Video: First Look at 2016 Eurovision Song Contest Stage
It is time to start getting amped up! The 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm is here. Eurovision has to be one of the largest productions produced each year. While not much press is given to this contest in the US, it is a huge deal across the Atlantic. From a technical stand point, it is awe inspiring at how much technology is used to produce the contest.
Leading up to the start of the contest, Eurovision has released rendering and a walk through video of the 2016 stage design.
More from the announcement.
Swedish broadcaster SVT has revealed the stage design for 2016 which is described as powerful and brave. The set has been designed by Frida Arvidsson and Viktor Brattström who also produced the stage for the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö.
The set designers have used light as a strong component to create depth. “We want to do something that makes people wonder if it’s even possible”, says Viktor Brattström. Plans also include an innovative LED wall which allows the artists to move inside it. “Normally an LED wall is a flat background wall at the very end of the stage. We have broken up the wall and made it possible for people to move inside it” he added.
Reflecting on the 2016 design compared to the stage in Malmö in 2013, Frida Arvidsson said, “Back then we focused on a softer expression with no pixels and projections. This year we are trying to play with the room and create optical illusions”.
Producer, Sven Stojanovic, is very impressed with the design plans; “It’s really a great looking stage, giving us something that we haven’t seen before. In a way the stage gives us almost unlimited possibilities but at the same time forcing us to think in a new way. Creatively it’s both challenging and inspiring”.
More renderings for the 2016 stage:
Martin Makes Fixture Library Available in Vectorworks
Looks like Martin is celebrating their 25th anniversary by giving out gifts! Martin has made available an updated version of their product line for Vectorworks Spotlight. Here is more from the Press Release:
Martin Professional product developer Simon Allan has put together an updated library of Vectorworks lighting instrument symbols and has made them freely available for users to download. This new range includes symbols for all fixtures in Martin Professional’s moving head range, as well as some from Martin’s LED video range.
The symbols are available for Vectorworks Spotlight 2008-2012 and can be downloaded from the Martin Professional website. The Vectorworks files can also be imported for use with Martin’s popular visualization software package, the Martin ShowDesigner (MSD 5).
Simon plans to add to the library, making more and more symbols available in the future. He comments, “They are all in one document (2008-2012) to keep things simple. Every product that has a corresponding Vectorworks symbol will have a link to the file under the service and support area for that product. I will be adding to this all the time so please be patient if the symbol you need is not present.”
Questions relating to the symbols should be sent to vectorworks@martin.dk .
Capture Sweden Releases Student Edition of Visualiser Software
Capture Sweden starts off 2012 by releasing the popular 3D visualiser Capture Polar in a new package for lighting students. The so called Student Edition of Capture Polar is a limited version of Capture, but it’s free! Sales manager Lasse Berg explains – “The demo version of Capture has been downloaded by more than 30 000 people during the past fifteen years. We have received a lot of requests for a working version for students, and as we always listen to our users we have now created the Capture Polar Student Edition.”
The Capture Polar Student Edition comes with limitations in paperwork functionality, library content and the number of universes available for visualisation. Library director Vangelis Manolis adds – “These twenty popular fixtures have been carefully selected among the 4000+ fixtures of our detailed database. We are confident that they are sufficient for any student to build and enjoy a complete show.”
All other features from the Basic Edition of Capture, including the rich number of console connectivity options and availability on both Windows and Mac OS X have been retained. It is available publically for download from Capture Sweden’s website. Development manager Lars Wernlund concludes – “Finally the availability of a user friendly visualizer for students to learn lighting and study console programming is no longer a question of money or access to The Pirate Bay.”
It’s back! The iSquint.net & Stage Directions Magazine Student Lighting Design Competition (SLDC) is officially underway! We are proud to welcome back our sponsors, Nemetschek Vectorworks, City Theatrical and Field Template. Starting today, students may begin to download the student version of Vectorworks 2012 and a demo version of Lightwright in order to compete in the SLDC.
The SLDC is a chance for lighting students to learn and understand the same software and design process that the professionals use. Students that enter the SLDC are judged on their knowledge of lighting design, drafting skills and understanding of the design process. The winner of this second annual competition will receive a prize package including a professional license of Vectorworks® 2012 with Renderworks® software, a personal license of Lightwright™ 5 and a single license of Field Template™ SoftSymbols V3. The winner will also be featured on iSquint.net and Nemetschek Vectorworks’ news site, Planet Vectorworks.
