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Video and AV

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Creative Technology (CT) produced some unusual television effects for the BBC Children In Need fund-raising marathon hosted by Terry Wogan and Gaby Roslin recently.

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 wa

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A virtual winter wonderland has been created at New York’s Grand Central Station, thanks to High End’s Catalyst system.

Scharff Weisberg Pro Audio and Staging in New York is supplying production for the event, using two Catalyst systems with orbital heads on two projectors, controlled by the Flying Pig Systems Wholehog II lighting console. The Catalyst system blends moving light technology with graphics projection technology: when fitted with the optional orbital head, images can be projected anywhere in three-dimensional space. The system can be run on most programmable lighting consoles.

The show started 19 November and runs through to the 31 December, with showings every 15 minutes from 11am to 9pm on the ceiling of the Grand Central concourse in the historic Manhattan landmark. The six, three-minute video projection shows reflect artists' interpretations of the meani

Area 4 - Banner - Sept 2025

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East London-based gobo and projection specialist, Projected Image, has taken on an additional new premises at its HQ in the Three Mills Island Studio complex, Bromley-by- Bow. This is part of an on-going expansion plan in line with recent company developments and the establishment of sister company Projected Image Digital.

In November, Projected Image announced an exclusive UK distribution deal with RADlite, the revolutionary new PC-based computer generated effects package. Expanding to the new, larger, 1100sq.ft premises will allow Projected Image to enlarge its gobo production facilities and move all administration into the new space, leaving the original area free to be set up and utilized as a permanent RADlite demonstration. "We’re very excited about the move," said director David March. "The intention is also to offer the facility to lighting designers and vi

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A new feature awaits some of the two million visitors who flock annually to Madame Tussaud’s in London. Guests can now stand on a podium between President Bush and Prime Minister Blair, and via a discreet camera have their image beamed onto a rear-projected screen above and behind them - thanks to a 120" New Wide Angle screen from dnp.

The installation is the work of systems integrators, Sysco, whose relationship with The Tussauds Group extends back nearly 10 years to when they first fit out sister attraction, Tussaud’s London Planetarium. Managing director Hugo Roche explained: "Over the years we have undertaken a lot of the Group’s AV work - sometimes winning competitive tenders, on other occasions being appointed during the design phase and working more on a design/build basis."

In terms of delivery, Sysco looked at a number of ways of achieving th

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Large screen specialist GL UK is supplying production company Endemol UK for the BBC’s latest pop phenomenon Fame Academy, with 55 panels of Barco I-lite 8 mm LED screen for the 12-week series. The screens were specified for the show by the original director Tony Gregory, who worked with GL UK on Big Brother earlier in the year.

Throughout the week, leading up to Friday, they are also filmed auditioning, working, performing and practising, etc. In the studios, the screen panels are configured in two very different-sized formats. One is a seven panel wide by four panel high widescreen, and the other is a three wide by nine high horizontal screen. The latter is split into three equal sections, allowing images of three different performers to be shown simultaneously. This effect is specifically used as they approach their ‘jeopardy moments’, after which the voting elimin

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CMT - laser, projection and live event technology specialists - brought together a unique team to create a son et lumière spectacular at Millennium Mills, the derelict hulk of the former Spillers flour mill at Royal Victoria Docks, East London. The event may have been a world first, as a result of its use of a wireless LAN link to control all the various technologies involved.

CMT was approached by event organizers Mask Event Design & Productions to supply the design and technical infrastructure for an impressive opening show to kick-start the four-day World Travel Market exhibition running at ExCel - sited across the River Thames from the Mills. CMT’s Gino and Ram Malocca and Tim Fothergill jumped at the opportunity to stage the event, which had many technical and logistical challenges, and also included unorthodox live elements such as speedboats and helicopters.

For lightin

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A special event at BBC TV Centre in Wood Lane, West London, on December 6 saw a unique demonstration of LED screen technology to an invited audience of television lighting directors.

The Society of Television Lighting Directors (STLD), Blitz Television Services of Elstree, UK, and LED screen manufacturer Lighthouse joined forces to demonstrate the newly installed Lighthouse LVP0630 screen on the BBC children’s television show The Saturday Show, which includes a special Saturday edition of Top of the Pops.

