Set & Light: Spring 2020 (Issue 129)

Set & Light

www.stld.org.uk

Issue 129: Spring 2020

from the Society of Television Lighting and Design

INSIDE: AGM | RIVERSIDE STUDIOS | STRICTLY STUDENTS | THE GOES WRONG SHOW

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editorial

Strange days These are unprecedented times. I would like to thank you all for your continued support, and we at the STLD are happy to support you, too. On behalf of the STLD committee, I would like to extend our sympathy to the family of Eddie Fegan, who sadly passed away at the beginning of April. He was a well respected member of our community and a long-standing sponsor member of the STLD. Finally, I have a request for our next issue. As we do not have any STLD visits to report on, I would appreciate any write-ups from jobs you have done in the past, including great pictures that we can publish. Please email them to me at editor@stld.org.uk. Our next issue deadline for news is 23 June. Sponsors, please contact editor@stld.org.uk for a full media pack if you are interested in advertising.

Emma Thorpe Editor Chairman’s message: As this issue of Set & Light was at the printers, we received the tragic news Chris Harris had passed away. Chris is a familiar face to many of you; he ran the STLD stand at exhibitions such as Plasa, was a longstanding committee member and our membership secretary. He had been seriously ill last year and recovered, but then contracted COVID-19 and died in intensive care.You could not wish to meet a kinder, more gentle man; he leaves a large gap in the Society, and in our hearts. Our deepest sympathies go to his wife, Debbie, and his children Daniel and Samantha. A full obituary will be included in the next issue. Bernie Davis.

contents 4

STLD AGM

6

STLD Riverside Studios visit

12

STLD Strictly Come Dancing visit

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Ofcom

18

Sponsor focus: Matthews Studio Lighting

20

The Goes Wrong Show

26

Knight of Illumination 2020

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Sponsor news

44

Committee contact details

45

Sponsors’ directory

48

Index of advertisers

Set & Light is the journal of the Society of Television Lighting and Design and is published three times a year. ISSN 2055-1185 Editor: Emma Thorpe Email: editor@stld.org.uk Web: www.stld.org.uk Production Editor: Jonathan Sever Sponsor news: Emma Thorpe Email: sponsornews@stld.org.uk Advertising: Emma Thorpe Email: adverts@stld.org.uk Cover photo: Strictly light modifier, by John O’Brien

Printed by: Gemini Print Deadlines for the next issue: Editorial: 23 June 2020 Advertising: 16 June 2020 Advertising is accepted only from sponsor members of the Society

© Society of Television Lighting and Design 2020 Set & Light | Spring 2020

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stld agm

THE 2020 STLD AGM Words: Bernie Davis Photos: Martin Christidis Welcome to the 46th STLD AGM, and can I start by thanking Duncan Stewart and Matthew Addison for the excellent tour of the studios. With so many studios closing in the London area, it is heartening to see the wonderful investment that has gone into turning Riverside into a first class studio. My first time here was in the early 1970s when I helped prepare two old BBC black and white OB trucks to be shipped to Greece for sale to the new TV service. At that time, the studios had reverted to being storage space following their part in helping the move from Lime Grove and into TV Centre.

I was back again for a music series, Riverside, in the 80s but never imagined it would be transformed like this.

My thanks to Stage Electrics for sponsoring the meeting, after it played a big part in the design and installation of the lighting infrastructure.

This was my first year back as chairman of the STLD, and what have we been doing? We have run a programme of meetings of course, which you all should have been invited to. A year ago we held the AGM as guests of ETC in North Acton, and like today the functional nature of the AGM was more than sweetened by the chance to see and hear about some of ETC’s latest products.

Later in the year, members were invited to The National Theatre to see 16 4

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feature

how it approaches transmitting NT Live to cinemas. The meeting included a backstage tour of all three of its venues, and then guests were able to watch the camera rehearsal of A Small Island, which I can say impressed everyone with the quality of the acting and the imaginative staging that made full use of the scale of the Olivier Theatre stage and revolve.

In June, we organised a group outing to see the Sorolla exhibition at the National Gallery, letting members find out more about this artist known as ‘The Master of Light’.

We had what we referred to as a pop-up meeting at the ABTT exhibition at Alexandra Palace where members attending could also look into the newly reopened Alexandra Palace Theatre. Brought back into use after a period of 70 years after a refurbishment they like to call ‘Arrested Decay’, they stabilised the crumbling plasterwork and made the roof access safe again.

The theatre now has an active programme of events, and is becoming the home of the BBC Concert Orchestra. The visit included a talk from Charcoalblue who had undertaken the renovation work.

We had a fascinating visit to Ealing in November when we had a combination visit, first to Pittshanger House to see an art installation by the famous theatre and event designer Es Devlin, followed by a performance of 1984 at Questors Theatre. We were treated to a talk from the company about Questors, the theatre and the company, and also about the technical challenges of staging 1984 with its complex cuing and multiple screens and cameras. I can honestly say I would have been satisfied with a production of this standard in the West End, and our congratulations

go to the company of ‘amateurs’ who put it together.

In the summer the STLD went to the Royal Albert Hall to see the BBC Proms, and to see how it has moved on since our last visit some years back.

Proms meetings are always popular despite being in the middle of summer, and our numbers were boosted further by inviting members of Robe’s NRG initiative, which encourages students of lighting to meet practicing lighting designers.

Later in the year we held another meeting at Elstree Studios to look backstage at Strictly Come Dancing and to meet the new lighting designer David Bishop and his programming team. This meeting is a regular one and is aimed largely at students, and is always very popular. We ended up with over 80 people attending despite the bad weather, with some students driving from as far as Hull.

The STLD had a presence at BVE in Olympia, at Plasa in Olympia, and the Production Futures exhibition at Fly-by-Night studios in Redditch. It is aimed at students thinking of getting into the entertainment industry and is usually buzzing with enthusiasm. This year was a little quieter than the previous year in Birmingham, possibly as Redditch is a little out of the way, but I am sure 2020 will be a good one as it will be in London. More recently we had a stand at Showcase 2020 and at Stage Electrics’ base in Bristol, too.

We regularly get invited to companies to see new equipment, and recently members were invited to Neg Earth’s studio in North Acton to see Claypaky’s Xtylos beam light.

Invitations to all of these meetings go out to members and sponsors, and of course get written up and published in the STLD magazine, Set & Light. I must thank all the committee for their work in setting up these meetings. I won’t name every one, but rest assured I value their support.

But one committee member I would like to propose a vote of thanks to is Andrew Dixon who has elected to stand down from the committee this year. Andrew is the only committee member who has served longer than me. He has performed various roles in that time, and has always been a steady head and a willing organiser.

Chairman’s Report

I said last year that I wanted to be able to answer the question – what exactly is the STLD for? The original mission statement was to be a forum for the free exchange of information and ideas for lighting practitioners and lighting companies. I still believe that is at the heart of what we are, although social media makes that far easier to exchange ideas than was possible 46 years ago. Sometimes too easy…

The industry has changed almost beyond recognition and the STLD needs to adapt to be part of the future.

We have been criticised in the past for being an old man’s drinking club, and to be honest the attendance at some of our meetings can look like that. But that is partly because retired members have the time to get to those meetings, and of course the meetings get reported back to the wider membership making them valuable to all.

But look at the Proms and the Strictly meeting. At Strictly we had students driving down from far and wide just to be there, and the Proms meeting was pretty well 50-50 students. The industry needs more students to be encouraged to get into TV lighting, and the committee have been looking into this and to what the STLD can do to help.

We originally thought that an extension of our excellent lighting courses run in conjunction with BBC Wood Norton were the way forward, and we looked into working with a university in Birmingham to run further courses.

They have four studios they were prepared to lend us in down time, but when that was costed we realised it would be difficult to get students to commit to the time and expense.

Committee member John Piper carried out extensive research with places of education and produced a very incisive report on how we should move forward, for which I thank him. In summary, we as a society could work with places of education to help encourage lighting values and techniques needed in TV to be included in their course work, helped by regular talks by guest lighting designers. But students also need placements to get more experience, and this is something we ought to be able to help with. With about one degree of separation, the committee must know pretty well every LD and venue in the business.

I want to speak to venues who employ staff to take on placements, and it is a good way for venues to meet the new talent as well as for students to make new contacts and to get a taste for the industry. I have been back at Rose Bruford to keep spreading the word, and Mike Le Fevre has visited Nottingham Trent University doing the same. Hopefully there will be more of this in the future.

The committee think I am not so much a new broom, but an old broom found at the back of the cupboard with a bit of life left in it, and I want to look into a few other areas that need refreshing in the STLD. The website is in need of an overhaul and we are already working on updating that, not just by giving it a cleaner look but also adding more useful functionality. Website designer Colin Jones is investigating cost-effective ways of integrating our existing databases in a secure way so that our membership details can be stored and accessed in a more coherent way.

We want to take a look at the STLD rules to see if they need updating or clarifying. Be prepared for voting on rule changes at next year’s AGM. Another question that keeps being asked – do we keep the diary or scrap it? Opinion is clearly divided on this, and not just as you might assume with younger members abandoning paper diaries in favour of apps. Some have suggested that we could have a register

of those who want the paper diary so saving costs, but in fact the printing costs drop steeply when we order larger numbers. We also want to avoid the administration of sorting who does and doesn’t want it, so we plan to either keep it or scrap it. (A quick show of hands revealed a rough 50:50 split.)

I want to reassess the STLD’s value in the future. The society’s original aim has as much merit today as it did when we were formed, but maybe our new mission statement might include “to be a catalyst in the industry for students and training”? It’s is a work in progress, but you get the idea.

In recent times, we have been hearing about members’ concerns over the implementation of recent regional working guidance presented to productions in the form of an Ofcom Directive. I am just learning about this and how it seems to unfairly affect some of our members. I will be meeting with others affected in the very near future to see what can be done.

We need input – from both regular members and sponsors – about what you want from us. We need articles for the magazine, suggestions for meetings, and to know how we are doing.

We also need new committee members to fill recent and future gaps.

If you think you could give up a lunchtime a month to eat linguine and sticky toffee pudding, you would be made to feel very welcome.

Chairman’s message

will not plan any meetings, but rest assured when people can travel and congregate, we will carry on as normal.

Email members@stld.org.uk if you would like to miss your next payment; sponsors email sponsors@stld.org.uk. We hope those who are able will continue to support the STLD. If anyone is struggling, my phone is always on.These are strange and difficult times, but I am confident the industry will rebuild. Best wishes to you all.

Bernie Davis STLD Chairman chairman@stld.org.uk (07860) 662736

As we go to print, our industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus. We have no idea how tough it will get, or when we’ll be through the worst.

We want to support you in any way we can, so we are offering a subscription holiday. Members facing hardship, including regular and sponsor members, should let us know if they wish to take advantage, and we will void their next annual payment.

We would like you to remain as members throughout this, and want the STLD to thrive once it is all over. For now, we

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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Quite the backdrop...

Down by the Riverside...

Words: Martin Kempton Photos: Martin Christidis, Martin Kempton The Early Years On the north bank of the Thames on Crisp Road, near Hammersmith Bridge, an engineering and foundry works was established in the 19th century. Between a row of cottages and the river, it built a three-storey warehouse/office building and a couple of open-sided sheds. In 1903 the site was taken over by a company manufacturing huge water pumps and then, in 1927, by a business who manufactured tanks. At some point, the walls of the big sheds were bricked in to form two large workshops.

In 1933, Triumph Films bought the site and converted it into a studio with two stages and a large dubbing theatre. It didn’t simply use the existing sheds; in order to create the largest possible stage spanning the width of the site, it knocked down the wall between them and bridged the gap with a box truss, creating a very complex roof line. This would create drainage issues for decades to come.

The business was named ‘Hammersmith Studios’ and changed hands several times. During the war, a number of comedies were filmed here; curiously, most were intended for cinemas around Manchester. Also, a huge model of a German city was constructed in one of the stages to be used for FX shots in the film One of Our Aircraft is Missing. Towards the end of the war and into the post-war years, a few well-regarded films were made here – including The Seventh Veil – which played on and off for the next decade.

In 1948 the studios were taken over by the owners of Twickenham Studios. The two sites shared a productive period that lasted until 1954 when, thanks to TV’s increasing popularity, the British film industry declined. The last feature made at Hammersmith was Alec Guinness’ Father Brown.

The studios also have an association with John Logie Baird, who was a consultant at Hammersmith working on a ‘cinema 6

Set & Light | Spring 2020

television’ project around 1945. This was an invention of his that would enable live television pictures to be transmitted to cinemas. In recent years with live relays of operas and National Theatre performances, this has become commonplace, but Baird had the idea 75 years ago. Sadly for him it wasn’t taken up at the time. As well as this project, he was working on colour TV, high definition and 3D! By coincidence, in 2008 all these technologies came together in a live screening of a rugby match at Riverside Studios. It was, in fact, the world’s first live HD screening in 3D of a sporting event via satellite. I’m sure Baird’s spirit was floating round the studios saying “There you are, I told you it could be done!”

The BBC takeover In 1954 the BBC was looking for additional studio space. It needed to take each of the studios at Lime Grove out of action for several months at a time for major refurbishment, and was also planning Television Centre and decided to use Riverside as a test bed for several new technologies. This is where the layout of galleries and the suspension, dimming and control of lighting were all tried out.

Considerable alterations were made to the buildings. The Victorian cottages along Crisp Road were demolished and replaced with a brutal concrete and brick structure that sat uneasily against the old warehouse. This was used on the ground floor for a carpenters’ shop, scene dock and a boiler house. On the first floor was a ventilation plant and store rooms. Major alterations were carried out to the film stages, adding control rooms to the end of stage 1, thus reducing its length and putting a control room suite on the first floor of the old warehouse building to serve what would become studio 2. Windows were knocked through the wall to provide a view of the studio, which was considered essential at the time. A scene dock was also added to the back of the building and ventilation plants, which would still be in operation (in a manner of sorts) right up to 2014.

Studio R1 (as it was named) was about 6,000ft2, which proved to be a useful size for dramas and sitcoms as well as music and entertainment shows. R2 was about 4,400ft2, good for panel and discussion shows and children’s programmes.

Both studios were equipped with a brand new technology, like motorised lighting hoists. There were 79 in R1 and 62 in

Riverside Studios

R2. They were each rigged with four lamps – two 2K fresnels and two ‘scoops’. These were re-rigged according to the needs of each show of course. This motorised bar system proved to be so successful that it was soon installed in Television Theatre (the old Shepherd’s Bush Empire) and studios D, E and G at Lime Grove, replacing the old block and tackle rigging system. Similar long bars with this spacing were also fitted in the first studios to be built at TV Centre, which opened in 1960.

When Riverside was fitted out there were two types of dimmers available: The first was variable resistor, which was a mechanical system using motors to slide a contact up and down wire-wound rheostats. This was primitive but reliable, although it did produce vast amounts of heat. R1 was equipped with 166 of these dimmers, controlled by a Strand Type C console.

The second dimmer type was cutting edge technology – R2 was equipped with 96 electronic xenon thyratron dimmers, controlled by a Strand console of a slightly different design.

The point of this was to establish what dimmers to install at Television Centre. Perhaps surprisingly, the variable resistor dimmers were preferred and the first four studios were duly fitted with these. TC2 and TC3 still have huge dimmer rooms, built to house the original mechanical dimmers.

Another question Riverside was designed to answer was where to put the lighting console. This was not as simple as it sounds now as there was no “gallery” in any studio back then. The console sat either in the “vision” gallery (what we now call the “production gallery”) or the apparatus room, where engineers racked the cameras. The lighting director was called a Technical Operations Manager back then and sat near the director in the “vision” gallery.

So, R1 had the console in the apparatus room and R2 had it in the vision gallery. In fact of course, before TV Centre opened, somebody realised that the best solution was to have a separate lighting gallery, where the lighting director (TM1), console op (LVS), vision operator and studio engineer could sit and chat amongst themselves about what they did at the weekend without disturbing anyone else.

Riverside soon became a popular place to work with the BBC crews. The studios were superbly equipped and there was an excellent choice of pubs within a couple of minutes’ walk. In fact, The Chancellors, just down the road, became known as R3 and had a ‘Studio 3’ sign screwed to the wall in the BBC logo. I have also been told that there was a feed of talkback to the bar, so musicians playing on live shows could time their arrival for the opening titles of Six-Five Special to the second, although this tale may be apocryphal.

Riverside was the home of many popular shows including Dixon of Dock Green, Doctor Who, Z-Cars and many other dramas including Quatermass and the Pit. Comedy and entertainment shows were produced with all the big stars of the day including Tony Hancock, David Nixon, Charlie Drake and Spike Milligan. Blue Peter was often made here, too.

Riverside unexpectedly was where the first show on BBC Two came from in April 1964. Play School was transmitted from these studios the morning after the official programmes from TV Centre fell off the air due to a power cut.

Riverside was never colourised and gradually had less and less work as each studio in TV Centre was commissioned.

Impressive, versatile seating arrangements The last show made here was in 1970, although the studios remained in BBC hands for several years afterwards. Every year, even after the BBC left, they were a hub for the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race – with lines to TVC and comms up and down the river. The patio at the back provided an excellent camera position, too. The new studios will regain this useful function from 2021 – although now of course via fibre to the Telecom Tower.

The arts centre years In 1975 Riverside became an arts centre, after transferring ownership to Hammersmith Council. The rooms at the left of the front of the building were turned into the main foyer and the workshops on the right became studio 3 – intended for small scale theatre productions. The old dimmer rooms were knocked through to become an attractive bar area and the dubbing theatre was converted into a cinema.

The studios were intended primarily for theatre, music and dance although occasionally studio 2 was used to make TV shows using an OB scanner. It was probably at this time that the end wall of studio 1 had its rockwool padding removed to reveal the original brick wall, to help give the room a more lively acoustic. This lovely old wall would become Riverside’s defining feature on several TV shows in future years and has been recreated in the new studio using very realistic textured panels.

In 1993, the arts centre was in deep financial straits and was taken over by new management. There was a major refurbishment and upon reopening, studio 2 became the main theatre space and studio 1 was marketed as a TV studio once again – although it as yet had no technical equipment. As luck would have it, Chris Evans’ Channel 4 show TFI Friday came along and occupied studio 1 for several months each year from 1995 to 2000. They used an OB truck for facilities and one of the old BBC galleries became Chris’ den where he interviewed his guests. The old studio with its iron staircases and shabby walls looked terrific on camera. Top of the Pops was also made at Riverside for a while after it left Elstree.

Riverside continued in use as an arts centre but in 2002 the administration of studio 1 was taken over by a separate company – Riverside TV Studios Ltd. The people involved had previously been running the facilities at Bow Lock for Channel 4’s The Big Breakfast. That show ran from 1992 to 2002. Most of the kit was derigged and transported to Set & Light | Spring 2020

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New school (left), and the overhauled foyer transmitted The Mighty Truck of Stuff live from R1, ITV transmitted the pre-recorded CD-UK also from R1 and Channel 4 transmitted Popworld from R3. Not bad for a 50 year old facility.

