Customized iPad Magic Showcase: Sky Premium

A challenge that most marketeers face is that they run out of ideas to showcase a non-tangible product. For example, how do you showcase security? (See here!) How do you showcase a concierge service (read below!)

When I was consulted to design a sequence for Sky Premium, I too had some difficulties in trying to bring forth the ideas to life. Hence instead of focusing on what the company can do, I focused more on what their clients will experience. 

The four pillars of their services pertains to:

1. Travel
2. Wine and Dine
3. Shopping
4. Wellness

With this in mind, I brainstormed activities that are most associated with these pillars. Next I thought about the type of magic that would be most appropriate for this. 

A specific request the client wanted was to connect my act to the next segment where the emcee would talk about the "Key" to "The Good Life". Bearing that in mind, I had to end with that tagline so that my act can segway seamlessly into the next. 

Enjoy the good life and check out the end result below!

Living the Good Life,

Alexander Y (Asia's Top iPad Magician)

Want to showcase your intangible services?

Hit me up: alexander@ipadmagician.org

Showcasing Terrific Color, Stylishly Compact: VIP iPad Product Launch

Imagine this, I was sent a brief for a launch of a printer with the tagline "Terrific Colours, Stylishly Compact". And a specific request that a VIP must be involved in the act.

How do you work from here? What type of imagery does this elicit in your mind?

While it is vague, I did my research on the Canon printer and found other neat features it has. With these features in mind, I knew objectively what I wanted to showcase. The terrific colors it has, its stylishness and its mobile-friendly capacity. 

With this said, the magic also has to reflect this. The visual assets I use must also reflect this. 

The total time I took to design this 3 minute sequence:

• Conceptualization: 10 hours
• Programming: 30 Hours
• Designing Visual Assets: 5 Hours
• Designing the Prop: 3 Hours
• Fabrication of Props: 10 Hours
• Rehearsals: 10 Hours

You can see that I make sure every detail is taken care of. I had to program the iPads such that the VIP can use it intuitively. 

You can hear how much the crowd enjoyed this sequence, as well as learning about its features. See the video below!

Hope you enjoyed that!

If you have a product or a campaign to launch, talk to a professional. I will be most happy to design a sequence specially for you!

Signing Off,

Alexander Y (Asia's Top iPad Magician)

Contact me here: 

alexander@ipadmagician.org

Tempur x Tatler: iPad Magician Singapore

One year ago, I did an opening piece for Tempur's opening. The crowd loved it, and they loved how it fit into their Weightless Campaign. (See video below).

This year, when I got a call from the Tempur marketing team with regards to their 1st year anniversary, I was overjoyed!

This year, when I got a call from the Tempur marketing team with regards to their 1st year anniversary, I was overjoyed!

In collaboration with Singapore Tatler, Tempur had a smaller celebration and invited the guests from Tatler to experience the weightlessness.

Wanting to do something different from them, I designed a sequence with my iPad to showcase the weightless motif and give the guest an opportunity to feel the Tempur Material (which is commissioned by NASA to be used in Space).

Here what the Tempur and Tatler team had to say:

"Thank you Alexander and helping us out!

It was a real pleasure meeting you and thank you for the brilliant show! Looking forward to working with you again soon.

Daniel (Singapore Tatler)"

"Hi Alex,

The customized acts were very cool, thank you!

Janet (Tempur)"

Have you experienced Tempur Weightless-ness?

Signing off,

Alexander Yuen (Asia iPad Magician)

For customized performances, contact me here:

alexander@ipadmagician.org

iPad Magician at High End Lancome Event

It might be kind of weird to have a male illusionist in a female-centric event, right?

Actually, not really.

I was booked by L'Oreal, Lancome, to perform and entertain their top clients. This was in event held at the very elegant Paragon Atrium.

The demographic of the guests were high end users of their products, they wanted to be sure that they were in the best hands in terms of entertainment. 

