South Africa - Vectorworks Spotlight Training workshops will be presented by Dylan Jones at DWR Distribution in Cape Town (15 -17 April) and Durban (20 - 22 May).
The three-day sessions will allow users to explore the power and flexibility Vectorworks Spotlight has to offer. Dylan will cover topics such as layouts and palettes, basic tools, classes and layers, Spotlight tools, intermediate tools, worksheets and reports, 3D modelling, resource management and file import and export.
Delegates are requested to supply Vectorworks Spotlight installed on a PC or MAC, a keyboard, mouse, screen and a valid ID. The cost is R2,100 and includes a light lunch and refreshments.

Germany - In response to an increased worldwide demand for its staging products and solutions, Eurotruss Group has announced its expansion across Germany by adding the full NEXT Truss product line to the Eurotruss office and warehouse in Hövelhof.
Through this initiative, Eurotruss GmbH will have access to the full range of products in the Eurotruss Group portfolio including Eurotruss, Total Structures and the newest addition NEXT Truss.
Matthias Bohnenpoll, MD, Eurotruss GmbH states: “NEXT Truss is a great addition to our product range and we are now able to serve also clients who carry other truss types than Eurotruss. Our new offices and warehouse facility in Hövelhof, Germany, is strategically located to satisfy demand and allow for quicker delivery times and technical support to satisfy their demands.”
Martin Kuyper, CEO, Eurotruss Group comments: “NEXT Truss stands for well-produced goods, competitive pricing, experienced and trusted staff, swift delivery times and good industry relationships. I am confident our German team has the experience and in-depth knowledge of the entertainment market and their needs to help us deliver the most relevant product solutions to our customers; It is an exciting time to add NEXT Truss to the Eurotruss Group.”
“The opening of our new warehouse and sales office in Hövelhof will serve clients in the region, fast delivery times and provide the inventory and presence needed for NEXT Truss’s anticipated growth throughout Germany,” adds Ralph Stockley, CEO, NEXT Truss.
(Jim Evans)

UK - Event production specialist CPL started the year with some major investments in lighting and video products.
This includes the acquisition of the acquisition of Barco UDM 4K22 projectors – one of the first three companies in the UK to invest in these brand-new machines – plus Portman P1 Mini LED fixtures, Astera Titan Tubes and OXO Pixyline 150 LED battens.
This is in addition to the 40x new Robe LEDBeam 150 wash beam moving lights that joined the CPL lighting inventory in December 2019.
Eight Barco UDM 4K22s join the company’s already extensive fleet of Barco - and other - high-powered projectors, purchased for their quality, reliability and innovative features. CPL plans to use these projectors on several upcoming projects.
Also new for the lighting department is the Portman P1 Mini LED from Polish manufacturer Portman. The P1 Mini comprises seven hexagonal lightsources, one centrally positioned which is surrounded by six in a flower-like pattern.
These purchases are added to the substantial investment in Robe LEDBeam 150 moving lights at the end of 2019, and the plan is to continue expanding the lighting department steadily.

Europe - Lewis Capaldi’s first arena tour in the UK saw design partnership Cassius, Chris ‘Squib’ Swain and Dan Hill taking a stark minimalist stage set and enfolding it in textural layers of video with a mix of roller-drop projection and hi-def LED.
“It’s a fascinating landscape,” said tour video director Mark Davies, “Squib and Dan determined to place the focus squarely on Lewis with a strong imperative on his art and artistry. For me that has meant seeking a far more nuanced and thoughtful perspective for the live camera work that forms such a strong part of the narrative.”
The LED screens, camera package and six 30K Panasonic laser projectors are supplied by Video Design; so too the Disguise gx 2c servers for some stunning content from North House.
“Tom Bairstow and the team at North House have taken what is a technically ambitious show and found ways to weave their content with the camera images,” explained Davies. “The back wall of the stage is entirely covered by 5mm LED, the Cassius stage design includes five roller-screens in a line across the front of stage with two further roll-drops each side forming a chevron tapering toward upstage centre. These are the destinations for the projectors. The roller drops are frequently set at different heights, often presenting as squares rather than rectangles and not infrequently descend in front of the musicians - they are translucent.”
“Although I have six cameras, four with operators, using two CamBall 3 robo-cams on stage was problematic. Shooting between and under

