Norway - Docked in Oslo’s Frammuseet museum, the Fram is a ship steeped in rich history. Having voyaged to the Arctic and Antarctic between 1893 and 1912 with its Norwegian crew at the helm, and carried the first person to reach the South Pole in 1911, it came to rest in 1936 - and has since evolved into a much-lauded tourist attraction in the city, with an annual footfall of over 200,000 every year. Drawing visitors from all over the globe, the museum sought to upgrade its offering in 2018 to provide a world-class, immersive experience – turning to UK-based specialist visitor attraction AV integrator Sarner International to lead the ambitious and complex installation project. With the objective of making visitors feel a part of an arctic adventure, immersive audio and projection were to take centre stage in the renovation. However, the challenge was how to go abou
UAE - The 2019 Emirates Airline Dubai Jazz Festival staged at Dubai’s Media City Amphitheatre and presented by Mastercard included a star-studded line up, including Snow Patrol, Alicia Keys and Jamiroquai, which were lit with 72 x Robe MegaPointes and 48 x Spiiders - among other lights - supplied by lighting rental company MediaPro. Produced by Done Events, this was the first time MediaPro has been a technical supplier (lighting and video) for the festival. The event’s production design, incorporating both these disciplines plus set and scenics, was a vibrant collaboration between production designer Miguel Galvao and his assistant Andreas Malan from RAW Concepts working with MediaPro’s Harold Fernandes who was senior LD and set designer. The goal was to create the best possible audience experience by ensuring that the rig looked larger and more impressive than
Chile - The 60th edition of the Viña del Mar International Song Festival was staged from 25 February to 1 March in the open-air Quinta Vergara Amphitheatre, with 500sq.m of Absen LED on stage to ensure the best possible fan experience. Considered ‘the largest Latin event in the world’, the festival has been held annually during the third week of February in Viña del Mar and is the oldest and largest music festival in Latin America. This year, the five-day musical event featured both local and international artists including Felipe Abello, Wisin & Yandel, Becky G, Marc Anthony and Backstreet Boys. With more than 15,000 local spectators, the event has been broadcast live internationally on radio over the years, as well as on Chilean television. A total of six semi-circular LED screens, made up of Absen Polaris 3.9 and Absen D4V Outdoor, were assembled u
Germany - ROE Visual concluded an upbeat Prolight + Sound receiving enthusiast feedback on its showcased products and having major customers confirm their investments in ROE Visual LED panels at the show. “The Prolight + Sound show in Frankfurt always attracts a mix of new and existing customers. We really enjoy meeting our loyal customer base and to be able to interest new customers for our brand, after all our industry is basically all about the people,” comments Roelof Bouwman, general manager for ROE Visual Europe. Presenting new technologies, ROE Visual had both a sneak peek for its new eV4 processor on the stand as well as an HDR solution, presented in cooperation with Brompton Technology. Both products are expected to launch mid-2019. New staff member Erik Baum, appointed to lead business development in the D A CH region, was warmly welcomed by many v
Germany - ArKaos enjoyed a busy and successful Prolight+Sound 2019 exhibition in Frankfurt. The Belgian company was at the heart of the new Hall 12, together with a dynamic mix of lighting and visual technology manufacturing and service companies. ArKaos demonstrated all its latest products including MediaMaster v5.4, Kling-Net, PRO DJ LINK - a project with Pioneer DJ - and its new 4K media servers. Several leading lighting manufacturers used the potential and flexibility of ArKaos’s Kling-Net protocol to run and demonstrate the versatility of pixel-fixtures on their stands, including Robe, Claypaky, Elation, JB Lighting, Music & Light, and more. Kling-Net is a plug-and-play control protocol developed by ArKaos for the quick and easy operation of current and future LED fixtures and lightsources. It allows the distribution of real-time video data to re
UK - Technical production specialists Universal Live continue to invest in the latest technology. Their most recent investment is Coleder’s Road Ready 2mm LED panels. Similar to standard LED panels, the Coleder Road Ready series can build a floorless flat wall but, this product can also create a seamless, innovative convex and concave curved solution either ground stacked or hung. The connection tools between the panels and the cable-free system makes it quicker and easier to assemble and disassemble. Universal Live has made the conscientious decision to combine the Coleder Road Ready panels with London based Brompton Technology’s Tessera R2 cards. The cards support 262K pixel capacity, system-wide genlock, free mapping and panel rotations. Universal Live has further invested in their Tessera SX40 and S4 video processors. The 4K and HD ready processors are easy to
