Video and AV

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14 March 2016

The new company directors are Lisa Tapper, Mike Naish (formerly Stagecraft Ltd production manager), Kevin Hughes (former projects manager) and Simon Sketchley, who has joined the company from AJS Theatre Lighting and Stage Supplies, where he was general manager.

Tapper reports that eight key members of staff have been retained as part of the new operation, while a further eight have lost their jobs.

Tapper was also confirmed that all forward orders on Stagecraft Ltd's books will be honoured by the ne

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14 March 2016

The move was necessitated by PID's proactive programme of hands-on product support and training, which reached the level where it needed its own dedicated space.

"We are now doing regular Catalyst and WholeHog training," states PID MD David March. He adds that the 1000sq.ft demo area is also ideal for them to stage product mock-ups and testing for clients and upcoming projects.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Owned by UNITE, the Union T&G Section, and occupying a prime site in the Holborn business district, the independently run Diskus has been able to promote itself as an "advanced conference venue" since the AV specialists carried out a major upgrade this summer using QSC's AcousticDesign Series loudspeakers and CX Series power amplifiers.

Derek Wright, managing director of Design Integration, has frequently turned to QSC components to satisfy his project requirements - and given The Diskus's low ceiling height he was able to deploy multiples of AD-Ci52T and AD-Ci52ST recessed ceiling speakers for the foyer/break out area and main auditorium respectively.

Said conference manager, Francis Wil

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14 March 2016

A 96" 16:9 Vikuiti screen has been hung on the first floor of the newly built flagship Volkswagen dealership in Chelmsford, Essex. A ceiling mounted projector beams streaming video designed to educate, entertain and inform customers of the latest Volkswagen offers and information, which is controlled by Volkswagen UK head office in Milton Keynes. Positioned above an open atrium on the ground floor, the giant screen is intended to catch the customer's eye and drive traffic upstairs to peruse the used car stock.

"We have been

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14 March 2016

A total of 150sq.m of R7-ER configured as a large 16:9 aspect screen formed the centre piece for the stage set, plus two IMAG side screens in portrait format ensured that Evans' visual comedic style reaches each and every audience member.

The average size for the central touring screen is 10.16m x 6.1m (10 panels wide by 8 panels high), which closely approximates the 16:9 format initially specified. The look of the show was transformed at London's O2 Arena - the largest venue on the tour

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14 March 2016

The Snow Machine represents a new level of collaboration between the two companies, who have been close friends for many years. Originally created in prototype form by White Light for the London production of the musical Billy Elliot, the final version of the Snow Machine is now manufactured for White Light by City Theatrical. It offers variable speed delivery of paper or plastic snow effects under DMX control and is designed to fit into tight spaces and operate with the very minimum of noise.

"White Light has often created special products requested by lighting designers to solve problems on particular shows," commented the c

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14 March 2016

For the event, tst provided among other things a 20 x 4m soft-edged panorama projection using purpose four Barco FLM R20+ projectors of 20,000 Ansi lumens each in connection with ten Wings Platinum 3 from AV Stumpfl for the master, slave and redundant computers as well as further equipment. A particular challenge for the tst team was the very short projection dista

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14 March 2016

Helix P1 is a flexible LED pixel string that allows users to quickly deploy video over large spaces in creative ways. It bends, wraps, drapes, and folds allowing maximum creativity in a wide range of venues. Coupled with flexible processing and the power of RasterMAPPER software, individual Helix P1 strings are merged into one seamless video display that can transform any surface or shape into a work of art. The snap-in diffuser accessory also allows one to mount the Helix P1 to signage, scenery

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14 March 2016

The statement reads as follows:

"A new company has been formed by Gary Davis, Darren Glossop, Paddy Collier, Lauren Steadman and Divyang Mistry which saves the jobs of nearly 100 employees of PSL after adverse circumstances forced the Potters Bar-based event services operation into administration.

