Over 1,000sqm of Infiled Screens for Balenciaga FW20 Runway Show at Paris Fashion Week
Over 1,000sqm of Infiled Screens for Balenciaga FW20 Runway Show at Paris Fashion Week. Check out the spectacular production in our latest blog post.
Australian Open 2018
One of the biggest events in Australia’s sporting calendar is the Australian Open. Providing the first grand slam tournament of the four majors of the international tennis circuit, this event helps to launch the professional tennis season.
New VuePix ER screen for TES
The major Australian production company based in Darwin has invested again in VuePix technology. Following their initial purchase of VuePix screen in 2013, and reacting to a great demand and latest trends on the market, Colin West (MD) hasn’t hesitated to entrust VuePix brand again, this time investing in the latest ER4.6 technology.
iF Design Award 2017 for TT series
We are proud to announce our TT series has received a world-renowned iF Design Award for 2017. The winning product, Creative Triangle TT8, was nominated and later selected as a winner of the 1.20 Industry / Skilled Trades category.
260 VUEPIX Q3 PANELS FOR CLIFTON PRODUCTIONS
Clifton Productions just landed a great quantity of VuePix HD Q3.9 LED panels!
“The key features that stood out when deciding on the VuePix Q Series cabinets were its excellent grey scale and high contrast black faced LED’s”, says James Pavey, Clifton’s Product Manager.
New VuePix Screen for Circle on Cavill
The LED Screen installed by VUEPIX is positioned on the corridor that joins the two residential towers on the 4th floor facing the piazza area of Circle on Cavill.
Gospel Skouspel 2016
MGG Productions have been working together with lighting designer Joshua Cutts from Visual Frontier on the new production of Gospel Skouspel at the end of last year. Gospel Skouspel 2016 took place at the Moreleta Park Auditorium in Pretoria and at the Grand West Arena in Cape Town, South Africa.
VuePix for South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club
The South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club recently acquired a brand new VuePix ER series LED screen for their main auditorium. Club management decided to invest in LED technology to take the entertainment experience for patrons to a new level. The screen consists of forty eight ER4.8 panels – enough to make up a surface measuring 8m x 3m – but the Club will configure the panels in a variety of ways to suit their different show requirements.
VuePix 4K Screen for Rio 2016 Olympics Studio
The Olympic Opening Ceremony at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil kicked off the Games of the XXXI Olympiad. It is the first time that the World’s most watched sporting event is hosted in South America with a record number of countries participating in a record number of sports.
VuePix for SAPOA Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony
MGG Productions from South Africa were called upon to supply the full technical for the SAPOA Annual Convention, which celebrated its fiftieth anniversary at the Sandton Convention Centre’s Pavilion Venue in Johannesburg. For this top-notch occasion, MGG asked lighting designer Francois van der Merwe from Wizardry Group to design both the conference and banquet styled show.
The South African Property Owners Association (SAPOA) is the representative body and official voice of the commercial and industrial property industry in South Africa. As they wanted something extraordinary for their golden celebration, MGG incorporated the largest VuePix configuration they had ever built comprising of some 200 x Q3 3.91mm panels.
The event kicked off in the conference room where a 28m x 4.5m VuePix L6 Series 6.67ml Blend screen was erected. “I designed this site but Rianda van Burick from MGG ran the actual show on a grandMA2 light,” said Francois.
For the actual show, MGG used this event to showcase the 200 x Q3 3.91mm panels from VuePix. “The greatest challenge was the weight and hanging the actual panels. The back truss with the screen on it came to 2.6 tonnes.” The screens created the spectacular effect the client was after.
The show was smooth sailing and looked world class. “I love working with MGG, they have a good crew and they know what they’re doing,” ended Francois. “They do things right. There is one way and that’s the right way. They don’t take shortcuts and that’s the only way to do it.”
200 E Series Panels for The Voice South Africa
The VuePix E Series Screens were used as a centre piece of The Voice final TV set in South Africa.
When the television audience heard that The Voice would come to South Africa, there was a huge response and expectation. For Chris De Lancey from Multi-Media who was awarded the technical supply for The Voice Angola by production Co AMPN, South Africa and Nigeria, it has been a tremendous relief to see the show raise the bar for local televised shows and to meet international standards. The show was recorded at Sasani Studios, Johannesburg.
“First tentative discussions around The Voice began late in 2013, and December of that year, draft 1 budgets were being produced. Two years later it was on us,” said Chris. “When I eventually got sign off I was both elated and terrified at the same time,” Chris shares. “I don’t think I slept for four days before I could speak to anyone and say, right, lets start talking and dealing with this.”
Realising the scale of the task at hand, and that lighting was such a key component of a show this nature, putting together a like minded team of people together to do the show justice was paramount. Joshua Cutts was appointed lighting designer, and after a pitch process, Dewet Meyer of JDM Unlimited was appointed set designer. Multi-Media’s Auriot Booyes was appointed head of audio, which was obviously an integral part of the show. He also backed up as assistant project manager to Chris.
With the backing of the rest of the team from Multi-Media, the planning process began in earnest.
“It was an enormous relief when Josh said he was available to do this thing. I knew obviously that we would be getting one of the best lighting guys in the country but I also knew it would be taking a lot of pressure off me – despite the fact that working with one of the countries tops lighting designers for the first time was quite daunting. It proved to be a very symbiotic relationship,” he said.
Both Josh and Chris wanted to go in with a bang. “We had to make ourselves proud, we had to make the production proud, we had to make South Africa proud in terms of what we did,” said Chris. And then their greatest lesson… they had to hold back a little.
“We obviously had to put together a big lighting system,” Joshua continues. Josh also chatted to the designer from The Voice Holland. “I had some input from him, we had a few discussions about what I might be able to do to enhance the definition of the theatrics of the whole show and maybe use some of his style of lighting from Holland to South Africa if we needed to.”
“My vision was to pixel map as always. I needed big fixtures with large RGB pixel counts in them, so hence I wanted to try Robe Robin CycFX 8s for the first time as a back wall feature. I used Robin LEDBeam 100s between the pixels. As the studio is relatively small, Josh used Robin Pointes for sharp, hard beams or he would zoom out for gobo work. The workhorses, Robin LEDWash 600s, created a blanket was of colour over the space and audience. There were also LED PARS and LED battens.
Front lighting was a challenge as the set and ceiling design were not suited for followspots. Generic front washes were originally used but these fixtures did not give the dynamics to go up and down on stage. “It was generally a focussed instrument that I couldn’t move and manipulate based on each song. We weren’t getting the black levels we wanted in the room and it wasn’t creating the definition and depth we wanted. It wasn’t theatrical enough.”