For this engagement, I specially designed an app to first showcase the features of their star product, the Genifique, and to make it appear from their online website.

It is pretty cool, and it looks something like this.

via GIPHY

I got really good feedback from the client and the guests from the event. And the best part is, not only they experience the magic of the products via my iPad, they will also feel the magic on their skin ;)

Signing off, 

Alexander Y (Singapore iPad Magic)

For Customized content and bookings, please contact me @ alexander@ipadmagician.org

iPad Magician Entrepreneur

The journey of an entrepreneur can be a long, lonely and tiresome one. I've had friends who started out their business and gave up less than a year into it. 

Most of the times, people only see the success part of it while overlooking the immense hardship one has to go through to get there. I was very fortunate to be able to share this journey of entrepreneurship at an innovation/tech conference held in Singapore called 2016 2016. 

It was quite stressful (as well as a privilege) to speak right after Hossan Leong. But I think it turned out quite okay, just a little rushed.

Tell me what you think! I come in after the 22 minute mark:

Actually, the content struck the hearts of many listeners. And I even got a Tech in Asia feature on the talk!

Pretty neat!

Let me know what you think! I'd love to speak at your conference!

Drop me a text at info@metaillusions.com

DBS Long Service Award: iPad Magician

With the current trend of job switching, it was quite heartening to be part of DBS' Long Service Award Ceremony. What a joy to perform for these employees who have worked for DBS for more than 20 odd years! (And I think there was also a guy who is being recognized for staying through for 35 years!)

I was booked to entertain the guests with my iPad Magic and I had special request to create an illusion on the iPad that would foster a sense of identity for the audiences.

It was a great crowd to perform for in the lovely Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay. The great thing about performing magic on the iPad is that it is visual, colourful and immediately draws attention. My iPad Magic is also interactive which means that the audiences can participate actively in the magic. 

Even though the event is for the recognition of their Long Service Staff, the energy in the crowd was fantastic! The energy from both the junior and senior executives really brought live to the event.

Keen on having me at your award ceremony?

Drop me an email here at alexander@ipadmagician.org

Signing off,

Alexander Yuen

iPad Magic Product Launch: Making Magic Making Sense

Gillette: The Best A Man Can Get

When it comes to launching a product, there are several ways to do it. You can simply place a cloth over the product and reveal it, you can have a fancy box apparatus that would reveal it or you can reveal it while also showcase the qualities of the product (and that's what we did here!)

In line with my belief of "showing them, not telling them", I identified the key features of the product, which was a well lubricated shave. Then I brainstormed on how I can showcase this concept through magic, and at the same time, launch their banner.

The keywords in my thoughts were: beard, shave, cream, clean.

And after much discussing with the agency, we came out with the idea of having shaving cream, applied on beard, and after shaving it off, the image of the banner would appear. And thereafter, I would pull the banner out for photo ops.
 

A few more ideas:

• If you are launching a hotline, I can programme a phone in the iPad and have the VIP to dial the hotline, it would appear on the iPads and then the numb er can be pulled out.
• Launching a painting, or a poster? I can "paint" it with a brush on to the iPad and have it pulled out.

The possibilities are endless, my team and I will make sure that our magic is cogent and related to your product.

Contact me here for a discussion:

alexander@ipadmagician.org

Signing off, 
Alexander Y (iPad Magician Singapore)

Singapore National Day Celebration: iPad Magic Exclusive Guests

Singapore's 51st National Day was special for the clients of The Knightsbridge Clinic and Southbridge Aesthetics Clinic. The guests were welcomed to an exclusive party where they were treated to an array of canapes, magic and dance.

Picture Credits: Marinate Consultancy

To create a befitting atmosphere for the guests, I was specially invited to this exclusive party to perform my brand of iPad Magic. Like a true blue patriotic Singaporean, I took the liberty to dress up in my national colours of Red and White. While the base colour is white, I added subtle hints of red to create a sleek and stylish look.

