Well before Bud Selig began his long reign as Commissioner of Major League Baseball, his roots as a Milwaukee Brewers fan have always been at the core of everything he has accomplished.
Selig’s political skills imbued the decisions he had to make throughout his tenure as a gatekeeper for the game of baseball, be it as the former Owner of the Brewers as well as the Commissioner of MLB. His legacy can be accepted as one that oversaw a lot change, but in Selig’s own fashion–for better or for worse–with certain deliberations definitely not matching the rate desired by others.
“The pace of his decisions reflected the fact that he didn’t want to jam something down the throats of people who were against that change. It took longer, but there was greater buy-in, because people felt it wasn’t done in spite of them. Clubs knew he would work hard to convince them,” David Montgomery, Philadelphia Phillies’ Chief Executive Officer, referenced Selig as such to The New York Times.
Despite the timing and way in which he determined certain actions, when it comes to technology, Selig’s greatest touchstone moment presides when he passed the baton to Bob Bowman to launch Major League Baseball Advanced Media (BAM) once upon a time. By 2005, BAM had received $77 million investment from all 30 MLB franchise owner, generated $620 million annual revenue, and potentially valued at $2.5 billion for an IPO.
Selig, himself, went insofar as describing BAM’s success as the following to Fast Company: “I think it’s not only one of the great stories in American sports business in the past 12 years, but one of the great stories in American business.”
Still, Selig’s impact derives from his Milwaukee, Wisconsin beginnings.
Baseball in Milwaukee wouldn’t currently exist without him. His achievements wouldn’t have been possible without those baseball fans in Milwaukee, either.
In fact, Bowman, as a fellow baseball fan from Milwaukee as well, would be the first to acknowledge that Selig was one of his heroes growing up, belonging in the same ilk as Brewers stars Paul Molitor and Robin Yount. When the Brewers relocated to Atlanta in 1966, Bowman was dismayed about the news, having lived just two miles away from the ballpark. Then four years later, Selig led the ownership group to bring a MLB team back to Milwaukee; Bowman and kids at the time thought he “walks on water.”
Today, the Milwaukee Brewers proudly present the grand opening of “The Bud Selig Experience” at Miller Park, a symbolic bridge between Bowman’s childhood memories, the passion of their fans, and what lies ahead for the franchise.
The Selig Experience is a state-of-the-art exhibit covering 1,400 square feet inside the Brewers’ venue. The team enlisted BRC Imagination Arts, a Burbank, California-based design firm, to build this technological display. Considering that it’s a company known for “turning brands into destinations,” their creative decided it would be best to depict Selig’s story as a mixture of immersive media and special effects.
“Just imagine: the stadium holds over 40,000 fans; and, yet, our task was to create an experience that was to create an experience that was intimate, emotional, and produced at a quality that the Brewers and their fans would be proud of,” Brad Shelton, BRC Imagination Arts’ Creative Director, tells SportTechie.
Thus, one of BRC Imagination Arts’ challenges was dealing with the quite limited amount of space in which to tell this story. They elected to cap the audiences to between 30 to 40 people per show. Even though that’s an operationally daunting task, it spurs an emotionally, aesthetically-pleasing effect to the fans, where the immersive experience engulfs them due to the show’s permeating pulse.
They worked very closely with the Brewers to develop the concept of the experience. The key for them was trying to figure out the best theatrical technology in order to effectively showcase this exhibit.
There were two technological processes utilized at the core of these efforts.
For one, constructing a three-screen media presentation, using as a model, flipping baseball cards. The media included was primarily historical clips spanning from Milwaukee’s original minor league team through the contemporary years with the Brewers, along with interviews with Commissioner Selig and a voiceover narration by the voice of the Brewers, Bob Uecker. All of this is weaved together via motion graphics, so that it feels fresh and contemporary.
Secondly, creating an effect that enables Commissioner Selig to appear in his old office in County Stadium and address the audience directly. This facet makes it seems to fans as if he was actually there in front of them. During testing trials, people that walked in drew audible gasps as Selig emerges.