Europe - Regular users of GLP solutions, 30 Seconds to Mars, spent last summer playing festivals and indoor arenas across Europe, including two special ‘Mars Island’ shows on a private Croatian Island. Piloting their lighting and visual show was production designer Tom Campbell of MIRRAD, himself a regular user of GLP’s award-winning fixtures over the years.
“The original impression series was one of the fixtures I had used regularly back in the day and it’s great to see how far GLP has evolved ever since,” he says.
Campbell joined the technical team last May after finding himself unexpectedly being contacted by the band’s leader, singer/songwriter and actor, Jared Leto.
“I received a random phone call from him about lights, having already spoken to the production managers, Pete Abbott and Ed Slaney,” he confirmed. And the designer quickly learnt that the band were eager to have GLP’s X4 Bar 20’s back in the rig, based on previous experience with the award-winning battens.
In total the designer specified 52 of the fixtures as well as 26 of the JDC1 hybrid strobe in a modular floor package.
The lighting largely followed the visuals in the design, with the James Turrell-inspired video content also acting as the lighting source. “Jared asked to see some mood boards and when I threw in some Turrell, who is currently very popular, it struck a chord with him,” he added.
With LED tubing and smoke dominated, Tom Campbell constructed a strong linear ‘cage’ effect using GLP’s X4 Bar 20’s. The production itse

Ukraine – Chinese fixture manufacturer Acme’s Dotline360 LED battens are adding powerful, pixel-mapped colour to some of Ukraine’s biggest shows following an investment by one of the country’s largest rental and lighting production companies, Alight.
The one-metre Dotline360 units, which are equipped with 12x 30W RGBW LEDs, landed in stock at Alight in autumn 2019 and have been out on projects almost continuously ever since.
Most recently, they have been seen in action on the popular Ukraine TV show Dancing with the Stars, and a gig by Ukraine pop duo Vremya i Steklo, who performed to a capacity 10,000 crowd at Kiev’s Palace of Sports arena.
“We discovered Acme’s Dotline360 at Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt in 2019 and were immediately impressed by the brightness, colour mixing and smooth output with great linear dimming,” says lighting designer Evgen Kostyra from Alight. “High CRI is vital for use in TV shows, which forms a big part of our business, and the Dotline360 battens offer fantastic rendering. As soon as we took delivery, they were out on almost every show with our clients.”
Alight worked closely with Acme’s Italy-based EMEA sales director, Marco Galli, to secure the investment.
“We are very proud of our Dotline360 product, which is the result of some fantastic engineering from our R&D team in China,” says Galli. “We know that our customers are looking for quality at an attractive price point, with the kind of output and smooth dimming usually found only on premium-priced products, and t

Canada - The French concert version of the hit musical Phantom of the Opera has debuted in Montreal and Quebec City where lighting designer Jean-Francois Couture, of Montreal’s La Boîte à Lumière, utilised grandMA3 full-size console for lighting control.
The new production, featuring 20 singers and a 40-musician orchestra, enchanted audiences at the Théâtre St-Denis in Montreal and the Grand Théâtre de Québec. It was presented by Spectra Musique through a special arrangement with The Really Useful Group.
Couture has used grandMA lighting consoles for the last two decades. Phantom of the Opera was his first experience with the grandMA3, which he ran using grandMA3 software. The system was provided by Francis Giguère of Omnison, Montreal.
During the Christmas holiday Couture taught himself the grandMA3 “using the same process as when I switched from the grandMA to grandMA2: building the show, watching tutorials, using my WYSIWYG system,” he recalls. “When I learned the grandMA2 and could achieve everything I wanted with it, I realized the new model was pushing me creatively in different directions. The desk was taking me somewhere else. That’s the same feeling I had when I was programming Phantom of the Opera on the grandMA3.”
While he experienced the same kind of learning curve as when he migrated to the grandMA2, Couture says, “overall, the new desk was not that difficult to learn. I did not have to rethink the whole process.” He especially likes the new grandMA3 hardware. “The way you can move

