Marco Balich, "Master of Ceremony"

The Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast by Marcus Luer

Marco Balich, the Master of Ceremonies, in the true sense of the word - we explore the exciting world of Marco’s career being involved in creating some of the most memorable moments in Opening/Closing Ceremonies for major sports, cultural and entertainment events around the world.

Key Highlights

1. Growing up in Venice, being surrounded by art, the carnival, entertainment and beauty
2. Leaving the “island” and exploring the world in the 80s, studying in Chicago, exploring Soviet Union countries, etc
3. Dream of joining the Olympics in Fencing – Western block of 1980 Moscow Olympics stopped this
4. Starting as Concert Tour Manager in Italy, U2, Simple Mind, etc – great learning experience
5. Pink Floyd concert in Venice – a successful disaster
6. Moving into Music Video space – VIVA in Italy – short lived
7. Back into Live Music - Heineken Jammin’ Festival in Milan, in late 90s
8. First Olympic gig – Flag Handover ceremony at Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics to Torino Olympics – just after 9/11 attacks
9. Breaking into the Olympic world, beating dominant incumbent Anglo-Sachsen agencies – with a different approach
10. Each ceremony a piece of Art – going through some of the iconic moments of past Opening ceremony’s
11. Discussing the different roles and challenges with different countries and locations
12. Process of an Olympic ceremony – two year journey – scale and size of budgets (huge dollars)
13. How to deal with the cultural differences – not driven by money
14. Tokyo Olympics – and what happened to the Opening Ceremony – the Covid games
15. Focus of Balich Wonder Studio – giving creative talent platforms to showcase their talent
    1. Building new iconic environments and structures for real estate projects
    2. Luxury brand launches
    3. Major global events
    4. Immersive IP and technology (Disney project)
16. Usage of AI in the creative world
17. Final thoughts on Paris Olympics and EURO Opening, etc

About

Creative Director and Executive Producer with a record number of 14 Olympic Ceremonies and 12 Regional Games credits and several large-scale events produced all around the world.
Marco’s Olympic experience, awarded with an Emmy Award in 2006 and a Compasso d’Oro in 2017, began with the Salt Lake City 2002 Flag Handover, followed by Torino 2006 Olympic Ceremonies. He was involved in the Sochi 2014 Olympic Closing Ceremony and Paralympic Ceremonies and acted as Executive Producer of Rio 2016 Olympic Ceremonies (produced by CC2016), watched by 2.6 billion people.
He covered the role of Artistic Director of the Italian Pavilion at the 2015 Expo in Milano, where he created the ‘Tree of Life’ icon. He conceived the revolutionary format Superlive, with ‘Giudizio Universale, the Sistine Chapel Immersive Show’, the highest selling show in Italy in 2018, in association with the Vatican Museums.
In 2013, together with long-time partners Gianmaria Serra and Simone Merico, he founded Balich Worldwide Shows, today Balich Wonder Studio, sharing the ambition to introduce a new era in the live entertainment industry where true emotions are the driver of the creative narrative.
As Chief Creative Officer of Balich Wonder Studio he embodies the role of leading inspirer and mentor of a multicultural and diverse team of highly talented Creators. His vision has been crucial to attract, recruit and raise some of the best professionals in the industry, making Balich Wonder Studio a unique playground for creative visionaries from all over the world.

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