As the iPad Magician for the event, the agenda was to entertain the guests with magic, and to create an atmosphere of fun and excitement. I performed illusions that I custom created for the guests on that evening that were immensely well received. 

The iPad Magic offers endless possibilities for you and your event. For this event, I custom created an app where gift vouchers were given to the guests through the iPad. This created excitement for the guests as I was not only able to create magic on the iPad, but also added value to the magic by incorporating a corporate gift for the guests.

The voucher app looked something like this:

This is simply one of the many ways magic can enhance, add a different texture and increase the value of your event! To find out more, drop me an email at:

alexander@ipadmagician.org

or contact me here!

Logging Off,

Alexander Y (Asia's Top iPad Magician)

iPad Magician Alexander Yuen Featured in Singapore News!

It is really awesome to be featured once again on local media. So after I came back from Hong Kong, I got a call from a journalist who wanted an interview with me about my iPad Magic. I was really amazed by the efficiency and how fast word travels!

Check out the article here:

"[THROUGH THE IPAD], THE EYES TRICK THE BRAIN"

When magic is visualize so vividly on the iPad, the eyes really fool the brain to think that magic is really happening. Audiences have told me that they actually feel something on their palms. And I truly believe that this is the next level of iPad magic. It is not about boxes or frames, it is immersing the audiences into the magic through the iPad.

I would love the opportunity to bring you to the next level in magic!

Signing off,

Alexander Y (iPad Magician)

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Keen to have me at your event?

Drop me an email here: info@metaillusions.com

:)

iPad Magic to Craft a Safety Presentation (Digital Illusions for Changi Airport Group)

When I was approached by the management of Seletar Airport (Under Changi Airport Group), I immediately identified several issues they faced. In essence, they wanted a safety presentation that fulfills these requirements:

1. Engaging
2. Accurate and informative
3. Safety message to be remembered
4. Entertaining but serious

Most safety presentations are conducted with an air of sombreness so that the listeners would see the gravity of the consequences. My challenge was to find a delicate balance between seriousness and entertainment. 

Contrary to the assumptions that magic is kiddy and meant for children, magic has the power to create emotions and bring forth important messages, as long as the "story" is logical and well told.

So without further ado, take a look at how I incorporated magic to create strong memory hooks, used drama to engage the audiences, and embedded audience interaction to reinforce my messages.

Signing off,

Alexander Y (Singapore's Top iPad Magic)

For booking and information about my iPad Magic, drop me an email here:

alexander@ipadmagician.org

iPad Magician in Hong Kong: An Edge in Asia

"Innovative, Creativity and Modern"

So last Sunday, I was flown to Hong Kong specially for an event which wanted interactive magic that is modern, innovative and uses technology. It was a conference event organized by the leading Pan-Asia insurance company, FWD Insurance and held in the gorgeous Ritz Carlton Hong Kong. 

This was a really exciting opportunity for me as I was asked to design a customized illusion for this event. This conference event was held specifically for the top management of the company in which they wanted to expose them to the latest technological advances. The attendees came from all over Asia, including, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and even Singapore. 

Among the fantastic compliments I received about the magic, I want to particularly highlight that almost everyone was amazed by the innovative "wow" factor of the iPad Magic that I presented and how I could combine technology and magic into a unique and engaging experience for them.

The magic that was presented were all original pieces where I conceptualize, design and program. It is truly a joy to have your original work appreciated. Because everything was coded by me, it is highly customizable and you can be sure that the app is not one that can be found in the app store.

Thank you so much for having me in Hong Kong to showcase my innovations and magic to you!

Till the next time!

Alexander Y

--------

For bookings and enquiries, drop me an email here:

info@metaillusions.com

My iPad Magic Featured on the News!

I am really thankful for the opportunity to not only share about my previous iPad Magic engagement in Saudi Arabia for Cisco Connect but to also share about my psychology and magic!

Thank you Lian He Wan Bao for this feature!