UK - Silent Conference supported the live-to-vinyl recording event by Record Store Day 2020 ambassadors The Big Moon at Metropolis Studios, London.
Ahead of Record Store Day – which takes place this year on 18 April – The Big Moon recorded their Record Store Day release live in front of an audience at Metropolis Studios on 5 March.
Metropolis Studios recreated the experience of recording live to vinyl, a process that was once used regularly by musicians. The attending audience, comprised of music industry personnel and fans of The Big Moon, used wireless headphones provided by Silent Conference to listen to each individual track as it was performed and recorded live. Through the headphones, attendees also heard conversation between the band members (Juliette Jackson, Soph Nathan, Celia Archer and Fern Ford) and studio engineers throughout the recording process, as well as comments from The Big Moon.
Tom Stirling, marketing manager, Silent Conference, commented: “Our wireless headphones and technology have been used for all sorts of events around the world, but this was a new experience we are proud to have supported with our partners at Metropolis Studios and Record Store Day. Recording live to vinyl requires performances from confident and accomplished artists – and, as everyone listening on the headphones can attest, The Big Moon were more than up to the daunting task.”
Gavin Newman, brand director at Metropolis Studios, added: “We consider ourselves privileged to be able to combine today’s technology with the techniques of the

USA/Canada - Solotech expanded its lighting inventory last summer with the purchase of 150 Ayrton Khamsin-S LED profile luminaires and 108 Ayrton MagicBlade-FX fixtures from ACT Lighting, Inc., Ayrton’s exclusive distributor in North America.
The Khamsin-S units selected by Solotech are designed for scenic applications. The fixture is equipped with a new LED module delivering powerful metallic white light with a record-breaking output of 40,000 lumens and a colour temperature of 6500 K. The MagicBlade-FX is the latest iteration of the popular MagicBlade-R. It features seven next-generation RGBW high-output LEDs than can be individually controlled to create airborne virtual scenery or to illuminate sets and performers.
“Ayrton is a well-known quality brand with impressive fixtures that are industry accepted and requested,” says Lee Moro, vice president of live productions at Solotech. “Designers are asking for these fixtures more and more every day.”
Solotech already put the fixtures to work on the Jonas Brothers’ Happiness Begins world tour, which kicked off last summer in Miami and is due to wrapped in Paris at the end of February. They also used the Khamsin units on Guy Laliberté’s PY1 Pyramid project through the new Lune Rouge production house. “Their design team is very happy with the fixtures,” Moro reports.
“The support we have received from ACT Lighting has been fantastic, as we have experienced throughout our long relationship,” he concludes.

UK - MBSi has introduced the VFX Wall 20:40, a modular inflatable VFX backdrop and the latest addition to their growing portfolio of creative production solutions.
Having already proved itself on a number of major productions, the VFX Wall 20:40 is the first in a new range of modular, inflatable visual effects backdrop designed specifically for use within the film and television industry.
Exclusively available through, and fully supported by the team at Pinewood MBS Lighting, VFX Wall 20:40 is supplied in a choice of VFX Wall Green or VFX Wall Blue VFX, depending on the requirement. Flexible and adaptable, the system is designed for creating expansive visual effects walls across backlot sets or for creating privacy screens to protect from prying eyes.
Simple to operate and easy to maintain and adapted for studio or location based work, the system requires almost no maintenance or specialist training. Under normal conditions, the inflation/deflation time is around 10 minutes and once set up the system’s built-in air pump monitors and maintains full inflation. For easy transportation between sets each wall is supplied with its own case, custom designed to house the deflated wall.
Unlike traditional systems, VFX Wall is completely reusable and installation leaves little or no impact, making it an environmentally conscious option.
Available in 20ft by 40ft sections, the modular, tough, waterproof blocks can be mixed and matched to create all manner of VFX backdrops, and with additional sizes arriving shortly, there is no limit to the creat

