New Name & Logo For UK PSA Welfare & Benevolent Fund – StageHand

StageHand has been chosen as the new ‘public facing’ name for the Production Services Association (PSA) Welfare & Benevolent Fund after a PSA Conference call for ideas by the Fund’s chairman, Mike Lowe of Britannia Row Productions. It comes with a new logo depicting a helping hand.

The new name is registered with the UK Charity Commission in addition to the name ‘PSA Welfare & Benevolent Fund’, and donations can be made in either name. The charity is also registered with JustGiving.com, which allows the tax value of donations to be reclaimed under the Gift Aid scheme, boosting the value of individual donations significantly at no extra cost to the donor.

The PSA Welfare & Benevolent Fund was founded in 1998 with the backing of the Production Services Association of behalf of people working in the UK entertainment production industry. In genuine cases of hardship, the fund may provide small grants for emergency relief when an injury or illness prevents working or forces an unplanned change of career. The fund also aims to support any training and re-training which may be advisable as a result of accident or illness. It would do this by means of small scholarships and bursaries for approved vocational training courses. It is not designed to be a substitute for full insurance cover. It aims to encourage everybody working in the industry, whether PSA members or not, to take responsibility for themselves, or their employees, by researching the options and making the appropriate provision against losing the ability to maintain income levels through accident or illness.

You can learn more about the PSA Welfare & Benevolent Fund by visiting www.psa.org.uk.

TMB Becomes Exclusive UK Distributor for Coolux

TMB is pleased to announce the signing of an exclusive UK Distribution agreement with coolux GmbH.  Under the agreement, TMB will offer technical support, training, sales and service for coolux’s award-winning Pandoras Box media and show control systems in the UK market.

Pandoras Box systems are world-class creative tools favoured by videographers, architects, programmers, and scenic and lighting designers around the globe, allowing them to create the most complex of designs with ease.

Capable of playing back multiple layers of video in all common file formats up to 4k, these networkable systems can achieve seamless, blended projections as well as synchronous multi-screen displays—contiguous or not!  As a real-time 3D compositor, Pandoras Box integrates with audio, moving scenery, lighting, and other show elements for spot-on synchronisation of a total sensory experience.

Professionals appreciate Pandoras Box’s many features and attributes including:  Powerful multi-layer control and ability to work with video formats of all kinds; timeline-based Media Manager featuring media editing and playback control in real time; custom graphical interfaces; full dome projection; Media Net platform; support for all major control protocols; and much more.  In addition to full-featured servers, TMB will also be offering innovative Pandoras Box Playback Systems and coolux’s extensive library of seamless, looping content.

Signing of the TMB distribution agreement coincides with coolux’s release of Pandoras Box Software Version 4.6, with new features such as 3D server preview; dual HD-SDI / DVI inputs; curve and clip editor; and support for additional protocols such as MA-Net, CITP, and MSC.

Also, designers and programmers can now benefit from comprehensive training at TMB coolux college™, a two-day workshop providing hands-on, focused instruction on Pandoras Box hardware and software.  This course presents general concepts for creating dazzling multi-media designs with Media Manager, Media Player, Widget Designer, and much more!  Several upcoming sessions will be announced, or check www.tmbtraining.com for schedules.

For more information about coolux, go to www.tmb.com/products/coolux.  Learn more about TMB coolux college at www.tmbtraining.com/cooluxcollege.  Discover more innovative and exciting TMB products at www.tmb.com.

Goboland U.K. Launched at ABTT Show

Recently announced at the ABTT (The Association of British Theatre Technicians) Show in London, Goboland, a newly formed gobo manufacture announced the opening of their offices in Dorking, UK with their head office located in Belgium.

Goboland brings together Wyatt Enever and Vicky Fairall. Wyatt was the founding member and former managing director of DHA Lighting and a longtime gobo developer.  Vicky is a former graphics manager also from DHA Lighting.

While there are plans to offer Goboland products in the United States, their primary market is Europe and the Middle East.  For more information on Goboland products, visit their website at www.goboland.com.