Here is a translation of the article:

"Singaporean Masters Graduate Self-Learns Magic
Using iPad to showcase magic in Saudi Arabia winning thunderous applause

Since the age of 15, Masters Graduate Alexander Yuen had been deeply passionate about magic and illusion. The self-taught magician had even created illusion utilizing the iPad, becoming the first Singaporean Magician to perform in Saudi Arabia, breaking the traditional impression of magic in Saudi Arabians.

The 29-year old graduated last year from the National University of Singapore with a Masters in Psychology. However, taking a path different from other graduate students, he instead took the career path of a professional magician.

With a deep interest and passion for innovation, he conceptualized the combination of technology with magic 4 years ago with his partner, creating iPad magic. Through this illusion, he is able to grab a ball directly from the screen. 

Going by the stage name of Alexander Y, Alexander revealed that he first got exposed to magic in secondary school. Back then, a friend of his took out a deck of poker cards and performed a magic trick, thereby planting in him an interest in magic. 

Alexander revealed that he had never learnt from a teacher and everything was self-taught. However, through regular meet-ups with other magicians, he was given the opportunity to learn from more established magicians.

His unique magic performances gave him the opportunity to be invited last week to Saudi Arabia to be the main act in Cisco Connect; a technology conference held in Riyadh. His magic performance combining technology and conference entertained and astounded the guests to no end. 

Being the first Singaporean magician performing in Saudi Arabia, Alexander realized in his preparation work that Saudi Arabians had a rather stereotypical view of magic, associating it with witchcraft and the occult. Through the use of technology, he was able to perform in a manner that is more acceptable to the locals.

When being asked why he did not pursue a career in psychology after graduating, Alexander replied with a smile that this was a very common question that was asked of him. He replied that he had combined his knowledge of psychology with his magic performances, adapting the knowledge that he had in psychology to his performances, thereby bringing a greater sense of amazement in his audience. "

Signing off,
Alexander Y

iPad Magician in Singapore Lian He Wan Bao

I had such a great time sharing about my Saudi Arabia engagement with Lian He Wan Bao last week.

I also designed a customized illusion with their mobile website.

Check out the featured video here!

Signing off,

Alexander Y

iPad Magic in Technology Events, Innovation Conferences and Creativity Symposium

There is a rising trend for companies to innovate and use technology to meet and exceed KPIs. Numerous conferences and technological events are held almost every day around the world. I have been blessed to be invited to a few, including those organized by NEC, Singtel, DHL and Cisco. 

We must embrace innovation, not just in the consumer and servicing industries, but also the entertainment industry. Magic is no different.

Often I find the best way to innovate is to draw inspirations from the past. Reading about visionaries who do not give up their ideals of the future greatly inspires me and my magic. What they have created then might be outdated right now, but it was way ahead of its time when it was first conceptualized. 

When I embarked on my iPad Magic, my focus was clear. I wanted to focus on innovation and the capacity of imagination. With that, I created this routine in tribute to the greatest inventor of our time, Thomas Edison.

Enjoy!

For booking and information,

info@metaillusions.com

Signing off,

Alexander Y (iPad Magician)

Innovation, Technology, Edison and iPad Magic

I am truly humbled that, as a Singapore iPad Magician, I am able to perform my original iPad magic for a diverse international crowd. 

Enjoy iLight 2.0 LIVE!

Invitations to technological conferences are always amazing. There is nothing more exciting than performing my own creation to a group of coders, programmers and technological innovators.

Key Note Speaker from Cisco 

One of the many reasons why technological companies are intrigued by my iPad magic is that I pay homage to innovation, creativity and out of the box thinking through my magic. Through the use of the iPad, I create illusions that breaks the mould of conventional illusions and magic. Hence no square boxes and awkward looking props.

Day 2 of Cisco Connect in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia was amazing. I performed my own inventions and illusions with the iPad. Here I am, standing on the Cisco stage, presenting one of my original iPad Magic as a tribute to the greatest innovator of our time, Thomas Edison. You can tell from the reaction of the audiences that they really enjoyed the iPad magic that I presented on stage. 