Josh opted instead for Robe BMFL Blades. “I only use four BMFL Blades from the front for about 80% of my key lights,” he explains. “What’s interesting is I tried to use them as programmable followspots so I continually move them around the stage within cues of the song to almost follow the performer from one side of the stage to the other. Two BMFLs are used to wash the entire stage. Then I cut them down to where the performer is. I cut the stage out, and when the performers move, all I do is open the blades. If they go left, I’ll open the left blade, if they move to the right, I’ll open the right blade. That way I’m not changing the intensity of lighting. They are going at 100% and it’s working.”
Josh only uses MDG Atmospheric Hazer for shows. “The trick with a good hazer is to not realize there’s haze in the room until you switch a beam of light on. The room feels dark and black but then suddenly a beam comes on and it’s visually there.”
Vuepix E Series panels were used for the screen. “We started off on the Blinds with 50 panels,” explained Chris. “In the Battles the floor stuff stays and we add side screen to about 100 panels which are mainly used for the team names. For the Live show we go up to 200 panels.”
The Voice has been a privilege for Chris and Josh to be part of. “The Voice really focuses on the talent. You can’t call them contestants, you call them talent, there are no judges – there are coaches,” Chris elaborates. “There’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to find this talent. The Voice is a very specific brand. It needs to look a certain way, it needs to feel a certain way and the full production team’s attention to detail is considerable.”
“I think the thought process behind it is they’ve spent a considerable amount of time finding decent talent, and then when they get them here, they’re not just judging to see how well they can sing. They coach them quite heavily, they teach them how to sing, to use the stage, to use a mic. That’s the ethos. It’s not just a talent show with one winner. Everyone who leaves this place must feel that they’ve gained something from it. A constant thing I hear people talk about, and the one thing they really appreciate, is that the coaches are not derogatory about the performance at all. The coaches are very nurturing, it’s a very positive environment that they try and create.”
It’s a winning formula, and when you sit and think about it, Chris De Lancey and his team from Multi-Media have done a remarkable job.
FASHFEST 2015 Canberra
FashFest 2015, Canberra’s own red-carpet event celebrating fashion, arts and culture, was held in the nation’s capital a few weeks ago. An exciting mix of local talent hit the runway with more than 30 fashion designers launching their new collections for this year.
Staged for the first time in the National Convention Centre, this year’s event was again bigger and better than in previous years. The four-night marathon dedicated solely to fashion & art introduced fresh fashion collections from Canberra’s most talented young artists, brought to life by more than 80 models with the support of fourteen top live musicians and DJs.
Elite Sound and Lighting were once again the Platinum partner of Fashfest, lighting up the catwalk and all the event’s premises and providing the state-of-the-art sound for the main fashion show as well as numerous VIP after-parties & publicity events. Darren Russell (MD of Elite S&L) took up the role of Technical Director of Sound and Lighting of FashFest and together with his talented crew proved again that they are the ‘Elite’ of Canberra’s production & installation providers.
The centerpiece of the fashion show was a huge VuePix E12 screen (90 panels), which was flown above the DJ area in the center of the main fashion show stage. The screen was mainly used for streaming the super-sharp live videos of the fashion show during the evening, helping the excited fashion lovers not to miss any interesting details on the catwalk. During the entrée, défilé and breaks, the VuePix screen was used together with projection screens placed on each side of the stage to showcase the promotional videos, designers’ logos and sponsors’ adverts.
Darren Russell, Technical Director of Sound and Lighting of FashFest 2015 comments: “This is our third year as the production partner for Fashfest and every year we have included lots of Robe and Vuepix, with this year being no exception. This year we have a bigger LED screen and have introduced the powerful BMFL to the mix“.
Fashfest 2015 was a great success, shining the spotlight on some of the most talented local designers and helping Canberra’s fashion industry to grow.
Multi-Media Events invests in VuePix
Multi-Media Events – one of the leading event production companies in South Africa – has invested into the new VuePix LED video walls. DWR Distribution, the VuePix partner in SA, took the opportunity to ask Tim Fish, the owner of the company, a few questions about his recent purchase.
Multi-Media, has historically always placed more emphasis on its AV inventory rather than the other disciplines. We invested in the correct tools to allow flexibility in delivering picture perfect multi-screen and widescreen applications. As the business grew, we started investing in premium audio and lighting brands to support the AV inventory. For us it has always been about delivering an exceptional product and rather understating our product/service, to exceed the expectations of our client base. The acquisition of the high resolution VuePix screen was a natural extension of our inventory, offering flexibility in a variety of applications.
Why did you choose this particular product? How many panels do you have?
We chose the 3.6mm product to differentiate us from that of our competitors. The other main factor is that the majority of South African venues have very low ceilings. With the high resolution, we can now offer creative AV concepts in smaller venues. Guests can also be seated closer to the screen and still have a detailed image. We chose the VuePix product, as there is extensive flexibility in the manipulation of the image quality, particularly in the refresh rate, and the gamma, and colour correction. For our first purchase we have acquired 90 panels, we are however realising that we will need to make a further investment to keep up with client demand.
How do you see this product changing your events? In the Virgin Active Star Awards production hosted in Johannesburg recently it served as a digital background, used less set, and even lighting took a back seat?
We have done a series of events in venues with a high ambient light factor. The screen really alleviates this problem and clients have reacted to this very favourably. The black levels are exceptional too in these environments.
For the Virgin event, we used the 3.6mm as the main content screen in widescreen format. We then used the 12.5mm screen as a digital set element. The content at times would work together and also separately to not detract from the key points within the content. It was great to make use of less set pieces and offer the client wider visual platform to engage with the audience on a much larger scale.
Were you the full technical supplier at this event?
For the Virgin event, we were contracted to fulfill all the technical elements for this particular project. There was a Conference day, the Awards area a Party area and a preliminary dinner. The full equipment component translated into roughly 36 tonnes between all the areas.
We contracted MGG Productions for the 12.5mm screen and additional lighting fixtures. We were very impressed by this product. It is exceptionally versatile and comes in at a great price point. So much so, this resulted in us placing an order for a 100 panels of this product for an upcoming project in Zambia.
Did you use the Vuepix for the first time on this particular show?
The Virgin event was the 3rd event for the 3.6mm screen. The screen has been out for two other events before hand. The first of which was in a Depot/warehouse with a lot of ambient light, the other in a client’s Atrium, again with a lot of ambient light. We have since used the screen on a golfing event at Sun City, which was also very well received by the marketing team for that particular corporate.
Anything else you may want to add, highlights, feedback you may want to include?
On the Virgin event the 3.6mm product was superb. The image quality in this environment far superseded that of projection! A completely uniform, bright image with no mission of trying to blend projectors. We did however have a challenge in designing a structure for the screen as we could only hang 100kg per point from the roof of the venue. This resulted in us designing a Prolyte structure with an our-rigged cantilever. The full screen weighed over a ton, so this was an interesting challenge. The other huge learning curve with LED is that it takes time to set it up and it takes time to take it down, particularly if you want to look after the screen properly.
I guess the main issue for us now is trying to develop critical mass with the product. Rumor has it that there are a few other industry players who own other VuePix products who are interested in the 3.6mm.
