On 3 September, a team of entertainment technology industry professionals cycled from SFL in Reading to the Royal Albert Hall in time for London’s PLASA Show 2022. PLASA Managing Director Peter Heath, commented: “BikeFest is all about the people in our industry, many of which have suffered terribly over the last couple of years – but who are still absolutely committed to the entertainment technology industry. Through BikeFest, we not only raise funds for an increasingly important cause, we build bridges across the industry, which in turn strengthen the entire live sector.” Approximately 20 cyclists braved the journey this time,…
Author: Jacob Waite
The music, dancing and partying never stop during Hak’e, a Curaçao Summer Festival that’s a highlight of one of the Caribbean’s largest carnivals. By the time summer rolls around the carnival season is long past, but even so the partying never stops on the island. This year, the producers of Hak’e Jump-In decided to sprinkle some of their fun spirit for two consecutive nights in August 2022. They got together and organised the Hak’e Curaçao Summer Festival, an event that featured food stands selling ‘bitterballen’, ‘pastechi’ and other popular Curaçao street food, specialty bars, and a steady flow of music…
Christie has launched the next generation of its popular HS Series 1DLP projectors with three new models. Ranging in brightness from 15,750 lumens to 23,650 lumens, the new models feature enhanced colour performance for bright, bold visuals with new Christie BoldColor+ technology. The DWU15-HS, DWU19-HS and DWU23-HS are 15,750, 19,150 and 23,650 lumens respectively, increasing the range of brightness while maintaining the legacy of reliability, quiet operation, and cost-efficiency of the original HS Series. With the addition of new BoldColor+, colours in the new generation of HS Series projectors are brighter and bolder with deeper blacks and more natural and realistic…
Universal Pixels (UP) has supplied screens, servers, cameras, a backline monitoring package and crew for global prog rock artist Roger Waters’ 360° This Is Not A Drill Tour, which is travelling across North America until October 2022. Instead of the circular stage shape traditionally associated with in-the-round shows, the This Is Not A Drill tour features a cross-shaped stage, which is mirrored by a 12-surface LED cross suspended above it. As well as creating a striking visual spectacle, this configuration ensures that the audiences in US, Canadian and Mexican arenas have a great view of the video content wherever they…
Chyron has unveiled version 1.8 of PRIME VSAR, which merges the cutting-edge graphics of Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 4 with Chyron’s built-for-broadcast design, editorial, and live production capabilities to radically simplify virtual production. Enhancements in PRIME VSAR 1.8 offer simple, unfettered access to Unreal Engine 4.27 and its extensive design features, alongside new built-in production tools that reduce the time, skill, and effort required for key tasks such as chroma keying, trackless camera control, and virtual scene creation. “PRIME VSAR is unique in its ability to simplify and de-skill the process of virtual production, and version Version 1.8 continues that…
Siegfried Hermann has been appointed as Lightware Visual Engineering’s Vice President of Business Development in the EMEA region. Siegfried’s responsibilities will embrace the further expansion of Lightware into EMEA, the development of new partnerships with global corporations, and strategic planning of Lightware’s presence in the region. Siegfried has been successful in various leading positions in the AV industry for almost 25 years, with nearly two decades at Crestron, including 6 years managing DACH region with sales and personnel responsibility. One of his key duties throughout his career has been the development of new business areas and sales strategies in the…
When the PUBG Nations Cup, one of the biggest tournaments in esports, returned to a live audience format in June 2022, event producers One Up Solutions and Banana Culture were well-equipped to deliver a dynamic experience. The two teams deployed a hybrid intercom network using the Clear-Com Eclipse HX Pico Digital Matrix and FreeSpeak II Digital Wireless systems for reliable, high-quality and seamless audio communications among technical teams, stage crews and talent. Following a two-year COVID-related postponement of the event, passionate fans were eager to gather again and watch 16 teams of world-class players try to write their names into…
The summer of 2022 was a huge moment for the city of Birmingham, as it played host to the 2022 Commonwealth Games, as well as the competing athletes from 72 nations. Taking place in the newly updated Alexander Stadium, the Opening and Closing ceremonies colourfully book-ended the largest multi-sport event held in the UK since London 2012, and was broadcast live to billions around the world, in addition to a 30,000 strong live audience. Both productions delivered a high-octane, multi-genre and multi-cultural tribute to the history, culture, and pride within the region, featuring a now infamous 10m-tall mechanical bull, and…
Winners of a prestigious PLASA Show 2022 Award for Innovation, Sauca Live Light, are pleased to announce the launch of the new company at London’s PLASA Show 2022. Although Sauca Live Light is a brand-new tech start-up, the board of directors has long and wide experience within the lighting and visual industry. The board of directors is made up by Chief Operations Officer, Andy Porter, famed for his technical support of Glastonbury pyramid stage visuals and other such world-class events; Chief Marketing Officer, Steve Warren of Avolites and Ai video, with 40 years experience of lighting and video distribution; Chief…