Hammersmith where it enabled studio 1 to operate as a proper TV studio for the first time since the BBC had left.

Riverside TV was not a huge enterprise like most facilities companies. It was basically three people – Duncan Stewart, Mark Swan and Bobbi Blackman, supported by a team of freelance scene hands and electricians who kept this studio going – often against all the odds!

Over the following years more and more bookings came along enabling further investment in the facilities. CD-UK was a regular fixture between 2003 and 2006 and other shows included The Apprentice:You’re Fired, Sweat the Small Stuff, Celebrity Juice and The Last Leg. I lit several shows at Riverside between 2009 and the closure in 2014, including Russell Howard’s Good News, Lee Nelson’s Well Good Show and That Sunday Night Show. It was a really enjoyable place to work with a terrific atmosphere and great support from the people running the business.

The grid was very basic – scaffold poles spanned the old BBC girders, with sprung pantographs on them. At the beginning of a series the rig would go in and stay in – each show added to the amount of clutter hanging there.

Sometimes when three shows were running there was so much stuff hanging above people’s heads that you could almost hear the beams groaning under the strain. If a scaffold pole looked as though it was bending, a ratchet strap was attached to a steel girder above and it was bent back straight.

It sounds scary but actually it was all perfectly safe and enabled the studio to run very efficiently.

An example of Riverside’s relevance as a TV studio centre took place on 1 April 2006. Simultaneously, BBC Two 8

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The new Riverside The writing had been on the wall for the future of the building for a number of years. Charming though it was in its grunginess, it was a nightmare to maintain and keep the rain out. From 2009, the trustees who ran Riverside were in negotiation with various developers and the owners of the empty 1980s office block next door. The intention was to demolish both buildings and start again. The larger available area would enable all the existing facilities to be rebuilt, plus add space for restaurants and bars – and, above all, the luxury flats which would pay for it all. After several near misses, the deal was finally done – and Riverside closed in September 2014. Appropriately, the final show was The Last Leg. It was hoped the new studios would open in April 2018 but many unforeseen problems ensued – which I’m sure must have been deeply frustrating for Duncan Stewart and Bobbi Blackman, who had to keep turning away bookings. Eventually, after a great deal of hard work, the new Riverside opened for business in November 2019 – and it really is very impressive.

There are three main studios as before, plus a very nice cinema and various rehearsal/meeting rooms. Studio 1 is managed by Riverside Television and is intended to be used as a TV studio for most of its time. Studio 2 is shared between arts centre activities of theatre/dance/music and TV. Studio 3 is primarily a theatre space but like anywhere in the building it can very easily be connected to one of the two fully equipped gallery suites. Even the cinema has four internally wired bars spanning the space for lighting, and cabinets with connectivity to the gallery suites, so could easily be used as a TV studio for a stand-up comedy show or acoustic music concert, for example.

The large foyer area outside the studios has a lighting bar running all round it making it ideal for a break-out area or second studio for a main show in studio 1. (The overhead skylights might need some blacking out but in the winter would be less of an issue of course.) Even the outside terrace has fibre connection points concealed in nearby pillars so links or interviews could easily be done there, with Hammersmith Bridge as a backdrop.

The detailed planning that has gone into the whole building is really impressive and shows what can be done when a

Riverside Studios

The wall reimagined (above), and Studio 1 in all its glory

studio centre is designed by people who have actually worked on shows themselves, rather than using consultants.

Studios 2 and 3 are approximately the same size as the old ones (4,500ft2 and 2,000ft2) but studio 1 is quite a bit larger.

About nine-feet longer and six-feet wider in fact. Officially its gross size is 6,500ft2. It has a very impressive audience rostra built in, seating a maximum of 400. The units have been designed specifically for this studio, so they can fold back without removing hand rails, which saves time and effort. The front three rows can remain folded back to increase the floor area – still leaving a good number of seats.

Studio 1’s grid is densely packed with 147 DeSisti lighting hoists. These are very close to each other so LDs will not suffer the same compromises as in other studios that have widely spaced bars. Each bar has two dimmers and hot

power for LEDs/movers. The studio has an ETC Paradigm sACN network, with Ethernet and four DMX outlets on each bar. There are 480 dimmers in total (rather more than the 166 the BBC originally installed in R1).

One familiar aspect to some of us – the old sprung pantographs have been retained and are available to hang from the new bars. These are much more user friendly than the type to be seen in some studios that require a hand-held motor to power them up and down.

Above the hoists is a ‘Skydeck’ tension wire grid, thought to be the largest in the UK. The first of these in the UK were fitted in the Vanbrugh Theatre at RADA and Norden Farm Centre for the Arts in Maidenhead in 2000. I was involved in the planning for Norden Farm and lit a few productions there soon after opening. The first time you step onto the grid is Set & Light | Spring 2020

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Gallery with a view

Duncan Stewart runs through the Riverside plans...

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

Riverside Studios

somewhat alarming, walking in mid-air with the floor some 30-feet below, but you get used to it quickly. It’s an excellent solution, enabling easy access to anywhere over the floor.

Rather than tracking scene hoists, there are 16 individual chain hoists available, with sockets all around the grid. These can be fixed to the I-beams above the wire grid or cross rigged so that an accurate spot can be dropped. The cable simply passes through the grid, using a custom made protective sleeve. A truly ingenious solution. Small panels using traditional rope cleats can also be laid on the wire grid anywhere for loads up to 50kg.

Ginge Ames joined the team last year after Mark Swan had moved on and has taken responsibility for the practical side of operations. He has brought a wealth of experience from his years at TLS. The only good aspect about TLS closing is that there is a pool of excellent scenic and electrical talent available, so there will be lots of familiar faces for some of us.

There are no lights kept in stock (as with the old Riverside Studios) and PRG currently have the contract to supply kit – but Duncan says that if an LD is very keen to use a particular supplier, this will be possible.

The two gallery suites and apparatus room are downstairs and are very well equipped. I gather studio 1’s sound desk is highly regarded but I couldn’t possibly comment. The studio is naturally 4K capable, with Sony HDC-4300 cameras. Duncan made the choice of sticking with SDI rather than IP and the short cable runs between the galleries and the apparatus room mean that no problems have emerged in tests using 4K. Stage Electrics looked after the lighting requirements and have done an excellent job under the leadership of Matthew Addison, with Lee Darvill as site supervisor. I should also mention Colin Starkin, who was the senior project manager with Mount Anvil, the developer responsible for the whole building. They had built nothing like this before so had to learn a great deal very quickly!

Organising the delivery of the massive steel girders that support the grid was a major project in itself. Nick Mobsby and Russ Merriman looked after the hoist installation by DeSisti and Watkins M&E were represented by Steve Southgate and Andy Seary.

Regarding the building itself, one very impressive factor is the acoustic sealing. The three main studios are physically separate, with corridors between them. They consist of sealed concrete boxes, sitting on rubber bungs, preventing sound from being transmitted through the fabric of the building. This impressive attention to detail was tested last autumn when the Brits party was held here – which I am told was very loud. No music was heard outside the studio – in particular by the occupants of the very expensive flats which sit alongside and above the studio.

The old studios had to be very carefully programmed, avoiding a theatre production in one while a loud music show was happening next door. This is no longer necessary.

There is a great deal more that I could add about this excellent project but people will find out for themselves when they work here. I am sure the studios will be very busy indeed – for example, Have I Got News For You? will be a regular booking from April. Studio 1 opened on 22 November 2019 and studio 2 will be available after Easter. Good luck to all at Riverside – and congratulations on bucking the trend of closing TV studios. This proves it can still be done!

For more on the history of Riverside Studios – and dozens of other studios – visit tvstudiohistory.co.uk.

What’s Next.

See how ETC is revolutionizing the studio market. studio.etcconnect.com

visual environment technologies etcconnect.com 17

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Strictly Come Dancing

Strictly business Words: Bernie Davis Photos: John O’Brien Last December saw the latest in a series of spectacular STLD meetings at Strictly Come Dancing when over 90 members and students braved the bad weather and the M25 to get to Elstree Studios where Strictly has been housed since it moved out of Television Centre. We make no apology for repeating this meeting most years as it always proves popular, particularly with students who want to see how the ever popular BBC Saturday night show is put together. This year we had groups of students from Backstage Academy, RADA, Central School of Speech and Drama, Guildford School of Acting, and Rose Bruford, travelling from as far as Hull just to see how the magic of Strictly is created. This award-winning show has now completed 17 seasons yet still pulls in nearly eight million viewers on a Saturday night, and if you look back at how it started you realise just how far the lighting team have moved the look of it on over the years.

2019 saw a big change in that the production team decided it was time for a new Lighting Designer, and gave the show to David Bishop. David had been the programmer of moving lights and the projection and graphics on Strictly for some years, but had been aware that the demands had grown with the production expectation, and this year he split the lighting operation three ways. Darren Lovell, who had operated the generic lighting since the programme started, stayed in his role, although even that has advanced over time, now using many moving lights as well as balancing the 12 follow spots used to cover the dancers. Rather than Generics Operator, his responsibility is better described as lighting the faces. Matt Lee was brought in to deal solely with programming the graphics using a Full Boar desk, which also helped Dave Newton of Potion Pictures to get his work into the show quicker. Having Matt there left new recruit Tom Young to concentrate just on programming the large range of moving lights used on the show. I say ‘new recruit’ but Tom comes from The X-Factor so is no novice to big Saturday night entertainment. Programming time is at a premium on a show like Strictly, and this new three-way split for the operation really helped ease the considerable pressure on the lighting team.

Tom programmed the show on a Grand MA, moving on from the Compulite Vector used in the past. The Compulite was just about reaching the limit of its processing abilities, and the change to MA really paid off. Many people had commented that the lighting had moved on this year, and part of this came from the interesting and subtle effects that the MA delivers so well.

David talked us through the whole production process from the Strictly launch show through to the big final, by way of Blackpool – their annual excursion originally introduced to release TC1 for Children in Need, but still in the schedules by popular demand.

He talked through the various lighting fixtures he used, including the Ayrton Mistrals introduced for the first time

Tom Young on the Grand Ma3 this year around the dance floor, and the powerful MegaPointe’s producing most of the signature beam looks.

After David’s presentation the guests were able to talk to the programming team and to look closer at the rig and how it was designed. Also on hand to answer questions was Richard Shout, head of the lighting systems and dimmers.

We later asked the students what they had got out of the meeting: Joe Underwood from Rada said “It was really interesting to see how a long running show like that is put on. I really liked your use of the massive amounts of LED panelling in combination with your fixtures in the arch at the back of stage. It was really interesting to find that the space is actually pretty small, it looks so much bigger in broadcast!

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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stld visit

Clockwise: Rehearsal lights; follow spots are important; from behind the desk; light modifiers

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Strictly Come Dancing

Richard Shout, head of lighting systems and dimmers “It was also super interesting to find out that you need to colour balance your design for TV. It’s obvious if you think about it, but it’s not something I’ve ever considered.

The tour was really interesting, I particularly liked seeing the dimmer racks and having a chat with your chief LX.” Tesni Kerens from Backstage Academy said “It was an incredibly interesting and valuable experience for us students to see the thought process behind the lighting application of this event. As live event students it was interesting for us to see lighting and video applications for television, and was definitely a great experience for students to see a professional setting and how Strictly is technically produced.”

Enrique Munoz Jimemez, lecturer from Rose Bruford commented “I think it was brilliant. It was a unique opportunity as it not only allowed us to see the studio and the facilities, but most importantly talk and ask questions to the professionals who run it! Also their willingness to answer any questions and spend time doing this was absolutely fantastic.

“It would be really interesting to see a live demo of how it looks live versus how it looks via the camera/on TV. Just 30 seconds of a song… I am asking too much?”

We are all really grateful for everyone who stayed late in the studio in the middle of yet another busy week to make the meeting happen, and we thank the Strictly Come Dancing production team for allowing the STLD to visit their studio yet again. The STLD also thanks Philips Lighting for generously contributing towards the catering costs.

17

industry investigation

(l-r) Tom Young, Darren Lovell, David Bishop and Matt Lee: a light panel of judges

Of their heads Words: Bernie Davis Early in 2020, we started hearing that some members were having problems being booked for shows they had worked on before, then being cancelled or even being told they would not be booked for the next series. And the reason?

Their address. The problem seemed to be caused by an Ofcom instruction that productions were starting to act on.

This ruling had come as a result of a government initiative to improve regionality in programmes and programme making, and Public Service Broadcasters were being obliged to make a proportion of their shows as ‘regional productions’. To ensure programmes were not simply branded as regional, Ofcom had worked on a document which spelled out criteria which had to be stuck to, and set a deadline of programmes being newly broadcast from January 2021. The clause causing the problem was that a proportion of offscreen talent had to come from outside London. On the surface, this did not seem unreasonable as the government were committed to increasing regional programme making and content across the UK. But there seemed to be flaws in the ruling and how it was being implemented, so we started to investigate.

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

The root cause was The Guidelines for Regional Programmes, issued by Ofcom in July 2019, which aimed to clarify the government initiative which started back in 2004.

This set the guidelines for Public Service Broadcasters to follow. The upshot is that PSBs have to meet quotas of regional programming, and in an attempt to ensure that programmes are truly representative other parts of the country, Ofcom has set three criteria which must be met: 1. Substantive production base must be outside London 2. 70% of the production spend must be outside London 3. 50% of the budget for ‘off-screen talent’ must be spent outside London To allow for some flexibility, productions were only required to meet two out of three of those criteria. On the surface, this seemed to meet Ofcom’s brief from the government whilst giving productions the flexibility to still use key personnel as they saw fit. But problems started to surface in January, and London-based freelancers noticed that they were losing work in what they saw as an unfair way. As the first two criteria – particularly criteria 1 – were difficult to meet (productions still needed their core staff who had not just moved out of London to keep the work) they were always relying on criteria 3 to meet their quota. And as ‘off-screen talent’ included many other necessary skills, such as writers and directors, an unfair burden of the reduction was landing on sound, cameras and lighting. Directors were starting to work on series they had recorded before only to

Ofcom

find some of the crew new to the programme, adding to their difficulties.

The definition of having a ‘London base’ is defined as living within the M25, although one part of the report suggests that crew whose work was mostly outside the M25 were exempt, adding to the confusion.

There is a problem of using the M25 as a definition of the boundary of London, in that these days the M25 is nearer to being a dividing line through the commuter belt.Very few crew can afford to live in central London, and in recent years crews have been moving further out to places such as Chelmsford, Stevenage and Reading, all with good train access to London. These people, of course, are not affected; the problem comes from those who live inside the M25. Some might live near to Pinewood or Elstree, but their postcode determines whether they are eligible for regional work in Salford or Maidstone. But of course Pinewood Studios is a stone’s throw outside the M25 and this rather clumsy use of the M25 to define London is not just unfair – it raises anomalies such as crew who live in Iver Heath not being allowed to work on a regional show at Pinewood half a mile away, yet crew from Kent can travel to work on a Salfordbased production.

Even worse, this is a one-way ruling in that lighting directors from outside the M25 are still allowed to work on shows within the M25.

A collective of representatives from cameras, sound, lighting, and floor management started talking via WhatsApp in February as cases of crew being turned down for jobs they had previously worked on started to spread, and we arranged a meeting at Ofcom to present our concerns. We prepared for this by meeting Mark Stephens, a solicitor specialising in media law. He gave us sound advice which we took to the next meeting at Ofcom. Here we met with Tom Walker, who had taken the lead in producing Ofcom’s guidance on Regional TV production and programming.

He was joined by Siobhan Walsh who is currently working on a report into the future of PSB, and Anthony Szynkaruk who had assisted Tom in his work. After introductions it was clear to me that they considered the regional broadcasting matter closed as the directive was already in place, but were interested in our views on the future of public service broadcasting. We quickly pointed out that we had come to discuss our concerns on how the new guidelines were adversely affecting our work, and went on to have a full discussion. Our aim was to not be confrontational, and went to great lengths to assure them that were in favour of the move to regional broadcasting, and had all regretted the Broadcasting Act which had seen the demise of regional studios. We were concerned over how it was being achieved and wanted to find out who had been consulted. The answer we got was that Ofcom had held a public consultation, inviting all interested parties to contribute, but conceded that unless we were signed up to Ofcom notifications, we might not have heard about this. Consultation had been with the main public service broadcasters – BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and so on – with independent producers and Bectu.

They seemed genuinely surprised that we had not known about the new regulations until January 2020 when people started to be affected. They seemed even more surprised to

hear that the Bectu members amongst us had not been informed by the union of what was to come.

We pointed out that up to the 1980s, crew were largely staff based in the region where they were employed. If they took a new job to a new region they would move home. The majority of crew are now freelance as broadcasters have severely cut back on staff levels, and have to take work where they are offered it. If you have a home and children at school, you can’t move house on the basis of a short contract. If the majority of your work starts to come from somewhere else, you might well choose to move, and there are already examples of this happening with Salford and Pacific Quay. But to impose a postcode restriction to work practices seems to be an unfair restriction to our trade.

We also pointed out that most crew training was conducted by freelance crew helping new recruits to learn the skills, and this restriction could start to adversely affect the industry. Production companies do not send crew all over the UK through laziness or to look after their friends. It is because they need them, and as soon as local crew become experienced, the Ofcom aims will be achieved anyway. We could not be expected to move home since last July on the basis of the new guidelines, even if we had known them then.

We felt the timetable was too rushed.

The Ofcom team were sympathetic, and listened to our concerns. But from their viewpoint they had been working towards this plan since 2004. As part of the March 2017 consultation on the BBC’s Operating Licence, they announced their intention to review the regional production and regional programming guidance for public service broadcasters, issuing guidance that explained how public service broadcasters should meet their obligations to ensure that set proportions of the programmes they show were made outside of London, in the UK’s nations and regions. This was followed up by their statement on their review of regional TV production and programming guidance in June 2019, enforcing broadcasters to comply for shows broadcast from January 2021. Three months was allowed to contest the statement, but we all only seemed to hear about it when the problems bit in January 2020.

I think the truth is that, having waded through the 60-page document, we were unlikely to have guessed how the guidelines would be interpreted by productions – indeed the Ofcom team we met said that it looked like the implementation of them was not working as they had intended. So it is not surprising that we are only just reacting.

We have to consider what the next step is, and our most likely lever against this ruling is that there does not seem to have been enough consultation with crew – in fact almost none. Our small sample of skills at the meeting knew nothing about it until the January, and having asked a wider crosssection, we have yet to hear of anyone who knew what was going to happen before then.

