A custom experience for HISTORY Channel’s Vikings that let fans join as cast members, placing participants at the center of the story.
CLIENT
History Channel
Experiential Event Design & Production
Comic-Con
On The Set w/ Vikings
We made “On the Set” a multi-stage backlot experience where fans became cast members in the world of Vikings. Participants created a character, went through hair and makeup, performed in cinematic scenes, and were seamlessly integrated into a personalized Vikings teaser trailer. The result was a long-form activation that encouraged fans to stay longer, engage deeper, and share organically because the content featured them at the center of the story.
Our Solution
At Comic-Con, fans are willing to invest time when an experience feels earned. Depth creates emotional connection, and emotional connection drives memory. While trailers are a major part of the culture, simply showing exclusive content is no longer enough. The real opportunity was to design an experience that treated fans like participants, not spectators, and rewarded their commitment with something personal.
Insight
Comic-Con is packed with competing activations, trailers, and experiences all fighting for attention. Most are designed for speed, moving fans through quickly to maximize impressions. HISTORY wanted Vikings to stand apart by creating something fans would choose to stay inside, rather than rushing off to the next stop. The challenge was to evolve the original “On the Set” idea into a truly immersive experience that felt worth the time and delivered a meaningful reward.
Challenge
Background
On the Set with Vikings was built as a large-scale offsite activation outside the San Diego Convention Center during San Diego Comic-Con. Designed to mirror a working production lot, the environment blended scenic builds, props, costumes, and crew presence inspired directly by the show. From entry onward, fans were treated as cast members rather than spectators.
Development
Behind the scenes, INPHANTRY built a real-time content system capable of capturing, rendering, and delivering personalized media at scale. Custom software stitched together photos and video into individual 30-second Vikings trailers, rendered automatically and available for preview moments after completion.
Given the five-week turnaround from concept to live execution, the technical architecture was distributed across on-site rendering servers in San Diego and remote systems supporting processing and redundancy. The complexity remained invisible to the user, allowing the experience itself to stay seamless and immersive.
Experience Design
The experience began with iPad registration, where fans created a personalized Viking profile and received a scannable access pass integrated into their Comic-Con lanyard. From there, participants moved through a series of stages including professional hair and makeup, a green screen poster shoot, and multiple cinematic scenes. Each interaction contributed to a growing, personalized Vikings story tied to the individual.
Sets & Scenery
The activation was designed as a working Vikings backlot, complete with ships, villages, battle environments, and production-style scenery. Professional hair, makeup, and wardrobe stations were integrated into the space, allowing fans to undergo the same transformation as the cast. Costumes, props, and set dressing reinforced authenticity, making the experience feel like a live production.
Takeaway
After completing the experience, participants were directed to a custom History.com cast page where they could view and share their personalized Vikings trailer, behind-the-scenes photos, and character content. Fans also received a physical Vikings poster featuring their custom character, and those who completed the full journey were rewarded with a Vikings longhorn mug, usable on-site and redeemable for drink discounts at nearby partner bars.
Reception
Over four days, thousands of fans completed the experience, many spending significantly longer on site than typical Comic-Con activations. The project was named one of the Top 5 Things to Do at San Diego Comic-Con by AdAge, Adweek, and Business Insider, and received a Silver Clio in the Engagement / Experiential category for “Vikings On the Set.”
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Contact
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