VuePix visits DWR Distribution in South Africa
It was a great pleasure to welcome Cuono Biviano, the owner of VuePix and also the managing director of the Australian based ULA Group, to South Africa. VuePix is a dynamic market leader in LED screen technology and with a dedication to research and development are able to provide a high quality LED display system solution for indoor and outdoor applications.
DWR Distribution are the official distributors of VuePix in South Africa. On his visit Cuono Biviano was able to meet up rental companies MGG Productions, Multi-Media Events, Fogtech, Black Motion and In Harmony Productions, a few of these already stockist of various VuePix models.
VuePix screens are becoming the centrepiece of events and the high-resolution screens are built to impress. “It’s adding a new dimension to events and for DWR, it’s not only about offering our clients a good product, but having the back up from Cuono and his team. That’s what really makes the difference,” commented Duncan Riley of DWR. “ Needless to say, once Cuono’s feet touched African soil, we were in for a treat with a lot of laughter and good times in the mix.”
“It was an absolute pleasure to visit DWR and meet all of the remarkable and talented team,” said Cuono Biviano. “The facilities were beyond my expectation and the work ethic and comradely between the team was nothing but true to the statement ‘It is all about the people’. Meeting some of the key VuePix clients with Duncan and Schalk was truly fantastic. The caliber of the production houses is world class and their respect for VuePix brand is brilliant. It was inspirational to see them using VuePix products in very creative ways for everything from rock & roll concert productions to corporate events. A big thank you goes to DWR for their outstanding support and distribution of VuePix and commitment to their VuePix clients. I look forward to the ongoing growth of VuePix in South Africa.”
The visit ended with a trip to a local game park where Cuono could meet up close with a few wild cats. He also had a tour of the Wondercaves, discovered by Italian miners in 1898 and one of the 12 Cradle of Humankind World Heritage sites.
“It was an excellent trip,” commented Schalk Botha from DWR. “It was a lot of fun meeting all the clients and everyone had a ball.”
MGG Productions invest in VuePix in South Africa
Mark Gaylard, owner of MGG Productions, has forged ahead as the first investor in a VuePix E-Series Pro 12mm LED Mesh Screen in South Africa. The mesh panels went straight into the music production Afrikaans is Groot
MAMAs
The MAMAs – MusicACT Annual Music Awards recognising excellence in the music industry in Australia’s capital city – took place in Albert Hall in Canberra at the beginning of December. For this special night celebrating and honouring Canberra’s most talented artists, the Albert hall was beautifully lit with kaleidoscopic colours, lifting the venue to spectacular heights.
Sound and lighting production was managed by one of Canberra and the ACT’s premier Audiovisual Production and Installation suppliers – Elite Sound and Lighting. The main stage for the ACT’s music industry’s night of nights featured big VuePix screen consisting of 32 L10 panels. The custom content for the screen was streamed from ArKaos A30 Media Server.
The lighting rig consisted of 12 Robin 600 LEDWashes and 8 Robin 600E Spots. The lighting and visual effects were controlled by ChamSys MQ200 Pro and MQ100 Expert consoles. Two Le Maitre MVS Hazers were used for special effects.
The MAMAs spectacular performances featured over 100 artists of diverse genres – from classical to jazz, choral to folk, country to rock to electronic, and much more.
Congratulations to all of the 2013 MAMAs winners!
V8 Superfest
V8 Superfest on the Gold Coast, the month-long festival of fast cars & first class entertainment, ended in style with GC600 Sounds Concert on Surfers Paradise beach. MPH Australia supplied the lighting for this event, which is known as the Gold Coast’s biggest Party. Clifton Productions supplied Rigging and staging.
The huge stage was set up right on the beach. The lighting rig was based on the headline act The Presets and specified by lighting designer Martin Phillips. It consisted of several VuePix LED Mesh screens (M10 and P18 panels).
Wall of Light – La Boite Theatre
ULA Group has made another firm commitment to the Australian theatre industry by becoming a key sponsor of the ‘Wall of Light’ – a unique digital artwork project of La Boite Theatre Company in Brisbane.
The original project ‘Wall of Light’ came to life at the beginning of this year, when theatre management was seeking creative ways in which to thank to their donors and supporters and display their names in the foyer of the theatre.
La Boite is committed to working in a sustainable way to meet the future with a clean, green conscience and seeks also the right eco-aware suppliers, who can contribute to their commitment by providing energy efficient solutions. That is why they engaged the ULA Group with their concept of an interactive way of presenting their thanks and acknowledgement of their sponsors.
Blair Terrace worked closely with Terese Casu, who was General Manager of the Theatre. Having heard their concept, and the unique nature of the project he decided to specify a VuePix LED mesh (M20) screen for the foyer area. The screen is fit into “board style” frame and has a frosted layer of diffused Acrylic in front, where the names of the sponsors are engraved.
The graphics and artistic content has been generated and is controlled via ArKaos Media Master Software. The Vuepix LED Mesh illuminates the wall with subtle color patterns and abstract video images, these can be customized to suit depending on the time of day, actual performance etc. This digital art piece gives great flexibility and creative possibilities for La Boite’s designers, wanting to promote their theatre’s performance and create a specific atmosphere, which gives you a different feeling every time you enter the foyer.
Cuono Biviano, Managing Director of ULA Group comments: “It is with great pleasure for us to support this unique visual piece of art and give back to the industry which gave so much to us. My hat goes off to all those involved at La Boîte in designing the Wall of Light and respect to all other sponsors of the theatre. We look forward to the continual support of La Boîte.”
Blair Terrace & Cuono Biviano (ULA Group), John Schere (La Boite Theatre)
Paul Makeham, Chair of La Boite Theatre Company Board says: “We saw this as an innovative and exciting approach to fundraising. We were humbled by the response from our loyal base of supporters, and feel incredibly proud of the outcome. The Wall itself is a beautiful addition to the look and feel of the company, but more importantly, its symbolic value for the organisation is priceless.”
Another Poker prize for VuePix
Clifton Productions provided their services to yet another Poker series. ‘World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific’ set and recorded at Crown Casino in Melbourne. Working closely with set designer LD Mal Nicholls. All of Mal Nicholls designs where custom built and supplied by Clifton Productions – trussing, lighting, flooring, circular riser, Video Screens, etc.
VuePix 6mm LED Screens were again the choice product for the set, delivering great background graphics and visual effects.
The lightweight slim VuePix T series cabinets are easy and quick to assemble, and provide space saving installations for various purposes. The display can be customized to virtually any size and shape according to project requirements. The Smooth image display with ultra-high resolution and excellent color uniformity provide top quality viewing performance at close viewing distances.