Design entries must be created by a student using Lightwright and Vectorworks software with Renderworks. Full-time students with active and valid college or university IDs can download a free student version of Vectorworks 2012 with Renderworks at student.vectorworks.net. (Students living outside the U.S will be redirected to a local distributor in their country to obtain a student version.) Lightwright also offers a demo version that can be used for producing paperwork for the competition, which can be downloaded at: www.mckernon.com.
Entries will be judged by a panel of industry experts including: lighting designer, writer and editor Justin Lang from iSquint; software engineer and lighting design industry expert Kevin Linzey from Nemetschek Vectorworks; author and lighting designer Steve Shelley of Field Template, developer of Soft Symbols; lighting designer, author and Vectorworks expert Gregg Hillmar; and lighting designer and developer of Lightwright, John McKernon.
Entries are due March 16, 2012, and the winner will be announced at the USITT Conference on March 29.
iDesign, by TouchAware Limited, is a precision 2D vector drawing & design app that works across all the iOS devices. Its kind of a cross between a “photoshop” and “illustrator” interface. It is easy to use and has adapted well to drawing with either your finger or an i-compatible stylus. Some of the software features include:
Icon based visual and context driven user interface w/ a full screen board view.
Toolbars with frequently used functions
Fast, smooth multitouch zoom with sharp, clear images
Exports designs to the camera reel as JPEG, PNG, PDF & SVG
Email designs between devices
iDesign is available for download from the iTunes App Store. It is $4.99 currently and one download covers all iOS devices on your iTunes account. Below are the sample screen shots available on the iTunes store:
[nggallery id=115]
* Photoshop and Illustrator are copyright Adobe, Inc. No trademark or copyright implied or imparted.
Yeager Labs 1:6 Scale Light Lab
I have seen Kenton Yeagers Light Lab before. That is when he was offering it as a guide and not a package! Yeager Labs has designed a 1:6 scale light lab that is customizable for any theatre design. The “shell” of the system is scalable to any theatre design with different lighting packages to suit your lighting needs.
Yup, it is January 28th. That means that the student design competition is open! While the competition just started, I don’t expect many students to start submitting their design work right now. I highly recommend taking your time, you have almost all of spring semester! Heck, the competition doesn’t close until April 15th. That doesn’t mean wait till the last minute either!
Head over to the Student Design Competition page and learn more about the competition and get the low down on the rules and requirements. There are also plenty of links to get you to the right site to download the FREE student version of Vectorworks and the demo version of Lightwright.
Through out the competition, I’ll be posting updates, resources, tips, tricks, things to help you along your way. So get your design started and have some fun with it! All of the judges and I are extremely excited to see what you come up with. Break-a-leg everyone!
Registration for the Student Design Competition Opens SOON, Are You Ready?
Attention ALL students, are you ready for the 2011 Student Design Competition? If not, don’t worry, you have PLENTY of time to get ready! Beginning January 28th, we’ll begin to accept submissions to the design competition, but you don’t have to rush to enter. You have most of the spring semester to download the FREE software and build your entry. The competition will close on April 15, 2011, so plenty of time.
If you haven’t done so already, you need to get the FREE software to start building your design. Here is what you’ll need:
Vectorworks 2011 – visit student.vectorworks.net, you will need a valid Student ID to get the Student version of Vectorworks.
Lightwright 5 – visit www.mckernon.com to download the demo version of the software.
Here are the rules for the competition:
Any full-time student with an active and valid college or university ID can enter the competition…ANY STUDENT, whether you are in the United States or not, is welcome to enter the competition*.
Entrants must submit a lighting plot, a rendering from Renderworks and the associated Lightwright paperwork in PDF format along with the Lightwright file and the Vectorworks file saved to match the submitted rendering.
*Local restrictions or guidelines may apply. Availability and access to the student version of Vectorworks software varies by country.
The Need For Sustainable Lighting Design for the Performing Arts
Photo By: John DiEleuterio
If you’ve ever been to a Broadway show, sustainability might not be the first thing that springs to mind as you watch the literally hundreds of lights burning anywhere from 300 to 2000w a piece to create spectacular effects all visible from the back of the balcony.
In a way, that’s the point. Traditionally, the purpose of big brash commercial theater is to entertain. Think of your favorite show…Phantom of the Opera, Jersey Boys, Billy Elliot, Showboat, Shrek the Musical…all of these transport the audience to another time and place. Anyone who has ever been to a Broadway show will tell you of the spectacular sights and sounds immersed within – it’s a fantasy world full of adventure and fun, and generally speaking, lots and lots of light, sound, video, and special effects. Most design professionals, myself included, entered the world of live entertainment to help create these immersive experiences. We want to find ways to use our creativity to transport the audience to another place.