UAE - The International Defence Exhibition & Conference (IDEX) opening ceremony took place in a 60m x 350m custom stage set built over a car park overlooked by a grandstand in Abu Dhabi. Protec delivered everything from the initial creative concept and narrative to the original set design, graphics, build, complete show delivery and coordination completely transporting the audience to an active ‘war zone’ where the story takes place. Engaged for the fourth consecutive time to create and produce this grand opening ceremony for IDEX, Protec pulled out all the stops to ensure that the 14th edition of IDEX was one to remember. The show began with a mix of local heritage performances followed by local and international military parades to welcome the crowd before the main part of the show. The scene was set for a battle enactment of a fictitious scenario where an el
UK - Colour Sound Experiment collaborated with lighting designer Miles Weaver as the lighting supplier for the intimate soul-y funk sounds of UK singer/ songwriter Nao, who has just completed the first UK and European leg of her Saturn tour following the release of her second album last autumn. The tour was project-managed for Colour Sound by Alex Ryan, who comments: “It’s the first time we’ve worked with Miles as a supplier and it was an excellent experience. His design was original and interesting, and it is always exciting to be involved with an LD and artist with a great future ahead.” Miles took a floor package on the tour, stepping up to a full rig for the London showcase at Brixton Academy. The floor package had to offer max versatility yet pack down into a trailer, so Miles chose 12 x Robe Spiider LED wash beams for this. He wanted to achi
USA - On 30 April, 2019, Elite Multimedia Productions and PixelFLEX LED will host a collective open house event showcasing a range of technologies available for the live production and permanent installation markets. Created to allow guests to network with other industry professionals, and technology experts from both companies, the event will also allow visitors to take a closer look at the latest LED video, lighting, and audio solutions for their next design. With food and drinks supplied by Hoss Burgers and Little Harpeth Brewing, the open house will take place from 5-8 pm at 700 Cowan Street in Nashville, Tennessee. “In an industry with so many talented designers and production personnel, this is a tremendous opportunity for us to showcase the breadth of design possibilities offered by both Elite Multimedia Productions and PixelFLEX LED,” said David Venus, chi
UK - Event design and technical production specialist Maestra Group, run by Justin Hammond (London) and Tom Clements (Dubai), has doubled the size of its UK and European operation ready for a busy 2019. The east London HQ was bursting at the seams of its Victorian industrial building in Woolwich, where the Maestra mission started in January 2016. When the opportunity to take over the warehouse next door arose, it provided a convenient solution. Parts of the walls have been knocked through and the interiors completely re-designed so the two spaces operate as an efficient and continuous workspace. There are now new prepping and dispatch areas for projects leaving the warehouse, greater space for truck loading as well as enlarged storage and maintenance sections for all the different equipment sections. The extra space made available downstairs has been taken up alr
UK - Anna Valley, the London-based AV and entertainment technology company will relocate to new premises this month. The move follows the company’s rapid growth and a significant investment in technology since its management buyout in 2015, prompting the need for increased warehouse and office space. The new property is only a few miles from their current base but is 150% bigger, providing 41,000sq.ft of space. Remaining in Feltham provides a number of benefits for the company, its staff and clients. Situated just outside of London’s congestion zone, the area provides easy and quick access to the city and outlying areas via a logistical infrastructure including the nearby Heathrow Airport. “While our current location served us well for the last five years, we’re now working on bigger projects that demand more space to test, demonstrate and prepare our AV tech
The Netherlands - TechPro, provider of video, audio and lighting services for the live events industry has announced its first site in Continental Europe, with the opening of a newly built 2000 sq. ft. warehouse and office unit in Ridderkerk, close to the city of Rotterdam. Although long in the planning, the potential for logistical disruption following Brexit helped TechPro’s management team with their decision to open up in the Netherlands and mitigate any impact on the company’s ability to meet growing demand for European-based live events. TechPro director Rob Stokes, commented: “UK-based event agencies rely on TechPro to deliver truckloads of AV equipment throughout Europe with smooth efficiency. “With over 60% of our work now taking place at event venues throughout the EU and beyond, our new branch in the Netherlands will allow us to continually mee