VuePix for Aussie Millions Poker
Clifton Productions recently supplied the set, lighting and LED screens for the Aussie Millions Poker at Crown Casino in Melbourne. Four large VuePix 6mm LED screens where positioned around the poker table. Streaming images and graphics throughout the entire program. The footage from the show will be edited in the US and broadcasted through Foxtel channels.
 |  |
Guy Sebastian – ‘Get Along’ Tour
Guy Sebastian is on his biggest tour to date, traveling Australia with nearly 50 shows of his ‘Get Along’ tour, the latest stage in his impressive career, which has been nothing less than supersonic since winning the first Australian Idol back in 2003.
The tour’s lighting and visuals design has been created by Bruce Ramus, who has worked with Sebastian for about two years. He was given an open brief to come up with a flexible and dynamic scheme to help make the show rock. Ramus had used VuePix screens on the last two of Sebastian’s tours and decided to specify these again.
Simon ‘Junior’ Johnson has been again appointed as a Lighting Director / Operator on the road. The lighting and video equipment is being provided by Melbourne based POWA Productions.
Central to the visuals are the eighty-four VuePix M10 mesh LED screens, running content via an ArKaos media server. All images are custom made by Bruce including hand drawn animation, photo montages made into videos, folded paper montages and animations using particle generation as well as more traditional video.
“It’s a wide range of imagery from figurative to narrative and it’s as diverse as Guy’s music,” remarked Bruce. “There are nine video pieces in the show whilst the rest is lighting and some set pieces we designed for the acoustic section.”
Junior has been working with VuePix on previous Guy Sebastian tours. He comments on the visual flexibility when using VuePix Screens. “…VuePix Mesh screens give you endless possibilities for creating lighting designs.”
The main challenge has been dealing with the different sizes and eclectic nature of the venues, which have varied greatly. They are playing all the capital cities and numerous regional centers over the tour¹s 14 week duration, for which the design has proved itself to be flexible and adaptable, able to scale up or down to suit the space.
Australian Institute of Sport Awards 2012
Elite Sound and Lighting were behind the production of Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) Awards, held late last year in Canberra. The AIS Awards recognise the outstanding achievements of athletes and coaches over the year.
The 2012 Awards were presented during an evening ceremony in the AIS Arena in Canberra. The night was hosted by Channel 7’s Mark Beretta and woman’s world surfing champion Lane Beachly and celebrated the achievements of Australian sporting champions, highlighting the biggest moments and achievements of the season.
The main stage for the Awards Dinner featured VuePix L10 screen, configured into a pyramid shape which was used for Different organisation and company logo projection as well as the speaker’s background video effects. The specifically designed media content for the screen was streamed from an ArKaos A30 Media Server and scaled using a Vision Pro HD Video Processor.
Both the lighting and LED video content on the VuePix L10 screen were controlled via a ChamSys MQ100 Expert Console. A LeMaitre MVS Hazer was also used for creating haze effects on the stage during the production.
Top Slingsby (sailing) and Alicia Coutts (swimming) were awarded the ‘Athletes of the Year’ tiltle, with the Australian Sailing Coaching Team winning the prize for best Coaches.
Guy Sebastian will be touring Australia again
Guy Sebastian is getting ready for his new Australian “Get Along Tour 2013′, which is planned to be even bigger and better then his ‘Armageddon Tour’, which he toured Nationally mid last year. Kicking off late March in Perth, Guy and his team will be on the road again for more then 3 months with 45 planned stops. The First 10 legs of the new tour have already sold out, which forecasts another very successful project of this first Australian Idol series winner.
Melbourne bases event company, Powa Productions were behind the great success of the Armageddon Tour in 2012. They provided 2 identical touring rigs to ensure smooth logistics & a touring buss for Powa Production crew: Simon “Junior “Johnson (Lighting Director & Operator), Jed Von Hesse, Brendon Malone, Craig Housman and Casey Loraine.
One of Australia’s Leading Lighting Designers- Bruce Ramus worked closely with Powa team to get his great conceptual stage designs into a reality. As the tour venues included both arenas and smaller local clubs, the production component of the tour needed to be really flexible to be able to adapt to all type of stage sizes and venues.
The lighting an video rig consisted of 28x VuePix M10 Mesh panels, floor mounted on the stage into several ’pillars’, providing great visual backgrounds for the band. The content for the screens was managed via 2 Arkaos Media servers. The Lighting rig included 19x Robe 600 LEDWashes mounted in a unique way in a horizontal fashion beside the LED screens. This was possible due to their light weight design and compact size.
The LEDWashes were used both for stage wash as well as visual eye-candy effects. 8x Robin MMX Spots and 7x Robe ColorSpot 700Es were included in the overhead lighting rig as well as on the stage floor, these were used for stage lighting and as backlight. 2x Robe 400 Hazers were used to create haze effects during the show.
Guy Sebastian, who was the first winner of Australian Idol, has released seven top ten albums since his rocket to fame in 2003. His latest single “Get Along”, which was released late last year, will be the opening song for his new Australian Tour.
Thunder on a Hill – HOG Rally
A large number of Australian Harley Fanatics rode from all corners of Australia to celebrate the 22nd Australian National HOG Rally in Canberra late last year. Nearly 1,500 members of the Harley Owners Group (HOG) joined in on the festivities over the three day meet and celebration held in the ACT. The production for the big weekend party ‘Thunder on the Hill’ was organised and delivered by Elite Sound and Lighting, who supplied all the lighting, visual and audio technology.
The centrepiece of the concert stage which was designed for the legendarily Richard Clapton’s performance, was a VuePix L series screen.The 10mm pixel pitch modular screen was utilised for some great visual background effects. All of the displayed content was streamed from an ArKaos A30 Media server through a Vision Pro HD processor and DMX controlled via ChamSys Maxi Wing and Tablet PC.
Richard Clapton didn’t disappoint, singing his iconic hits and adding some new ones to the playlist as well. With Australian music history making act Axiom, Bailey Judd, Rock Monsters and Masterpiece and the Margaritas rocking the stage the other nights, the large crowd of Harley Fans were dancing and celebrating to the beat of classic rock songs throughout the whole long weekend.
The HOG Rally was finished in traditional style with a Thunder Run on Sunday, with all the club members riding in procession on their Harleys through the streets of Canberra, ending at Gold Creek Village with an outstanding Show and Shine bike show.
Bass in the Place, Canberra
Bass in the Place provided an explosive countdown to 2013 for all Canberra locals, who came in force to celebrate New Year’s Eve 2012 with their friends and neighbours at Garema place. Presented by the ACT Government, the all ages dance party showcased the best in local & interstate artists and was a great kick start to the New Year.
Local stars, VJ Insan3 and DJ Rush started the Top 50 2012 songs countdown, before DJ Rawson dominated the dance floor with his creativity and skills behind the decks. DJ stars Chris Fraser & Timmy Trumpet followed spinning some of the biggest dance hits of the year untill late into the evening.