We intend to take the matter further, but then the coronavirus appeared and almost everyone’s work stopped overnight. Taking a wider view, we agreed to delay our next step until things settle down a bit. But if you have any experiences of losing work through this ruling we would really like to hear from you. Please send them to berniedavis@stld.org.uk Set & Light | Spring 2020

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sponsor focus

Matthews Studio Equipment Words: Bernie Davis I always enjoy BsC Expo as it attracts exhibitors and products not seen at the other exhibitions in the lighting calendar. Here you get to see helicopters and motorbikes with remote camera mounts, to see cameras I am never likely to be lighting for on mountings I have never seen, and clever gadgets at both ends of the price spectrum. Many STLD sponsors exhibit, with their product ranges a little skewed towards the film industry, although of course films have started adopting technology we are all more familiar with in TV including dimmers and moving lights. TV lighting has always been an interesting cross-over between film, stage, and rock & roll with most shows comfortable switching between these genres so creating a hybrid we recognise as TV lighting.

In January I made the trip to Battersea Evolution to see what they had to offer, and met up with Tyler Phillips of STLD Sponsors Matthews Studio Equipment. I suspect that I am far from alone in having been familiar with Matthews’ stands and clamps for all my lighting career, while at the same time knowing next to nothing about the company and their 50-year history.

Tyler Phillips is the young and engaging owner and president of the company having taken over after the loss of his father Ed, who tragically died in an accident last year. Ed originally worked at Universal Studios at a time when studios largely built their own grip equipment. He met with Roy Isaia from Paramount Studios, who worked in a sewing room making canvas backdrops and scenery, and went on to make flags and other lighting grip equipment, eventually naming his company after his son, Matthew.

It was a time when studios were moving out to locations more, and taking their rather large and heavy equipment with them. Ed thought there ought to be a better way, and one of his earlier ideas for making location lighting easier came from a side-line he had of servicing old arc lights. Early Brutes weighed well over 100kg, so he would strip them out and rebuild them to make them far lighter and so more manageable. This led to the formation of Waynco which developed the lightweight Golden Eagle arc light. Later he sold off Waynco and concentrated more on his grip equipment range with Matthews. Then in 1974 Roy sold his share of Matthews to Ed and his partner Carlos DeMattos and they built up the company from there.

Ed thought that the grip equipment they were using was far too heavy and unwieldy for location work; the lighting stands for instance had welded legs and although they stacked they were still very heavy and took up a lot of space on the trucks. Spotting this need he came up with the now famous C Stand (Century Stand) with spring loaded bases that you will all have met 18

Set & Light | Spring 2020

Tyler Phillips, CEO Matthews Sudio Equipment

Ed was frustrated by the different standards between lighting and grip – grip used one inch spigots and lighting used one and one eighth inch spigots meaning that similar equipment was doubled on location. Ed took the controversial route of introducing the 5/8 inch spigot for both grip and lighting and the Combo stand that could be used by both grips and lighting.

Then in 1983 he introduced his Tulip Crane, the first folding portable camera crane. Before this the large and heavy cranes would have to be transported on low-loader trucks. The Tulip Crane won them their first Academy Award.

They went on to develop the Cam Remote Head – the first

Matthews Studio Equipment

The Dutti Dolly (above) and (below) the CAMTank

remote camera head – and in 1985 won their second Academy Award.

One day Italian DoP James Saldutti came in with a piece of plywood on wheels that he had put together as a mobile camera plate. Ed turned the idea into the Dutti Dolly 15 years ago, making a very versatile and elegant mounting with great flexibility. The skateboard wheels can run on pretty well any kind of track, even two lengths of cheap angle iron if necessary, and a range of accessories converts the base from a very low mount to a bazooka mount or tripod mount. And of course as with everything, it is very compact to transport.

It was showing more of its latest products at BsC Expo, and I was really impressed by the MAX Menace Arm, a jib arm that can place an 80Kg fixture over 5m from the base with a height of up to 6m, easy to wheel around on a level surface, and quick to strip down and fold up for transportation. No wonder this arm won an Oscar for

Technical Achievement. There is already a MiniMax – a more compact version is available, too.

Another clever gadget I liked very much was the Infinity Arm – a small and very flexible articulated arm that can take from 7Kg to 15Kg depending on how it is configured. Its clever trick is that you can change the ball fittings on both ends to give you a whole range from K-Clamps to camera threads to lighting spigot. A really well thought out mechanism lets you quickly and safely swap the ball joint in seconds, adding to the versatility of this clever mounting.

Cam Tank is a well-engineered accessory that takes all large format camera plates, and was designed for extremely low angle shots. It can also provide Dutch angle shots or even vertical shots.

Matthews Studio Equipment is now is a family owned and run business with 90% of its manufacturing on its premises in Burbank. And judging by its range of innovative products on display at BsC Expo it is going to remain a worldleading brand for many years to come. Matthews Studio Equipment products are sold through Cirro Lite in the UK and more information can be found at: cirrolite.com/manufacturers/matthews-studio-equipment

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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on set

The LD defies gravity

Wrong turn Words & photos: Martin Kempton Mischief Theatre is a company that is currently enjoying huge success, with three productions running in the West End, another on tour and their most well-known play being performed in over 30 cities around the world, including on Broadway.

Their success has come about through talent, of course, but also a great deal of very hard work. It all began in 2008 when a bunch of friends graduated from LAMDA and devised a few improvised and scripted comedy plays that were performed in various pub theatres and the Edinburgh Fringe.

In 2012 they created The Play That Goes Wrong, which was performed in a tiny theatre before transferring to Trafalgar Studios in 2013 and then touring theatres all over Britain. In September 2014 it opened at The Duchess in the West End. I saw the original production in York when we were having a short break and was blown away by its energy and sheer 20

Set & Light | Spring 2020

inventiveness. I genuinely have not laughed as much in a theatre either before or since.You may guess from this that I am a fan and love the Mischief style of comedy. As one of the company told me last year “Oh yes, we know that Martin gets it.” (Maybe I laughed just a bit too much in the rehearsal room.)

In 2016 I was lucky enough to be asked to light Peter Pan Goes Wrong – a TV version of their stage show but with a much bigger set and lots more effects! It was recorded in a studio at Pinewood and was exhausting but really rewarding.

So I was absolutely thrilled when early in 2019 I was asked if I was available to light The Goes Wrong Show – a new series of six individual plays that go wrong, especially written for BBC One. The proposed schedule was like nothing I had encountered before. It appeared at first to be generous in the extreme. Each half-hour play was to have two weeks in a rehearsal room in Borehamwood with most of the set in position so the actors could get used to it and could work out how stunts and effects were going to work. Then the set would be dismantled and rebuilt in a studio at MediaCity in Salford.

The Goes Wrong Show

In the early planning stage, we would also have far more time in the studio than a normal sitcom but as the recording dates approached, this was cut back severely. Unfortunately we only had one set build day, one day to finelight, one pre-record day and one record day with an audience. This was a very tight schedule indeed, considering how complex most of the shows were. Nevertheless, having a fortnight’s rehearsal for each play was really useful and I often travelled to Borehamwood just to sit and watch the company at work.

I probably should briefly explain the back-story to the ‘Goes Wrong’ productions. They are supposed to be plays performed by the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society. They have a regular cast of ‘actors’ – some with more talent than others. Dennis, for example, can’t remember his lines and gets terribly nervous, Max frequently breaks out of character and grins at the audience at inappropriate moments, Sandra is a bit of a diva and upstages everyone – she also likes to glance directly down the camera lens… and so on. The idea is that the dress rehearsal for every play has gone perfectly so the disasters in the performance are entirely unexpected by the cast. This applies to all of us too – so lighting, sound, camerawork must be correct or the joke simply doesn’t work. The shot must not be composed for the funny thing that’s happening, it should be framed normally so the funny thing is seen accidentally. So, unlike Acorn Antiques say, where every department was encouraged to make it all look crap, we had to do our best to make it look good!

Each play was to present me with its own challenges. All were performed on large ‘theatrical’ sets, and action would take place all over them. Some were very deep and high so my first thought was to wonder how sound would be picked up. Most readers will understand that when booms are being used, you can’t light from downstage without shadows being cast all over the set and actors. On a traditional living room sitcom set, this is relatively straightforward. The lights are positioned upstage, pointing forward at various angles so that the actors’ faces are nicely lit when they talk to each other across the set. However, if they are standing close to the back of a very high set and looking downstage, it is much more challenging to cover them as the light will be very steep unless it comes from downstage – which will pose serious boom shadow issues.

When I lit Peter Pan Goes Wrong, the sound was picked up using concealed radio mics, which gave me one less thing to worry about. These new plays were going to be performed in a similarly theatrical style so I offered the suggestion at an early planning meeting that maybe radio mics might be worth considering. My proposal was quickly dismissed so I requested that where possible the action should not happen far upstage. This idea was also met with a lack of enthusiasm as it (quite rightly) would seriously limit freedom of movement in the plays.

All I could do was apologise to Nick Roast and prepare him for a lot of very tricky boom situations. He of course is the most experienced sound supervisor doing this sort of work. He smiled and simply said “Well, my boom ops are very good”, which of course I knew already but in my many years of lighting sitcoms I knew I had not presented them with as many problems as they would encounter on this series.

I normally light comedy using softlight wherever possible.

It looks natural, is flattering on faces and gives the show a more contemporary feel as almost all TV drama and feature films have been lit this way for many years now. The old traditional TV technique of using hard light, controlled by carefully set barndoors can be very effective but it does immediately make anything lit in this way look very dated.

However, I decided that to get light where I needed it to be – and keep it off the scenery – I would have to use a certain amount of hard light, particularly on the very large sets. Of course, boom shadows are very obvious when cast by a hard source so I would have to use them with a great deal of care and the boom ops would face a new challenge. Or possibly, for some of them, an old one.

These plays were not sitcoms in the normal sense, where both set and lighting attempt to make it all look as real as possible; the viewer could see the studio audience and the performing style was broad and farcical. The production designer was Dennis DeGroot and he quite rightly opted to make these sets look more suitable for a theatre than a TV studio, so using hard lights as you would in a theatre seemed appropriate too.

Therefore, as well as using a mix of various softlights including 2.5K Northlights and 4K Mole zips (with double eggcrates) many of the sets had a sprinkling of 2Ks and pups to pick up areas close to the scenery and to give me a punch of light in various places from a long distance. However, I also decided that being able to tint the light warm or cool or even use stronger colours at times would be very useful, so most of the plays had a number of Mac Auras distributed around the set. These proved invaluable – not just to give remote control of colour. On many occasions, we steered them into positions I hadn’t originally planned in order to give an extra kick of light onto the actors.

Three of the plays also had a few VL1000s in use too – sometimes to provide gobo break-ups and occasionally as keylights. The Christmas special was a particular challenge as it contained several songs that would require the lighting to change mood and colour. It was impossible to use a follow spot so each singer was lit using one or two VL1000s, carefully set so the boom could sit just above the shutter cut-off avoiding its shadow. Occasionally, the singer moved so a combination of gentle panning of the lamp and cross-fading from one lamp to another was the solution.

Of course, on most TV shows when moving lights are in use we have two operators – one for the movers and the other for the generic rig. However, I couldn’t see how that would work on this production, since the actors would be lit most of the time with a blend of softlight, hard light and light from Auras and VL1000s. So, my console op had an enormous challenge!

Julia Smith was the operator for five of the shows and Rob Bradley worked on one. They were both stretched to the limit but I couldn’t have wished for more. Their contribution was outstanding and the overall look of these plays is very much down to them. I should also mention the invaluable help from my vision controllers – Gareth Gordon worked on one show and Simon Lyon was the VC on the rest.

There were six plays altogether. One was a Victorian romance set in a garden and conservatory, the second was a Set & Light | Spring 2020

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on set

The set for The Pilot during the finelight

courtroom drama, the next was a wartime code-breaking thriller and another was a haunted house mystery. There was a play set in the American Deep South and there was also the Christmas special. Each had a completely different set and each posed its own problems.

For the sake of brevity, I’ll just look at three of them in a bit more detail for this article. Firstly, the haunted house mystery called The Lodge. This had a spookily atmospheric set designed by Dennis. It was huge – in width, depth and height – with a mezzanine level upstage and behind that, a staircase leading to a balcony level, from which one of the actors would plunge onto concealed crash boxes at one point. On another occasion the stair-lift running the length of the staircase was (of course) planned to malfunction – causing the actor to rapidly descend and be catapulted through the solid wall at the bottom.

I had in my mind that maybe it should be lit in the style of the classic Hammer horror films shot at Bray in the late ‘50s so I watched Dracula and The Curse of Frankenstein for the first time in many years. Great films and I did pick up a few tips – for example, even in the darkest environment you can always see the actor’s eyes. I noticed too that the DoP was not afraid to use a lot of colour in the light – and that moonlight through windows can be as bright as day as long as the room it is seen in remains gloomy with deep shadows.

The play was set at night and about three-quarters of it was supposed to be in the dark with only one small lantern illuminating the entire set., plus moonlight through the windows of course. This posed a few problems for me.

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

Somehow, I had to make it all look as dark and spooky as possible whilst seeing the actors clearly (bearing in mind that it was a comedy, not a horror film) but unlike the way a movie is shot, this would be in long continuous scenes with action moving all over the place. That required constant rebalancing of the lights – only illuminating the area in the huge set where the action was currently happening and dressing the background with pools of colour and streaks of dappled moonlight from VL1000s, Mac Auras and Mac Encores.

It was (perhaps appropriately) a nightmare for Rob Bradley, my op on that one. How he kept up with all the cues I have no idea. We never had enough time to tie it all down properly. Of course, in a theatre production there would be days of prep and technical rehearsals for a show like this but we had to work as fast as possible while the camera rehearsal was going on. Mind you, having a grade helps a lot in a situation like this and I spent several hours with top colourist Nuala Sheridan at The Farm to refine it all.

She reckoned it was one of the toughest shows she had done, too!

This play was the one I was really dreading from the point of view of sound pick-up. I helpfully told Nick Roast that frankly, I had no idea how he was going to get booms in to cover the mezzanine level, the stairs and the upper balcony.

I believe a number of small mics were concealed around the set but lo and behold, when we came to those scenes, four – yes four – booms pushed optimistically upstage and began casting a multitude of shadows all over everything. They had

The Goes Wrong Show

planned to use a rod operated from a platform behind the set to cover the stairs but this proved unworkable.

Anyway, somehow – thanks to the brilliance of the entire sound dept – the shadows disappeared one by one and every word could be heard perfectly. I have no idea how they did it but I had never seen such exhausted looking boom ops by the end of the recording. If any are reading this – I can only apologise.

A Trial To Watch was the name of the courtroom drama in the series. It had a couple of running gags. The first was that due to an error in reading the set plans, the courtroom had been built to about a quarter scale, so the set was roughly eight feet square with the ceiling at about five feet. Much comic business was created with the actors squeezing into the furniture and pretending that everything was quite normal. I mentioned the ceiling – this covered the whole set so lighting all the actors relatively evenly was a challenge.

Fortunately, Dennis made the central part of it out of translucent panels and we also had an LED ribbon concealed around the top of the walls, providing some illumination.

It would of course be boomed from the front so had to be lit very softly from that direction to avoid any shadows. I lit the ceiling panels with six Mac Auras, crossing from upstage and downstage to give us some control over the balance.

This little set was on a truck enabling it to track up and down – it had two working positions plus its resting position upstage so these all had to be allowed for in my top rig.

The second running gag was that when the courtroom trundled upstage with the cast in it, two much larger full-scale trucks came on from left and right with a split set that joined

up on shot. There were lots of visual jokes with this including two halves of a cat sitting on the back of the split sofa.

The downstage sets consisted of the courtroom corridor, a living room, a morgue and a gym. The first two scene changes happened perfectly but then the two halves of the various sets got mixed up with hilarious consequences. My challenge was that each set demanded a completely different look; the living room was warm and cosy, the morgue cool and clinical and the gym was colourful with daylight coming from one side.

All of these sets would be occupying the same space in the studio so I had a very densely packed rig consisting mostly of Northlights and Mac Auras. To give the scene changes a bit of dynamic pizzaz I also used six GLP X4 bars. A few weeks earlier I had seen a couple of shows in the West End that had impressed me greatly in the way they were lit. One was Company and the other was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

By coincidence, both were lit by Neil Austin. He used the X bars to great effect in both shows so I shamelessly adapted his ideas and used them on this production to run a chase during the scene changes. They were also really useful to steer into position as a backlight on the big trucks.

They were supplied by Panalux and were a version that was warm and cool white, not the more common RGBW or RGBY. The plan was to control them using the ETC Cobalt we were using for the rest of the rig. We fired one up on the previous show to try it out but despite contacting the finest brains in television lighting (and ETC) we simply could not get the desk to control it. So, for A Trial To Watch, Julia used an MA – which made her job even more complicated.

A haunting job to light

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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on set

One particularly effective scene on this show was in a beautifully made miniature model of the judge’s chambers. It was just large enough for the heads of two of the actors. I lit it as far as possible to look as though it was full scale, which involved a very dense rig of Rifalights and Mizars. I’ve no idea how there was also room for three cameras and the inevitable boom.

Our last recording was the most challenging for the art department, camera department and certainly the actors.

Called 90 Degrees in a reference to the extreme heat of the weather, the gag was that one of the sets had been constructed at – well, 90 degrees. Another had been built completely upside down, which was even more demanding.

The one on its side was a large room with a table running along it with five chairs – one at each end and three on the upstage side. The cameras were also on their sides, so to the viewer everything looked normal. They were on remotely controlled hot-heads mounted on a rig designed by Tony Keene, the camera sup. Tony has a vast range of experience but he admitted that this was one of the most interesting and unusual projects he had ever been involved with. Working closely with director Martin Dennis, they calculated how each set-up would enable a ‘normal’ range of shots to be recorded so that it would all work perfectly in the edit.

One scene in this set was performed in front of the audience but the longer, more complex scene was prerecorded in sections. The action involved props, liquid and the actors themselves falling sideways as gravity worked in the wrong direction. It was brilliantly written and performed and was Mischief Theatre at their best.

My role was simply to make it look as though the set was the right way up and this took a bit of getting my head round things. I concealed some Kinoflo tubes in a slot upstage to provide light from the window direction but the sun, which came through the window onto the floor was in fact a 2K on a low-boy angled upwards. A Gemini LED panel was on the studio floor providing fill light in one direction whilst in the other a Rifalight was suspended from some trussing at a great height. In fact, most of the rig was a mix of Gemini panels, Rifalights, Kinoflos and Octodomes. Working out where each needed to go and how to mount them was a challenge but great fun. I was indebted to my gaffer Matt Taylor and his excellent dock10 crew for their goodhumoured support on the whole series but particularly on this episode.

One scene in this play was completely upside down. This posed a lighting challenge as almost the entire ceiling consisted of polystyrene panels on top of cardboard boxes, so that one of the actors could fall upwards/downwards out of his bed. I asked Dennis to construct a trough around the walls with a diffused lid in which I could place Kinoflo tubes, providing some illumination. The rest came from lights pointing upwards/i.e. downwards through the window and some Octodomes round the front of the set for fill.

Shooting the scene was exhausting for the actors who were only allowed to be upside down for a limited period so the scene was recorded in short sections. The thing about Mischief is that the actors have nobody to blame but themselves for all the stunts and discomfort they suffer, since they are also the writers!

