American Heritage Museum
From the Revolutionary War to the War on Terror, America is a country with consequential military history, reflected in the stories of the women and men who have defended the country through three centuries. The 68,000 square foot American Heritage Museum is home to these stories and nearly 100 military planes, tanks, missile launchers and other artifacts . . . many the only ones on display in the world.
BPI provided the creative direction, interpretive planning, media design, and media production for its largest museum installation. The museum includes powerful and inspirational symbols of our American Heritage including wreckage from the World Trade Center, a section of the Berlin Wall, a Higgins Boat that landed on D-Day and an Abrams MIA1 tank from the Battle of Fallujah in Iraq. BPI’s team found profound and moving personal stories that live alongside these national treasures.
Upon entering the museum guests are directed to a series of three multimedia presentations. An orientation theater takes guests from the Revolutionary War up to WWI. They then enter the signature WWI Trench Experience where visitors are literally in the middle of the fighting. This immersive show features a meticulously detailed recreation of a WWI trench along enemy lines. There are three hidden video projection screens that show a blend of newly produced original high-end battlefield footage mixed with stock and archival materials. During the pitched battle one screen rises and reveals a Renault tank poised to fire on the enemy. The program features custom controlled lighting and a 12 channel surround sound system. Guests then exit to the War Clouds theater where the beginnings of WWII unfold culminating with the attack on Pearl Harbor . . . and a spectacular reveal of the main museum floor.
Arguably, the American Heritage Museum has the largest object theater in the world. The main floor show incorporates fully half of the museum collection. A large video projection describes the battles that shaped WWII as areas of interest and key artifacts are highlighted with show controlled lighting. The show climaxes with the destruction of a T-72 Russian tank with special effects fire erupting from the turret and engine compartments.
Throughout the venue shorter videos blend original interviews, graphics, animations, archival and stock footage to tell moving stories of individual and collective heroism, along with futility, horrors, and the human toll of war.
The American Heritage Museum is a world-class venue often compared to the Smithsonian.