Production for this year was entrusted to Elite Sound and Lighting – Canberra’s leading audiovisual production and installation specialist. The stage featured VuePix E series 12mm screens (90 panels together) as a main visual / video element of the shows. The content for those was run by an ArKaos A30 Media server and rendered through Vision Pro HD Video Processor.
The Stage lighting included some of Robe latest release products 7nd 16x MMX Spot, 16x 600LEDWash & 8x 100 LEDBeam. These were accompanied by16 x SDV Giga Strobes for high intensity strobe effects. The entire rig was controlled by various ChamSys Lighting consoles which included the MQ200 Pro for LX control and MQ100 Expert for screen control.
The midnight fireworks were perfect finish to the event, welcoming the new year in with style.
Prime Minister’s Pacific Australia Awards
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard awarded the top university students from Australia, Asia and the Pacific with the Prime Minister’s Australia Award in December last year. 40 Australian and 50 international students had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the academic and social culture of their host country through research, study and work placements, including internship placements for some award holders.
Foreshore Music Festival, Canberra
The Australian festival lovers met at the end of November in the very heart of Canberra at Commonwealth Park to enjoy the sixth year of the Foreshore Music Festival. The world’s hottest bands and electronic acts assembled together along with an army of true Australian festival die hards who returned to rock the parliamentary triangle again. The Foreshore 2012 Line up featured world leading DJs and acts such as Tiësto, Calvin Harris, 360, Example, Naughty By Nature, Dash Berlin and many more.
Elite Sound and Lighting – who are considered the ACT’s premier audiovisual production and installation specialist – provided the entire festival production, with the exception of the Kicks Stage audio, including lighting, audio, vision rigging and crowd barriers.
The main two stages featured over 190 Vuepix 12.5mm E-series panels, over 50 Robin Lighting fixtures from Robe, LeMaitre Hazers, SDV Giga Strobes, ChamSys consoles for control, ArKaos A30 Media Server and Vision Pro HD Processors which controlled the video content.
The lighting and visual specs for ‘Hi Top Stage’ included more VuePix E Series video panels and a combination of Robin 600 LEDWashes and Robin 600E Spots accompanied with 8 SDV Giga Strobes and a LeMaitre Star Hazer for speciall effects. All controlled by ChamSys Maxi Wing + Tablet PC. An ArKaos A30 Media server an Vision Pro HD Processor were used to manage all video content.
Foreshore Festival is more than just about the music, it is about the total festival experience at one of the most beautiful and unique festival sites in the country. The 2012 event was the biggest and best show to date and has set a high standard for the years to come.
Summafieldayze Vibes
Summafieldayze – The most popular marathon dance music festival on the Gold Coast calendar, pumped up the crowds of revellers at the Spit at the beginning of January. The festival featured some of the most prominent names in the electronic music scene, including Chemical Brothers with a custom-designed show, live renegade M.I.A, Fedde Le Grand, Mark Ronson, Hot Chip, The Faders, Kimbra and many more, the Gold Cost crowds welcomed in the new year with style!
Clifton Productions were once again the main supplier of lighting and video technology for 3 main stages of this monster event. Those featured all together over 200 of VuePix panes and 150 Robe moving lights. The centrepiece of Stage 1 designed for MIA as a highlight of the evening was an extensive VuePix video wall consisting of 96 x Vuepix P18 panels.
The second stage was custom designed for the unique Chemical Brother’s DJ show . It featured 88 x Vuepix P18 panels, streaming original content specifically for the legendary British DJ duo.
The “Hot Chip “concept designed stage featured another 30 x Vuepix P18 panels. Those who came to join the sea of shirtless men and scantily clad ladies enjoyed a great evening with some of the world’s best electronic music. The festival goers stayed enthusiastically grooving well in to the night, leaving a little less polished and a little more sun burnt.
Photo credits @ Zachary Burton
New VuePix screen delivered to Total Event Services in Darwin
Total Event Services – the major australian production company based in Darwin, has recently invested in new release LED Video Technology. The latest and greatest visual delight to take up residence in Australia’s Top End is a Vuepix E Series LED mesh Display system. With approx. 60 panels of VuePix E series in their Hire and event inventory the Vuepix buzz has reached The Northern Territory.
VuePix drives the style at 2012 Australian Motor Show
A number of VuePix displays were specified for 2012 Australian International Motor Show (AIMS) which was recently held at the Sydney Exhibition centre in Darling Harbour. All the VuePix video displays for Holden, Lamborghini and Mitsubishi stands were supplied by Clifton Productions.
The Holden booth featured the longest video LED display on the entire exhibition floor, totalling 54.4m of VuePix screens. The centre main screen was built from sixty M10 panels, which were seamlessly integrated with 20 VuePix P18 panels on each side. These 2 models of Vuepix Led displays ran all the visuals through the entire Holden Exhibit. All the screen content was controlled via an v i7 Quad Core MacBook Pro. Three ImagePro HD scalers were looped through each other to merge the individual screens. The single piece of HD content was then scaled into the correct position using the ImagePro boxes.
The Lamborghini display incorporated 2 x VuePix P6 display configurations (both consisting of 16 panels), each of them being built into freestanding truss arches.
VuePix screens were also used as a visual centrepiece for the video content displayed on the Mitsubishi booth. 75 pieces of Vuepix P18 Panels were arranged in 17.3m wide x 5 metre high screen, which resulted in one of the widest displays of the show. The unique video content was designed to support the custom aspect of the display. Screen content was driven from a MacBook Pro via an ImagePro HD. Clifton’s Project Manager for the show was Michael Parsons, and their lighting team consisted of Matt Hansen (Holden) and Rowan Denny (Mitsubishi / Mazda).
Pines Point Retail Shopping Centre
Pines Point is an architecturally designed L shape complex featuring a selected mix of tenancies from Dominos Pizza to Raine and Horne Reality and many more leading business. Developers of Pines Point wanted to add a difference to the site and offer their tenants extra advertising opportunities and to let locals know about their special offers. They decided to utilized the road side sign space at the entrance of the complex with an VuePix LED Billboard in the top half.
Each LED Billboard on either side of the sign is comprised of 6x VuePix L10 Outdoor Front Service panels creating a dynamic means of advertising through an externally managed media centre where content can be updated and scheduled for release any time, from anywhere over an internet connection. Since opening, stores have recorded vast improvements of walk in traffic as a result of the screen been a prominent feature that locals travel past every day.
VuePix L Series have excellent brightness, outstanding contrast, and can be configured into a wide range of standard and custom ratios all housed in an innovative slim-line design, making them ideal for use in the most demanding environments.
A truly modular design approach means very simple and fast replacement of all components, whether it’s a LED module or control/power module.
VuePix launching New C7 Screen
VuePix launched the new Exciting C7 screen at HSL booth at Plasa 2012 in London.
The revolutionary new C7 screen features a dual screen mode, which gives you the option of having transparent mesh screen or a solid screen in one product. The Panels feature SMD 3528 (3 in 1) LEDs, arranged in a matrix with a resolution of 7.2 pixel pitch.