Europe - ACME Lighting and Highlite International are the latest companies to announce that they will no longer be exhibiting at the postponed Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt this May, due to the health risks posed by Coronavirus (COVID-19).
“At this moment, the entire entertainment industry is experiencing huge challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the response to the virus,” says Marco Galli, EMEA sales director at ACME Lighting. “We take the health of our staff and customers very seriously. Well-being and containment of COVID-19 is our duty and priority, and therefore, regretfully, we are forced to cancel plans to participate in Prolight+Sound 2020.”
Meanwhile, a statement from Highlite reads: “We have decided not to participate in Prolight+Sound 2020. The new dates after the postponement of the fair do not fit within our plans and vision of the industry. It is not an easy decision because every year we are eager to talk to our customers and contacts and to show our new products. Of course, the health of visitors and our employees comes first, which is why we respect the choice of Prolight+Sound.”
Both companies remain focussed on developing new products. “We would like to reassure our friends and partners that ACME is continuing to innovate and manufacture within the current restrictions and taking into account the safety of all of our team,” Galli continues. “We will keep all of our stakeholders informed and up-to-date in the coming weeks as we respond to COVID-19.”
Highlite says: “Don't worry, with the campaign '

France - The first sponsors of Showlight Quadrennial (Fontainebleau, France – 22-25 May 2021) have been announced by its organisers. Joining Headline sponsor Robert Juliat, the 100-year old, family-run, French manufacturer of lighting equipment are: Platinum sponsor, Ayrton; Gold sponsors, Eyetidy, Robe and SFL Group; Silver sponsors, ABTT, ACT Lighting and White Light, and Bronze sponsor, PRG. Media Partner for Showlight 2021 is LSI, with generous support from LSA and PLASA. “We are extremely grateful to all our sponsors, partners and supporters, but this list is just the beginning,” says Showlight. "It is a little-known fact, but Showlight is organised entirely by volunteers and would not be possible without the generosity of our sponsors. We are currently looking for more sponsors to make Showlight 2021 a success, so why not get involved? There are many ways to become a Showlight sponsor and be part of one of the lighting industry’s most popular networking events."
Showlight Quadrennial is one of the few international events organised specifically for lighting professionals, by lighting professionals across the performance, television, film, architectural and event worlds. Regarded as one of the best networking events in the industry, Showlight combines three days of eclectic talks with a great social programme, a sponsored student scheme and a supporting exhibition that gives unique opportunities for manufacturers and lighting designers to network in a relaxed and non-pressured environment.
”This too will pass”
A statement f

USA - US-based trade show USITT has been cancelled due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The event was was due to celebrate its 60th anniversary edition this 1-4 April.
A statement from the shows organisers reads: “The USITT Board of Directors, in an unanimous vote, has cancelled the 2020 Annual Conference & Stage Expo scheduled for April 1-4 in Houston.”
USITT executive director David Grindle said in a video message posted on the show’s website: “I have to let you know that we have cancelled this year’s annual Conference and Stage Expo. This is a very, very difficult decision. At USITT we talk a lot about safety and health and making sure our workplaces are safe spaces. Today, we had to make the hard decision to ensure the safety and health of our members.”
He continues: “This is unprecedented in the 60-year history of USITT, but our Board of Directors felt that they would be doing a disservice to our members and our industry by moving ahead in this time of global uncertainty. If you’ve already registered for the conference or are an exhibitor, you’ll be receiving emails over the next several days with more information. On behalf of the Board of Directors, thank you for standing with USITT in this time. As we move forward, know that our members’ interest is always what guides us. Thank you.”