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A set on the side Working on this series was a genuine high point in what I call my career. I was stretched and challenged and way out of my comfort zone many times but I loved every minute.

This style of comedy is not for everyone but for those who ‘get it’, these young performers are a joy to work with.

The Goes Wrong Show had a Christmas Special and five further episodes went out on BBC1 One in January 2020.

They are all on iPlayer.

The Goes Wrong Show

A high degree of difficulty

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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industry awards

2020 Knight of Illumination Awards UK postponed Coronavirus forces awards to be put on hold, but they will be back to shed light on our industry!

The Knight of Illumination (KOI) executive committee has come to the decision to postpone the 13th annual awards ceremony and gala dinner due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis and the enormous implications it is having on the entertainment industry.

A statement from co-founders Durham and Jennie Marenghi on behalf of the KOI committee reads as follows: “The Knight of Illumination committee has taken the considered decision that this year’s KOI Awards ceremony will not be held on 6 September as planned, due to the 26 16

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uncertainty of the times in which we now live. The event will be held as a celebration of our industry and to bring people together, once the current situation has been resolved and it is safe to do so.

“Meanwhile, we will continue to appraise the work already submitted and we ask designers to please continue to nominate via the KOI website. We are all watching more TV than usual, so please submit anything outstanding that catches your eye, and to those concert and events lighting designers and video content creators now stuck at home, we invite you to submit your finest work this year before the closing date of 30 June 2020 and if you have videos/photos to review.

“Further announcements on the awards ceremony will follow in the coming months as the situation hopefully improves. Stay safe and we will come together once more as KOI when this worldwide battle has been fought and won.”

Given the large number of productions postponed and cancelled over the upcoming months and the impact that is having on the industry, the committee feels it would be unwise for KOI to choose to proceed with a conventional KOI ceremony. The ceremony revolves entirely around our community of creative individuals, and also relies on sponsorship from businesses, and both groups are already being, and will continue to be, drastically affected by this unprecedented situation.

Though the ceremony will not take place in the traditional sense, KOI aims to continue to celebrate the achievements

Knight of Illumination 2020

Above the 2019 KOI winners Below backup taking pride of place on stage

and raise the profile of the creatives in the industry, and to this end, it will endeavour to host an alternative event at a later date. knight-of-illumination.com 17

sponsor news

AC ET Luminex successfully networks with AC-ET for training events

A.C. Entertainment Technologies Ltd. (AC-ET), in conjunction with Luminex, has hosted a number of sell-out network training events for lighting, video and audio professionals.

Held at AC-ET’s training facilities in High Wycombe and Leeds, industry experts teach the fundamentals of networking, plus the specifics of data distribution for professional lighting, audio and video applications.

The courses provide the ideal chance to learn more about Luminex products, including the new LumiNode next generation Ethernet to DMX processor and the Araneo software tool that provides a complete graphical overview of a Luminex Gigacore Network.

Application Specialists from Luminex led the courses; one focusing on Networking for Lighting & Video and the other on Audio Applications. Both saw a massive demand throughout the year, with each date generating a long waiting list.

Both courses covered Network Fundamentals & GigaCore Switches, with the Lighting & Video training also encompassing Lighting Protocols, Converters & Splitters, and Video over IP. The Audio session looked at the specifics of networking and data distribution for professional audio applications, including the use of Milan-AVB. Jack Thompson, Technical Director at Manchester International Festival, commented: “The course content was very good, with an excellent instructor who knew all about his product and how it works in the real world. He was able to work with people at different levels of competence all at the same time.”

Ian O’Donoghue, Head Theatre Technician at the University of Warwick, said: “The course was really useful and was set at the right level.”

“Top job by AC-ET for putting on these courses,” added Sam Whitby, Lighting Technician for DPL Production Lighting.

“If any other training becomes available please let me know, however for now I am more than happy!”

“We are very happy to be able to work together with Luminex to provide these training courses,” commented Neil Vann, Luminex Brand Manager for AC-ET. “It is fantastic that our Luminex training sessions have become so popular, and to meet the demand we are already looking ahead to add more dates in 2020.”

To register your interest in future Luminex training days, visit the events section of the company’s website at ac-et.com. To arrange your Luminex personal demonstration, please contact AC-ET on +44 (0)1494 446000, or email sales@ac-et.com.

AC-ET appointed Distributor for Calibre’s HQUltra700 range of switcher-scalers

A.C. Entertainment Technologies Ltd. (AC-ET) has been appointed as the exclusive UK distributor for Calibre’s HQUltra700 series of universal live events switcher-scalers with immediate effect. Sister Company, A.C. Entertainment 28

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Technologies Ireland Ltd. will handle distribution in the Republic of Ireland.

British based manufacturer, Calibre has been providing image scaling technology for over 30 years, for use with large LED videowalls, designed for concerts, award ceremonies, rental/staging, advertising, and for image scalers for professional projection applications.

Calibre’s HQUltra700 series, consisting of the HQUltra730ASV (above) and the HQUltra770ASV, are universal live events switcher-scalers with the ability to drive flat panel displays, projectors or LED videowalls. These premium models include 3G-SDI, Genlock, Analog Audio and H.264 1080p Streaming Video input as standard. For LED videowalls HQUltra700 models have a special LED mode with per-edge pixel-accurate image sizing for fast pixel-perfect image alignment on arbitrary resolution LED videowalls.

The range, featuring Calibre’s proprietary HQUltraFast input channel switching, have a wide range of connectivity for today’s digitally-connected ProAV world, but are still able to support legacy formats, all with great image quality.

Stuart Burdett,Video Sales Manager commented: “Being able to provide our customers with a reliable product that can cope with traditional projection or irregular pixel accurate LED wall configurations is crucial. The features of the Calibre HQUltra700 series give our customers the ability to switch and scale anything up to 4K both in and out, making it a real must have in their inventories. I’m very excited to have Calibre in our portfolio as it complements our existing brands from the source through to the end display technologies.”

To receive your personal demonstration of the Calibre HQUltra700 series, contact AC-ET on +44 (0)1494 446000, email sales@ac-et.com, or visit ac-et.com.

ARRI The full range of ARRI Signature Prime lenses now available and shipping

ARRI is pleased to announce that the entire range of Signature Prime lenses is now available and shipping. Known for capturing warm, smooth skin tones, with exceptionally soft bokeh and delicate flares, the ARRI Signature Prime lenses are the first full range of large format lenses designed specifically for digital cinematography.

They are the broadest range of large-format lenses available, with 16 focal lengths ranging from 12mm to 280mm. The

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

each company uses its own individual design. Further information on Orbiter products can be found at arri.com/orbiter (ARRI) as well as at orbiter.tv.

BBC STUDIOWORKS

Signature Primes cover all image circles, up to 46mm, making them compatible with any ARRI or third-party camera with an LPL mount.

In a recent interview with ARRI, award-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins CBE, ASC, BSC explained, “the image that the ALEXA LF and Signature Primes produces seems to me more like what my eyes see than anything else I have experienced so far.” Since their launch, the ARRI Signature Prime lenses have been used on the set of highprofile feature films and television series including 1917 (with Roger Deakins), Emily in Paris (with Steven Fierberg ASC), Just 1 Day with Chris Doyle HKSC, Outlander (season 5) with Stijn Van der Veken ASC, SBC, and The Invisible Man with Stefan Duscio ACS. Cinematographer Adam Kimmel ASC has also used the Signature Primes on commercials for Audi, MG, Mercedes-Benz, and Jeep.

Designed to work flawlessly in the most extreme on-set conditions, the Signature Primes feature a fast T-stop of T1.8 and rapid focus roll-off, creating an increased sense of depth and separation. “ARRI Signature Primes are rich with a new type of character that plays to the strengths of immersive display technologies. They are modern lenses with a timeless, natural look that will be relevant for the next 20 years,” said Thorsten Meywald, ARRI Product Manager for Optical Systems. The look of the ARRI Signature Prime lenses can also be customized thanks to their detachable Magnetic Rear Filter Holder. The Magnetic Rear Filter Holder allows cinematographers to create personalised looks without permanently tuning, and thus damaging, the lenses.

From glass elements that can mimic vintage lenses to fishing line, which can enhance bokeh and flaring, the Signature Prime’s Magnetic Rear Filter Holder allows for endless configurations. Director of photography Michael Seresin ONZM, BSC used a custom-made glass element with the Magnetic Rear Filter Holder to create a personalized look for the entirety of his upcoming film Gunpowder Milkshake. “ARRI’s Signature Primes are an example of perfection in lens design.”

Orbiter Research/Roberto Pintore and ARRI agree on permanent coexistence of their Orbiter brands

Both ARRI and Mr Roberto Pintore are respective owners of a registered trademark Orbiter. ARRI, who design and manufacture camera and lighting systems, developed an LED fixture under this name, which is marketed worldwide.

Via its licensee,Orbiter Research GmbH, Roberto Pintore distributes and rents worldwide stationary and mobile camera tripods combined with a seat and cable reel systems under the brand Orbiter. Both companies have agreed on a permanent coexistence and use of their brands Orbiter and

BBC Studioworks makes significant investment in communications infrastructure and vision technology

At its BBC Elstree Centre facility, the communications infrastructure in Studio D is being upgraded to bring consistency to all seven of its TV studios. Key improvements include: • Expanding Studio D’s existing communications system with 40 Bolero wireless beltpacks, allowing full roaming for the studio and accompanying dressing rooms and production offices • Upgrading the studio and sound desk with Dante audio over IP networking, enabling greatly enhanced audio workflows • Providing interconnectivity with all Studioworks’ studios and post production edit suites Studioworks has also added to the number of Fujinon lenses in its armoury with the addition of further UA14X4.5 BERD 4Ks, UA24X7.8 BERD 4Ks and accompanying Servo control kits to cater for the varying needs of the multitude of productions it facilitates.

Investment has also been made in a Sony HDC-P50 4K POV camera to feed the demand from light entertainment and music show clients.

“This investment reinforces our ongoing commitment to providing a creative and innovative experience for our clients underpinned by premium technology,” said John O’Callaghan, Head of Studios and Post Production, BBC Studioworks.

“We’re always exploring cutting-edge technological advancements and where there’s an obvious benefit to our customers, we’ll implement them. Operations at all three of our sites continue to thrive, positioning us as the partner of choice for making captivating TV content.”

This investment follows Studioworks’ communications upgrade in Elstree 8 and 9 and the purchase of new cameras and servers in 2019.

BBC Studioworks tops 2019 with bumper crop of Christmas specials

BBC Studioworks ended 2019 on a high as it facilitated 17 of the nation’s Christmas specials across its portfolio, a 21% increase year-on-year and a 89% uplift on 2017.

Kicking off the festive extravaganza, Studio TC1 at Television Centre played host to the seasonal specials of • QI (a Talkback production for BBC Two) • The Graham Norton Show (a So Television Production for BBC One) • The Jonathan Ross Show (a Hotsauce TV and ITV Studios production for ITV) • The Last Leg (an Open Mike Productions commission for Channel 4)

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sponsor news

Studio TC2 has welcomed a number of Christmas-themed editions of Sunday Brunch (a Remarkable Television production for Channel 4).

At its BBC Elstree Centre facility, nostalgic festive favourites were combined with some new productions in Elstree D: • Blockbusters (a Thames production for Comedy Central) • Romesh’s Look Back To The Future (a Hungry Bear Media production for Sky One) • Top of the Pops (a BBC Studios production for BBC One) • Ball & Boe: A Very Merry Christmas (an ITV Studios production for ITV) • 8 Out of 10 Cats (a Zeppotron production for E4) • Take Off with Bradley & Holly (a Hungry Bear Media Production for BBC One) Also at BBC Elstree Centre, Studioworks’ an expert team delivered the Christmas and New Year episodes of EastEnders.

• Continuing the Christmas cheer at its Elstree Studios hub: • Elstree 8 welcomed the festive edition of Pointless (a Remarkable Television production for BBC One) • Elstree 9 played host to the Christmas versions of The Chase (a Potato production for ITV), Celebrity Juice (a Talkback production for ITV2) and Big Fat Quiz of the Year (a Hotsauce TV production for Channel 4) • George Lucas Stage 2 saw the competition heat up for the glitterball trophy in the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special (a BBC Studios Production for BBC One) Studioworks provided the productions with full technical facilities and crew, including camera, sound, lighting and engineering and, for EastEnders, Strictly Come Dancing and The Last Leg, post production staff.

“We finished an exceptional year with an abundance of Christmas classics sprinkled with some original productions,” said Meryl McLaren, Commercial Manager, BBC Studioworks. “The increase in festive specials is testament to the expertise of our teams and the first-class customer experience we consistently deliver to bring shows to life.

We’re looking forward to what’s set to be another cracker of a year.”

BBC Studioworks welcomes Saturday Night Takeaway to Television Centre

BBC Studioworks’ 10,800ft2 Studio TC1 became the new home to ITV’s Saturday Night Takeaway from February.

Produced by ITV Studios Entertainment and Mitre Television, the award-winning entertainment show will record the 16th series in its new home. The move means that BBC Studioworks will be broadcasting live from Television Centre seven days a week, with ITV daytime shows, Good Morning Britain, Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women broadcasting on weekdays and Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch on Sundays.

Renowned for being a fast-paced live entertainment primetime show, the Saturday Night Takeaway action will be captured inside the studio using an 11-camera configuration, with 10 additional exterior cameras on the Television Centre forecourt for week one. The forecourt activity will be cabled back to the studio’s galleries.

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In addition to the studio, BBC Studioworks is providing post-production services, comprising four Avid Symphony suites and a Pro Tools dubbing suite. In advance of each of the weekly Saturday night broadcasts, rushes will be ingested, edited, mixed and reviewed for multiple live show features.

Saturday Night Takeaway will also benefit from TC1’s configurable seating rostra for its 500 audience members, as well as its cutting-edge technologies, flexible facilities and ancillary areas. BBC Studioworks is also providing expertise in the form of studio management, engineering, electricians and scenic staff.

“Saturday Night Takeaway is an entertainment extravaganza and is shiny floor TV at its best,” said Meryl McLaren, Commercial Manager, BBC Studioworks. “We’re delighted it’s chosen our Television Centre facility is its new home. We excel at fun, fast and ambitious productions and look forward to partnering with the team to bring the show back to the nation’s TV screens.”

BBC Studioworks is adept at handling large audience-based shows across multiple genres. Credits include Hot Sauce TV’s The Jonathan Ross Show for ITV, So Television’s The Graham Norton Show for BBC One, BBC Studios’ Strictly Come Dancing for BBC One, Sky’s The Russell Howard Hour for Sky One, CPL Production’s A League of Their Own for Sky One and Talkback’s Celebrity Juice for ITV2.

CHROMA Q

Chroma-Q Space Force is in tune with lighting needs of american TV shows

Cinematographer, Donald A. Morgan utilised Chroma-Q ® Space Force™ LED fixtures to provide tunable soft lighting for filming the latest seasons of Netflix television show, The Ranch – for which he won a Primetime Creative Arts Emmy for ’Outstanding Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series’ – and ABC series, The Conners.

Both filmed at Warner Brothers Burbank Studios in LA, Donald was keen to switch from conventional space lights to LED for filming The Ranch. The show stars Ashton Kutcher as Colt, who returns home to his family’s ranch in Colorado after his semi-pro football career ends in failure.

He commented: “In the past I had used tungsten space lights for filming the show. However, as they weren’t tunable, it meant having to change the gels constantly, to differ the glows produced. This was important as even though it was filmed inside of a studio, the storyline of the programme was set across different weather seasons and times of day.”

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

Donald spoke to his gaffer about tunable LED lighting alternatives. After trying out various options, they came across the Chroma-Q Space Force LED space/soft light, which was supplied for the project by MBS Equipment Company.

Donald commented: “I am very impressed by the spread of light that the Space Force gives out, the distribution is fantastic and the colour temperature is really on point.

He added: “I am very with happy with how smooth the dimming is, and no matter what colour temperature I ask for; my programmer is easily able to change it.”

When Donald later came onboard as Cinematographer for primetime show, The Conners – a spin-off of the long-running series Roseanne – he learned that Warner Brothers had recently invested in 10 Space Force, so was happy to use them after his experience on The Ranch.

Donald concluded: “I like the Space Force’s innovative design. I would recommend it for any production, big or small, because of its reliability and the fact that the colour temperature is so on point. So far, I have only really used the fixture as a space light, but I know there is a lot more that I can do with it.”

CLAYPAKY Claypaky ReflectXion: the moving mirror that allows you to bend and shape light without ever losing it

Not all the lighting equipment on stage must be a lighting fixture. Claypaky introduces a new tool for lighting designers to expand on their creativity called ReflectXion, the next generation moving mirror.

This moving mirror has a highly reflective 390x280mm mirror, featuring up to 99% reflectance without chromatic aberrations.

ReflectXion can redirect beams of light from any stage light with the same intensity as it receives them. The unit offers 540° pan and unique, continuous tilt movement at adjustable speeds. Furthermore, the ReflectXion’s mirror is the same on both sides giving you two highly-reflective surfaces with which to direct light beams.

Using the same omega clamp hanging system as with all Claypaky luminaires, this compact moving mirror can be used virtually anywhere on or off stage in any working position.

For control, the unit uses only six DMX channels and pan and tilt resolution are both 16-bit for precise movements.

The unit’s onboard LCD menu system is very user-friendly and makes addressing and setup a snap.

The ReflectXion is a simple, yet effective tool that adds a touch of magic to any light show.

DEDOLIGHT HMI and the marvels of parallel light

Dedolight Lightstream is just one of the systems working with reflected light.

Various reflectors with different proportions and characters have been used forever.

Dedolight Lightstream just adds a fifth surface for variable character of directional spread.

Place the light source closer to no.5 and the directional spread shows gentle transitions between light and shadow. At increased distance from the light, the light and shadow borders become more distinct.

The real secret of creative and most ecological use of reflected light systems is found with parallel beam systems.

Example 1: the Dedolight Lightstream PB70 – 1,2 kW/ exit angle 2°.

Provides at 20 m (60 ft) distance 18.000 lux (1670 fc), compared to an Arrimax (18 kW) in spot position 13.000 lux (1208 fc).

But there’s more to parallel light.

The light does not derive from the light head or the lamp within, but from a virtual light source way behind the light head. This provides the illusion of a natural light coming from a very far distance.

For this very reason, for the movie Ad Astra, Hoyte van Hoytema and his gaffer Adam Chambers tested all available beam projectors and chose the Dedolight Lightstream PB70 as their key light source for the creation of such an illusion of natural light.

Furthermore, the light within the beam is smooth and homogeneous, it supports the value of the system, especially when used with multiple reflectors.

The new miracle is found in the optical design of the parallel beam intensifiers for all 21 different focusing dedolights.

