The company was contracted by BBC Resources to build on the Totaliser screen reinforcement they provided last year, as well as adding a spectacularly ‘retro’ LED dancefloor. The dancefloor dominated the stage and was in use for much of the evening. CT’s project manager Paul Holden commented: "Last year we provided a flown screen over the Totaliser using Barco i6 high-brightness panels. This year we used 80 of the Barco i8 panels, in a 16 x 5 configuration."
The display - measuring 7.16m wide by 2.24m - was run in 16:5 format, receiving 16:9 aspect ratio feeds, to create a letterbox effect. The content mostly comprised of Totaliser-specific graphics. But the more challenging aspect of the set was the creation of an underlit dancefloor, reminiscent of the Saturday Night Fever dancefloor matrix popularised in the late 1970s. "Rather than use standard lighting effects, we suggested placing some bright LED screens under the floor," says Paul. The idea was agreed and 96 Barco i10 modules were immersed beneath the 1" thick perspex surface in a matrix display consisting of 24 blocks of 2 x 2 tiles.
Outside London, CT’s sister company Screenco were also in action, providing OBs for various Children in Need events around the country. They fielded two 3x3 15mm big screen LED displays at Ipswich Town FC’s Portman Road stadium, Middlesborough’s Riverside Stadium and Blackpool’s Central Car Park, stacked on mobile Steeldeck platform stages. The OBs sent a mix of broadcast and live feeds out to local television as well as the national TV network.
(Ruth Rossington)
