Skyview Drive-in
Theatre

Skyview Drive-in Theatre, the only remaining historic drive-in still in operation in the St.Louis region, saw a resurgence during the 2020 pandemic as a rare safe entertainment option with built-in social distancing, versus traditional cinemas. I revived the brand by enhancing the drive-in experience and sustainable growth during post-COVID. Solutions aim to make drive-ins more convenient, comfortable, and customizable for various audiences and untapped markets while retaining vintage appeal.

Client:

Skyview Drive-in

Year:

2023

Role:

UI/UX Designer

01 Background

What

The Skyview Drive-In opened on July 8, 1949. It could accommodate 900 cars and had 200 seats for walk-in patrons. The theatre’s season runs April-November and it is now the only remaining drive-in still in operation in the St. Louis region.

Why Dying

  1. No more social distance

  2. Low Visitor Recency (seeking for novel experiences)

  3. Weather limitations (storm, blood, season…)

  4. Site constrains (away from urban areas with light pollution, rising land values)

  5. Existential threats from the streaming media (Netflix, HBO…)

For who

Family Moviegoer

Family Moviegoer

Privacy Seekers

Privacy Seekers

Movie Fans without Cars

Movie Fans without Cars

Why reviving

1

Historic & the one and the only in St.Louis Region

2

Maximize the resurgence during the pandemic

3

Irreplaceability (better privacy, few interruptions, appeal of being outside after the pandemic)

02 Problem Space

current touchpoints

Website

Box Office

Venue

constraints

01

Limit Online Service

The online website is only for gathering information, no actions can be taken online.

The online website is only for gathering information, no actions can be taken online.

The online website is only

for gathering information, no actions can be taken online

02

Venue Vacancy

The whole venue is closed during daytime and winter which is waste of rent.

The whole venue is closed during daytime and winter which is waste of rent.

03

Product Offering

It only offers outdoor movies, no other ancillary products are available.

It only offers outdoor movies, no other ancillary products are available.

Possible Explorations

Redesign

Website

Redesign

Website

Improve

On-site Services

Improve

On-site Services

Optimize

Outdoor Experiences

Optimize

Outdoor Experiences

03 Design Schemes

competitive analysis

  • Unique features and various services should be provided to fulfill the needs of potential customers.

  • Strong and unique brand identity can help stand out among others.

  • Friendly tones can bring users with relaxing experiences.

Stakeholder map

Heuristic evaluation

  1. Users are not informed of where they currently are which may cause confusions.

  2. No users data is collected and saved for recurring process.

  3. Automatically taking users to external page without any notice.

  4. The website lacks a novel design to stand out from other cinemas.

Persona

waveline

webmap

color schemes

Color

Color

Gradient

Gradient

ORANGE

#F2771D

Brand Color

  • Sunset color

  • Attention

  • Primary Buttons

WHITE

#FFFFFF

Text Color

  • Button text

  • Title & body text

  • Highlight contents

LIGHT

Theme Color 01

  • Linear gradient

  • Day to sunset

DARK

Theme Color 02

  • Linear gradient

  • Sunset to night

04 Final Solutions

LOGO Redesign

Membership

Provide membership program with various services can enhance the user viscosity.

Provide membership program with various services can enhance the user viscosity.

hanging tag

Use the hanging tag as an exclusive entrance pass and concession order delivery. The reflective material can make it easily recognize during nigh time.

partnership with car rental service

Being partner with the third party rental services can attract customers without cars.

Being partner with the third party rental services can attract customers without cars.

Being partner with the third party rental services can attract customers without cars.

website

website Redesign

A real-time scene website that is not only for traditional functions but also provide immersive experience without being there.

A real-time scene website that is not only for traditional functions but also provide immersive experience without being there.

app

app design

Use fullscreen portrait & landscape view on the phone to provide a more immersive experience.

Use fullscreen portrait & landscape view on the phone to provide a more immersive experience.

05 Further Thoughts

current limits

This semester-long project is mainly focus on the design itself so that the lack of user's research and usability test would make it less tenable. If I got the chance to further develop this project, I will put more efforts on how to bring it to practical as much as possible.

future steps

1

Conduct market and user's research, including survey, conceptual interview and in-depth interview.

2

Think through and complete the whole users flow and conduct rounds of usability test for iteration.

3

Try to connect with the Skyview Drive-in Theatre to discuss about the feasibility for actual implementation.