AV Stumpfl’s real-time PIXERA media server platform is the mainstay of a recent technological refresh of the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri, designed and integrated by Electrosonic, an award-winning audiovisual and technology services company. Helping to support the National WWI Museum and Memorial’s goal of engaging visitors with different learning styles, PIXERA distributes and synchronises media across the museum’s upgraded spaces, including theatres, multiple galleries and, most strikingly, Encounters – a new, deeply personal experience that introduces visitors to 16 first-person wartime stories.
At the heart of the project, ‘Encounters’ presents four alcoves where visitors step into illuminated markers that discreetly trigger life-size characters, based on real First World War personalities, as they enter the frame. Each story unfolds through a tightly choreographed interplay of visuals and sound, provided by 1.25mm Nanolumens LED displays, which deliver the on-screen characters; spatial audio by HOLOPLOT, which envelops each guest in sound without spilling into neighbouring alcoves; and concealed Christie Inspire Series projectors, which cast a forward portal shadow that turns the 2D image into a striking 3D illusion on the floor. The backbone of the installation takes the form of three PIXERA media servers (2 × PIXERA two and 1 × PIXERA zero Dual), which sequence the sensor events and media so that as one character exits, another arrives, maintaining the rhythm and intimacy between each encounter.
This responsive choreography, from the moment a shadow appears overhead to subtle movement on the tiled floor and the character’s arrival in frame, is orchestrated by the PIXERA engine, which ensures reliable, repeatable timing across all four portals while preserving the exhibit’s sense of spontaneity and humanity. Beyond Encounters, PIXERA underpins content playback and synchronisation throughout the Museum and Memorial. In the Kemper Horizons Theatre, projection and a dramatic diorama convey the brutal conditions of trench warfare, while the Battlescapes experience surrounds visitors with multiple edge-blended projections to place them in a “crater” amid a chaotic artillery bombardment. Four PIXERA two servers and one PIXERA Control Core are used for these non-Encounters experiences.
Leveraging its integration with the ISAAC AV workflow platform, PIXERA ties these multi-space experiences together and streamlines operations for the museum’s AV team. “PIXERA processors are used to blend the Christie projectors – a seamless integration we’ve used in several locations,” elaborates Chris Johnson, vice-president of sales for Electrosonic. “With so much happening within the museum, they have to have the ability to handle all that complexity, and they’re more than capable of doing so.” Speaking about the AV Stumpfl USA team’s involvement in the project, Johnson adds: “When we started thinking about designing this project, PIXERA came right into mind as our media server partner. They visited the National WWI Museum with us throughout the design process and helped us come to which products we needed to achieve our goals.” The refresh, delivered while the museum remained opened, marks the latest phase in a long-standing partnership between the National WWI Museum and Memorial and Electrosonic, reflecting the museum’s desire to blend the technology into the background in favour of letting the human stories take centre stage. Other collaborators on the project included Dot Crew (media design and production), Technical Artistry (lighting) and JE Dunn (fabrication).