Australia - The beginning of 2019 saw the opening event of the UCI WorldTour, the Santos Tour Down Under. Held in South Australia, it is the southern hemisphere’s biggest cycling event attracting 750,000 visitors and is globally recognised. In pitching for the contract, Adelaide’s Novatech Creative Event Technology proposed some fairly innovative audio-visual ideas and deploying Brompton Technology’s Tessera SX40 LED processors helped them deliver. “We wanted to improve the spectator experience on every level,” says Ashley Gabriel, director of sales and marketing at Novatech. “We deployed our ROE CB3 and CB5 LED screens at the start and finish lines, with signal transported over fibre via Riedel’s MediorNet.” At the Tour Down Under Village in Adelaide’s Victoria Square, Nexstage built a custom 18m wide by 8m high Layher scaffold structure for team pr
UK - Technical production specialist CPL provided a production design plus sound, lighting and video equipment to Pandora Events for Tropic’s massive spring 2019 ‘glambassadors’ event, staged in Hall 9 at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham, UK. Tropic Rocks offered a hi-energy festival / rock theme to energise the 2500 delegates, for which a look and feel to match was needed. This was delivered by CPL’s Mike Radford who led a crew of 40 for the get in / out and show sections of the one-day event, for which they had one rig day and a second for tech and rehearsals. The event’s format encompassed a lengthy achievement recognition and awards section, new product launches and upcoming incentives, wrapping up with a lively evening party, so the design had to cater these various requirements and practical enough to transform from the conferen
UK - This year’s National Finals of The Prince’s Trust and TK Maxx & Homesense Awards marked the fifth consecutive year that Anna Valley has provided AV for the annual event. The Awards ceremony was held at the London Palladium on 13 March 2019 and was run by communications agency, Blueprint Partners. This year’s Prince’s Trust and TK Maxx & Homesense Awards were hosted by Phillip Schofield and Fearne Cotton and attended by HRH the Prince of Wales and celebrities including Brian May, Tinie Tempah, Luke Evans and Michael McIntyre. Blueprint Partners have produced the national awards ceremony since 2015 and have relied on Anna Valley to help realise their creative vision for the event each year. The video element is critical to the award show’s success as the creative displays form an intrinsic part of the set design and staging, and video is used exte
Qatar - Qatar’s remarkable new National Museum launched in spectacular style at the end of March, offering visitors an immersive and experiential journey through the country’s rich history, current identity and aspirations for the future. Much of its 430,000sq.ft. of indoor space is made up of cinematic display zones, onto which specially-created film content is projected. The result is the world’s biggest ever permanent video installation – the result of a collaboration between RES, the Doha Film Institute (DFI) and MAN Enterprise / EMPTY Joint Venture. London-based visual technologists, RES, started work on the project in 2014, providing technical consultancy and video media system expertise to The Doha Film Institute (DFI) on technical realisation and pre-visualisation of each film. As part of its ambitious ‘Art Film’ project, the DFI commissioned nine
Australia - Melbourne-based audio visual integration company, Disco Doctors, recently completed an installation at the Albion Hotel in the south of the city, using a Martin Audio CDD solution. The equipment was supplied by Technical Audio Group (TAG), Martin Audio’s long-term Australian distributors, with whom Disco Doctors has also enjoyed a partnership stretching back eight years. “Prior to that myself and my business partner had worked in many other various areas of the audio industry so my experience with Martin Audio dates back to the early club systems from the 90’s,” explains Disco Doctors’ Justin Mackay. “Since we started Disco Doctors we have utilised Martin Audio on many of our projects.” As bigger club installs made way for smaller multipurpose venues and bars, versatile and quality distributed sound assumed paramount importance “both f
UAE - Abu Dhabi welcomed over 7,500 athletes from 190 nations when it hosted the Special Olympics World Games 2019. This is the first time the event has been held in the Middle East and North Africa region. The Opening Ceremony took place at Zayed Sports Stadium in Abu Dhabi on 14 March. Thousands of people from fans, families, heads of state and the Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan filled the stadium to watch this event unfold. The show featured performances from the Global Unified Choir, DJ Paul Oakenfold, Avril Lavigne and Luis Fonsi to name a few. CT worked alongside its client People to deliver all live video aspects of both the opening and closing ceremony for this prestigious and heart-warming event. CT supplied a 600sqm upstage screen, a total of 270sqm relay screens, 580sqm LED Floor, 90sqm tracking screen, and 2500sqm of mapped floor p
