CHAUVET Cooks Up Creative Looks for KNIX BBQ & Beer Livestream

Creative BackStage and CHAUVET Professional cook up intimate looks for a BBQ and beer livestream.

Taking place on a temporary stage in a converted studio in the Creative Backstage warehouse, the KNIX BBQ and Beer Festival livestream does not attempt to replicate the look of a festival. Instead, it aims for a laid back “at home feel.” Although large enough to allow safe social distancing, the stage is relatively small – and the show’s Video Engineer, TJ Watson along with the two Camera Operators, Jamie Rivera and Wes Webb, keep their angles tight and neat.

“We treat livestream shows as their own medium, not scaled down versions of a festival stage,” said Lighting Designer Garberson, who also directed the video shoot. “We want to create a sense of engagement with the viewer, regardless of the size screen they’re watching this on.”

Despite any limitations in stage size, Garberson was able to create engaging looks that reflected the emotional energy of the music. Relying on deeply saturated colours to convey different moods and intricate light angles, along with some crisp gobos to add depth to the stage, he was able to keep a continuous flow of interesting looks going throughout the one-hour livestreams, which also include question-and-answer sessions with the artists.

Most of the gobos were projected on to either side of the stage, funnelling attention toward the centre, to create tighter looks for small screens. Adding to the sense of intimacy were the drapes that ran across the back of the stage, with eight Rogue R2 Washes, located on two 10-foot truss towers peeking through the spaces between them.

CHAUVET Professional RGBW Rogue R2 Wash fixtures were used to colour wash the stage and back light different performers. Also key to the rig, were the four Maverick MK2 Spot fixtures that were positioned on the floor across the width of the stage. From this position, the 440-watt moving LED fixtures were used to create gobo patterns and to project crossing shafts of light. Relying on the wide zoom range (13ﹾ to 37ﹾ) of the Maverick units, Garberson was able to control coverage areas in the relatively tight space.

“This isn’t the type of space we’re normally accustomed to working in, but by pulling together, we were able to create some nice looks,” said Garberson, who notes that his team’s goal was to give fans “a true taste of the BBQ and Beer Festival.” With the exception of serving up mouthwatering ribs, they were able to do just that.

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