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2016 AAU Junior Olympic Games Celebration of Athletes Lit with Elation Platinum FLX Fixtures

AAU Jr Olympics

2016 AAU Junior Olympic Games Celebration of Athletes Lit with Elation Platinum FLX Fixtures

HOUSTON – Full service production company GVPmedia, Inc. utilized the multi-functionality of Elation Professional’s Platinum FLX™ moving head on the AAU Junior Olympic Games Celebration of Athletes, The opening ceremony style event was held at the M.O. Campbell Center in Houston on July 31st and GVP produced the entire show from start to finish including designing the entire set, developing the run of show, and creating custom videos and content.

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Even the opening acts looked big at Rock in Rio Lisbon. Photo by Vickie Claiborne

Backstage Programming at Rock in Rio in Lisbon, Portugal

For the last two years, I’ve had the opportunity to be involved with the Rock in Rio festival in different roles, giving me a unique perspective on the festival both in the U.S. and Portugal. In May 2015, I managed the front of house control system for the Palco Mundo (World Stage) in Las Vegas and assisted incoming LDs with everything from setting up their consoles, connecting them to the main data distribution system, providing timecode connections, programming support, etc., etc. I even punted for a couple of the bands that traveled without an LD.

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'Pancake' style wash fixtures

“Pancake” Style LED Wash Fixtures

The first moving LED wash lights appeared on the scene about a dozen years ago. Upstaging lighting took a couple hundred Martin MAC 300s and had them retrofitted with RGB “Skittles” LEDs on the front, replacing the arc light source. LD Leroy Bennett requested such a fixture be made. Within a couple years, GLP came up with their series of Impression LED moving wash lights. Because these lights had no base and seemed to be able to just flip over in any direction at an incredibly fast rate, LDs started to refer to them as “pancake” style fixtures. These fixtures have undergone transformations and modifications, and it didn’t take long for them to start selling like hotcakes. Today, every major manufacturer offers at least one fixture that fits within this category. Each fixture has at least one unique aspect or feature that separates them from the rest. Look here for who’s offering what this year.

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Danny O'Bryen

2016 Parnelli Profile: Video Visionary Danny O’Bryen

“Danny O’Bryen is a visionary with a promoter’s mind,” says Mark Haney, video director and Parnelli Board of Advisors member. “He saw video as a way forward and a way to bring more value to the ticket buyer. He saw that this was the future and is really one of the biggest innovators in our field.” O’Bryen of Screenworks will receive the 2016 Parnelli Visionary Award Oct. 22, at the Parnelli Awards gala in Las Vegas. He’s the ninth live event professional to receive this annual award for career achievement, and the first from the video side of the industry.

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2016 Hometown Hero Finalists

2016 Hometown Hero Finalists

Here’s a look at the regional finalists in the 2016 Hometown Hero Lighting Company of the Year award.

There are many ways to judge the vitality of our industry — ticket sales, manufacturer’s bottom line, new hires. But from where we’re sitting, it seems especially telling that, for the first time in a long time, there are so many new companies being honored for their service in their region. Not that these are “new” companies per se — heck, one has been around since 1983. But it’s a dynamic, interesting bunch, and we’re pleased to present them to here. Let’s meet the regional winners!

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art courtesy of Ken Teegardin

Trust and Money: The Gear Purchasing Puzzle

“Trust. Money.” Boy, could that title be taken a few different ways. Money and trust have been odd bedfellows practically since currency was invented. Trust has been around a whole lot longer, but as soon as money entered the world, trust started getting in short supply. Why are these two so inextricably intertwined? Why do people spend a week’s worth of income on a concert ticket and just trust that it’s going to be worth it?

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ProPlex EZ-Lan Unity 20, front view

Show Networking Products from TMB

Today, we’re not going to look at the latest in whiz-bang technology or the coolest LED fixture on the market, but rather at the technological building blocks of a good show — networking and data distribution hardware from TMB. As our show networks get larger and more complicated, the need for sophisticated and reliable networking technology grows ever more important.

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High End Systems Announces New York City Open House

NYC – High End Systems, a Barco Company, will be hosting an open house at The Pershing Square Signature Center in The Ford Theater September 21 & 22 from 10 am – 4 pm each day. Over the course of 2 days, experts will be on hand to demonstrate the capabilities of High End Systems current line-up of products. 

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Mega-Lite Medusa 4X5R

Mega-Lite Medusa 4X5R

Every once in a while, a product hits the scene that gets a lighting designer’s blood pumping. That’s because it’s a product that nobody else has even thought of making and it’s fresh and, for lack of a better description, “really cool.” Such is the case with the Medusa, a four-headed beast of a fixture from Mega-Lite that is made to provide eye candy and dazzling effects. Picture a Lazy Susan on your dining room table. Remove the food items and put small moving head beam lights spaced evenly across the outside — four individually controlled fixtures that have an incredibly bright light source (Philips Platinum 5R bulb). Then you spin the Lazy Susan. You get the idea.

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Wahlberg winches are designed to raise and lower objects weighing from 1 kg to 50 kg.

Rose Brand Steps Up their Automation Game with Wahlberg Light and Motion Products

In almost every event produced these days, the moment comes during a meeting or tech rehearsal where someone asks, “Can’t we automate that?” Most good technicians will answer, “yes, but…” Those “buts” refer to cost, complexity, time, staffing and expertise. What has been missing (until now) are products designed for easily automating the little effect — a prop or drape or lighting practical.

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Build Your Own Fixture Library

Automated lighting consoles are extremely powerful tools with very complex software. No matter how many features a console provides, one of the most essential elements is its fixture library. The library contains unique profile information about fixtures used within our industry. This information becomes the interface between the programmer and the instructions for the light (or other devices). Without proper libraries, most desks will not communicate with fixtures and devices. In some cases, it is important for a programmer to understand the process to create new or modify existing libraries. The method of creating or editing fixture libraries differs greatly between console systems, but all require a basic understanding of how a fixture library functions.

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Alice Cooper sings ‘Poison’ with his band. Photo by Leslii Stevens

Spend the Night with Alice Cooper; See You in September

LD Joel Reiff grew up listening to Alice Cooper on the radio, so he was familiar with the songs. What he had to learn to light were the stunts that Alice pulls onstage on his current tour. The “Spend the Night with Alice Cooper” tour entertains with props and gags galore, as Alice has done since the 1970s. Reiff says Cooper and his manager, Shep Gordon, create the ideas for the stunts with James Randi as one of the stunt designers.

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