We went to Mina, the Museum of Immersive New Art, in Cluj. At fifty lei a person (40 lei for reduced tickets) you would think you got to see the entire museum. Instead, you see a series of three short films.
So, here is a review of the Mina Immersive show.
There seems to be enough seats for everyone, just. The seats are large movable blocks on the floor, and they are relatively comfortable, you can move around to face whatever is on the screen.
The screen is a bit like an iMax in a warehouse. Unlike iMax, this is not a cinema, and the walls are not round. You are in a giant cube, and there are projections on every wall, and even on the floor itself.
The shows we saw were Claude Monet and something about the solar system (I think it was Cosmos).
Claude Monet was an interesting history of the impressionist painter. You might have seen similar projections in Western Europe, where pieces of the paintings are projected, cut and sliced, and put into motion. We follow the career of Monet, his life, the history of impressionism, the evolution of his artistic style, and even his relationships. There is no speech, but there is text in English.
Cosmos describes the planets in our solar system, with facts like the terrain, which space vessels have photographed them, how many moons it has, and how long a day and year are on that planet. The text for this was in Romanian. We asked some English speakers if they understood it (sometimes things are obvious from the context), and they said no.
The ticket did not include entrance to the museum.
There was also something with an uncanny 3D Santa and some dancing elves. One of the elves falls. It would be considered good, if your kid did that at university, but it wasn’t entertaining or informative.
Is Mina worth it? I personally remember a similar thing in Brussels with Van Gogh. It cost slightly more, but it included a full exhibit of Van Gogh’s paintings, not just a quick show. And there were options to get your photo taken as Van Gogh, and other cool interactive elements. I think the Van Gogh one was longer, but I didn’t mention it.
If you want to introduce your family to the planets and astronomy, and they read Romanian, (or you can translate in real time) or to Impressionism, and they read English, then perhaps this can get them away from their devices for a few minutes.
I did like the creative alternative way to get a documentary, but I think it could have been a little longer.
I preferred the Van Gogh exhibit, which I felt was more complete, but unfortunately that is not available in Cluj. I’m not sure everyone will think it was worth the time and money, but, I am glad I went, and that I spent the time to learn a little about Monet.
A ticket is the same price as a full price megaplex cinema ticket, about the same price as a normal seat at the theatre, twice the price of watching a film at an independent cinema, and two thirds the price of watching a cinema 4D film where your seat shakes while the dinosaurs or lions spit at you.
But it is full, and a lot of people seem to enjoy it. And yes, I liked it.
Next on my to-do list, make a 4Dx max film about Monet.