For booking and information:

info@metaillusions.com

Signing off, 

Alexander Y (Singapore iPad Magician)

Finding Beer in Saudi Arabia, Cisco Conference and iPad Illusions

After a grueling 15 hours of traveling, I am finally in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh. Woohoo! It is a gorgeous place, the charm of this city creeps on you like the light of dawn.

This was the very first picture I took on the ride to the hotel. Incidentally, this is also the place where I will be debuting my iPad Illusion Show. 

I am booked here to perform at Cisco Connect, a technological conference that engages the development of technological advancement. The iPad Illusion Show is a great fit for the theme as I present cutting edge illusions without old cliches in magic. More on that later.

After reaching the hotel, I had a refreshing sleep and then it is back to work. I had to do some last minute programming changes in some of the apps I developed as the customized content was tweaked a little.

Setting up the iPads

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Setting up the iPads

Singapore is 5 hours ahead of the Riyadh, therefore I was also 5 hours late in replying my emails. I guess no one ever sees the background work of an entrepreneur but it is not all glitz and glamour. After programming, I got to my emails.

Check out that killer view. This is my business suite and my sleeping place for the next few days. Awesome!

Check out that killer view. This is my business suite and my sleeping place for the next few days. Awesome!

We had some time before the technical rehearsal, my stage assistant, Yi Hao and I took a walk. But soon after we took a few steps, we realized it was a better idea to stay indoors. The heat was scorching, we could feel the heat wave on our bodies. If you thought Singapore was hot, try Saudi Arabia.

However, we did the best thing on a sunny day, ICE CREAM! We also found non-alcoholic beer from Budweiser. We did a taste and videoed it, check it out below!

It was then call time for the technical rehearsal. The staging and set up looks magnificent!

I am very excited to perform on the pedestal-looking stage. Tech rehearsals went smoothly and we are good to go for tomorrow and Thursday!

To reward ourselves, we headed back for dinner and tried the non-alcoholic beer. Check out our reaction and thoughts on this in this video!

Yea.... Probably not my thing for now.

I am stoked to be performing tomorrow at the amazing stage for the international conference goers! It is about 10.41 pm right now, which means it is it is 3.40am in Singapore. I am still feeling a little jet lagged. Gonna head to bed soon!

Will be uploading a sample of my show tomorrow!

Signing Off,

Alexander Yuen (iPad Magician in Saudi Arabia)

Technology, Innovation, iPad Magic!

30 years ago, magicians were doing magic with frames, boxes and confetti. 30 years later, some magicians have not progressed from there. Magicians might add a modern touch by adding a technological device like an iPad or LED lights. But ultimately, the content, the style of magic, the music and the movement all screams out old school.

Perhaps for sentimental nostalgic reasons, some audiences actually do prefer an illusionist who performs in a style of the 60s, where objects fly around from with no rhyme or reason. 

BUT FOR THE MODERN AND INTELLIGENT AUDIENCE, IS THIS SATISFYING?

If you are looking for a modern and intelligent act, look no further. The iPad magic that I create is meaningful, visual and engaging. I design all my own apps, so you can be sure you are getting high quality iPad Magic. The animations in the iPad will look natural because it was designed from scratch. 

There are alternative methods of doing iPad magic via an app bought from iTunes, but... I don't think you want to go there. The perks of designing your own app:

1. Fully Customizable
2. Editable
3. Tailored for perfection

Don't take my word for it, check out this video here!

FOR BOOKING AND ENQUIRIES, DROP ME A MESSAGE AT:

INFO@METAILLUSIONS.COM

Signing off,

Alexander Yuen (iPad Magician)

Customized iPad Magic

What does customization mean? Is it enough to slap a logo and say that you've customized your magic?

In the world of advertising, branding and visibility are integral marketing concepts. Logo and brand exposure is great, but you can stretch that further by incorporating meaningful visuals and powerful emotions (like amazement) into the campaign. 

