be a big hit at Flora Expo

Hollywood action film director John Woo was among the lucky visitors who were able to see the advanced technologies displayed in the futuristic Pavilion of Dreams yesterday.

“The Expo helps us see new hopes, new vitality and many surprising creativities,” he told reporters after visiting the venue.

“I will have the computer effects team and visual design team for my next production visit the Expo and learn from these geniuses here,” he added, speculating that he might shoot part of his new film at the Expo.

Not so lucky were a group of students who were able to get some of the 3,535 tickets allotted for the venue per day at 10 a.m., only to find that they would not gain entry until after 2 p.m., when they had to return home. They were forced to give up the tickets.

The group missed a number of displays that not only impressed Woo but are also likely to keep the pavilion a top draw during the Flora Expo's six-month run.

The highlight was a film shown on a 360-degree screen inside the pavilion that took the audience flying from a river full of lotuses to skies above Taiwan's mountains, with “cloud dolphins” jumping in the clouds.

It also showed a forest in which viewers were able to help virtual trees grow by taking a deep breath at designated spots in the theater, and showcased landmarks in Taipei City, the host of Taiwan's first world-class expo.

In addition, the pavilion featured 12 vertical frames in a room that allow visitors to interact with different flower varieties in the form of naked-eye 3D by waving their hands.

Visitors were also able to select bracelets with a 3D flower of their choice embedded inside that could then be flashed on a screen at several locations in the pavilion where the bracelet's signal was detected by a sensor.

All of these inventions were made possible by technologies created by Taiwan's semi-official Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI).

“(These creations) don't just bring visitors great surprises. They also help the public learn about them,” ITRI Chairman Tsay Ching-Yen said in a recent statement.

He hoped that the inventions would give Taiwan's cultural creative industry, the high-tech industry and the manufacturing sector new perspective and inspiration.

Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin has said that it took over 100 specialists more than two years to produce such a pavilion.

Woo said that after visiting the pavilion, he felt “very moved, as the expo fully showcases the beauty and the spirit of Taiwan.”

“Overall, I feel I love Taiwan even more,” the Hong Kong director said.

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