UAE - Genelec has appointed GSL Professional as its new distribution partner in the Middle East, covering the territories of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain & Iraq.
Based in Dubai, GSL Professional was established over 20 years ago with the aim of bringing the best in professional audio, video, lighting and control solutions to customers across the Middle East.
“We are extremely proud to represent Genelec as part of our premium product portfolio for distribution across the Middle East region. I am looking forward to building a strong relationship with our new partner, and extending Genelec’s business through our extensive channel partner network,” said Adrian Curtis, managing director at GSL Professional.
Arun Kumar, Genelec’s regional business development manager for the Middle East, added: “So much of our global business now is based around providing complete loudspeaker solutions, whether the customer is a music studio, broadcast facility or installation project. That requires distributors with a highly developed commercial and technical understanding of our range, and we can’t imagine a better qualified regional partner than Adrian and his GSL Professional team.”
(Jim Evans)

Europe - Area Four Industries Direct UK has issued a clarification statement in respect to the continuation of supply of Lightspace deck & truss products supplied via Impact Products (Europe) Ltd who were placed into voluntary liquidation procedures at the end of last year.
Says the statement, “Contrary to recent reports, these products have not been discontinued. Milos, which is part of Area Four Industries has exclusively manufactured Impact OEM brands Spacedeck and Lightspace for the past five years from their production facilities in the Czech Republic.
“Area Four Industries UK owns the rights to Spacedeck and Lightspace products and will continue to provide full sales and technical support from their design and distribution centre in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. All truss & staging stocks have now been transferred from Northampton to Wisbech. Main production and UK stock are actively increasing in preparation for the busiest events season ever.
“Over the past 5 years, Lightspace decks have become the leading choice for temporary platform and staging solutions. Area Four Industries Direct UK remain totally committed to these products and mutual clients. They wish to express their thanks for confidence in their brands and continued support for the future.”

Germany - Batschkapp Frankfurt, one of the most famous clubs for rock concerts and alternative music in Germany, has turned again to Martin Audio for its monitor requirements, equipping its stage with LE200 monitors.
Founded in 1976, The Batschkapp moved to a new, larger location at the end of 2013, where concerts from rock to hip hop take place almost daily. The technology in the Batschkapp has to be particularly robust to withstand the constant strain, and also has to be suitable for a wide mix of music genres in terms of sound.
"Almost half of our bands and musicians still play with classical floor monitors,” explains Andi Kerl, technical director of the Batschkapp, "In order to keep the transport effort low, many productions nowadays rely on the in-house loudspeakers on location. Therefore, our monitors must also have a high rider acceptance.”
For more than 20 years, the Batschkapp had been using wedges from Martin Audio as stage monitors, which were now to be replaced by new generation loudspeakers. Audio-Technica and Wolfgang ‘Schabbach’ Neumann from Schabbach Enterprises, with whom Batschkapp has been working for many years, advised the club on site.
“The Batschkapp wanted to retain the same reference sound of the previous monitors but at the same time be able to continue using their existing power amplifiers - which is no problem for Martin Audio,” says Schabbach. "Our recommendation, therefore, was for 12 LE200 monitors, which also have the advantage of Coaxial Differential Dispersion design.”
Coaxial Differential

China - Roe Visual introduced a new processing platform at this years’ ISE exhibition. Showcasing its new Ruby LED panel on the Helios processing platform, the large display screen showed content in full 4K HDR.
The Helios processing platform is the result of a close cooperation between Roe Visual and Megapixel VR. Combining their forces and in-depth knowledge of LED- and processing technology the result is a future-ready processing platform that reimagines processing to support large-format LED displays for use in demanding pro AV, broadcast and installation applications. The Helios processor will be exclusively available for Roe Visual LED screens.
Designed as a flexible growth-system, the platform offers a versatile solution with modular slots. The inputs and outputs of the Helios LED processing platform utilize SFP+ ports, a compact hot-pluggable network interface. Using the SFP+ ports, the processor capacity can easily be scaled to meet your requirements. Furthermore, the fact that Helios works as an AVoIP based system makes it very easy to use and implement. Multiple units can be used to create a redundant system, and multiple inputs can be stitched to achieve canvas resolutions up to 16K wide.
“One key advantage of the Helios processing platform is its scalability; you can invest in this system to have it grow with your demands. Starting with a Helios Junior package, you can scale the system up to become a full-fledged 8K processing system,” comments Victor Kortekaas, technical manager for Roe Visual.
“With its modular slots an