To make these technological representations possible, BRC Imagination Arts partnered with TechMD, Inc.’s, a Southern Californa-based IT service company, audio visual engineers to help integrate the technology and systems used for the experience. This attraction features the latest LED Broadway-style lighting, multi-screen HD projection, custom stage illusions, and a uniquely designed surround system that ensures each fan gets immersed with dynamic audio.
More specifically, the central part of the audio/video system is a QSC Q-sys Core 250i Integrated Digital Signal Processor. Q-sys systems are widely used within sporting facilities across the industry, collegiately and professionally, providing sound processing and distribution for entire stadiums, scoreboard PA systems, luxury boxes, and meeting rooms. In this case, they leveraged the Q-sys platform extensive feature list and the built-in scripting engine to craft a fully-centralized, completely integrated show control platform.
The Q-sys core used in the Selig Experience not only provides audio processing and playback functions, but also controls and monitors all the other show systems: lighting, video projectors and displays, video playback, moving scenery and doors, and the special effects.
“The attraction is designed to operate with only a single operator, if necessary. Operators interact with the system through several touch panel screens placed throughout the attraction. A user can type in their access code, tape a single button, and the entire system will power up and make itself ready to welcome guests in to see the show,” says Shelton.
It’s a transformation from an already solid audio processing platform into a comprehensive show control system–one that’s nimble and simple for stadium operators, while powerful enough to monitor all show systems to maintain safety and show quality.
Therefore, the show does not use traditional 3D, but the effect is still the same.
With BRC Imagination Arts’ experience in fusing creativity and consumer’s feelings towards a physical space, this baseball memorial is similar to their non-sports inspired work. While working with museums, brand centers, heritage sites, or world expos, they have full control of sound and light–not just in the designated area, but around it as well. In a stadium environment, it’s simply not feasible to maintain these elements, especially as fans jump around when a home run is hit. A local architectural firm, Uihlein-Wilson Architects, helped BRC ensure the stability of the infrastructure.
That said, for fans attending, they’ll enter the Bud Selig Experience by first walking into a small theatre that’s surrounded by three sides of media–taking them through Selig’s history of being a Milwaukee’s initial fan and the remarkable journey he took to get the Brewers to this city. After this presentation concludes, Selig’s image will show up in his old office and address fans directly. At the end of the show, fans will be able to walk through the replica of Selig’s office that contains original documents, photographs, and other famous memorabilia from his time as the owner of the Brewers. More memorabilia will be showcased as fans then enter a small exhibit that conveys the different phases of Selig’s career.
The Milwaukee Brewers as an organization believe that this technological edifice is the appropriate vehicle to commemorate Bug Selig.
“We decided to honor Commissioner Selig with a unique exhibit that was worthy of his incredible contributions to the city of Milwaukee,” Rick Schlesinger, Chief Operating Officer of the Milwaukee Brewers, tells SportTechie.
“Without Commissioner Selig, Milwaukee would not have Major League Baseball. We were convinced that a special interactive experience for the fans would be the most effective means to celebrate his accomplishments and honor his legacy,” added Schlesinger.
The Bug Selig Experience will be open to fans during all Brewers home games. This site will also be a part of designated Miller Park tours that are conducted in-season and off-season. Moreover, it will be open on special occasions at Miller Park, and upon advance reservation for certain groups.
“The Selig Experience represents the past, present, and future of the Brewers as it tells the story of one man’s fight against impossible odds to bring Major League Baseball back to Milwaukee,” affirms Schlesinger.
“The story of the Seattle Pilots moving to Milwaukee a mere six days before the start of the 1970 season, the struggle to build Miller Park, and the reforms instituted to ensure that all teams have a chance to compete for a World Series trophy are all part of the Commissioner’s legacy. All of these stories are woven into the Selig Experience to create a memory that fans will cherish long after they leave the ballpark,” Schlesinger concluded.