For example, the 400 W HMI dedolight optics were awarded by the Oscar Committee of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Focus range 1:20, whereas small Fresnels usually provide 1:3 or big ones, like a 6 K Fresnel offer 1:6.

The 400 W Dedolight DLH400 offers unprecedented clean beam, far reach and super power spot. Now we add the new miracle parallel beam intensifier to add an unbelievable further 500% in light output. Enough to feed multiple reflectors and to light an entire scene.

The secret behind the super-efficiency lies in the fact that precision focusing optics work best with a point light source, here 6mm distance between the electrodes (¼in) versus the size of a large sized fried egg for LED´s with similar output.

Raison d´etre for HMI in most advanced non-spherical optical systems.

DLED/micro kit.

When we show the DLED3 lights and the micro kit to so-called professionals, they will automatically shy away, because they cannot believe, that such a miniature-sized light

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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sponsor news

can be a creatively valuable professional instrument.

Well surprise!

This indeed is a light in puppet size, but features King-Kong output and all the qualities of traditional Dedolights regarding focus range, light distribution and also LED bicolour versatility reaching from 2,700K to 6,500K and the amazing fact is that three such lights and also a projection device to create background effects, two soft boxes, three battery power supplies and three AC adapters can all fit in a tiny bag, small enough to be allowed on-board aircraft and placed in the overhead compartment, including three miniature lighting stands, that can be extended to full size with extensions.

A perfect, complete, versatile interview and documentary lighting kit in puppet size.

ELATION Artiste Rembrandt™ powerful companion washlight to award-winning Artiste Monet™

Elation Professional is pleased to offer a new addition in its multi-award-winning Artiste range of high performance moving heads, the Artiste Rembrandt™ LED Wash (below), a powerful companion washlight to the popular Artiste Monet™ LED Profile. With superior output, unmatched colour and a package of design options that includes an innovative wash texture concept, the Rembrandt is designed for service on even the largest stage.

The Rembrandt’s high-quality Fresnel lens optics and hotspot LED engine provide an optimised wash field and high centre intensity that make it an ideal wash solution for high output applications. This robust moving head uses the same efficient 950W 6,500K Bright White LED engine as the Monet to power out up to 51,000 lumens of superior wash output. With a fast zoom range from 8°-72° and an impressive 180mm front lens, it has the power to cut through at even great distances in arena touring environments or large TV or theatre stages.

The traditional Fresnel lens is interchangeable with a Pebble Convex lens, providing a tighter beam angle and higher centre intensity for long throws or beam applications, and DMX controllable variable fan modes ensure low noise operation in noise sensitive environments.

The Rembrandt houses the same sevenflag SpectraColor™ colour mixing system as the Monet for some of the most gorgeous colours ever produced by an automated LED luminaire.

Exclusive to Elation Professional, SpectraColor combines industry-standard CMY colour mixing with complementary RGB flags to fade between the softest pastels to deep saturated primary colours. With the addition of variable CTO, as well as a fixed colour wheel with UV and high CRI options, the Rembrandt offers combinations worldclass lighting designers require.

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Another common feature with the Monet, and another example of unique innovation, is an unlimited indexing and continuous rotational framing system. The full blackout, four-blade framing system allows designers to not only refine the beam shape, frame around objects and project at any angle, it allows shapes to rotate while morphing and transforming for creative transitions, projections and aerial effects.

The Rembrandt also incorporates an innovative wash texture concept that gives the designer new tools to wash stages while providing soft textures and depth.

Two independent animation wheels allow for directional motion, including overlapping and counter-rotating motion effects for texturing and layering possibilities that are unique to the fixture. Combined with its incredible output and stunning SpectraColors, the Rembrandt is a surprisingly versatile luminaire for a wide range of applications. The fixture also houses dual variable frosts (medium, heavy) for even more flexibility and a high-speed iris can be engaged for further impression.

The Rembrandt is outfitted with all the professional control and connection features that designers would expect from a cutting-edge luminaire. With unprecedented power, cutting-edge SpectraColor system and full array of professional design features, the Artiste Rembrandt sets a new standard as a benchmark automated LED wash luminaire.

Obsidian Control Systems announces release of ONYX 4.4 featuring creativeDYLOS™ pixel composer

Obsidian Control Systems is pleased to announce the release of ONYX 4.4 lighting control software, which fully integrates Obsidian’s intuitive and artistic DYLOS™ pixel composer, opening up new possibilities for the creative designer. Integration of DYLOS into the ONYX platform brings an innovative tool set of media composition, effects, content and text generators, along with a large variety of parameter manipulation, right into the core of any ONYX console or PC system.

Create new ideas Creative control with DYLOS is truly limitless, offering the designer an incredibly diverse tool set to support the performance with organic colour compositions and animations.

DYLOS enhances the design process and encourages playful experimentation ratherthan an overly technical and uninspiring approach of numbers and values. DYLOS is fun to use and easy to navigate, allowing the designer to focus on the creative process.

Power and performance Based on a full 3D environment and powerful DirectX graphics processing, the DYLOS engine has been designed from the ground up for power and performance to manage tens of thousands of fixtures and parameters with ease. The DYLOS workflow is natural and follows the same well-known access to any regular

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

stage light programmed with ONYX. Available any time dynamic control of colours and intensity is required, DYLOS is natively integrated into the operation of the console, offering seamless programming and playback through its optimised user interface of live previews, thumbnails, library and FX browsers and dynamic parameter control.

Free content package / unrestricted trial As part of this exciting launch, Obsidian Control Systems is offering all users of DYLOS a carefully curated content package with over 1,100 media files in many categories.

Optimised for the DYLOS engine, it allows users to immerse themselves in the system for immediate results. In addition to this large media collection, any custom user content can be imported at any time in almost any codec and size. Content is always optimised by DYLOS for perfect replay and instant access. An unrestricted trial version of two DYLOS Zones and up to four Universes of DMX is enabled automatically for any ONYX PC installation and is a great way to experience the power of DYLOS in combination with the free content package. PC systems can be easily unlocked through the plug-and- play ONYX KEY, instantly expanding ONYX to 128 Universes.

ONYX 4.4 is compatible with all ONYX NX4 and NX2 consoles, all ONYX PC systems and the M1HD and M2GOHD M-Series controllers. A variety of USB devices like the NX-Touch or NX-DMX are supported to customise and tailor the ONYX experience to any application.

ONYX 4.4 featuring the new DYLOS engine and the DYLOS factory content package are available for immediate download at obsidiancontrol.com/dylos

ETC

TurboRay hits the right notes at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest

The award-winning TurboRay fixture from High End Systems recently made its latest TV appearance on the 17th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest (JESC), broadcast live from Arena Gliwice in Poland.

JESC is a cultural extravaganza, designed to draw people together from all over Europe and Australia through light entertainment and healthy competition. It’s an increasingly spectacular and technically complex event, transmitted live

to millions of viewers. This year, 19 participants aged between 9 and 14 took to the stage to battle it out for the trophy.

The stage, designed by Giorgos Stylianou-Matsis, comprised a unique design featuring an eye-catching LED ribbon element symbolising floating kites. The ribbon gave the stage a spacious, light and simple design form. To complement the impressive stage design, a series of 26 TurboRay fixtures were positioned on stage and used in a variety of ways throughout the show.

With its radial diffusers bringing a distinctive appearance, and powerful LED system with multiple types of colour control, TurboRay offers a multitude of tools that make it ideal for events like this. “I needed a lighting fixture that would accentuate the decor on the stage,” says lighting crew head, Adam Tyska from TVP SA. “For this production and the short stature of the artists we have to operate cameras differently, and for wide shots we needed to fill a pretty large space. TurboRay units were a perfect fit for this, because in addition to their technical capabilities they look attractive in themselves.”

“It was great to have TurboRay be a part of the JESC,” says Tania Lesage, High End Systems brand manager. “It’s still relatively early days for the fixture, but it’s already received the Best LED Washlight accolade in the PLSN Awards and we have LDs from all over the globe eager to get their hands on them. It’s already proving to be a hit in the world of TV after featuring on high-profile shows like Strictly Come Dancing in the UK and The Tonight Show in America. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for TurboRay!”

ETC launches fos/4 panel light for the cinematic industry

What’s Next? In 2016, a dedicated research team was formed at ETC to advance the technology of future product offerings. The team’s first primary project was to create the best light for use on camera. The findings from this multi-year, industry-wide study on colour perception come together in the family of fos/4 panel lights, now available from ETC. Each of the three panel sizes (small, medium, and large) deliver unrivalled brightness in two array options. The Lustr X8 array adds a deep red LED to its mix that brings a richness to the spectrum by enhancing skin tones and giving new depth to blues, greens, and ambers. The Daylight HDR is a tunable white light array that, using a calculated selection of LEDs from the X8 colour system, delivers a natural warmth when rendering skin tones and is optimised for output in cooler temperatures. These soft lights offer a shocking level of brightness, and selectable CCT between 1,900 – 10,450 K. All without compromising on colour quality.

The full-colour screen and tactile encoders on the user interface were designed with the cinematic workflow in mind. fos/4 gives nuanced colour control from the full-spectrum colour picker within the UI, letting you choose how you mix each colour. Use the Tune function to choose brightest, best spectral, or a hybrid of the two. Save your customised colour palette to one of the many programmable presets.

The industrial design of the fos/4 panel provides an ergonomically friendly tool that’s meant to be seen. Features include the Griprail, a bracket that acts as a mounting Set & Light | Spring 2020

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location for the fixture as well as for the numerous accessories found on a shoot. Handles that double as safety cable locations, rounded corners, and an industrial grey finish add to the visual appeal without compromising functionality.

Additional features include NFC configuration from your mobile device, Multiverse Wireless control from your console using City Theatrical’s Multiverse transmitter, and a suite of effects that you’d come to expect from a fixture of this calibre including emergency lights, beacon, camera flash, and party. And like all ETC products, fos/4 Panels are made in the United States, come with an impressive fixture warranty and a 24/7/365 customer support promise.

TurboRay dazzles with Westlife on Strictly Come Dancing

ETC has announced the hiring of Matt Cowles as Field High End Systems’ TurboRay automated luminaire recently made its UK TV debut on celebrity dance show Strictly Come Dancing. The fixture featured as part of a special guest appearance from Irish pop band Westlife during the show’s annual jaunt to Blackpool.

“It seemed the ideal opportunity to showcase TurboRay’s possibilities,” says Strictly lighting designer, David Bishop.

“Westlife were performing a medley of their hits, which allowed for full use of the fixture’s various tricks. And, being so powerful, TurboRay stood out well in the visually ’busy’ environment of the Blackpool Tower Ballroom.”

TurboRay recently scooped the PLSN Award for Best LED Wash Light, but is capable of much more than the title might suggest, as Bishop explains. “The fixture is great as a powerful beam; the option to add a gobo effect to it gives you another dimension; and the pixel effect available makes it an interesting feature even when in close-up.”

Strictly has been visiting the iconic ballroom since the show first began in 2004. It’s a massive highlight of the show’s run every year and it’s the aim of many of the celebrities “to make it to Blackpool”, but relocating the show from its Elstree Studios home is not without its challenges.

“Our Blackpool outside broadcast is always a tricky week,” says Bishop. “We take our show, which has been running in a set-standing stage for two months, and have to produce a show of equal complexity on location in just five days.

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record a different section, and rebuilt and recorded in just 20 minutes.”

Despite the production conditions, Bishop was pleased with the result. “I enjoyed the TurboRay’s contribution and really appreciate the support that High End Systems gave in bringing a new fixture to feature on the show.”

TurboRay makes its television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

High End Systems’ TurboRay made its television debut on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The entertainment talk show is using eight of the new fixtures onstage for its musical guest performance segments.

TurboRay’s deep saturated colours along with aerial beams – with twinkling rays of light, digital breakups and dynamic effects from the animation and gobo wheels – enhanced the Zac Brown Band, Mark Ronson (featuring Yebba), Bastille, and more to come in its Studio 6B location in Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center.

WorldStage provides all the gear – including the TurboRay – for The Tonight Show. HES East Coast Regional Sales Manager Bobby Hale says, “We are happy to work with Fred Bock and the Tonight Show team to showcase the new TurboRay. It is a fantastic scenic LED effects wash! The combination of four RGBW LED engines and the radial primary diffusers provide the lighting designers an unlimited amount of looks that the cameras and audiences love. I look forward to seeing all the creative looks Fred comes up with.”

Manufactured in Austin, Texas, TurboRay was not only designed for its stage lighting effects, but also to captivate the cameras and the crowds. It has become an in-demand product for upcoming tours, broadcast television shows and other special events, such as the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in November.

GREEN HIPPO Software update: Hippotizer 4.5.3

Green Hippo is pleased to announce the release of a new Hippotizer software version: 4.5.3. Fixing a critical issue and several smaller annoyances in response to user feedback, 4.5.3 improves the stability and speed of Hippotizer Media Servers.

Due to a critical issue being fixed in this release, Green Hippo strongly recommends upgrading from previous 4.5 versions to 4.5.3 as soon as possible.

Changes include: • Fixed a potential render failure when the engine is forced to reconfigure while running (the reason for engine reconfiguration appears to be a poor display connection causing an output change at showtime). The issue manifests as all white outputs at run-time – fix is show-critical.

• Improved Multi-channel audio import behaviour. Clips with >2 Channels will now encode alongside video clips and not just image sequences (though that still works) • The watermark on Play and Prep machines now fades in and out for a more pleasant pre-programming experience.

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

• Fixed a widely reported issue where output manager would take the output restriction of the local machine when editing a remote host. This meant that configuring outputs from a PLAY or Zookeeper machine could fail.

• Other fixed throughout Zookeeper and the engine. A full list of which is available in the release notes.

The Software Assurance date of 4.5.3 in common with all 4.5 releases is: 28-Feb-2019. Software Assurance determines which versions of new software may install and run on a Hippotizer system. Once installed, the software will continue to operate for the life of the machine.

If you have any questions or require support please do not hesitate to contact us by phone or by emailing support@green-hippo.com

Green Hippo announces new directors

Green Hippo, the specialist creator of tools for the real-time manipulation of video for the AV industries, has announced that David March and Ryan Brown are to take on new directorship roles at the company.

At the same time, Business Unit Director Emma Marlow is to leave the company after almost seven years at the helm.

During her time as CEO, then Business Unit Director of Green Hippo, Marlow has driven huge growth, expanded international operations and overseen the 2018 acquisition of the company by US-based Spitfire Creative Technologies.

Now that Marlow has successfully overseen the integration of Green Hippo into the Spitfire group of specialist AV brands, she will not be directly replaced. Instead, her responsibilities are being split across new roles shared by staff across the family of companies.

David March, a 30-year veteran of the entertainment lighting and video market, expands the sales and marketing role he took on last year, with his promotion to Sales and Marketing Director. March will work alongside Ryan Brown, previously product manager, who is now appointed Operations and Product Director. Both will report to Denise Nemchev, President and CEO of Spitfire Creative Technologies, and be based in Green Hippo’s new London office, in Camden.

“I’m thrilled to take on this new role and with Ryan’s help spearhead Green Hippo’s future at such an exciting time,” says March. “This is a landmark year for Green Hippo, as we strengthen our foundations and move into new territories.

“On behalf of everyone at Green Hippo, I’d like to say a massive thank you to Emma, who has been an inspirational and greatly-respected Director. She has guided us to great things, and we, like so many in the industry, wish her all the very best in her next adventure.”

Ryan Brown adds: ”It’s always been fantastic to be involved in Green Hippo’s product development, working with such amazing and talented people – colleagues and customers alike – and I look forward to the new challenges ahead in my expanded role. Like David, I’m also very grateful to Emma for everything she has done to bring us to this point, and I wish her every success in the future.”

The management changes come as Green Hippo sets its sights on growth on a global scale. The company also celebrates its twentieth birthday in 2020, marking two decades of success.

(L-R) Ryan Brown and David March take on new directorship roles at media server specialist, Green Hippo Green Hippo now has offices in London and Glendale, California, and a corporate headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Now in its fifth year of operation, the California office is driving success in the US market, exceeding projections with strong growth in sales and continued formation of alliances.

The company’s award-winning Hippotizer range is now in its fourth generation and continues to be the go-to solution for real-time video playback for world-class events, offering users an ever-developing range of powerful features, transforming creative possibilities and simplifying workflow.

“Building and developing the team’s strengths has always been a major focus, in addition to developing industry-leading video playback solutions,” says March. “We’re entering our twentieth year with optimism and excitement.”

KINO FLO Kino Flo releases new freeStyle Mini SnapBag

Kino Flo Lighting Systems introduces the Mini SnapBag® softbox and louver accessories to the company’s popular line of FreeStyle Mini LED panel systems and kits the Mini SnapBag pops out of its storage bag and can be mounted in seconds onto the FreeStyle Mini LED panel. Once onboard, the lightweight SnapBag is ready to go to work. It can diffuse the Mini LED light with a proprietary white diffusion textile and a four-sided silver foil black panel box that focuses the soft light forward and cuts spill.

Weighing in at 3.5lb (1.5kg) and measuring just 15in (38 cm) in length, the Mini is Kino Flo’s most compact, portable LED panel lighting system in the FreeStyle family of products.

The Mini SnapBag softbox comes with a SnapGrid® louver fabric 40° that mounts to the front of the SnapBag. A self-tightening internal frame allows lighting professionals to snap the soft louver into place in a matter of seconds. It comes out just as easily and packs with the SnapBag into a small storage bag.

Kino Flo’s FreeStyle Mini LED System is one many versatile LED studio panel style fixtures that can light faces and spaces efficiently, whether mounted on stands or rigged overhead.

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Kino Flo also offers a wide variety of self-tightening, pop-up SnapBags® with light control SnapGrid louvers, that attach quickly and easily onto Kino Flo’s family of LED softlights. The SnapBag and SnapGrid light control systems are available for all fixtures in the Celeb, FreeStyle, Image and Diva-Lite LED product lines.

Kino Flo two-foot tubes fill LED niche

Kino Flo Lighting Systems has answered the calls for a new, 24-inch lightweight LED tube system you can tape next to a matte box or build into multi-tube arrays.

Cinematographers and lighting techs have been pushing Kino Flo for a 2ft version of the popular T44 LED System since the line of premium LEDs made their mark on production lighting sets earlier this year.

The FreeStyle T24 LED System comes with the power of advanced white light controls and millions of colour options.

Weighing in at 8oz, each FS-24 LED tube in a T24 System is half the size of Kino Flo’s four-foot LEDs. Built to Kino Flo’s rigorous standards for durability, the compact T24 System’s size and versatility add more options to Kino Flo’s chest of FreeStyle light tools (currently at 10 models and counting).

Camera and lighting crews are choosing the power of versatile portability and camera sensor matching T24’s over brute power lights. The slim, compact profile earns the 2ft tubes a place next to the camera for close-ups, tucked into the dashboard for moving car shots, and as a preferred source alongside other FreeStyle Systems in production designs both small and large.