Germany - Christie Digital is set to present its latest creative tools on stand C30 in Hall 4.0 at Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt. Highlights will include the Christie MicroTiles LED, Christie Pandoras Box media server, the Spyder X80 multiscreen windowing processor, and the newest addition to Christie’s RGB laser projection line-up, the D4K40-RGB projector. Christie staff will be available to share their technical expertise. “Christie is excited to bring the latest in projection, display and processing technology to Prolight + Sound 2019,” says Karl Johnson, director of product management, CMP, Christie. “Live events demand agile, reliable and powerful technology, and Christie solutions are the epitome of these leading-edge solutions. Our technology works together seamlessly to deliver powerful experiences, and our first-rate service and support means that custom
Mexico - Christie has announced that Mexico’s Cinemex has recently opened an impressive cinema complex, featuring RGB pure laser projectors based on Christie RealLaser illumination, along with Christie Vive Audio systems. The Cinemex Market ARTZ Pedregal multiplex in Mexico City has fitted each of its 23 auditoriums with Christie’s CP2315-RGB and CP2320-RGB 2K-resolution offerings. In addition, all auditoriums are equipped with the Christie Vive Audio cinema sound solution. “Having put Christie’s CP2315-RGB and CP2320-RGB cinema projectors through extensive testing, we were impressed with their performance, making us confident that Christie’s RealLaser illumination technology is the way of the future, now,” says Rolando Maggi, operations manager at Cinemex. “Audiences are commenting on the brilliant colours and sharp contrasts, leading us to believe that
Germany - AV Stumpfl will present its latest products and solutions at Prolight+Sound, including Pixera mini, a mobile and ultra-compact version of its range of media servers, as well as the Pixera v1.0 software, and the upcoming AT64-Shift screen system leg. Pixera is a 64-bit system for realtime media processing, compositing and management, built around the key theme of usability. A radical new interface logic enables even first-time users to intuitively understand the main software mechanics. The flexibility of the Pixera API will be demonstrated during the exhibition by showing the successful integration of Panasonic GeoPro, an advanced system for black level compensation that is part of Panasonic's latest generation of high-performance projectors. In addition to the new software, AV Stumpfl will also present their new Pixera one and Pixera two media server s
Germany - Green Hippo will demo the latest Hippotizer software, which adds two widely requested features - Object to Output and BeatBridge. Object to Output is a new way to manage displays in Hippotizer. Working within the 3D toolset of SHAPE, Object to Output enables a surface in the 3D world to be sent directly to a physical output. In conjunction with new texture mappers, mix-modes and composition system, Object to Output introduces a new workflow for display management in Hippotizer, allowing users to seamlessly integrate moving set elements, map a single video across many displays and dynamically adjust the perspective of content. In addition, V4.5 introduces BeatBridge, a new component that simplifies programming by allowing Hippotizer parameters to react to audio input. It’s a fast and easy way to create, in realtime, sound reactive effects. BeatBridge opera
UK - PLASA Focus Leeds has announced its line-up of seminars and speakers for this year’s event, taking place on 14-15 May at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds. Alongside the sold-out show floor with brands from across audio, lighting, AV, and staging, the seminars and training sessions provide opportunities to pick up essential technical know-how and gain insights into notable industry developments. A programme highlight looks to the Royal Albert Hall, which recently received a multi-million-pound audio system upgrade. Ollie Jeffery, head of production and technical at the Royal Albert Hall, and Steve Jones from d&b audiotechnik will discuss their technical process and reveal how the new system is already impacting the audience experience. Renowned audio consultant Roland Hemming is presenting a series of seminars, kicking off with an introduc
Germany - UK-based automation manufacturer Kinesys will show its latest technologies in this specialist entertainment field on stand C98 in hall 12.0 at Prolight+Sound. Products highlighted will include Kinesys’ powerful new Vector control console, the innovative Apex hoist system and LibraCELL/LibraNODE load monitoring - an invaluable tool to ensure that all static and dynamic loads are constantly and precisely monitored in real-time. The popular DigiHoist fixed speed chain motor controllers and Kinesys’ industry standard Elevation range of vari-speed hoist drives will also be prominent on the stand. Visitors will be invited to try out the new Vector console - to control a dual hoist Apex system flying a large screen above the stand. Apex and Elevation hoists will also be available to control - via the console - for a side by side comparison of their
