How Stay Golden Photo Booth Brought the Magic of Studio Ghibli to Life
At a Private IMAX Influencer Screening in Los Angeles
Entertainment Brand Activation | Playa Vista, CA | Open Air Photo Booth
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Entertainment Brand Activation | Playa Vista, CA | Open Air Photo Booth
Metric | Results |
Photo Sessions | 121 total sessions |
Total Shares | 159 shares |
Total Reach | 9,052 |
Total Impressions | 30,628 |
Booth Type | Open Air Photo Booth |
Client: Studio Ghibli
Event: Private Influencer Screening & Brand Activation
Location: IMAX HQ, Playa Vista, CA
Date: March 10, 2026
Estimated Attendance: 125–150 attendees
When Studio Ghibli announced a 4K remaster of Kiki’s Delivery Service, one of the most beloved animated films of all time, the team at GKIDS organized a private IMAX screening at IMAX HQ in Playa Vista, California. They knew the experience had to feel immersive from the first frame to the final farewell.
A curated group of 125 to 150 guests attended, including a select group of social media influencers chosen for their alignment with the Ghibli universe. This was not a general admission event. It was intimate by design. A premium, invite-only gathering where every detail was carefully planned, including what happened after the credits rolled.
That is where Stay Golden Photo Booth came in. Brought in to produce the post-screening brand photo booth activation, our team delivered a fully branded, custom-built open-air photo booth experience. It gave guests a way to step inside the world of Kiki’s Delivery Service and take a piece of it home.
Brand activations tied to beloved intellectual properties require balance. The experience needs to feel true to the source material. In this case, that meant the warm, hand-crafted aesthetic of Studio Ghibli animation. At the same time, it had to function as a high-throughput experiential moment that could move 125 to 150 guests efficiently within a 3-hour window.
The brief called for:
The activation also needed to serve two purposes. It had to create a genuinely enjoyable guest experience while producing shareable content for influencer attendees. This content would carry the Studio Ghibli brand naturally across social media in the days following the event.
Stay Golden Photo Booth is the only photo booth company in Los Angeles that manufactures its own wooden photo booth, the Glamour Booth. For this activation, however, the open-air format was the right choice. The Playa Vista IMAX HQ space called for a setup that felt open and editorial rather than enclosed. The open air booth gave our team the flexibility to let the green screen and props lead the visual experience.
We sourced and curated a selection of physical props directly tied to the Kiki’s Delivery Service universe. These were items guests could hold, wear, and interact with during their session.
Props in a photo activation are not just decoration. They drive participation. They give guests something to do with their hands and a reason to commit to the moment. This leads to more natural, high-energy photos.
The green screen background was custom-designed to recreate the warm, oil-lamp-lit interior of the bakery from Kiki’s Delivery Service. This setting is the heart of the film’s second act and one of its most recognizable visual environments. The result placed guests directly inside the world of the film, making every photo feel less like an event snapshot and more like a still from the animation.
Green screen technology, when executed at this level, becomes one of the most powerful tools in an entertainment brand activation. It allows you to transport guests into any world, real or imagined. A traditional photo backdrop simply cannot deliver that same experience.
Photo gallery views totaled 1,487 across the weekend, indicating strong post-session engagement as guests revisited and shared their images after leaving the activation.
Every guest who stepped in front of our open air booth walked away with a physical print. Each one was custom-designed for this event, using Ghibli-appropriate typography, layout, and branding.
Physical prints are becoming rare in a digital-first world. That is exactly what makes them meaningful. In a room full of influencers who are used to viewing content on screens, a tangible print creates a moment of real surprise and delight.
For the influencer guests, we prepared a full suite of branded digital assets. These were optimized for Instagram Stories, Reels, and static grid posts, then delivered digitally after the event.
This made it easy for influencers to share polished, on-brand content the same day without editing or resizing. When you reduce the gap between a great photo moment and a social post, you increase the chances of organic sharing.