"Last month, PSL entered into a legal process called 'pre-pack administration', a routinely-used mechanism recommended by many insolvency practitioners to protect valuable parts of a business. It has strict compliance issues, formal valuations of assets and intellectual property, and requires personal guarantees from the directors. The process

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14 March 2016

The attraction, entitled Life, Love & Legacy: A New Introduction to William Shakespeare, is due to open in April 2009, and will see visitors journey through five zones in an immersive experience bringing the history of Shakespeare to life. Set within the grounds of the house where Shakespeare was born, the visitor centre is the centrepiece of the five houses that The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust opens to the public in and around Stratford.

Utilising its in house creative and AV departments, Sarner has designed a fully automated dark 'walk through'

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14 March 2016

Across the range, the brightness specification reaches 4000 lumens on the F300 series and 3300 lumens on the FW300 series. Both feature an upgraded daylight view 5 technology and use common lamps throughout making replacement and maintenance more cost effective.

The F300 also boasts up to 5,000 hours lamp life at full brightness specification and Panasonic backs this with a three year (or 3000 hour) warranty which includes lamps.

The F300 range uses a new Auto Cleaning Filter (ACF) which can extend the typical filter maintenance intervals to 10,000 hours depen

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14 March 2016

Associate lighting designer Jonny Milmer said: "There's never enough time to programme a show of this scale and having two desks connected with different users really helped. I was able to programme the show on the grandMA full-size as the cast rehearsed with Martin (Terry) playing back the show on the grandMA light to keep us in the correct lighting cue."

Technical manager Martin Terry continued: "It's nice to be able to focus on the cue points in the script and music and practise these during rehearsals without having to also worry about cue modifications that were done on a grandMA full-size console which was only used during rehearsals."

"Having such a flexible system meant that I could have my l

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14 March 2016

Based in Belgium, with offices in the Netherlands and Spain, EML is the main supplier for the biggest festivals and concerts in Europe. Dirk Bosloirs, operations director for EML comments: "We know from other people that becoming a G-LEC partner is like joining a family, where everyone supports each other. It is more than just products, it is about 100% back-up and support."

Bosloirs continues: "We have worked with Supporting Role for many years and when we were looking for an LED frame system, they gave us good reports of G-LEC. We investigated further, saw the system in action at Hockenheim in July, and then met up again at PLASA in September. The beauty of the system is its flexibility - you can configure it to any kind of produ

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14 March 2016

This was specified by lighting designer Baz Halpin, is operated by Barry Branford and supplied through Bandit Lites UK for the UK and European sections of the tour.

The screen is constructed from a combination of Barco O-Lite frames - a solid section in the centre and asymmetrically populated frames radiating outwards, along with 304 ACL bulbs. It is 17m wide and 5m tall, weighs seven tonnes and was fabricated by Brilliant Stages. On the road, it is suspended by 24 half tonne Lodestar motors with Kinesys Elevation 1+ drive units.

12 motors are lifting the top half of the screen and 12 are attached to steel stingers passing through the centres of the bottom panels, picki

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14 March 2016

Working closely with Edinburgh-based Pufferfish, XL has also jointly developed six internally projected spheres - and steel cage housings - which are a major scenic feature of the show.

The show's inventive set and lighting was created by Paul Normandale, with video playback content specially commissioned and produced by Justine Catterall, technical support by Richard Turner and live video directed by Andy Bramley. Des Fallon is International account handler & project manager for XL.

Five 2m diameter globes are onstage, three attached to the two rear trusses (which are horizontal ladder beams shaped like waves), and the other two downstage left and right at the sides of stage, flown on two mo

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14 March 2016

Lighthouse LED panels are appearing at more and more sports venues around the world. "The Macau and Bahrain Grand Prix, Rugby Sevens in Hong Kong, stadiums in US, Australia, Italy, Denmark, Holland, Austria and London just to name a few, as well as the famous Lord's Cricket ground in London have all been excellent examples of how Lighthouse LED screens are creating dramatic impact at major sporting events around the world," said Peter Chan, general manager of Lighthouse Technologies.

"We are also extremely proud to be the LED screen provider for the 2008 Tennis Masters. The R4-S screens we have installed at Qizhong Stadium reflect o

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14 March 2016

The event, held in the Grand Ballroom of The Four Seasons Hotel in Hong Kong, acknowledges the achievements of the Asia-Pacific hedge fund industry; bringing together both international and Asian managers and investors to celebrate the best performing Asia-Pacific hedge funds.