Presented by Lighthouse International sales and marketing director Graham Burgess and Saturday Show LD Rod Litherland, with Guy Horrigan, Dave Gunn and Blitz’s Scott Burges also on hand, the presentation aimed to explain the characteristics of LED technology and explore its creative possibilities. Topics covered included colour balance, contrast, camera angles, viewing d

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Known as much for his elaborate outdoor shows as his music, Jean Michel Jarre recently added to his reputation for groundbreaking outdoor performances with an extraordinary show in northern Denmark.

On 7 September, he held an out-of-the-ordinary event at Gammel Vrå Enge windmill park near the Aalborg in Denmark. Titled ‘Aero’, the show’s central theme was ‘energy and environment’ and bizarrely, the wind played the lead part, not only as energy, but also as a carrier of sounds, images and messages.

The concert consisted of 16 Jean Michel Jarre numbers, both classics and new material, with a scenography that was radically different from his previous concerts. The show featured a number of visual treats such as the windmills ablaze in light, and pyro exploding in sync with the music. Lighting designer Lars Nissen (Eurovision 2001), of lighting rental compa

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Imagination has created a new space for young people to learn about technology at the science centre, @Bristol. The Orange Imaginarium is aimed at 4-16 year olds and seeks to explain wirefree technology (developed by @Bristol sponsor Orange) from a child’s point of view.

The Imagination team, led by designer Caroline Wilson and lighting consultant Tony Rimmer, worked in collaboration with researchers and futurologists from Orange to create the interactive learning environment. The experience begins with a series of animated stories, linking everyday needs to technology. Three more zones follow a pattern of ‘Search and Find’, letting visitors experience and be creative with technology. The space is built around three key technologies - voice activation/recognition, personalized information and Orange Home services. In ‘Tell Me A Joke’, voice recognition sof

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For the first time in the UK retail industry, an LVP1010 (10mm pixel pitch) LED screen has been installed in HMV’s Oxford Street store, to act as both an entertainment and advertising medium.

The screen, measuring 3.84m x 2.4m, is part of a complete audio visual installation undertaken by London-based Interactive View and forms the backdrop to a 6 x 5m stage area constructed by Rode Island. The area is designed to host an array of live events, including DJs, solo artists and bands and was heralded by a week of live events, including appearances by Grand Master Flash, Craig David, Blue and The Libertines promoted on Capital Radio throughout.

Interactive View managing director, Lee Edwards, commented: "This is the largest audio-visual installation in a retail outlet in the UK to date, and is part of HMV’s nationwide refurbishment. We’ve designed and managed this

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Screenco provided three large displays to enhance performances by a diverse array of stars at this month’s Royal Variety Performance, London. Icons and celebrities from the worlds of music, film, television and theatre gathered for the prestigious annual Royal Variety Performance in the presence of His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.

The who’s who of the showbiz world included Anastacia, the cast of Bombay Dreams, Enrique Iglesias, Gareth Gates, Kylie Minogue, Liberty X, Ronan Keating, Shania Twain, Will Young and many others. Working for BBC Resources, Screenco supplied a giant 15mm display - measuring 4.8m x 5.04m and positioned upstage centre - rigged on a solid truss and flanked by a pair of Barco i8 displays, measuring 2.24m square. Screenco controlled the content on screen, including the graphic content - created by Artbeat and processed by Blitz. This provided on

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Creative Technology (CT) produced some unusual television effects for the BBC Children In Need fund-raising marathon hosted by Terry Wogan and Gaby Roslin recently. 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 said: "Last year we provided a flown screen over the Totaliser using Barco i6 high-brightness panels. This year we used 80 of the superior 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

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"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." So is the wisdom of "The Little Prince," teaching the adults what is essential in the beloved childhood fable by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. His tale comes to life this holiday season at The State Theatre in Austin, Texas. And products from locally-based lighting manufacturer High End Systems ensure that what is essential is made visible to the eye.

Well-known Broadway lighting designer Richard Winkler (Evita & Fame - The Musical Tour) is using High End Systems' Catalyst system for the first time. He's also specified a High End rig with eight Studio Spot 575 and four Studio Color 575 automated luminaires, controlled by a Flying Pig Systems Hog 500 console.