Canada/USA - A Kinesys automation system and Vector control system have been on the road with a new and updated North America touring version of the musical We Will Rock You, directed by JP Thibodeau and featuring the music of Queen, produced by Annerin Theatricals of Alberta, Canada.
This is the first time Annerin has used Kinesys products – two half-ton Elevation vari-speed hoists and the Vector – which is being supplied to the production by Christie Lights – and operated by Pippa Bagley who is also the video systems tech together with the tour’s production manager. The LX systems tech is Adam Volk.
The tour’s director of production is Bruce Hennel and Scott Christensen from Annerin Theatricals is the general manager.
Variable speed motors were needed to facilitate the lifting of a large centre stage video screen measuring 2.5M x 4.5M (8.2’ x 14.8’), a movement that’s vital to the artistic and technical interpretation of the show.
This central video wall provides the main thoroughfare for the majority of the set pieces and an entry / exit point for principals and cast members.
Several fast and slow screen moves were needed to ensure the pace of the show stayed fluid and consistent for over 150 performances on this most recent leg of the tour, and that’s why they chose Kinesys.
Scott explains that he was aware of Kinesys as a brand and that Christie Lites had recently invested to carry it in their rental inventory. Annerin Theatricals has worked with Christie Lites for many years as a lighting vendor su

Belgium - Jan Van Lindt captured the power and complexity of singer Tamino’s music in light for a recent one-off the star performed at the Lotto Arena in Antwerp in advance of his upcoming North American tour. Drawing on a collection of over 90 Chauvet Professional fixtures supplied by Splendit, Van Lindt created an appropriately transcendent mood on stage by balancing warm, intimate moods with intense theatrical effects.
“Because of the size of the stage, I tried to go for a more dramatic look,” he said. “However, the lighting also needed to be subtle and small to relate to the emotions of Tamino’s music. By balancing the right lights, we were able to be punchy and big at the appropriate times in order to fill the large arena, without losing that sense of intimacy.”
Anchoring this lighting concept were 36 Nexus AW 7x7 fixtures that were hung from nine centrally positioned pantographs. Quite unusually for a venue the size of the 5,000-capacity Lotto Arena, the fixtures provided a soft and inviting focal point created with saturated warm white beams.
"The arrangement of Nexus fixtures helped me achieve the desired theatrical look - even from a height of 10m above the band - with the distinctive column-like beam effects," commented Van Lindt. "They looked fantastic in conjunction with the hanging pantographs, which was quite an unusual yet effective addition to overall look of the stage."
Another key visual element of Van Lindt's lighting concept was his inclusion of 44 Strike P38 fixtures, which helped him achieve the seemingly p

USA - When Alaskan rock band Static Cycle found themselves in need of a location to shoot their latest music video, Boxes, Bandit Lites offered use of their rehearsal space, Venue One, a 10,000sq.ft facility equipped with the capabilities of hanging a rig, virtual programming rooms and more. The band, comprised of Jared Navarre, Andy Sheridan and Lester Estelle Jr. have been dubbed the “hottest rock band out there” by MTV.
Lighting designer Carter Fulghum configured a versatile plot using a box truss that could transition between big, concert moments and tighter, more intimate looks. The band started in the centre of the box with a mid truss above them outfitted with GLP Impression X4 fixtures. These not only painted the set but also supplied zooms for beams. GLP X4S lights were placed on floor-standing side trusses for a low side light as well as beams for the high-energy, concert looks. Elation Paladins provided big washes of color across the set, and Chauvet Rogue RH1 and Martin MAC Vipers supplied punchy beams.
“VL 3500 Spots were there for lighting the band, mainly because of their framing capability,” Fulghum said. “This gave the band a different look from everything else. The Freedom Pars worked great for lighting the set due to their wireless DMX and battery power; this allowed us to move them anywhere we needed in case there were dark spots that needed filling.”
To evoke the look of a big top circus, Fulghum up lit a parachute as the centrepiece for the shoot using Chauvet Freedom Pars, later hanging it to give the ban

