Meet Ryan Carter | Owner/operator of Hall Of Shadows Escape Games

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ryan Carter and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ryan, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had spent twenty years in the film/tv industry as a visual effects artist, but that industry went through some major changes around 2015 that resulted in much less work being offered domestically and much of the remaining work was at a lower price point than it ever had been before. All my job experience at that point had revolved around film and TV work, but I had also been involved in a large number of themed entertainment projects such as Halloween haunts, Christmas displays, and festival events. These had been essentially hobby projects for me, but I started reading more and more about the growing popularity of escape rooms and I thought that my history with themed entertainment might allow me to create a richly themed escape room experience. I began exploring options for where to open such a business, but quickly became disenchanted with the practical realities of building codes, zoning issues, and landlords who had to interest in allowing an escape room in their space. I was close to giving up on the idea when, purely by chance, I stumbled on a local building owner who was actively looking to put an escape room in his building. He and I quickly made a deal that led to the escape room business I have today.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m only as much of a businessman as is required to keep things running. The creative side, as well as the technical side, are where I am much more comfortable. The biggest thrill I get is watching my guests get themselves lost in the tiny little world I have created for my games. Theming and immersion are top priorities for me and I try to begin the experience the moment guests walk in the door. I meet them in character, in costume, and I lead them on a rather interesting walk into the basement of a 95 year old building where they then enter the escape room through a secret door into the lobby of our game area. Here they experience a 6 minute preshow featuring audio, video, and computer controlled lighting effects that set the tone for the game that they are about to play. Some people might consider putting this much effort into theming and an elaborate preshow to be a waste of time. Some people consider an escape room to be little more than a game. I would argue that most players are looking for an immersive experience, of which the game is just one part of the equation. On at least 3 separate occasions, I heard players in the lobby say something along the lines of “This is the best escape room we’ve ever been to and we haven’t even started the game yet!”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
For fun and leisure activities, I’d likely head over to the nearby city of Redlands. Its historic downtown are has a wide variety of food, shopping, and entertainment options that are all enhanced by the retro look and feel of the local architecture. You can have lunch in a century-old brick building, window shop down the tree-lined streets, then sneak into a back alley and discover a whole new batch of businesses that you didn’t even know were there. While many cities offer similar options, for me, Redlands just has a lot more character and personality that makes anything you do there just more engaging and enjoyable.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would have to say that my entire family as a whole have enabled me to make my business successful. My grandmother always went big with Christmas displays and that inspired me to create large themed displays of my own. My father was an electrician who taught me the skills and provided some of the resources I needed to bring my ideas to life as many of these ideas involved a lot of technical elements. My mother was very business-savvy and taught me to have a solid plan before moving forward, plus two or three back-up plans after that first plan falls completely apart. I have to give a ton of credit to my wife, Anita, who has gone above and beyond with both emotional and financial support to allow me to get my business off the ground. Finally, I’d have to acknowledge my son Alex who provided both inspiration as well as some of the actual labor needed to make this business a reality.

Website: hallofshadows.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hall_of_shadows_escape_games/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Hall_Of_Shadows

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HallOfShadowsEG/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hall-of-shadows-escape-games-san-bernardino

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@hallofshadowsescapegames

Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@hos_escape_games