The screens are equipped with a specially designed angling system (with five angle options) enabling users to build attractive curve shaped screens in both horizontal and vertical formats in either convex or concave directions.
The advanced IP waterproof protection system makes the C Series panels a smart choice for production companies.
VuePix on Display at Integrate 2012
Over the next 3 days ULA Group will be showcasing the latest products from VuePix’s extensive innovative range at Integrate 2012 in the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre – 21st to 23rd August.
Visit ULA Group located in Hall 5, Stand H40 where you can checkout all the latest VuePix technology been released into the market.
Exciting new products from VuePix you won’t want to walk past:
- E12 – 12mm Curved LEDMesh Screen
- L6 – 6mm SMD Outdoor Screen
- N4 – High Resolution LED Screen
- C9 – 9mm Curved LED Mesh Display
- M10 – Light Weight LED Mesh Screen
- DigiFlex – Soft, Flexible, Magnetised LED Screen
- D16 – Dance Floor LED Screen
VuePix Screen For The Biggest Australian Tavern
Gracefully situated on the slopes of Eatons Hill in North Brisbane is Queenland’s largest and most exciting new hotel complex. Stunning in design and appointed with contemporary flair, the Eatons Hill Hotel is the great new venue for leisure, entertainment and fun.
The first stage has recently been opened, just a section of this massive 7,500 sqm, 4 storey complex, which is the biggest hotel development Brisbane has seen in many years. It features a 2,000 people capacity function room designed to host some of the biggest Australian touring bands, 8 bars, 100 beer taps, 120 hotel rooms and many other entertainment and leisure facilities.
 |
The Beer garden is one of the venue’s main bars, designed to provide great atmosphere and chill out time not only for beer lovers. A VuePix L-series 10mm pixel pitch video screen was selected for this area. With a focus on delivering high quality all weather content to the Taverns Patrons, the screen measures a generous 5×2.8 meters, and can be used as either a huge video screen or as a background for live entertainment on the outdoor stage to produce great visual effects. The VuePix L ED display is rigged from 4 Chain master 250kg motors. This allows the Eaton’s hill staff to raise and lower the screen depending on the requirements of each event.
 |  |
The VuePix screen is delivered content via a VisionPro HD scaler, which accepts High Definition video from a HDTV receiver. For other events the VisionPro also has composite and DVI/VGA inputs available. This allows the screen to be flexibly used for differing events. Another key component is the daylight sensing card which automatically “dims” the screen brightness in low light and night time conditions.
|  |
One of the most striking fixtures of the entire site, is an ages old tree with branches that span over purpose built decks. These locations really give the whole complex a nested in nature feel, something that really stands out throughout the venue. This extremely large tree has been lit on 3 sides with iLED Pro outdoor multipar fixtures. These along with several others lighting key trees around the venue, receive DMX control from a dedicated e:Cue system. Running the latest release version of the e:Cue Lighting Application Suite, the e:Cue system can be manipulated by either the attached touch screen monitor, or the e:Cue remote iPad/iPhone application.
The dance floor area of the Main Bar is again equipped with an e:Cue control system. Dedicated for this area the e:Cue is setup with a touch screen monitor which allows DJ’s to easily select the type of lighting they require. A DMX loop links Robe Scan 250XTs, iLED Pro LED Stage Zoom wash, LEDSource TriColor Multipars and effects lighting, into the e:Cue system.
 |  |
John Buchanan from ULA Group comments: “Working to the brief from the client I believe we have helped create a fantastic space that many people will enjoy. From the Vuepix LED screen to the lighting control, this project has been an exciting challenge”.
John worked closely with Bruce Forbes the audio/visual consultant on the project, to provide some exciting use of the latest technologies available.
The next stage of the Eatons Hill complex will also include two VuePix P12 Roadside displays each measuring 3×2 meters, that will be used to promote the hotel and its special events. These will sit beside the busy road that passes the tavern to best capture the potential audience.
VuePix on Hairspray
Bytecraft Entertainment supplied over 96 VuePix P6 LED panels to the much hyped Australian production of Hairspray which was showing at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre.
This show has big everything – big hair, big voices, big characters, so to make this show a visual feast never seen before, a big LED screen was needed – a set design based around total interactive multimedia was formed and initially conceived by Director, David Atkins. David joined forces with Production Designer Eamon D’arcy, Lighting Designer Trudy Dalgleish and Technical Director Richard Martin to make this technical achievement come to life.
 |  |
From the moment you enter the auditorium you are met with the proscenium arch trimmed with LED ropes that outline a giant 1960’s television to view all the on stage action which sets the 60’s mood. As the show begins the VuePix screen splits up in to 3 sections and can move upstage, downstage and an extra 8 screens come on stage to view and once the animation starts its set to blow you off your chair! This design of the screens moving is set to be one of the most challenging aspects of the entire show, and never seen before in Australian theatre.
The VuePix screens are fully interactive, with characters turning off images of light switches and televisions, opening and closing windows and also being able to jump into the animation itself, almost like a cartoon which is a delight for the audience.
 |  |
Lighting Designer Trudy Dalgleish says “The show is a totally new way of presenting a theatrical visual design. For the first time the set (the screens) are actually a lighting instruments, so it was great to be able to fully integrate all design elements as sources of light. The show is a great big cartoon that the cast interact with and live in. I think the end product is amazing visually, its great to see audiences reactions when all the screens light up and they realise what they are about to see, and the overwhelming nature of the show visually”.
 |  |
The bonus of having the VuePix LED screens as the main prop and design onstage is that it allows for very few stage crew, and also layers of media scrolls up and down seamlessly jumping from one scene to the next. Live video is fed to the screens at numerous points in the show and on occasions characters are even followed around by animated shadows, and the beauty of the VuePix LED screens is that it makes up the entire set. There was 3000 individual media objects loaded into Only View which played the show back. Most of the animation and lighting cues were automatically cued using time code. The creative content on the screens was by Content Director Robbie Klaesi with content designs by Tracey Taylor.
This is the first time Trudy has work with VuePix LED screens, “I really enjoyed working with the LED screens, it was the first time I have worked with VuePix and I found that they didn’t have as much of a problem with pixelating around a person that I have seen on other brand of LED screens. The VuePix screens were so bright we ran them at around 10%!”.
The Hairspray prod uction has now moved on to its next venue in Sydney, with its past success being enjoyed by the new crowds.