Over the course of a single 3-hour window, our open air booth drove 121 photo sessions. This resulted in 30,628 total impressions and reached 9,052 unique accounts. These numbers show how strongly the activation resonated with attendees. With 159 shares, guests were not just enjoying the experience. They were actively sharing it with their own audiences.
For context, 159 shares from a 125 to 150-person event means more than one share per guest on average. That is an exceptional level of organic amplification for a closed, invite-only event with no paid promotion. The combination of custom Ghibli props, the hand-crafted bakery green screen, and same-day digital delivery gave guests both the reason and the ability to share right away.
Key outcomes from the activation:
Los Angeles is the entertainment capital of the world. It is also becoming the center for entertainment activations. Studios, distributors, streaming platforms, and IP holders continue to invest in experiential moments tied to film releases, anniversaries, and reboots. Photo activations are now a key part of that strategy.
Here is why. A photo booth at an entertainment brand activation in LA is not just a fun add-on. It works as a content engine. Every session creates shareable assets. Every influencer who receives a branded digital file becomes a potential organic post. Every guest who walks away with a physical print holds a reminder of the brand experience. It is something they are likely to display, share, or talk about.
Stay Golden Photo Booth has built its reputation in Los Angeles and Orange County on this level of execution. Our open air booth setups, custom green screen builds, and branded digital delivery systems are designed for the demands of professional film and media events. This is not the same as a standard party setup. It is built for high-level brand activations that require precision, speed, and quality.
Stay Golden Photo Booth has been the trusted photo booth partner for luxury brands, agencies, and production companies throughout Los Angeles for over eight years. With more than 600 five-star reviews on Google and 600+ on Yelp, we’ve built our reputation on delivering premium experiences that look great and perform even better.
Whether you’re a brand looking to activate directly or an agency subcontracting for a client campaign, we bring the equipment, expertise, and professionalism to make your activation a success. Our data capture capabilities integrate seamlessly with most CRM and marketing platforms, and we can customize the opt-in flow to meet your specific compliance requirements.
Want to learn more about how photo booths drive brand activation success? Read our complete Guide to Photo Booth Brand Activation for strategy insights and planning tips.
Let’s discuss how Stay Golden Photo Booth can help you create a memorable guest experience while building your marketing database.
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If you’re planning an entertainment brand activation, film screening, or influencer event in Los Angeles, here are the questions we hear most often.
Open air photo booths are the most versatile option for entertainment activations because they allow for custom green screen environments, flexible prop setups, and high-quality photography in a variety of venue configurations. For IP-specific events like film screenings or studio premieres, the open air format also gives your creative team more control over the visual environment guests step into.
Yes. Stay Golden Photo Booth designs custom green screen backgrounds tailored to specific brand guidelines and creative briefs. For the Studio Ghibli activation at IMAX HQ, we recreated the bakery interior from Kiki’s Delivery Service to place guests inside the world of the film. We work closely with brand and production teams to ensure every visual element is on-brand and approved before the event.
Digital assets can be delivered the same day as the event, often within hours after the activation ends. For influencer-focused events, speed matters. The closer the delivery is to the moment of excitement, the higher the chances of organic posting. Our workflow is built for same-day digital delivery as a standard.
Yes. Stay Golden Photo Booth serves all of Los Angeles County, including Playa Vista, Palos Verdes, the South Bay, West Hollywood, Downtown LA, and the broader Greater Los Angeles and Orange County markets. We handle logistics, setup, and breakdown for any venue type.
Influencer events require an added layer of post-production that general activations do not. This includes branded digital assets formatted for multiple social platforms and delivered quickly after the event.
For mixed-audience events like the Studio Ghibli screening, we run parallel workflows. We provide physical prints for all guests and branded digital files optimized for influencer sharing.
Author at Stay Golden Photo Booth
Thomas Praxedes is the retired Marine behind Stay Golden Photo Booth. He brings 9 years of photo booth experience to weddings, corporate events, and brand activations across Southern California. He focuses on a seamless experience, high-quality photos, fast setup, and trained assistants. He writes guides based on what works onsite and shares practical tips from real events to help you plan smarter.