Yet, as a design community we are faced with a new challenge. It is not enough any more to simply create a world that is satisfying to the audience. It’s not enough to fulfill the director’s vision, it’s not even enough to come in on time and on budget. No, I posit the challenge of the 21st century will be to do all of those things, sustainably.
This challenge stems approaches on two fronts…the first moral, the second economic. Allow me to state the problem simply and combine these two fronts. If we want there to be live entertainment for our kids and grand kids to enjoy we must begin producing it sustainably or it will disappear. I’m not describing some existential crisis in which the world ends due to global warming and with it our ability to produce theater. I’m speaking about a world in which the costs of materials and energy have run so high, tickets have become so expensive, that it simply becomes economically untenable to produce live entertainment any more. The rising cost of energy threatens all of American industry, but the arts and entertainment world could feel the effects most acutely. The performing arts are the most sensitive to the running cost of production, that is, it might have cost $65 million to bring Spiderman to the stage, but just as importantly, it will cost $1 million a week to continue running. Any increase in running cost will either cut into profits, or will raise ticket prices further pushing elite live entertainment out of the reach of middle class families.
The challenges are real and are manifesting themselves every day. Take for instance, the cost of electricity, commercial electricity rates have risen 40% from 1999 to 2009. As global demand for energy increases…what can we expect to happen to cost of electricity?
Of course, that only speaks to the economic argument. I believe there is a deeper need for sustainable practice in theatrical design. It’s the same need we see across the culture and indeed across the planet. It is no longer enough to simply create beautiful or luxurious things. The things/experiences/places we create must ultimately be sustainable in both material and process. In short, everything we make must be of minimal impact impact on the planet or reap only positive impacts. Anything else is only half of a victory. We don’t have enough resources to go around, and they are shrinking quickly. No artist, no creator can endeavor to continue their craft knowing they are contributing to the end of all things. The stakes are simply too high.
These challenges are real and they must be faced by all design disciplines. The challenge must be won if we are to have a thriving show business for decades to come. The process to sustainable theatrical production will be painful and often stunted. The lighting department can’t be seen as separate from the process of growing theatrical design to include sustainable best practices.
It’s that challenge, that process that brings me to iSquint. Here at iSquint I will post opinions, ideas, field observations, articles and all other relevant information I can find to help advance sustainable practice in lighting design for the entertainment world.
I fell in love with theatrical lighting 12 years ago when I hung my first lights in a tiny garage in a village theatre in NYC. Through college and afterward, I designed lighting off and off-off Broadway and still do today. It was 4 years ago that I turned my day-to-day attention to architectural lighting, and that’s when I really began to realize the impact lighting can have on sustainable design. This realization prompted me to begin Build2Sustain, a consultancy that would guide the renovation of existing buildings and make them more sustainable while increasing their value. After working on the project for about 18 months, I’ve come back to lighting design full time. But what I have learned in creating B2S is invaluable to how we must approach the entertainment world. The challenge to work sustainably is the challenge of our generation and we are just getting started. Please join me here and I look forward to sharing what I learn…
About the Author
For the last 10 years, James Bedell has been a lighting designer based in NYC. He developed a love for the theater and theatrical lighting while attending Pace University. There he was mentored by Obie-award winning lighting and scenic designer Chris Thomas. Nearly 4 years ago, James shifted focus from lighting in the entertainment world to lighting architectural spaces. In 2008, James launched Build2Sustain, a consultancy dedicated to making the business case for sustainable design in commercial spaces. Learn more about Mr. Bedell by reading his complete author bio.
Vectorworks Releases Service Pack 2 for 2011
Fire up Vectorworks 2011 and check for software updates. Nemetschek recently released an update to the software with Service Pack 2. This update is for all version and flavors of your Vectorworks product.
The Service Pack 2 includes all kinds of things. There are a number of fixes having to deal with areas of walls, planar objects, exporting PDF files and just general software stability.
Updating the software is pretty easy, just check for software update right in the software and Vectorworks will walk you through the process. Service Pack 2 weighs in at 163 mb so depending on your network connection, prepare to download, update and get back up and running.
At this year’s SonneMondSterne-Festival, the Solaris+ by G-LEC found its premiere in a highly creative and impressive design.