T24 LED Systems work as a complete fixture array or they can be removed and controlled remotely from a separate light engine: The FreeStyle 140X Controller, an AC/DC driver, can run up to four FreeStyle tubes as far as 50 feet from one another. Kino Flo’s unique twist-on mounting system with Kino Flo grip handle comes with each T24 System, for easier hand-held shots or for removal when rigging the tubes into tight spaces.

Like the longer LED lamps, Kino Flo’s 2ft versions display a very broad beam spread from a 310-degree tube circumference. Not only are they feather weight, but Kino Flo 2ft LEDs produce very little heat for easy of handling during long hours of operation (unlike heavier and hotter half-dome LED configurations).

The 24-inch LED tubes come with another unique feature: a narrow built-in rail to mount grip hardware such as baby pins, nylon strap plates, wall plate attachments, ceiling hanging wire systems and single-tube floor stands.

“Colour matching to the HD camera’s sensor is the single greatest advance in LED lighting I’ve seen and a ground-breaking achievement for Kino Flo,” said John Schwartzman, ASC. Schwartzman used the new True Match 4.1 features on The Highwaymen (Netflix) and Last Christmas (released in November 2019).

“At the end of the day, cinematographers get paid to make the subject look good; we live and die by the close ups,” he said. “Once I selected the Panavision DXL setting from the Celeb and FreeStyle menus, lighting in the camera profile mode took our images to a whole new level.”

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MATTHEWS Matthews Panel Stand cranks up lights, monitors and more

Matthews Studio Equipment offers yet another smart solution that makes life on set a bit more convenient. New Panel Stand answers the need for a quick set-up stand that aptly supports today’s panel and balloon-style lighting fixtures, LED monitors, screens, overhead frames and backdrops. What’s more, convenient wheels add on-set mobility especially combined with the low profile legs to maximise leeway and manoeuvrability even with low hanging equipment.

This heavy-duty wheeled crank support offers a maximum height of 11 feet and a minimum of just 55in. With a load capacity of 70/80lb, it is an ideal mate for popular panel lights as well as 45” to 85” monitors that it supports either horizontally or vertically, so it is handy when creating content for mobile mediums and vertical advertisement aspect ratios.

Built for low clearance, Panel Stand’s main column can be adjusted and lowered at the leg base while its shallow wheelbase facilitates rolling underneath furniture, vehicles, or other obstacles.

Rugged yet compact, this versatile wheeled carrier also comes equipped with premium Tente® caster wheels, pins to hang on a door rack or for truck storage, a 1-1/8" Junior receiver, a 5/8" Baby pin, and a built-in ergonomically balanced carrying handle for transport. The tough black powder coat finish provides a professional look that blends in well on set.

The Panel Stand is ready for action in a moment, then quickly folds up tight, ready for its next use.

Like its full complement of industry leading stands and other equipment, Panel Stand is available through Matthews Studio Equipment dealers.

ROBE TPi Awards 2020

Robe played a major role in delivering another stunning lighting design for the Total Production International (TPi) Awards, produced by TPi Magazine, part of Mondiale Media, an annual event to honour some of the best creative and technical achievements in the world of live entertainment for the preceding 12 months.

TPi Awards 2020 was staged in February at Battersea Evolution, central London, the event was hosted by comedian Russell Kane.

Around 350 Robe moving light fixtures were used inventively by lighting designer Nathan Wan, associate LD Andy Webb and Robe’s own creative team, for whom the pressure was on to ensure that the 1,700 plus attendees and award winners were treated to stunning and memorable visuals for the evening!

To achieve the best and most spectacular end results, Nathan and Andy worked closely with the video team from

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

Visual Edge. Robe took the opportunity to offer selected NRG (Next Robe Generation) initiative students the chance to work hands-on on a high pressure, high-profile gig including Becky Gaskill from the Backstage Academy who was Nathan’s assistant LD for the main room.

The theme for this year was a 1970s disco dancing vibe – inspired by legendary New York nightclub Studio 54 – notorious as a hub for everything stylish, trending and at the cutting edge of cool and hedonistic.

An arched shaped LED screen along the back of the stage provided a physical focal point this year, while the video graphics and content were a neo-deco nod to Studio 54’s stylised graphics which themselves dated back to 1927, when the building first opened as an entertainment venue.

Nathan wanted to recreate some of the lighting ambience at Studio 54 during its 1970s heydays “but with a modern twist giving it a digital and contemporary look”. For this, he positioned 36 vertically rigged Tertra2 fixtures on drop-down bars on the upstage truss. These combined seamlessly with the video elements to create the signature look for 2020.

“We were really keen on everything being very coherent and harmonious,” explained Nathan. He also positioned 24 x LEDBeam 150s small moving lights around the main screen arch to echo the video vibe and so they could match their fast screen sweeps and swipes. A total of 56 x Robe Tetra2s were used, together with 40 x ESPRITES and 64 x LEDBeam 150s. These were joined by 52 x Spiider LED wash beams, 10 x ColorStrobes, 26 x MegaPointes and seven T1 Profiles in the Main Room.

Five BMFL FollowSpots operated from five remote RoboSpot BaseStations around the room were operated by Robe NRG students.

Nathan’s logic for lighting the two-minute timecoded intro piece at the start of the evening’s Awards section followed the style of the live exhibition shows that he and Andy crafted for key expos worldwide, which group together different types of products. Each group of fixtures has its own prominent moments and movements in the show, so this sequential idea was introduced into the TPi Awards show for the first time.

The 36 x Tetra2s at the back of the stage were fixed on drop-down bars (emulating Studio 54 lighting), with two fixtures rigged vertically below one another on the 18 drop-downs.

At the bottom of each drop-down bar was a LEDBeam 150. The other 12 x Tetra2s were on the front lip of the stage and used as handy footlights, floor keys for Russell Kane and

for dramatic colour curtain effects. The remaining eight were hung vertically on the main rig above the tables.

Thirty of the 40 x ESPRITES were hung on the main rig which comprised 10 x 15 metre and 6 x 8 metre sections of LX truss – eight in each side of the room, all angled at 45 degrees to the stage in a fully symmetric formation, with one horizontal LX truss at the front of the stage for the front T1 Profiles which were the main key lights from that angle. The other 10 ESPRITES were along the back edge of the stage, ready for rear aerial effects.

The 18 x MegaPointes were mainly along the sides of the room in clusters of three on special one metre-high risers, nine on the left and nine on the right. The rationale here was that they cut across the room giving another height and angle variation, adding an extra spatial dynamic; a treatment that works well in lower ceilinged rooms like Evolution.The other 12 MegaPointes were on the main rig.

The 52 x Spiiders were evenly distributed across the rig to provide a nice wash state for the dinner portion of the evening. During the show, they were mapped with ArKaos Kling-Net to provide dynamic pixel effects.

Most of the 64 x LEDBeam 150s were creating the arch around the main screen. Having lights on the stage offered another angle and layer for the eye and enabled massive epic wide stage looks. Colours were matched to the video content and these lights could follow the movement and timing of this and virtually extend the size of the screen.

Four T1 Profiles were used for front key lighting with three at the back, and the BMFL FollowSpots – with the onboard cameras – were at the far end of the room on the final LX truss. One was dedicated to Russell Kane and the other four were used to pick up the winners on their tables and follow them to the stage.

Nathan and the team were given the winner seating/table information immediately ahead of the show so the follow spots could be pre-positioned and immediately go to the correct location and highlight those getting up to collect their awards.

The Main Room show lighting was programmed by Nathan and Andy onto two Avolites Tiger Touch II consoles, one dealing with the main show and effects lighting fixtures, operated by Becky Gaskill, with Andy running all the key lighting and specials on the second console.

The bar/reception/pre-show featured 48 x Robe SilverScans as the feature lighting, plus 28 x Tarrantulas plus four MegaPointes to light the 2-metre mirror ball centrepiece.

The lighting brief for this area was to evoke a Café Mamba vibe so four LX trusses were flown in the centre of the room between a box truss above the bar, all rigged with SilverScans. These were supported by more SilverScans and all the Tarrantulas on two side trusses along the long edges of the room.

Kling-Net was fed to the Tarrantulas to help produce whizzy eye-candy effects and the SilverScans were programmed on another Tiger Touch II, operated by NRG students Charley Hardwick and Matthew Ascough, both from Rose Bruford College.

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Overhanging Evolution’s atrium were six BMFL Spots providing eye-catching gobo coverage as guests entered.

Robe’s VIP area was more moodily lit with an environmental and ambient style of lighting relating back to some original images of Studio 54, which was created with six T1 Profiles and four T1 Fresnels, operated by Jake Paige, also at Rose Bruford College.

Along with those already mentioned NRG students, Nathan and Andy were joined by Ola Przytula from LAMDA as systems tech and RoboSpot operator, Rose Bruford’s Glen Leyser as lead RoboSpot operator / crew, working with Nari Smith from the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and Gavin Kennedy from the LIR Academy on the RoboSpots.

In addition to supporting the show, Robe’s UK and International teams and their guests enjoyed a fantastic evening, Robe again sponsored the ’Lighting Designer of the Year’ Award, which was presented by JJ Valchar and won by Tim Routledge for the second year running.

Congratulations to all nominees and winners… and thanks to TPi and Mondiale Media for another incredible evening of networking, fun and recognition for a vibrant industry that keeps innovating and using technology with great imagination to entertain so well.

Fire Fight Australia

Over 20 hugely talented artists including Queen + Adam Lambert, Olivia Newton-John, John Farnham, Alice Cooper, Delta Goodrem, 5 Seconds of Summer, Tina Arena, Ronan Keating, Hill Top Hoods, Amy Shark, k. d. lang and many more entertained 75,000 music fans – and a worldwide TV audience – all helping Fire Fight Australia raise over A$10m for bushfire relief during an emotionally charged, high energy day of performance at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium.

Throughout the day, the heroic and super-real efforts of people uniting and the dedicated commitment of the firefighting community were highlighted in the context of the massive fight to save lives, homes and land. The extraordinary spirit and resilience of Australians has shone through and continues with the many efforts and initiatives contributing to rebuilding after the fiercest and most destructive bushfires in Australian history.

The nightmare scenario has touched people worldwide and seen people galvanise in incredible generosity and support with donations of money, general supplies and services to the various organisations assisting the recovery effort. It’s brought the need for urgent attention to climate change – once again – into sharp focus.

Presented by comedian Celeste Barber – who has herself raised over A$50m for the relief fund – this was arguably the most significant gig in the world that weekend. Dave Jackson, Jeff Pavey and a crew from Queensland and New South Wales-based rental specialists Creative Productions were extremely proud to provide the lighting which included nearly 130 Robe moving lights including BMFL Spots, Blades and WashBeams and Spiider LED wash beams.

Their many challenges included an exceptionally short planning period and get in time on site.

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lighting rig, so that was completely stripped out before Dave, Jeff and their crew of eight could start their build at 4am – to hand over for a show-start eight hours later.

Creative Productions donated the entire lighting rig plus all the preparation expenses and crew wages for this landmark occasion after they were contacted by Colin Skals of promoters Teg Dainty who organised the event for Fire Fight Australia.

It coincided with three major international tours that they already had in progress – Q+AL, Alice Cooper and Michael Bublé – of which the latter was performing in Melbourne that same night, so a portion of this show was beamed live on to screen at the ANZ Stadium. Dave’s production design for the show had to provide great looking lighting for the 20 diverse artists on the bill – and the cameras once the decision was made with about 10 days to go that it would also be a live telecast beamed worldwide.

The only essential brief that they received on lighting was that there would be a large upstage LED screen plus left and right IMAGs, so this plus the fact it was in a stadium and had to be available from rental stock during an already busy period … Led to Dave’s choice of Robe BMFLs as the main workhorse lights on the rig.“I needed something with serious punch,” he commented, “not just because it was a stadium show, but also for the daytime filming,” which covered most of the artists.

Dave thinks that BMFLs are still the only moving light where colours are “properly perceptible” in daylight, especially the BMFL WashBeams.

The 32 x BMFL Blades were on the floor upstage, making a big, dramatic contrast to the overhead rig, with some on the four overhead trusses, The 36 x BMFL Spots and 36 x BMFL WashBeams were also rigged on the overhead trusses, making up the core of the stage and effects lighting.

The 30 x Spiiders – 15 a side hung on three ladders stage left and right – were added once the telecast was confirmed - picked for their great range of colours and CT whites and also for excellent pixel and ring-control ’back-of-camera’ effects for the side shots. “They worked brilliantly in these positions,” confirms Dave.

Creative Productions owns over 300 Robe moving lights and has been investing steadily in the brand over the last two years. In addition to the Robes, Dave used an array of LED battens, strobes, and four and eight-lite blinders, together

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

with some additional waterproof beam lights for Q+AL’s B-stage.

All of these were controlled from a grandMA3 full size which was the main event ’house’ console, with a grandMA2 full size for backup. A Hog 4 was provided for LDs preferring to work from that and a greandMA3 lite was available for any LDs who wanted to take advantage of pre-vis time during the day.

Throughout the day there were around five guest LDs including Queen + Adam Lambert’s lighting director Graham Feast (the LD is Rob Sinclair) and Scott Warner who is touring with Alice Cooper. Australian LD Brad Alcock from Melbourne ran lights for four bands – Tina Arena, Ronan Keating, Guy Sebastian and Delta Goodrem. Dave and Pavey looked after all the visiting LDs and ran the lights for all those who didn’t have an operator.

The average 15–20 minutes sets and quick changeovers were interspersed with video footage capturing some of the incredible efforts and initiatives that are part of the postbushfire rebuilding programmes, with many stories of survival and heroism.

Celeste Barber yelled thanks repeatedly and with much passion throughout the night in particular to the thousands of volunteer firefighters around the country who battled to exhaustion and some to their deaths “we can never, ever say thank you enough,”reverberated around the stadium time and time again in an emotive, intense evening that illustrated so much unity in the face of the crisis.

It was the third bushfire fundraising event that Creative Productions has donated its kit to so far in 2020 – equipment, services, energy and expertise.

Creative Productions’ crew for Fire Fight Australia were: Scott Black, Jeremy Dehn, Daniel Callaghan, Tony Hall, Luke Hall, Dane Boulton, Matt Doherty, Dylan Hines, Nathan McLure and Maddy Murphy Sound was provided by JPJ Audio and video by Big Picture Australia (NEP).

T1s for Amelie Production

Elliot Griggs chose Robe’s T1 Profiles to provide major key lighting for Amélie The Musical, a new production first staged at the Watermill Theatre, Newbury, UK, which then undertook a nationwide UK and Irish tour and is now playing at The Other Palace in London until the start of February.

Elliot was asked to light the show, directed by Michael Fentiman and based on the much loved and five-times Oscar-nominated 2001 French art-house romantic comedy film, Amélie. The lead character has an eccentric upbringing and a vivid imagination which she uses to explores the complexities of love, loneliness, existence and survival in the big city.

The T1 Profiles – used in addition to the touring lighting rigs at each venue on the tour – are being supplied by leading theatrical rental company White Light, investing in their first T1s forthis production as they were essential for Elliot’s lighting plot.

They are used as front light and usually positioned on the front-of-circle bar. In most venues,this meant they would be right above and in close proximity to the audience, so silent running was essential. “I needed a fully-featured moving light,

quiet enough to be amongst the audience and imperceptible,” explained Elliot.

The show is sung through with some prolonged periods of complete silence in the action that are integral to the narrative, “so basically I wanted a light that was high-quality, had all the features and didn’t sound like a tank!”

Many scenes take place on the Paris Metro, so this required Elliot to create video style projection effects to simulate passing trains, and again the T1 provided a solution with its very fast shuttering.

“The look is achieved using the shuttering in conjunction with the animation wheel The Metro scenes are all about chance encounters and bustling crowds, with the T1’s giving the excellent impression of trains rattling by.”

The fixtures also had to create some authentic full stage projections and just three T1 profiles go a very long way when used inventively like this.

Elliot is a freelance LD, and while Robe has been on his radar for some time and he’s used some Robe products before – notably Pointes and LEDBeam 150s – this has not been a regular occurrence. However, when the T1 was launched in 2018 as a specially refined product for theatre, he was eager to spec them on a production.

Initially, there were more Robes on the design, but some re-engineering was required to fit the budget, and this inevitably involved a few compromises. However, the T1s were an absolutely non-negotiable part of the lighting plot!

Apart from the silent operation and the fast shuttering, Elliot likes the T1’s flexibility, multiple other features, smooth dimming as well as the compact size and light weight.

He also appreciates the additive colour mixing which means that the output is higher than in many other LED fixtures when in darker colours. “The RGBAL LED source allows for subtle tones as well as bright vibrant saturates still punching from way out at FOH with throws of over 15 metres.Yet most effects in the show run at 10% intensity, and they still manage to dim beautifully over long fade times,” he confirmed.

Amélie has a different aesthetic to a standard musical production. It abounds with reflective and thoughtful moments and details and is a far cry from the average blockbuster with a large chorus ploughing through a succession of glitzy all-singing-all-dancing ’production numbers’.

The action also flips between absurd scenes, flashbacks and surrealistic moments – highlighting the lead character’s lively mind and playful sense of mischief which are her vehicles for dealing with life keeping audiences sharp, exuberant and laughing.

Set in the late 1990s when Princess Diana died in Paris, there is one crazy Elton John number where a gospel choir appear from nowhere giving Elliot the chance to go wild with the lighting.

Another goal of the lighting and Madeleine Girling’s set design was to match the colours, textures and quirky moods of the film which is iconically Parisian, and this entailed much attention to detail and a slick delivery as well as some darker moods and sections.The lead character (played by French Canadian actress Audrey Brisson) wears a lot of red so Elliot crafted several lighting colour schemes to be monochromeSet & Light | Spring 2020

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based allowing the costumes to pop, and the accurate CT whites of the T1 Profiles again proved very helpful.

Elliot programmed the lighting on an ETC EOS console at the Watermill and overall has been delighted with using T1 Profiles for the first time.

“It’s fast and definitely the quietest light I’ve used to date,” he stated.

Another bonus has been the shutters snapping into position and each being able to cover three- quarters of the beam, allowing control of the complex shapes often encountered when lights are rigged in slips and box positions – or to get around angled set pieces.

“T1 is an LED moving head profile without compromise, and a fixture that can well-replace ageing tungsten or discharge units with future-proofed functionality. Apart from all of this, sound designers and engineers will absolutely love Robe for this one!”

When a lighting manufacturer can keep audio professionals happy, that’s a whole next level of product development!

VARILITE

Vari-Lite’s VL2600 Profile is a trusty silent partner for BBC Proms

Leading television lighting director Bernie Davis successfully trialled the new VL2600 Profile LED luminaire from Vari-Lite, a Signify (Euronext: LIGHT) entertainment lighting brand, on the prestigious BBC Proms classical music festival this summer.

Staged through August and September at London’s Royal Albert Hall, the BBC Proms has an intense schedule, with concerts broadcast daily on BBC Radio and many performances recorded or broadcast live on BBC Television.