USA - Christian Life Assembly is a thriving church in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. Its pie wedge-shaped sanctuary seats approximately 2,000, a capacity that is met many times over during the staging of its regionally-famous Christmas pageant.
However, the church struggled to deliver high-impact services and feedback-free performances. Its 38-box distributed loudspeaker system couldn’t deliver the goods. Local AVL integration firm Emmaus Media & Design came up with a plan to replace those 38 loudspeakers with just five Danley boxes, including two Danley J2-96 Jericho Horns, as well as new Danley systems in the youth and the kids’ rooms – all for less than half of what other firms bid for the sanctuary system alone.
“Danley’s well-designed point-source loudspeakers can do the work of numerous line array elements, which makes a Danley system way less expensive than a comparable conventional system,” explained Tim James, owner of Emmaus Media & Design. “On top of that, Danley’s phase coherence and fidelity make their boxes sound better than conventional designs. The pattern control is amazing. In short, Danley boxes cost way less, sound way better, and give me all the pattern control I need.”
The main sanctuary now has a stereo pair of Danley J2-96 Jericho Horns, each powered by its own 20,000-Watt Danley DNA 20k4 Pro amplifier with integrated DSP and model presets. A pair of Danley SH60’s provide mezzanine-fill, and a single Danley BC415 subwoofer flown in the centre of the room gets underneath the already low response of the Je

USA - InfoComm’s organisers have issued a statement revealing that, at present, the show is ‘proceeding as planned, June 13-19, 2020 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.’
The statement, posted on the show’s website, continues: “The show management of InfoComm and the executive staff of AVIXA are continuing to monitor the evolving situation around the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on a day-by-day basis, and our thoughts continue to be with those affected across the world.”
Stay up-to-date with the very latest on InfoComm's status regarding coronavirus via this page on the show’s website.

New Zealand For the welcome event of the annual Conventions & Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) conference in Queenstown, local visual production specialist TomTom Productions provided a cultural and historical storytelling experience with the help of Hippotizer media servers.
The presentation, highlighting the lesser known cultural history of Queenstown and the story of Lake Wakatipu, used rich graphic content and soundscapes to relate the captivating story, which included traditional Maori legends of the origins of the lake and landscape.
TomTom’s Hamish Edh and his team collaborated with representatives from Destination Queenstown and event design agency, Watson & Wyatt Events, to deliver the story content for the opening session.
TomTom specified two Hippotizer Karst media servers, one as the main playback unit, with the second as backup. The main Karst fed the visual content to a high-res (2.6mm pixel pitch) DB Series LED screen from VuePix which backed the conference stage. The content had been used on a previous event where it was played to a 6:1 ratio screen: for the CINZ show, however, the screen ratio was limited to 4:1, so Edh adapted the content to fit using Hippotizer’s Aspect Mode.
“We used the Hippotizer Karst as a media manager to store the content and to manage the playback and mapping,” explains Edh. “We triggered the clips externally from a lighting console, which also triggered the audio and lighting playback, keeping everything sync’d.”
He adds, “Hippotizer’s lighting console integration is awes

Australia - The new Sydney Coliseum Theatre is the first of its kind in the rapidly developing region of Greater Western Sydney and features L-ISA Hyperreal Sound technology.
“Rooty Hill draws on a very large catchment area that stretches from the Blue Mountains to Canberra, Hornsby and the city. Visitors are coming to a world class theatre without having to pay toll fees or parking charges. With a new international airport being planned close by, the road and rail infrastructure are excellent,” says The Coliseum technical operations manager Bicci Henderson.
Henderson had served 12 years at the Lyric Theatre and had no intention of moving, until he saw Sydney Coliseum. A visit to the venue became the turning point for Henderson; as he was so impressed with what the team was working to achieve that he wanted to be part of it.
Soon after joining the theatre, Henderson made a trip to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre to hear The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra perform John Williams’ Oscar-nominated film score live for a screening of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, presented in L-ISA Hyperreal sound. “I was greatly impressed, with the incredible multi-dimensional definition. Soon after, I went to see a performance using an L-C-R point source system and felt there was no connection with the audience. It stopped at the stage and the show suffered as a result.”
Henderson was determined to use the technology in The Coliseum. “The L-ISA experience was the reference and I knew we had to get it,” furthers Hen