Stereosonic 2010
Stereosonic 2010 dance festival hit Sydney first going off with a bang, bringing Europe’s top DJ’s to Australian shores. Clifton productions were engaged to stage and light the Stereosonic main stage of the tour in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. Headlining the lineup as a main attraction was Tiesto. The main stage also included festival favourites such as Carl Cox, Calvin Harris, Sebastian Ingrosso and Benny Banassi. As the Stereosonic Main Stage had the biggest line ups, an impressive stage of visuals was a must, and those designs were surely achieved by lighting designer and operator, Matthew Smith.
 |  |
The Main Stage was an 18m x 12m structure made and supplied by Clifton Productions, with an extra 20m of scaffold structure either side of stage with panels of VuePix P18 square cubes in the bays. Each cube had 2 panels of VuePix P18’s, and each letter on the bays was illuminated with a iLEDpro Source 36. A total of 116 VuePix P18’s were used in 3 sections of the back stage on curved truss, complemented by 50 VuePix P25 panels in front of the DJ Riser. In the space between the P18 screens along the back of the stage were 36 iLED PixeLEDs.
 |  |
The effect lighting above the stage comprised of 18 Robe 700EAT Spots as well as 8 Robe Robin LEDWash 600’s near the DJ riser with 6 Robe REDWashes in front of the DJ and in each corner of the stage.
 | |
Alive Tech flock with Birds of Tokyo
Birds of Tokyo are a 4 piece band from Perth who have had numerous hits on Australia’s Top 10 music countdown. After years of success, they have recently toured around Australia promoting their newly released album – Birds of Tokyo.
Alive Technology Group went on tour with Birds of Tokyo, supplying an array of VuePix LED panels and Robe moving lights. Every venue on the Australian tour was a sellout, with venues seating up to 5000 attendees. Alive Technology Group had a tight schedule to fulfill.
|  |
Owner, David Bell, from Alive says “Our client wanted a high impact rig on tour that would fill large venues to draw the crowds’ attention to the stage at all times, as well as having the ability to convey the songs visually via high definition video backgrounds”. David could meet his client’s criteria, supplying 30 VuePix P18 LED panels on the back of the stage, set up as one 10×3 super wide screen to fill the stage and impact on the larger venues.
The tour’s Lighting Designer Steve Granville says “We spent a long time picking vision for the show. We wanted to create not only an effect with the screen but build a setting for the performance.” He continues, “The VuePix panels I have used in the past have blown me away. We were running from flat single colour graphics through to full HD footage and it looked amazing across the board. Alive Technology Group were an absolute pleasure to work with, nothing is ever a problem with these guys”.
 |  |
The rig also comprised of 16 Robe ColorSpot 700E’s and 12 Robe ColorWash 575EAT’s. Steve says “All the fixtures performed brilliantly on the tour, it was the first time for me using the Robe 700 fixtures in this environment and I would be hard pressed to go back to anything else now!”
David Bell stated that this was one of the best lighting shows he has ever seen. Management from Thebarton Theatre in Adelaide said ‘The LED display behind the band probably blew the budget out a little but with a sell out at Thebarton Theatre the move was more than justifiable, adding to the big gig ambience’.
Katy Perry Rocks Out with VuePix
The Future Music Debit MasterCard Priceless Music Series kicked off its 2010 calendar rocking Melbourne’s Plaza Ballroom stage in early August 2010, with ‘Californian Gurl’ Katy Perry, playing her one and only Australian performance this year.
Clifton Productions were engaged to light an eye catching stage with an impressive VuePix display. In the Plaza Ballroom, located underneath the Regent Theatre, looks very much like a film set – with chandeliers and swirling light patterns on the walls. The stage was decked out with large candy cane props, oversize lollies and sweets with much of the visuals personally overseen by Katy Perry.
 |  |
The main visuals on stage were provided from a VuePix P6 SMD LED Screen, 28 panels (7 x 4) configured ground stacked on Clifton Productions custom made rolling dolly as there was nowhere to hang upstage. The Catalyst based visuals driven through this set up was by Matt Hansen from MPH Productions. These provided colourful graphics of colour on stage which suited the mood for the American Pop Star’s infectious smashing hits – the lighting designs and operation by LD Brad Teagan
from the USA.
|  |
Clifton Productions also supplied the lighting and visuals for Katy Perry on Channel 7’s Sunrise the following day. Systems Technician / Production Manager Michael Parsons from Clifton Productions says “Everyone was really happy the LED visuals on stage and it suited the style of Katy Perry and her music. We use these screens over and over again on numerous productions and they perform great with quick set up, which is great particularly in live gigs”.
VuePix L Series – Making its debut at Integrate 2010
VuePix L Series – Making its debut at Integrate 2010
With its debut release into the Australian market at Integrate 2010, it created incredible interest across a wide range of markets and industries.
Integrate 2010 was held at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion complex from 24th to 26th August 2010. The exhibition was well attended, attracting over 90 exhibitors. ULA Group’s stand introduced the “VuePix® latest technology experience” attracting great numbers. This experience made ULA Group a key exhibitor and certainly the largest lighting and visual exhibitor at the show.
 |  |
The VuePix® P-10′ panels from the L Series feature an innovative light weight design, with each module weighing a low 18.5kgs which are around 30% lighter than other competitive products. This fully modular system enables the L Series to be serviced by hand and with no tools required to interchange modules and power supplies.
|  |
VuePix® was certainly the talk of the show, also displaying the P6 VirtualPix Outdoor screen, P5 SMD Indoor Screen and P18 SMD LED Screen’s on the stand. The enthusiasm of LED technology has truly taken hold, with huge interest in all the VuePix® range. VuePix® screens cater for all industry needs offering LED displays from 5mm to 31mm pixel pitch in a variety of formats.
VuePix Centrepiece for Canon
PMA (Photo Marketing Association) Australia 2010 Digital Life Expo was held in June 2010 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre exhibiting stands and seminars to keen enthusiasts wanting to know more about digital photo imagery and the latest technology. PMA is one of the largest Photography shows in Australia, recording this year’s largest attendance of all years totally in excess of 23,000 registrations.
 | |
One major exhibitor was Canon, and they were looking for the latest visual technology centerpiece on their Canon stand. The stands designer, Virtual Display Group, met with Clifton Productions System Tech James Pavey to come up with a solution to meet Canon’s needs.
 |  |
As the clients wanted a large high resolution screen, James decided to supply a VuePix P6 SMD cabinet, built into a custom set piece, split up into two sections. The configuration of the screen was 7 panels wide by 8 panels deep. The top section was 5 panels deep playing a 16:9 video. The bottom 3 panels were displaying a banner for an EOS competition.
James says “The clients were extremely happy with the overall display and visual impact that the VuePix P6 provided. We are using more and more of the P6 in exhibition work due to the resolution of the cabinets combined with quick and easy set up”.
VuePix on Show for Chinese Karaoke Competition
The grand final for a popular Chinese Karaoke television competition was held at Palms Crown Casino in May 2010, broadcasted from Melbourne to China.
Due to the broadcast nature of the show, lighting director Kate Hall saw the need for additional movement on the stage. Having used VuePix P18 SMD LED mesh panels on Little Birdie previously, she contacted Clifton Productions to supply the LED screens again as this was the piece missing to light up the stage.