Here is a simple but very effective customized iPad magic sequence I did for a Japan company that has a franchise in Singapore:

You will notice that the magic has meaning. The magic is not done for magic sake. (For example, making confetti appearing for now reason).

You can also see that there is strong branding and visibility because of the visuals I designed to be incorporated into the iPad app that I eventually programmed. 

Added with a nice touch of magic (and charisma!), you have a simple yet amazing and effective iPad magic illusion for a marketing campaign.

To find out more about my work, drop me an email!

I CUSTOMIZE NOT JUST FOR BRANDS AND PRODUCTS, I CUSTOMIZE FOR EVENTS AND PARTIES TOO!

BOOKING AND ENQUIRIES:

INFO@METAILLUSIONS.COM

Magician of the Month: iPad Magic

I was given the title of "Magician of the Month" by the International Brotherhood of Magicians (Singapore Ring 115) for the month of March. It was a privilege to be given this title and be recognized for uniqueness I bring into the magic landscape in Singapore.

I performed and lectured on Digital Magic (or iPad Magic). You can imagine how anxious I was presenting this to fellow peers of the industry. But thanks to the years of training in the university, for my BA and MA, I rehearsed and was able to give a very well received lecture. 

Being Magician of the Month in a domain of magic means that your peers recognize you to be the leading figure in that area. This recognition is not something lightly given. If you had followed my work, you would know that it was not an easy journey pioneering iPad Magic.

But as with all aspects of technology, there is a constant pressure to innovate and think outside the box. I am very excited to share that I am working on something really quite exciting, and I will share more in due time!

In the mean time, innovate!

Here is the lecture I presented which shows my thinking process behind designing the illusions.

(*Disclaimer, it is going to be quite boring because I've edited the teaching part out)

Logging Out,

Alexander Yuen

Customized iPad Magic: The Great Egg Venture

DID HUMPTY DUMPTY HAD A GREAT FALL?

We are all on the topic of Eggs because some time ago, I was consulted and then commissioned to design a sequence for Sentosa-Harbourfront Business Association to launch a first of its kind, egg themed cookbook titled, "Everybody Loves Eggs".

Though the timeline was tight, I managed to craft an iPad Magic Sequence that is thematic to this book. There were a few key messages that were integral to this sequence:

1. First ever egg-themed recipe book in Singapore
2. Encompasses creations from top chefs in the precinct, from brunches to main courses, desserts and cocktail.
3. Enjoy the Easter treats at Sentosa-HarbourFront, and take the recipe book home and replicate the memories.
4. VIP has to launch the book

I spent about half a day working out a creative way to introduce the first 3 messages. This was followed by the designing of visual assets and then programming. You can see how I creatively use visual illusions, animation and magic to showcase the top 3 messages.

VIP LAUNCH MECHANISM

There were a few consideration for the launch mechanism. The first main constraint was that the mechanism needs to be as straightforward as possible. The VIP should not have to do a lot of rehearsals for the launch. The reason being, the VIP usually has a packed schedule without sufficient free time for a proper rehearsal. Hence the magic needs to be as direct as possible.

The second constraint was that the book needs to be pulled out and displayed in the VIP's hand. I hadto use an apparatus that would allow me to do that. 

With the two conditions in mind, I programmed a sequence where the VIP would swipe an image into a picture frame, and the image of the book would appear. Thereafter, the illusionist would show that this is not just a picture, but it is the book itself. 

The crowd size was fairly small, there was about 80 guests present at the event. The full sequence was well received by the crowd and the VIP. In fact, one of the guest present, Meiling from Universal Scribbles came up to me and asked if she could film a sequence for her son, who loves magic. 

So back to Humpty Dumpty, did he have a great fall? I am not sure, but I think he would have a great time at the Great Egg-Venture!

PS: HEY, IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE SO, FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA!

FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM!

Signing Off,

Alexander Y.