To create these worship environments, director of production Jake Brantley understands that the gear chosen must have the ability to adapt to several locations across the country, so he once again turned to Nashville-based tour provider Elite Multimedia to help him create a cohesive and modular lighting, audio and video production design.
"Each Student Life Camp lasts one week with both morning and evening worship services, so at a typical camp our production crew will run eight services," began Brantley. "One of the most challenging aspects about putting the designs together is that we have to be modular because while we do specify a minimum stage size, we may go to a venue that could be off on the width, height or depth. Therefore all of our production rigs have to be able to adapt to each environment and Elite Multimedia really helps us find the best mixture of lighting, audio, projection, IMAG and even LED video to make our designs work no matter what venue we are in."
With a modular concept in place, Brantley began working with Elite Multimedia to finalize the touring production layout which would allow him to fully accentuate each location with the most expansive design possible.
He continued, "Generally speaking we travel with an upstage truss for back light and a scenic element, a downstage truss for front light, and then ground lighting as well which includes our automated and LED fixtures for aerials and special effects. For audio, we travel with eight XLD boxes per side with six subs, and every week we have to find the best angle for the array which our audio engineers do really well.
"Then on the video side, we have a four-camera IMAG shoot with two 8K projectors off stage left and right, and we even added a PixelFLEX LED video wall into one of our camp designs. Through our long-standing relationship with Elite Multimedia, we really have the ability send out the ideal production package for each venue making each camp the best it can be."
Traveling across the country in three 24-foot trucks, the production team behind the Student Life Camps rarely has an opportunity to rest between locations. With a load-out on Friday, the team will be loading-in at their next location on Sunday with camp set to start on Monday. Under such a tight production schedule, the gear provided must operate consistently and efficiently with a tour provider who is always ready to assist if needed.
"Elite Multimedia is really great at the relationship side of the business," admitted Brantley. "As a touring production designer, I know that if I ever need them, they are ready to respond quickly whether it's lighting, audio or video. They always seem to do whatever they can to make our tour happen, and their service and dependability is a big part of our success."
At the conclusion of the 2016 summer tour, the Student Life Camps saw approximately 45,000 attendees at 60 individual locations, and although the design of each may have been slightly different, the worship environment remained the same.
(Jim Evans)