The 14th edition of the SonneMondSterne-Festival (‘SMS’) took place in the Thuringian city of Saalburg in Germany. Every year, thousands of visitors feel the lure of the festival for electronic dance music at the Bleiloch dam in the peaceful town of Saalburg. The entire lighting and video equipment at the “Main Circus” was provided by the event services agency HELI-Show equipment this year. The “Main Circus” is the biggest marquee of five altogether at SMS. Among others performing, there were DJ stars like DJ Rush, Ellen Allien, Miss Kittin and the Turntablerockers who all performed at the turntables during the event. Their performances were supported by an extraordinary creative lighting and video installation in the middle of the marquee, with the Solaris+ LED system from G-LEC making its global premiere at the center of it all.
Designer Uwe Heinrich created a chandelier which had a diameter of more than 12 meters consisting of 64 ropes of Solaris+, each with a length of 8 meters. The Solaris+ allows for every sphere in the system to be addressed individually via a DVI video signal to create stunning effects, and this installation didn’t disappoint.
Solaris + is a totally flexible video content system of low resolution spheres with full 360 degree viewing. Assembled in strings, the flexibility of the system allows designers full creative freedom in both the configuration of the system and the pixel spacing within it. From a flat 2D curtain, to a full three dimensional center-piece as created by Uwe, Solaris + allows inspired designs to come to life.
At the SonneMondSterne-Festival, video content with saturated color shades which moved to the fast beat of the music were programmed. The partygoers at the festival highly enjoyed the lightshow, and the colossal chandelier above them became an entrancing center point for the entire festival.
Along with the Solaris+, Uwe also used 96 GLP impressions to light the Main Circus with a show that was programmed to combine with the video content perfectly.
Further details on Solaris+ and other G-LEC products can be seen at www.g-lec.com.
AutoCAD WS for the iPhone and iPad
First AutoCAD announces that they will be releasing a Mac version of their CAD program and now on the iPhone and iPad?! Is the Kindle up next? Just Kidding!
AutoCAD® WS mobile app enables you to view and work with AutoCAD drawings directly on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Using the touch and gesture interface of your iPad or iPhone you can accurately view, annotate, and revise drawings on the spot. Change the way you work in the field or on the road by reducing the need to carry around over-sized paper drawings.
View
Open DWG drawings uploaded to your free* AutoCAD WS online workspace
See all aspects of your DWG file, including external references, layers, and image underlays
Use Multi-Touch zoom and pan to more easily navigate very large drawings
Edit
Tap objects to select, then move, rotate, and scale
Draw or edit shapes with accuracy using Snap and Ortho modes
Add and edit text annotations directly on your device; no need for paper mark-ups
Validate distance measurements in the drawing while you are onsite at the actual location
Save your edits to your AutoCAD WS online workspace, so your drawings stay up to date
Share
Share designs with others directly from your device
Work with other people on the same DWG file simultaneously
View edits to drawings in real time: AutoCAD WS immediately captures changes made by you and others in your online workspace.
It is time to start getting amped up! The 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm is here. Eurovision has to be one of the largest productions produced each year. While not much press is given to this contest in the US, it is a huge deal across the Atlantic. From a technical stand point, it is awe inspiring at how much technology is used to produce the contest.
Looks like Martin is celebrating their 25th anniversary by giving out gifts! Martin has made available an updated version of their product line for Vectorworks Spotlight. Here is more from the Press Release:
Capture Sweden starts off 2012 by releasing the popular 3D visualiser Capture Polar in a new package for lighting students. The so called 
Attention ALL students, are you ready for the 2011 Student Design Competition? If not, don’t worry, you have PLENTY of time to get ready! Beginning January 28th, we’ll begin to accept submissions to the design competition, but you don’t have to rush to enter. You have most of the spring semester to download the FREE software and build your entry. The competition will close on April 15, 2011, so plenty of time.
For the last 10 years, James Bedell has been a lighting designer based in NYC. He developed a love for the theater and theatrical lighting while attending Pace University. There he was mentored by Obie-award winning lighting and scenic designer Chris Thomas. Nearly 4 years ago, James shifted focus from lighting in the entertainment world to lighting architectural spaces. In 2008, James launched Build2Sustain, a consultancy dedicated to making the business case for sustainable design in commercial spaces. 
Fire up Vectorworks 2011 and check for software updates. Nemetschek recently released an update to the software with Service Pack 2. This update is for all version and flavors of your Vectorworks product.
First AutoCAD announces that they will be releasing a Mac version of their CAD program and now on the iPhone and iPad?! Is the Kindle up next? Just Kidding!