"Catalyst is a new tool that will help revolutionize the industry - it will take us to the next l

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The SBC Centre at San Antonio, Texas, the new home of the San Antonio Spurs NBA basketball team, has at its technological heart a unique, tightly integrated, $6.5 million video package of live action screens, banner displays and a scoreboard system designed and co-ordinated by Lighthouse, in conjunction with a team of specialist partners. The project marks Lighthouse’s largest indoor installation contract to date, and features the company’s new M4 screen technology, unveiled in four new screen products at this year’s NAB and Infocomm shows.

The scoreboard module is four-sided and arranged on five levels, housing a total of 12 screens. At the top is a ring of eight Lighthouse LVP2056 (20mm pixel pitch/5,600 nits) screens, formatted in an unusual 2:1 ratio rather than the usual 4:3 or 16:9, for advertising and scoring. Next down is a custom-built LED digit scoreboard ri

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UK - Misys Network Services Life and Pensions, the UK's largest Financial Intermediary Network, recently held a convention for over 400 of its members and product providers about future market changes. As the Convention was entitled 'Tomorrow's World', it chose to use the presentation technology itself to reinforce the messages.

Production company, 3D Communications together with their technical staging specialists, The Show Company and computer graphics design house, Cadco, teamed up with Blitz Birmingham to give the presentation a futuristic look. It was delivered on a hemispherical centre screen and the challenge for Blitz was to select projection equipment that would ensure the sharpest images and allow maximum flexibility in manipulating both videotape and graphics images on this centre screen as well as two side screen areas.

Blitz selected six digital projector 5100s an

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UK - The setting was a muddy field in Worcester in the cold and wet English December weather - not exactly the ideal location for a designer clothing brand. However, a photographic shoot featuring a range of projected images was the order of the day and Fourth Phase London was called in to supply a BP6 projector, complete with generator.

Regarded as a label for conceptualists, fashion label Comme des Garçons fuses fashion with art, science and perfect tailoring. Established in 1973, the label specializes in 'anti-fashion', austere, sometimes deconstructed garments, often lacking a sleeve or other component. The image of Comme des Garçons' trademark blacks and greys, often worn with combat boots, fitted perfectly with the English winter weather scene, although the conditions were so grim that the original day for which the shoot was scheduled had to be called off, the mud makin

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UK - North-west-based audio-visual services company A to V has successfully completed 30 events in its first three months of trading and has now moved into new premises on Manchester's Science Park. The events have included a range of corporate and private sector meetings, conferences, awards dinners, product launches, road shows, exhibitions and special events, with the client list including Cancer Research, Co-operative Group Travelcare, The Environment Council, CIS, Excellence in Cities and Manchester's first 'Fashion Week' sponsored by Midas.

A to V's specialized area is visual communications, in particular the field of projection, control and switching/routing. Larger clients, however, prefer the company's management style to oversee an entire project, including set design and construction, lighting design, audio specifications, equipment hire and crew.

Directors Phil Wes

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UK - XL Video UK has re-designed and upgraded - as well as supplied and installed - all the new AV equipment utilised for the massive 'Star Trek - The Adventure' exhibition at London's Hyde Park, which celebrates five decades of Trekism. XL was also involved in an intensive three-month pre-production period prior to opening, during which time they wrote the new show control software now running the entire exhibition's audio, lighting, AV, mechanical and automation cues.

XL Video called in by UK promoters Triple A, working for LA-based SEE - Special Entertainment Events Inc - who are staging the exhibition under license from Star Trek's owners Paramount. Sited in a 7,000sq.m tent at Speakers Corner, Hyde Park, Star Trek is the largest exhibition to hit London since the Great Exhibition in 1851, and contains over 30 million dollars worth of Trekkie memorabilia.

A previous incarn

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UK - Large format projection specialists E//T//C UK supplied two PIGI projectors with double scrollers to the spectacular festive Peter Pan - A Musical Adventure production, staged at the Royal Festival Hall in December and January. The production was a collaboration between the venue, production and design specialists Imagination and promoters Raymond Gubbay.