With such time pressures, it’s essential for lighting fixtures to be reliable and versatile, but also quiet in operation and great-looking on camera.

“I was looking for a good, programmable profile spot that would be quiet enough for use on the Proms yet flexible enough to provide a high quality light source with good zoom range, good shuttering on a flat field, and colour suitable for camera,” said Davis.

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Having seen a demo of VL2600 Profile, Davis decided to trial them on the Proms. He positioned them on an advance truss, quite high over the front of the stage. “They seemed to meet all those needs comfortably,” he said. “They were very successful in keying items all around the hall, particularly during the children’s ’CBeebies’ Prom, which had action everywhere, even a rocket that ’launched’ from the area lift!”

Overall, the VL2600 Profiles delivered a pleasing performance, said Davis. “The very flat field and good shutter performance makes them very usable. Their colour performance on camera is very good, and the wide zoom range is an essential for me, as they can answer so many demands during the season.”

CR’s Discovery Center partners with Strand for a flexible, integrated control solution

The Institute for Creation Research(ICR)’s new Discovery Center for Science &Earth History announced it is benefiting from an advanced, integrated lighting control system from Strand,aSignify(Euronext: LIGHT) entertainment lighting brand. Specified by The Lighting Practice, the system seamlessly combines the needs of multiple exhibit zones, user requirements and technologies.

The Control system exploits Strand’s ability to integrate entertainment and architectural lighting in one, seamless system. It combines Strand’s powerful NEO Rack Playback controller(with a second as backup), which is responsible for playback of the exhibits’ show lighting,with Strand’s flexible, scalable Vision. Net platform, which looks after the various area lighting zones.

The system includes a mix of individually addressed track lighting units, in-grade uplighters in the exhibit floors and various accent luminaires highlighting the various areas. This variety of fixtures and control protocols across multiple zones, combined with the need for staff to access lighting presets,made the control specification a particularly demanding challenge.

The Strand system controls a variety of luminaire types,while also allowing visitors to operate the lighting of certain exhibits,highlighting specific areas and sequences. In addition,it meets the need for staff to access lighting presets in each area.“These luminaires use DMX512 to allow for individual control so that we can balance illumination levels in each of the spaces,” says Jon Hoyle of The Lighting Practice, “while some of the architectural lighting fixtures require 0-10 Volt dimming control.”

VERSION2

Version 2 expands account management team

Version 2, the television lighting rental specialists have announced Joe Marter as Account Manager at their Reading operation. Joe’s complete understanding of equipment and production is the result of many years working within the lighting industry in both technical and commercial roles.

Marter entered the television industry with Aurora, starting in technical role which progressed to project

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

management supporting LD’s such as Chris Rigby and Gurdip Mahal.

Joe (right) passed through the BBC Wood Norton training academy giving him a solid understanding of studio lighting techniques. Joe most recently worked with event lighting company TSL, where he was able to further hone his customer support skills. As Account Manager at Version 2, Marter will be liaising with lighting directors, gaffers and production managers to offer support and advice on all aspects of the production process.Managing Director Nick Edwards comments, "Joe has not only a proven in depth equipment knowledge but he also understands the importance of strong customer support.

Having previously worked alongside Joe, it’s a pleasure to be welcoming him to the management team here at Version 2”

Version 2 expands and moves into new premises in Reading.

Television lighting rental specialists Version 2 have relocated to a repurposed factory in Reading, Berkshire perfectly situated to reach the M4 into West London and nearby national motorway networks.

The facility formally occupied by Boomf (James Middleton) offers significantly extended storage space alongside modern equipment preparation areas. The move will also see an expansion to the company’s project management offices.

Nick Edwards, managing director comments, “The whole team here at Version 2 is extremely excited to be moving into new premises. The move is essential to meet the ever increasing demand for our service. This will allow us to grow not just our inventory but also enable us to recruit more key personnel.”

The move comes at the time of recent news that US company Blackhall Studios plan to build a new £150m film studio in Reading to meet the current demand for Film and TV production in the UK. Version 2’s new address became effective from February 2020: Version 2 Lights Ltd,The Old Grain Store, Childs Court Farm, Ashampstead Common, Reading, RG8 8QT.

Version2 support award winning light designer Tim Routledge at Riverside Studios, London.

Lighting rental specialists Version2 are delighted to have supported The Brits Are Coming at the newly re-opened Riverside Studios. Working with award winning lighting designer Tim Routledge, the Version2 team supplied a comprehensive lighting package, including a healthy selection of recent additions to the company’s growing inventory.

The Brits Are Coming TV special was the highly anticipated, exclusive reveal of the nominations for the prestigious BRIT Awards 2020. Hosted by broadcaster and presenter Alice Levine, the show featured special guest performances by nominated artists including Liam Payne, Aitch and Mabel.

Recorded for ITV in front of a live audience, this was one of the first and one of the largest productions staged within the newly opened Studio 3 at Riverside Studios. Following

the extensive re-development of the historic West London site, Riverside’s hosting of the show conveyed a clear message that the production centre is back open and ready for business.

The show’s look was created by multi-award winning lighting designer, Tim Routledge. Having been acknowledged by, amongst others, The Royal Television Society, TPI and Knight of Illumination Awards, Tim is one of the industry’s most renowned LDs. Having supported him on a variety of previous projects, the team at Version2 are proud to have forged a strong working relationship with the LD. Commenting on working with Version2 at Riverside, Tim says “I use V2 a lot for my broadcast work as they always go the extra mile and have a want to make a great show every time. This was also only the second show in the all new Riverside Studios which was a blessing – a fantastic new studio with a saturated overhead grid of lighting hoists and the ability to patch data anywhere, it was a really easy studio for this show to move to and it worked for us brilliantly”.

Over the past year the V2 have been steadily growing their inventory to increase both the scope and range of products they have available. Ahead of the Brits show the company made significant investment in a fresh stock of Robe equipment, including the revolutionary new RoboSpot system which allows follow spot operators simultaneous remote control of up to 12 fixtures.

Making full use of the Riverside lighting grid,V2 provided over 50 Robe Spiider plus an additional 60 Robe Spikie LED wash fixtures, allowing moving light oiperator James Scott a huge amount of flexibility to deliver colour and shape to the show. Additional automated versatility was delivered using a mixture of Robe MegaPointe and new Robe T1 Profiles which were managed via the RoboSpot system. A mix of Pro Lights Arena Cob, Astera Titan Tubes and GLP JDC1 LED Strobes provided additional creative effects throughout the studio.

The stage set featured a huge upstage video wall flanked with waves of colourful LED along with a number of giant chrome globes suspended throughout the studio. Creating a design that complemented the set, Tim made fantastic use of the selection of Robe fixtures on offer to create powerful beams and vibrant colours, adding artistic highlights to the performances without distracting from the overall look and feel of the show. The lighting also allowed for the highly polished surfaces of the globes, using the shapes to form stunning covex images rather than reckless flares that could potentially impact on the recording.

Tim continues “The Brits Are Coming set gave me the basis for the design – Bruce French’s undulating flowing LED curves in the walls and routed in the floor plus his huge chrome balls were the starter. With such a flowing curved set I didn’t want to overpower what he was doing so a real simple but powerful grid of lights both along the walls and overhead which sat behind the set and give it real depth and a structure to the show”.

Showcasing the new studio space, Tim’s design delivered a variety of highly creative, individual looks to perfectly match the mix of performances, which ranged from Freya Ridings’ intimate acoustic version of Lost Without You to R&B sensation Mabel with her pulsating rendition of ‘Song of the Year’ nominated Don’t Call Me Up. Throughout the Set & Light | Spring 2020

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sponsor news

broadcast, the atmospheric washes and intense beams delivered an illuminating performance that danced, sang and held its own against the vibrance of the accompanying video imagery.

The LD adds “On the main stage there is a huge 16:9 video screen which takes up most of the real estate and so with a gap top and bottom this gave me positions to add strobes and beams to fill out the design. The first things on my plan are the keylights and this show was predominantly lit with V2’s brand new Robe Robospots and new LED Robe T1 Profiles which are perfect for keying in a studio of this size and with a number of setups for different bands where traditional keys would be prohibitive”.

Version2 Managing Director Nick Edwards says “We’re proud to have supported Tim on a number of previous broadcast projects. Our experience working with him has allowed us to develop a good understanding of his approach.

He always gets incredible results from the fixtures he specifies and I’m delighted that he’s been able to make put our newly acquired ROBE kit to such fantastic use. In particular it was great to see our new RoboSpot system in action. The whole team delivered a stunning show; a fitting launch to the 40th BRIT Awards”.

Tim concludes “V2 was the perfect choice for this show with their attention to detail and cutting edge inventory of brand new fixtures - you know it will all work first time”.

WHITELIGHT White Light goes on tour with Poet in da Corner

White Light has supplied the lighting equipment for the UK tour of Poet in da Corner, following its critically-acclaimed run at the Royal Court Theatre.

Poet in da Corner is a coming of age story inspired by Dizzee Rascal’s seminal album Boy in Da Corner. Written and performed by lyricist and poet Debris Stevenson, it originally ran at the Royal Court in 2018. This latest tour is a brandnew production, directed by Ola Ince and featuring a lighting design by Anna Watson. Anna comments: “Poet in da Corner is a really original and unique story told primarily through grime music. With this in mind, I always knew that the lighting would have to work hard in order to match the show’s epic, fast-paced soundtrack. I wanted my design to support the story and music as well as capture the grime rave aesthetic.

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

which is a beautifully simple layout of yellow portals on truss along with a high shine floor with a revolve. As a creative team, we set ourselves one objective: to help create an unforgettable gig theatre vibe!”.

With the creative team working so holistically, Anna ensured that she attended as many rehearsals as possible. She explains: “I always try to attend rehearsals but it was particularly important with this show as it really helped me get inside the music and be familiar with the choreography which really drives the piece. It also allows us to add extremely detailed cueing whilst still in the rehearsal room, which helped ease our move into the theatre”.

Knowing what equipment she needed for her design, Anna approached WL’s Hire team. In terms of her fixture choices, she explains: “Overhead, we had nine metres of GLP Impression X4 Bar 20s and 9 x Martin MAC Aura XBs. The X4 Bars were the lighting stars of the show. This was my first opportunity to really test these units and they did not disappoint.Visible to the audience, we used them for a huge variety of effects and atmospheric lighting. With incredible programming from Stephen Settle, they filled or dissected the space with beautiful accuracy and detail. The Aura XBs also worked hard as moving beams through haze or acting as specials to light the performers.

She continues: “On the booms, we had ETC ColorSource PARs, ColorSource Profiles and PAR 64s, with birdies used as footlights. We used 30 x RGBW LED fluorescents upstage mainly behind a black BP screen, which gave them a slightly ghostly or projected feel as they chased along or flickered to beats of the music. These were only actually then revealed for one track which is set in a club but we ensured they were shown off in their full glory. We used old school asymmetric floods as audience blinders”.

As the show was also visiting a range of venues across the UK, this is something that Anna had to factor into her design.

She comments: “As the show is touring to a wide variety of venues (from medium size studios to Hackney Empire), couple with the tight turnaround time at each, we wanted to reduce the variables as much as possible, so made the decision to tour everything. Fortunately, with a great deal of support from WL and GLP, we were able to put together a rig that could feel big enough and flexible enough to support this bold, fast-paced and beautifully loud show. The overhead kit is rigged on three freestanding truss structures plus a metal frame at the front of the stage. The rig was always going to have to work hard and, with a fairly simple set, it was down to the lighting to capture the grime rave feel; something we feel we achieved”.

Poet in da Corner opened at the Royal Court Theatre and is now embarking on its UK tour, visiting The MAC, Belfast later this week. Anna concludes: “As always, I was very well looked after by the Royal Court team, with huge support by Johnny Wilson and the lighting team. Also a big thanks to WL for once again supplying me with the fixtures I needed”.

White Light provides Royal Albert Hall with LED upgrade

White Light recently supplied the Royal Albert Hall with a range of Martin MAC Encore fixtures, continuing the phased upgrade of the in-house lighting rig.

Compiled by Emma Thorpe ~ email sponsornews@stld.org.uk

Located in South Kensington, the Royal Albert Hall is one of the world’s most iconic concert halls. Founded in 1871, it has played host to some of the biggest artists of all time and seats over 5,000 audience members.

As it hosts concerts on an almost nightly basis, the venue houses its own in-house kit which is used by incoming shows.

The rig has to be extremely flexible in order to adapt to such a varied programme, as well as needing to be energy efficient and sympathetic to the needs and requirements of a wide range of different lighting designers and productions. The existing ETC Source Four Revolutions, whilst having served their time very well, were due for replacement in line with the Hall’s ongoing replacement program. As a result, the venue approached WL in order to invest in some LED alternatives for these new fixtures.

WL’s Business Development Manager Jonathan Haynes explains: “I met up with lighting design manager Richard Thomas who told me what he was looking for to replace the ageing Source Four Revolutions. The main priority was that the new fixtures were LED and provided a tungsten colour match that was at least as bright as the fixtures they were replacing. They also needed to be quiet, as well as have the ability to provide a high output in cool white to cut through the rest of the rig for aerial work.”

WL put forward a range of options and held an on-site demonstration at the Royal Albert Hall for the lighting team to see each one in situ. Jonathan explains: “It is so important to shoot out fixtures in the venue for which they are intended, to see how they react to the conditions, throw distance, etc. After discussing suggestions with Richard and his team, it became obvious that the Martin MAC Encore Performance CLD was the best option”.

The Martin Mac Performance CLD integrates cutting-edge LED technology with a proprietary and innovative light engine carefully engineered to generate pristine, full spectrum light with ultra-high colour rendition. The feature-packed moving head offers unparalleled 6000K crisp, neutral daylight.

Its advanced mixing system delivers the full palette from smooth and subtle pastels to rich, vibrant, saturated colours.

Richard comments: “Integrating the Encores into the rig has revolutionised the way we are able to light certain areas of the hall, as well as offering a whole new palette of gobos, colour potential and framing options that previously did not exist. Added to that the increase in reliability in the rig means less maintenance time required over a typically busy week.

We have received many positive comments from a whole host of LDs in just a few week after their install”.

Haynes adds: “The Encore is an extremely popular fixture, used right across the industry. It’s one we’ve invested in heavily for our rental stock to meet the demands of some of the UK’s biggest touring and West End shows that we continue to supply. The small form factor, combined with high output and whisper quiet performance meant it was a no brainer for this application. Ultimately, it was the right product for the right location”.

The Royal Albert Hall invested a total of 18 fixtures which have all been successfully delivered and are now in pretty much constant use. The investment reinforces the continued relationship between WL and the concert hall, and adds to a large stock of Martin MAC Viper Wash DX fixtures that were

purchased last year, along with ETC Lustr Series 2 LED profiles and Robe Mega Pointes. The venue also recently replaced its stock of Robert Juliat Cyrano followspots, again all purchased through White Light.

Haynes concludes: “We have a very close relationship with the Royal Albert Hall and it is great to be involved in yet another project for this iconic venue. As a company, we relish being able to work closely with the team and offering technical solutions that are bespoke to their exact needs; something we were able to do once again on this occasion”.

Strategic partnership with ELP Broadcast & Events Ltd (ELP B&E).

ELP B&E will continue the full service broadcast and events wet hire business it currently operates. This strategic partnership will commenced in t January 2020 and reverses the position announced in November 2019 of the cessation of ELP B&E at the end of 2019. It is now ‘business as usual’.

ELP B&E staff and premises in Manchester will be retained, along with the equipment stock. Additional staff, equipment and operational resources will be added from within the WL organisation, bolstering ELP B&E’s strength and ability to meet client needs.

During the early months, fulfilment and despatch will continue from ELP’s base at Cardington Studios with a transfer to WL’s Wimbledon premises taking place later in 2020. The strategic partnership paves the way for the acquisition of ELP’s lighting rental business during 2020.

ELP Rigging Services will supply specialist rigging equipment and services to the strategic partnership and will continue to operate as the in-house rigging supplier at the Cardington and Millennium Studios.

The coming together of two companies with long and distinguished histories in the lighting industry brings the ‘best of both’ to the new venture. ELP B&E’s wide experience in broadcast and events combined with WL’s wealth of knowledge and resource across a wide range of markets and disciplines will result in a powerful combination.

WL’s substantial scale as a company, breadth of inventory and extensive technical capabilities will enhance ELP B&E’s offering to its clients. Similarly, ELP B&E will bring knowledge, methodologies and specialist stock into the WL family.

Initially the strategic partnership will continue to trade as ELP B&E until such time as WL acquires the business activities of ELP B&E. Key personnel involved in the strategic partnership are Darren Fletcher, Matthew Smith and Robert “Sinbad” Dunne from ELP B&E, along with Andy Hook and Ian Charlampowicz from WL. “I am hugely delighted that WL has stepped forward to take up the ELP B&E mantle. By joining forces with us the future for staff, clients and the business has been secured. So many brilliant people have contributed so much in time, energy and creativity to build ELP B&E. I am very happy to know that the ELP ethos will continue. WL is the perfect partner to re-launch and strengthen the ELP B&E brand. My colleagues, John Singer, Tim Williamson, Hadleigh Liddle, and the warehouse team at Cardington will remain involved for several months to implement a gradual handover. to make sure we do not drop the ball or forget what we owe to our clients” says Ronan Willson, ELP B&E Founder and Director.

