Lincoln Park Zoo - Visitors Center

In early discussions about a proposed video wall for Searle Visitors Center, many zoo staff assumed the display would function as something of a menu board or digital sign. We encouraged them to imagine, instead, a cinematic experience.

At this free-to-enter zoo with no ticket gates, guests can just walk on in if they wish. So we set out to attract visitors into the new space with dramatic and unexpected motion pictures of what they came to see–animals, activities and behind-the-scenes action. We wanted to encourage a step up the engagement ladder, such as recruiting a new member or a donor, but even if we just slowed down the average guest enough to take in a few messages and learn new ways to get involved at the zoo, that would be a success.

We settled on an ultra-wide 20’ x 6’ DesignLED video wall in tight pixel pitch that fits the space perfectly. It offered an opportunity to mine the zoo’s library of existing footage for shots that could be re-cropped for usage in this unusual format. We provided exploratory graphics templates and video samples to spur discussion and creativity, but zoo creative staff quickly adapted their shooting and editing styles to fit the format and were off to the races. The results are truly lovely and mesmerizing.

The system is driven by a custom Unity app and Content Management System with timed playlisting. After experiments, staff settled on a morning playlist and afternoon playlist with slightly different content. They regularly employ an “override” mode that allows special events to have their own messaging.