Projection design was by Imagination's Chris Slingsby, who joined a formidable creative team including Ian Talbot (director), Will Bowen (set), Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen (costumes), Durham Marenghi (LD) and John Del Nero (sound design). Projection ran for the whole show, overlaying the top and sides of the impressive scenic false proscenium arch, covered in grey gauze, which was specially installed for the production by Unusual Rigging. This transformed the Royal Festival Hall from a concert hall into a more 'traditi

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UK - At a time when the IT sector as a whole is experiencing a marked downturn, indeed, even industry giants such as IBM and Sun Microsystems are reporting reduced profits and scaling back their predictions for next year - Stardraw has announced a staggering 55% growth in sales of its traditional shrink-wrapped range (namely Stardraw Audio, Stardraw AV, Stardraw Radio, Stardraw Lighting 2D and Stardraw Professional) over the last 12 months.

Stardraw marketing director Rob Robinson is understandably pleased: "Annual growth of 55% is a considerable achievement under any circumstances, particularly as it represents almost three times the growth rate we achieved in the preceding period, but against the backdrop of the slowdown currently being experienced within the IT and entertainment technology sector, it is especially gratifying. It proves that we are on the right track with

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UK - The last few months have seen the introduction of some significant new technology to the Stardraw product portfolio via the unique 'Feature-per-Month' update service. The newest feature to be added is the Symbol Wizard.

Even with the hundreds of products added to Stardraw's libraries every month there are likely to be times when users wish to create their own symbol. The Symbol Wizard can be used within the Block Schematic environment of Stardraw Audio, Stardraw AV and Stardraw Radio to create a high-quality symbol in seconds. The new symbol can be based on one of hundreds of pre-drawn templates which are grouped by product types such as Amplifiers, Loudspeakers, Players/Recorders etc. Alternatively, the user can start from scratch with a blank template. The Wizard's dialogues allow set up of the product details (for instance manufacturer name, model number and product desc

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USA - High End Systems' Catalyst system and a range of its automated luminaries recently burst onto the Broadway stage with the 8 December opening of the opera La Bohème. Though Puccini's La Bohème has been staged countless times over the years, this production is given that contemporary sizzle from the production team of Baz Lurhmann and his production designer/wife, Catherine Martin, who produced visually captivating films such as Moulin Rouge and Strictly Ballroom.

Scharff Weisberg are supplying the producers of La Bohème with two Catalyst systems to project supertitles onto the stage for its performance at the Broadway Theatre in New York City. Lighting designer is Nigel Levings, who also specified 10 High End Systems Studio Spot CMY and 24 Studio Color 575 automated luminaires into the show. Control of the Catalyst is via a Flying Pig Systems Wholeho

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USA - In the Summer of 2002, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame moved to a brand new building near the location of its previous home in Springfield, Massachusetts. The attraction serves as a monument to the leading figures of the game, as well as a museum. The main objectives from the outset were to provide a unique, educational and enjoyable visitor experience for fans of all ages.

The creative team included design architect Gwathmey Siegel, architects BH+A who carried the architectural development through, and exhibit designers Scenic Technologies, who worked with the venue's curatorial staff to design the exhibition. Electrosonic won the contract for the audio-visual system integration and installation by bid on a system designed by Thoughtful Designs. Electrosonic then partnered with Cortina Productions and NBA Entertainment to provide a complete hardware and prod

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USA - If you've spent the last two years quietly dismissing the High End/WWG Catalyst as 'just a video projector with a mirror on the front', further proof that you were wrong, or had at least missed the point, came at New York's Grand Central Station over the 2002 Christmas period.

There, two Catalysts ran a series of specially-created animations, replacing the laser system which has formed the Christmas lightshow for the last few years. Creative Time, the New York arts association responsible for, amongst many other projects, the Tribute in Light (see L&SI May 2002), were approached by Grand Central Station to create a new entertainment for New York's most famous rail terminal. They approached New York AV specialists ScharffWeisberg for ideas. "We've worked with them in the past on outdoor projects, art projects - the fun projects," explains Peter Scharff. "In t

  1. Screenco Magnify UK's Top Awards Ceremonies
  2. Metropolis at the Sports Café, Manchester
  3. E//T//C UK and XL Video at Autosports
  4. Clear vision for BackPorch with ARB
  5. A.C. Projects installs for multi-million pound school campus
  6. New backstage forum online: The Blue Room
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