TAO were contracted three weeks prior to the awards by Matt Stowe of London based design agency NewSubstance to provide production management and consultancy for the event.

TAO's Managing Director Andy Cotton started by liaising with the hotel's supplier, Simon Lam of Hong Kong based company Base Create, and hotel events manager Samantha Chow. The set was designed as all white with a central 12' x 9' rear projection

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14 March 2016

Measuring six panels wide by six panels high (9.60m x 7.20m), the 12mm visual resolution P12-ER screen is being used as a scoreboard and to show advertisements during matches. It serves as a medium that can support new and interesting content and provide a valuable additional revenue stream for the club.

Lighthouse handled both the sale and integration of the screen. "P12-ER is an enhanced resolution product, which means more detailed information can be displayed on the screen than with a standard 25mm pixel pitch screen," says Alessio Giagnoni, Lighthouse's sales support manager for Southern Europe. &quo

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14 March 2016

32 PixelLine 1044s featured in show designer Mamo Pozzoli's lighting rig, hung side by side in groups of two - creating a giant frame around the whole set. The show infused many art forms including dance, cinema, poetry and music - resulting in a stunning performance portraying the two aspects of the name of the tour - mechanical and dream.

Pozzoli explains: "I needed a powerful LED fixture that would help me transpose the lighting language of the two souls of the show concept. The 1044s have got that unmistakable industrial character and that brilliant personality - able to combine fast graphi

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14 March 2016

The record-breaking production is lit by 200 moving lights and includes more than 200 automation cues with surround sound. The LED video display is the centerpiece of the production - projecting true-to-life images and live video feedback of the production with frequent opening and closing to allow actors and stage props to enter and exit the stage.

Jon Driscoll, video and projection designer for Dirty Dancing says: "My reputation is built on my ability to put on a technically flawless show every night," said Driscoll.

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14 March 2016

Vice-president Lorenzo Cornacchia collaborated with LD Barry 'Baz' Halpin bringing a variety of effects to highlight Tina's stage presence. The implementation of the pyrotechnic designs was coordinated with Halpin throughout the four-week rehearsal period.

Pyrotechnic crew chief John Arrowsmith introduces the effects in each show, which includes everything from Dragons, Gold Flitter Mines, Red Mines with Glitter, Aqua Mines, Blue Mines as well as an all-fire cue of 20 X 20 Gerbs firing upstage concluding Tina's hit song, Her. "It's a real powerful song and we focused on adding a barrage of distinctive looks that truly highlight the heavy riffs," commented Cornacchia.

The first leg of the North America tour wil

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14 March 2016

The project was managed for XL by Steve Greetham following the screen surfaces being specified for the show, recorded at Granada Studios in Manchester, by Phil Mercer. It was supplied via main lighting contractors, HSL, and co-ordinated from their side by Mike Oates.

The screens formed an integral part of Simon Kimmell's set design, for which the brief was to recreate a 'classically cliched' LE talent show look, complete with opening upstage centre screen for entrances and exits, and lots of video-driven LED elements.

The central screen comprised 14 panels wide by six high of Barco i6XP LED which split apart vertically and

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14 March 2016

Creative Technology received a Gold Award for its contribution to the spectacular Opening Ceremony which became the hallmark of the Games.

Working closely with the Beijing Organising Committee Ceremonies team, CT developed, designed and delivered the complex processing and switching requirements used on the dramatic video LED floor and scrolls, one of the pivotal elements during the 2008 opener.

Dave Crump, managing director, Creative Technology London, comments: "Being recognised by industry peers is the highest compliment it also sends such a wonderful message to our dedicated team, who I know work tirelessly to deliver such complex projects."

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Lighting designer Paul Normandale was tasked with devising a new means of integrating the visual components for the current Viva la Vida tour.

"For my part the band's desire for a viewing surface without the use of LEDs, was an interesting challenge, and one for which the Pufferfish system of internal projection provided a unique solution," states Normandale. "It allows not only media content, but also live relay footage (via the Hippotizers) in large scale arenas worldwide."

In all, six PufferSpheres were commissioned for the tour, forming a major part of the overall visual design as well as