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society committee Chairman + Sponsors Liaison Bernie Davis 07860 662 736 chairman@stld.org.uk

Deputy Chair Andrew Dixon 07885 731 865 andrewdixon@stld.org.uk

Secretary Stuart Gain 07774 161 996 secretary@stld.org.uk

Treasurer Mike Le Fevre 07956 305 662 treasurer@stld.org.uk

Administration Officer John O’Brien 07717 170 288 admin@stld.org.uk

Exhibitions + Membership Chris Harris 07775 846 972 members@stld.org.uk

Magazine Editor + Sponsor Administration Emma Thorpe 07850 709 210 editor@stld.org.uk

Publicity Andrew Harris 07973 745 583 publicity@stld.org.uk

Website Ian Hillson ianhillson@stld.org.uk

Student Representative John Piper johnpiper@stld.org.uk

John King 07860 759 294 johnking@stld.org.uk

Alan Luxford 07867 536 522 alanluxford@stld.org.uk

Paul Middleton 07720 446 921 paulmiddleton@stld.org.uk

Jane Shepherd 07710 511 547 janeshepherd@stld.org.uk

Bruce Wardorf 07702 741 338 brucewardorf@stld.org.uk

David Bishop (co-opted member) 07971 796 742 davidbishop@stld.org.uk

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

Robert Horne (co-opted member) 07762 562 434 roberthorne@stld.org.uk

sponsors’ directory

Please mention Set & Light when contacting sponsors

A.C. Entertainment Technologies Ltd (Ian Muir) Centauri House, Hillbottom Road, Sands Industrial Estate, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire HP12 4HQ Tel: 01494 446 000 ~ Fax: 01494 461 024 ~ Email: sales@ac-et.com ~ Web: www.ac-et.com/film-tv Ambersphere Solutions Ltd (Lee House, Marketing Manager) Unit 8 Western Avenue Business Park, Mansfield Road, Acton, London, W3 0BZ Tel: 020 8992 6369 ~ Mob 07799 901075 ~ Email: Lee@ambersphere.co.uk ~ Web: www.ambersphere.co.uk Anna Valley (Mark Holdway, Doug Hammond) Unit 13, Mount Road Industrial Estate, Feltham, Middlesex TW13 6AR Tel: 020 8941 4500 ~ Fax: +44(0)1932 761 591 ~ Web: www.annavalley.co.uk ARRI CT Ltd (Andy Barnett, Siobhan Daly, Lee Romney) 2 Highbridge, Oxford Road, Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 1LX Tel: 01895 457 000 ~ Fax: 01895 457 001 ~ Email: sales@arri-gb.com ~ Web: www.arri.com ARRI Lighting Rental Ltd (John Colley, Mike O’Hara) 2 Highbridge, Oxford Road, Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 1LX Tel: 01895 457 200 ~ Fax: 01895 457 201 ~ Manchester 0161 736 8034 (Jimmy Reeves) ~ Email: mohara@arrirental.com ~ Web: www.arri.com B360 (Barry Denison) 33 Lindlings, Hemel Hempstead, HP1 2HB Tel: 0203 9534 360 ~ Email: info@b360.tv ~ Web: www.b360.tv BBC Studioworks (Karen Meachen) Room N101, Neptune House, BBC Elstree Centre, Eldon Avenue, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 1NL Mob: 07970 115 998 ~ Email: karen.meachen@bbcstudioworks.com ~ Web: bbcstudioworks.com BBC Academy (Tim Wallbank) Room A16, BBC Wood Norton, Evesham, Worcestershire WR11 4YB Tel: 0370 010 0264 ~ Fax: 0370 010 0265 ~ Email: bbcacademy@bbc.co.uk ~ Web: www.bbcacademy.com CHAUVET Professional (Shaun Robertshaw) Brookhill Road Ind. Estate, Pinxton, NG16 6NT Tel: 01773 511115 ~ Mob: 07944 678958 ~ Email: srobertshaw@chauvetlighting.eu ~ Web: www.chauvetprofessional.eu Chroma-Q (Ian Muir) Centauri House, Hillbottom Road, Sands Industrial Estate, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire HP12 4HQ Tel: 01494 446 000 ~ Fax: 01494 461 024 ~ Email: sales@ac-et.com ~ Web: www.chroma-q.com Cirro Lite (Europe) Ltd (John Coppen, David Morphy, Frieder Hockheim) 3 Barrett’s Green Road, London NW10 7AE Tel: 020 8955 6700 ~ Fax: 020 8961 9343 ~ Email: j.coppen@cirrolite.com ~ Web: www.cirrolite.com Claypaky S p A (Davide Barbetta) via Pastrengo 3/B, 24068 Seriate (BG), Italy Tel: +39 335 72.333.75 ~ Fax: +39 035.30.18.76 ~Email: davide.barbetta@claypaky.it ~ Web: www.claypaky.it Dedo Weigert Film GmbH (John Coppen, David Morphy) 3 Barretts Green Road, London NW10 7AE Tel: 020 8955 6700 ~ Fax : 020 8961 9343 ~ Email: info@cirrolite.com ~ Web: www.dedolight.com DeSisti (Nick Mobsby) 25 Rowtown, Addlestone, Surrey KT15 1EF Tel: +44 (0) 7785 233073 ~ Email: nick@desistilighting.co.uk ~ Web: www.desisti.it Doughty Engineering Ltd (Julian Chiverton, Mark Chorley) Crow Arch Lane, Ringwood, Hampshire BH24 1NZ Tel: 01425 478 961 ~ Fax: 01425 474 481 ~ Email: sales@doughty-engineering.co.uk ~ Web: www.doughty-engineering.co.uk

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sponsors’ directory

Eaton – Zero88 (David Catterall) Zero 88, Usk House, Lakeside, Llantarnam Park, Cwmbran NP44 3HD Tel: +44 (0)1633 838 088 ~ Mob: 07802 464484 ~ Email: enquiries@zero88.com ~ Web: www.zero88.com Elation (Larry Beck) Elation Professional B.V., Junostraat 2, 6468EW Kerkrade, The Netherlands Mob: +44 (0) 7495 051413 ~ Email: larry.beck@elationlighting.com ELP (Ronan Willson, Darren Fletcher, John Singer) Cardington Studios, Cardington Airfield, Shortstown, Beds MK42 0TF Tel: 01234 744 222 ~ Email: info@elp.tv ~ Web: www.elp.tv ETC (Mark White, Jeremy Roberts) Electronic Theatre Controls Ltd, Unit 26-28,Victoria Industrial Estate,Victoria Road, London W3 6UU Tel: +44 (0)20 8896 1000 ~ Email: uk@etcconnect.com ~ Web: www.etcconnect.com 4Wall Entertainment (Simon Stuart, Mike Oates) Unit E&F, Glenfield Park, Philips Road, Blackburn, Lancashire BB1 5PF Tel: 01254 698 808 ~ Fax: 01254 698 835 ~ Email: sstuart@4wall.com ~ Web: www.4wall.com GLP German Light Products UK (Simon Barrett) Unit 23 The IO Centre, Salbrook Road Industrial Estate, Redhill RH1 5GJ Tel: 01293 228 660 ~ Email: s.barrett@glp.de ~ Web: germanlightproducts.com Green Hippo (Tom Etra, James Roth, Anastasia Nikolaou) Unit 307 Parma House, Clarendon Road, Wood Green, London N22 6UL Tel: 020 3301 4561 ~ Fax: 020 8889 9826 ~ Email: jamesr@green-hippo.com ~ Web: www.green-hippo-com Hawthorn (Mark Burnett) Crown Business Park, Old Dalby, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire LE14 3NQ Head Office: 01664 821 111 ~ London Office: 020 8955 6900 ~ Email: info@hawthorn.biz ~ Web: www.hawthorn.biz Key Light Hire Ltd (Alex Hambi) Unit 24, Sovereign Park, Coronation Road, Park Royal NW10 7QP Tel: 020 8963 9931 ~ Fax: 020 8961 236 ~ Mobile: 07949 686 802 ~ Email: alex@keylight.tv ~ Web: www.keylight.tv Kino Flo Lighting Systems (John Coppen, David Morphy) 3 Barretts Green Road, London NW10 7AE Tel: 020 8955 6700 ~ Fax : 020 8961 9343 ~ Email: info@cirrolite.com ~ Web: www. kinoflo.com LCC Lighting (Lee Rickard) P.O. Box 78, Guildford, Surrey GU3 2AG Tel: +44 (0)1483 813 814~ Email: sales@lcc-lighting.co.uk ~ Web: lcc-lighting.co.uk Lee Filters Ltd (Paul Mason) Central Way, Walworth Business Park, Andover, Hampshire SP10 5AN Tel: 01264 366 245 ~ Fax: 01264 355 058 ~ Email: ecruffell@leefilters.com ~ Web: www.leefilters.com Lights Camera Action (Nick Shapley) Unit 14, Fairway Drive, Greenford, Middlesex UB6 8PW Tel: 020 8833 7600 ~ Fax: 020 8575 8219 ~ Web: www.lcauk.com Limelite Lighting (Ed Railton) Harpers Farm, Summer Hill, Goudhurt, Kent, TN17 1JU Tel: 01580 239844 Vitec Videocom Lightpanels (Andrew Woodfin) Mob: +44 (0)7860 785 046 ~ Email: andrew.woodfin@vitecgroup.com Web: www.litepanels.com

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Set & Light | Spring 2020

Please mention Set & Light when contacting sponsors

LSI Projects (Russell Dunsire, Richard Bunting) 15 Woking Business Park, Albert Drive, Woking, Surrey GU21 5JY Tel: 01483 764 646 ~ Fax: 01483 769 955 ~ Email: richardb@lsiprojects.com ~ Web: www.lsiprojects.com Martin by Harman (Ritchie Reed at Harman partner Sound Technology) Sound Technology Ltd, Letchworth Point, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire SG6 1ND Tel: 01462 480 000 ~ Email: info@soundtech.co.uk ~ Web: www.soundtech.co.uk Matthews Studio Equipment, Inc. (John Coppen, David Morphy) 3 Barretts Green Road, London NW10 7AE Tel: 020 8955 6700 ~ Fax: 020 8961 9343 ~ Email: info@cirrolite.com ~ Web: www. msegrip.com MEMS Power Generation (Mark Diffey) Beechings Way, Gillingham, Kent ME8 6PS Tel: 08452 230 400 ~ Fax: 01634 263666 ~ Email: sales@mems.com~ Web: www.mems.com MULTI-LITE (UK) Limited (Martin Carnell) 15 Airlinks, Spitfire Way, Heston, Middlesex TW5 9NR Tel: +44 (0) 208 561 4501 ~ Mob: +44 (0) 7970 224313 ~ Fax: +44 (0) 20 8561 8041 ~ Email: MCarnell@Multi-Lite.co.uk ~ Web: www.multi-lite.com OSRAM Ltd (Terri Pearson, Emma Woolf) 268 Bath Road, Slough, Berkshire SL1 4DX Tel: 01925 649 106 ~ Email: sp@osram.co.uk ~ Web: www.osram.com/pia Panalux Limited Panalux Broadcast & Event, Unit 30, Perivale Park, Perivale UB6 7RJ Tel: 020 8832 4800 ~ Fax: 020 8832 4811 ~ Email: info@panalux.biz ~ Web: www.panalux.biz Philips Lighting UK Ltd (Stuart Dell) Philips Centre, Guildford Business Park, Guildford, Surrey GU2 8XH Tel: 07774 122 735 ~ Fax: 01296 670 956 ~ Email: stuart.dell­­@philips.com ~ Web: www.lighting.philips.com PLASA (Norah Phillips) Redoubt House, 1 Edward Street, Eastbourne, Sussex BN23 8AS Tel: 01323 524 120 ~ Fax: 01323 524 121 ~ Email: norah.phillips@plasa.org ~ Web: www.plasa.org PRG XL Video (Kelly Cornfield, Mat Ilot) The Cofton Centre, Groveley Lane, Longbridge, Birmingham B31 4PT Tel: 0845 470 6400 ~ Email: kcornfield@prg.com / milott@prg.com ~ Web: www.prg.com/uk Pulsar (Paul Johnson) 1 Pembroke Avenue, Waterbeach, Cambridge CB25 9QP Tel: 01223 403 500 ~ Email: snowy@pulsarlight.com ~ Web: www.pulsarlight.com Richard Martin Lighting Ltd (Steve Wells) Unit 24, Sovereign Park, Coronation Road, Park Royal, London NW10 7QP ~ RML Admin: Lantern House, Old Town, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire GL56 0LW Tel: 020 8965 3209 ~ Email: info@richardmartinlighting.co.uk ~ Web: www.richardmartinlighting.co.uk Robe UK Ltd (Ashley Lewis, Mick Hannaford, Steve Eastham) 3 Spinney View, Stone Circle Road, Round Spinney Industrial Estate, Northampton NN3 8RQ Tel: 01604 741 000 ~ Fax: 01604 741 041 ~ Email: info@robeuk.com ~ Web: www.robeuk.com Rosco (Cristian Arroyo) Blanchard Works, Kangley Bridge Road, Sydenham SE26 5AQ Tel: 020 8659 2300 ~ Fax: 020 8659 3151 ~ Email: contact@rosco.com~ Web: www.rosco.com Specialz Ltd (Dave Smith) Unit 2, Kingston Industrial Estate, 81-86 Glover Street, Birmingham B9 4EN Tel: 0121 766 7100 & 7110 ~ Fax: 0121 766 7113 ~ Email: info@specialz.co.uk ~ Web: www.specialz.co.uk

Set & Light | Spring 2020

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sponsors’ directory

Please mention Set & Light when contacting sponsors

Stage Electrics Partnership Ltd Encore House, Unit 3, Britannia Road, Patchway Trading Estate, Patchway, Bristol BS34 5TA Tel: 03330 142100 ~ Fax: 0117 916 2828 ~ Email: sales@stage-electrics.co.uk ~ Web: www.stage-electrics.co.uk TMB (Paul Hartley, Bill Anderson) 21 Armstrong Way, Southall UB2 4SD Tel: 020 8574 9700 ~ Fax: 020 8574 9701 ~ Email: tmb-info@tmb.com ~ Web: www.tmb.com Unusual Rigging (Mark Priestley) The Wharf, Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire NN7 3QB Tel: 01604 830 083 ~ Fax: 01604 831 144 ~ Email: mark.priestley@unusual.co.uk ~ Web: www.unusual.co.uk Vari-Lite / Strand Lighting (Amber Etra) Strand & Vari-Lite Centre, Unit 24 Sovereign Park, Coronation Road, Park Royal, London NW10 7QP Tel: 07918 161179 ~ Email: shaun.robertshaw@signify.com ~ Web: www.philips.com/entertainmentlighting Version 2 Lights Ltd (Nick Edwards) Version 2 Lights, The Old Grain Store, Childs Court Farm, Ashampstead Common, Reading, RG8 8QT Tel: 020 3598 6938 ~ Email: info@v2lights.co.uk ~ Web: www.v2lights.co.uk White Light Ltd (Bryan Raven, John Simpson, Jason Larcombe) 20 Merton Industrial Park, Jubilee Way, London SW19 3WL ~ Tel: 020 8254 4800 ~ Fax: 020 8254 4801 ~ Email: info@WhiteLight.Ltd.uk Web: www.WhiteLight.Ltd.uk ~ Hire Tel: 020 8254 4820 ~ Hire Fax: 020 8254 4821 ~ Sales Tel: 020 8254 4840 ~ Sales Fax: 020 8254 4841

education members Exeter College (Atila Mustafa, Lecturer for Film & TV Production) Victoria House Learning Centre, 33–36 Queen Street, Exeter, Devon EX4 3SR Tel: 01392 400500 ~ Email: info@exe-coll.ac.uk ~ Web: www.exe-coll.ac.uk

The STLD’s interactive Sponsors’ Directory is a useful tool, both for the STLD and, we hope, for those of our sponsors who use it. Its main advantage is that it enables the society to display up-to-date and accurate information about your company on its website. In doing so, it helps us update our records and ensures that we have accurate mailing and invoicing details.

STLD sponsor companies can make use of this facility by contacting Bernie Davis at sponsors@stld.org.uk with the name and email address of the person who will become the company’s ‘sponsor user’. They will be registered on our secure database and will then be able to modify their company’s information within the Sponsors’ Directory.

Please note that the directory enables company searches by category and area.

Bernie Davis – STLD Sponsor Liaison

index of advertisers Doughty Claypaky ELP ETC Proteus Unusual Rigging

48

Set & Light | Spring 2020

15 IBC OBC 11 IFC 27

membership application

V18-070818

Society of Television Lighting and Design Membership Application Form Section1

Personal Information

All personal information submitted to the Society of Television Lighting and Design is treated in accordance with the GDPR Regulations 2018

Surname:

First Name(s):

Address: Mobile:

Twitter/Instagram:

Web site:

Employer/Freelance:

Membership Category

Full Membership

Affiliate Membership

Section 3

Postcode:

Telephone:

Email:

Section 2

Mr/Mrs/Ms/other:

For those whose occupation involves or is associated with television lighting, design or related crafts

Please complete section 3 with details of your involvement with the television industry

For those who fulfil the criteria

Please complete section 3 with details of your involvement with the television industry

Overseas above but not resident in the UK Retired

For those who fulfil the criteria above but retired and not working

Student

For students in full time education with an active interest in lighting or design

Please complete section 3 with details of your course and or interest in television lighting and design. Give recent productions

Relevant Information Please complete this section with the relevant information about yourself

P.T.O. Set & Light | Spring 2020

49

membership application Section 4

Proposal for Membership

I, the undersigned, being a current member of the STLD, certify that I know the applicant in section 1 and recommend that they are accepted into the membership of the STLD in the category applied for in section 2.

One full member/tutor for student membership.

Overseas applications do not need to provide a proposer, but it may be helpful to support your application.

Proposers Name:

Proposers Membership No:

Proposers Telephone:

Proposers Signature:

Proposers Email:

Method of Payment

Section 5

Annual subscription fee for Full Membership - £75, Affiliates - Retired and Overseas - £50, Students - £25 NB a limited number of FREE sponsored Student memberships are now available each year. Please contact the membership secretary by email at the address at the foot of this page for further details.

When you join or renew your membership of the STLD, you will receive an invoice that details; your annual membership fee, the STLD’s bank account details and the subscription fee due payment date for future years. The best and preferred method for paying for your membership is to the STLD’s account using the following format as the payment reference.

YOUR SURNAME/INV*** (INV*** being the number of the STLD’s membership invoice) STLD Bank Account and VAT Details: BANK: HSBC Sort Code: 40-07-14 IBAN: GB45MID40071411171518

Account Name: Society of Television Lighting Directors Account Number: 11171518 VAT Registration: GB 551 463 648

Member benefits information available at http://www.stld.org.uk/benefits.php Current Memberships rates are available at http://www.stld.org.uk/membership.php Application Declaration

Section 6

I, the undersigned, wish to apply for membership of the Society of Television Lighting and Design.

I agree to abide by the rules of the Society (available at http://www.stld.org.uk/pdfs/STLD-Rules.pdf ) I would like to receive correspondence from the STLD Email opt in Tick if you would like to receive correspondence from the STLD by email Tick if you would like to receive correspondence from the STLD by post Post opt in I would like to receive correspondence directly associated with the STLD from their Sponsors Email opt in Tick if you would like to receive correspondence from STLD Sponsors by email Tick if you would like to receive correspondence from STLD Sponsors by post Post opt in N.B We may need to contact you by telephone to verify membership details, but we will not pass your telephone details on to any third parties.

Signature:

Date:

Print Name:

Notes (for STLD use):

Membership Number:

Membership approved:

Renewal Date:

Please return the completed form to:

Chris Harris, STLD Membership, 4 Fenbourne Close, Shelfield, Walsall, WS4 1XD Any questions please email members@stld.org.uk 50

Set & Light | Spring 2020

Installation with 100 Xtylos @ Jova Beach Party 2019 - Linate, Milan, September 2019. Concept by Giò Forma Studio.

www.claypaky.com

Dreams... our driving force... our inspirations. To turn your dreams into reality requires years of experience, dedication to your craft, and the right tools. You already have the first two. Do you dream of a tool that produces an extremely solid, dense, flat beam of light, that never fades away and shines bright for miles and miles? Do you want to be able to customize the light with a palette of ultra-brilliant colors and make it twist and turn at high speed?

Introducing Xtylos, a laser-based fixture that will unleash your dreams and make them real.

Stop Dreaming, Start Doing. www.xtylos.show