Production Manager and FOH Engineer, Brian Hardaswick started hearing buzz about Allen & Heath dLive series in early 2020. “I hit up Sound Image and they had them in stock, so I decided to try out mixing with some multitracks,” recounted Hardaswick. “I fell in love with it right away.” Unfortunately, the ensuing COVID-19 pandemic prevented Hardaswick from taking the console out on the road. “I ended up going to our rehearsal space twice a week for six to eight hours just to practice mixing by myself on a PA.” Two years later, as live music made its comeback, Hardaswick…
When they entered the pastoral grounds of the ÁRKÁD Green Future Festival with its wide open meadows and forested trails on the banks of the Tisa River, visitors experienced an immediate sense of freedom. It was a welcomed, liberating mood that would later be heightened by the music performed on the event’s two stages, a captivating electronic mix that swept away everyday concerns and immersed fans in a heightened sensory experience. Accentuating that experience on the main stage, as it supported the sounds of international hip hop and dance music stars like Voyage, Azahriah, and Stadiumx, were a series of…
Total Solution Marketing, Ayrton’s exclusive distributor for the Singapore region, supplies Trio AV with 24 Ayrton Diablo S LED profile fixtures. Trio AV’s John Tang explained why the company had chosen Diablo S, one of Ayrton’s most innovative, ultra-compact luminaires: “We were seeking a small size and lightweight LED moving light profile fixture with framing shutter to replace our older fixtures. We had heard a lot of positive feedback and seen the popularity of the Ayrton Diablo S on the market, so we approached local distributor Total Solution Marketing to get a demo unit for our own evaluation.” Tang compared…
“As a lighting designer, you always collaborate; it’s critical to what you do,” said Los Angeles-based LD, Julien Roux of Black Lantern Creative, as the dust settled on Blackbear’s Red Rocks show. “In this particular show though, there was a very intense meeting of the minds, and that made it very special.” Reux’s enthusiasm is easy to understand given how smoothly the warm white tungsten-like glow from his CHAUVET Professional STRIKE 1 fixtures flowed with the pyro effects and video content at the Blackbear show. The immersive looks created were not merely the result of his talent, but also of…
Blaze Audio has outlined its network of manufacturer representatives for Canada. MM Technologie, BG Media Solutions, and Connect West Marketing will supply Blaze Audio solutions in the country. While each company is independent, they have partnered to form CMTech, also known as Connected Media Tech. Together, they represent exclusive lines of Pro and Commercial Audio/Visual technologies across Canada. Acting as independent representatives of industry-leading manufacturers, the CMTech group of companies provide unified sales, support, and knowledge across a culturally and geographically diverse nation. Eastern Canada, including Quebec, Newfoundland, and Labrador, plus Nova Scotia, is managed by MM Technologie of Quebec.…
Electrosonic recently celebrated the relocation and grand opening of its new corporate headquarters and production facility in Orlando, Florida. The relocation to a new corporate headquarters is a testament to Electrosonic’s hyper-focused commitment to its customers. Electrosonic President and Managing Director, Ewan Smith commented on the move: “Since its founding, Electrosonic has been devoted to relentlessly advancing the support we provide to our customers. This new headquarters will bolster our ability to do just that and deliver quality-made solutions and systems to our customers here in Orlando, throughout Florida and the east coast as well as bolster our footprint throughout…
Just getting started in what is expected to be a multi-year residency, Donny Osmond opened his 100th solo residency show, aptly titled Donny, at Harrah’s Las Vegas in September 2021, less than two years after he and his sister Marie Osmond ended their hugely successful 11-year Vegas residency. The song and dance show is an energy-filled musical journey through the legendary entertainer’s musical career and includes all new songs and highly original numbers. With the former 11-year residency an indication of how long this solo residency may last, venue operators Caesars Entertainment sought to purchase lighting gear for the 544-capacity…
Data Strategy welcomed the many conversations from new and returning customers at London’s PLASA Show 2022, where the company demonstrated reportedly the industry’s first choice cable and electrical safety workhorse, the QC-Check workstation, as well as some of the QC-Check’s most popular add-on modules, including VeriCal, Power-Check LOLER inspection and SimplyPATS integration software. Data Strategy MD, Iain Roche, commented: “What really stood out this year was the number of enquiries about cable and RCD testing with the assumption that the provision of electrical (PAT) testing was a given. The knowledge that a simple solution exists to the time-consuming and impractical…
With an IP65 rating, CHAUVET Professional’s new Rogue Outcast 1L Beam and Rogue Outcast 2X Wash are designed to excel outdoors in all weather conditions. Thanks to its innovative lightweight aluminium-magnesium alloy housing, these newcomers are also ideally suited to deliver stellar results indoors at clubs, conference centres, and live music venues. “Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, rental houses and installers began asking for IP65 moving fixtures, because of the protection from dust and humidity they offered indoors,” said Albert Chauvet, CEO of CHAUVET Professional. “However, until now, the weight of IP65 products presented a challenge in some indoor…
