AV Stumpfl media server debuts in Lyon
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Having first participated in the festival in 2017 with the show Guignol Sur La Colline presented on the facade of the Collège Jean Moulin, Portuguese creative studio and multimedia company OCUBO returned in 2018 to work on a projection on the façade of the Saint-Jean Cathedral. Pigments de Lumière was the recipient of the Trophée des Partenaires awarded each year by the festival’s partners to the best artistic showcase.
Inspired by a quote from author Goethe, who says "colours are actions from light”, Pigments de Lumière was conceived as an abstract tribute to and celebration of all the colours that make up light, represented one by one through an exciting succession of different effects.
Nuno Maya, CEO, artistic director and co-founder of OCUBO, reports: “We knew that creating a show for such a special site was a great responsibility and that the project had to be extraordinary – which is what inspired a departure from the classic scheme of our projects down the analogue route. What unfolded is an experimental show with videomapping techniques that explore the aesthetics of two beautiful elements of nature – colour pigments and flowers.
“Throughout the centuries, flowers have taken on many meanings – symbols of friendship, love, vitality, revolution and freedom for example – with many still holding these symbolic connotations today. The history of pigments can also be traced back to prehistoric times and linked to the need of human beings to express themselves, their stories and their creativity.
“Using the forces of water and gravity and inspired by colour, movement and fusion of elements, the everyday images of flowers and pigments are transformed into something emotional, poetical and magical. Abstract colours and forms envelop each flower creating dynamic sculptures that enhance the beauty of the flowers themselves while interacting with the building architecture through analogue visual effects and experiments.”
The technical set up which delivered this powerful creative concept featured 12x Christie 20,000 lumens WUXGA laser projectors, with three new AV Stumpfl Pixera one quad server clients controlled by a fourth one acting as a master. Calibration was ensured by VIOSO's camera based system, while an RME Fireface UC external audio interface was used for audio playout and to send SMPTE LTC time code to control and sync a laser plus a number of small lights. Two-line arrays each consisting of 3 T12 active speakers from dB Technologies coupled with a SB30 sub ensured the audio delivery to the crowd.
Arguably the very heart of the show was the PIXERA suite of software and media servers – officially used for the very first time at the Fête des Lumières. Awarded Best Debuting Project at LDI’s Live Design Awards and an additional product award at the InAVation Awards 2019, the Pixera suite of media servers and software boasts a radically different and user-friendly interface.
Both Pixera One (1U model) and Two (2U model) can play back uncompressed 4K at 60fps; feature many a la carte options for specifying hardware components, and support Flex technology.
AV Stumpfl’s project manager and trainer, Florian Eder, expands on how Pixera enabled this showcase: “This project gave us the opportunity to prove our revolutionary graphical user interface concept, which is built around the key theme of usability, and show that it works as part of a complex and prestigious project such as this. The feedback from international projection mapping experts like OCUBO is of great importance as we are committed to a roadmap of continuous development – their input helped us to understand better which additional features should be prioritised.”
Maya concludes: “Participating in a world-renowned festival like the Fête des Lumières, and being recognised on this level, is a very rewarding experience for the whole team. It is thanks to AV Stumpfl’s Pixera that we could deliver at this level. We really enjoyed working with them and with the new suite, and we’re excited to use this new system on future projects so that together we can continue to push the boundaries when it comes to projection mapping.”
(Jim Evans)