Due to a small budget, only a small amount of panels were supplied with high impact consisting of a total of 20 x P18 SMD LED mesh panels. Configuration of the middle screen was 3 panels wide x 4 panels deep. Either side of middle screen was configured into strips of 1 panel wide x 4 panels deep.
 | |
Kate drove the screen from FOH with the in house Grand MA and a Catalyst server. James Pavey from Clifton Productions
said everyone was extremely happy with the graphics the screen produced on stage as this complimented and made the lighting show.
VuePix on FOX SPORTS
FOX SPORTS have recently installed two new sets in their Pyrmont studios, designed by Mal Nichols from Mal Nichols & Associates. ULA has provided solutions to Mal with a new customized VuePix P10 screen which includes a customized airflow system which minimizes fan noise for recording on set, with a higher refresh rate.
FOX SPORTS is Australia’s leading sports broadcaster, screening an average of around 21 hours of LIVE sport each day across three dedicated channels (FOX SPORTS 1, 2, 3) as well as FOX SPORTS 1HD, FOX SPORTS 2HD and FOX SPORTS 3HD.
 |  |
When Mal was asked by FOX SPORTS to come up with a new approach through a screen for the set, he wanted to try a new form of visual display. Mal says “I was asked to create a more graphical approach to the set. I chose VuePix as I wanted to create a new integrated style using LED away from Plasma displays which have been used a lot. I also chose VuePix because of the flexibility and user friendliness with the DMX in the studio control area”.
Mal’s influence behind the set design was to have the set marry up to the concept of the initial graphic brief where elements have been used utilizing shiny surfaces, elements of perforations/pixels mimicking the LED Screen/Stainless steel and LED lighting effects.
Mal says “I was asked to create a set that became versatile with lighting shades and colour to enable a day time program to be bright and a night time show with warmer subtle tones”. To do this, Mal chose to use RGB Flexi LED tape to bring his design to life enabling a seamless glow around the curved surfaces and endless variations through RGB and dimmable control.
|  |
For the Ashes set, a large quantity of RGB Flexi LED tape was used to illuminate all the acrylic and staging on set. Anolis ArcSource 12 fixtures were used behind the Plasma to illuminate up the back wall. Selected also for noise free operation (no fans) and high performance, Anolis ArcSource 12 utilizes luxeon 1w LED emitters.
For the first time VuePix has been used in a host studio environment. Mal says “The lumen’s were at an acceptable level in the RGB Flexi LED tape and the images on the VuePix screen came to be surprisingly clear when we pushed the boundaries”.
VuePix Groovin’ The Moo
Groovin’ The Moo 2010 is a travelling music event that performs in regional cities including Bendigo, Townsville, Maitland, Canberra and Bunbury. Groovin’ The Moo presents a collection of music genres including rock, rap, dance, metal, hardcore and pop and has been growing steadily since its inception in 2005. Headliners include Silverchair, Empire of the Sun, Grinspoon, plus Tegan and Sara. Acts have a strong Australian focus, supplemented by artists from Europe, North and even South America.
 |  |
There are three main stages used throughout the events consisting of the Moolin Rogue Stage, Myspace Stage and Triple J Stage. Clifton Productions supplied an impressive VuePix display comprised of VuePix P18 LED Mesh for the Triple J Stage – specifically for Empire of the Sun and Silverchair. The VuePix P18 has been a regular feature on gigs for Empire of the Sun. Configuration on stage of the VuePix P18’s was 6 panels wide x 7 panels deep at the back of the stage to show custom imagery.. Lighting designs for both these popular bands were by Hugh Taranto who also operated the lighting.
|  |
System Tech James Pavey says “ I like Vuepix as they are easy to set up, easy and simple cabling and there are endless configuration possibilities.
VuePix for Debit MasterCard
Fresh from sell-out shows and festival appearances worldwide, Pendulum, with their high-energy came to Home Nightclub for one exclusive gig for the Debit MasterCard Priceless Music series, where they performed tracks off their new album, Immersion.
While Home Nightclub already has a 40mm pitch LED screen, the band’s rider specified a larger high resolution screen. Clifton Productions replaced this screen with VuePix P6 SMD LED Display. 7 cabinets wide by 5 cabinets deep were configured, to make an impressive 5.4m x 3m screen, leaving a lasting impression to all patrons.
Clifton Productions System Tech James Pavey says “Everyone commented on the resolution of the VuePix P6, commenting the picture was so clear it looked like a Plasma screen, which in fact the resolution of the screen was at 896 x 460. We received a lot of positive feedback on the screen!” The images were driven from a proprietary media server by the bands lighting operator.
 |  |
James said that the VuePix displays are so easy to configure, and assembling is a snap – quick and easy which is great for live work.
 |  |
MSFEST 2010
Over 90 VuePix P18 Outdoor panels took a centre stage at MSFEST 2010, one of the Tasmania’s biggest music festivals. More than 13,000 festival lovers were treated with some of Australia’s best music, including Eskimo Joe, Karnivool, Evermore, Kisschasy, The Potbelleez, Goodwill, Jessica Mauboy and many others.
Being an all ages festival, MS Fest is primarily aimed at the youth market, however the line up and the general festival vibe is conducive to anyone wanting to have a great day.
The 2010 event was an outstanding success, the organizers were able to raise over $150,000 to aid people living with Multiple Sclerosis and The MS Society of Tasmania.
The energy of the crowd was split between the Main Stage and Clubbers Stage. On the Main Stage VuePix panels were linked as a massive 8.4m wide and 5.4m high screen at the back of the stage and used to show live camera feeds mixed with VJ vision
and imagery.
On the Ministry of Sound Clubbers stage VuePix panels were split into two screens, one behind the DJs flown from the roof and the other ground mounted in front of the DJ risers. The back screen configuration was 5 x 4 panels making it approx 6m wide x 2.4m high and the front screen was 5 x 2 panels making it approx 6m wide x 1.2m high. This set up fully covered the stage from floor to roof and was a very effective use of a small stage space.
The 30 VuePix P18 panels were supplied by local Alive Technologies with additional screens supplied by Cliftons.
|  |
The production organiser’s and LD Steve Granville were very happy with the VuePix screens performance. David Bell from Alive Technologies Group comments: “In past years the only screens in the state were too heavy and bulky to even think of flying them in the back of the stages. But now with the introduction VuePix P18 panels it was possible to maintain the same quality and resolution while flying the screen from the stage roof“. The screen was also an integral part of the visual effect of the show as it could be seen during the daylight, as where majority of the lighting did not come into play until dark. During the evening the main stage screen had to be even turned down to 45% intensity so that it did not overpower the artists on stage, such was the visual performance of VuePix P18.
Bell adds: “We have found that more and more clients are asking for the VuePix P18 screen by name, we could not be happier with our decision to purchase this extremely flexible product. There is also no other product of this nature in Tasmania at the moment which is giving us an edge when putting together shows.”
VuePix® on the George Michael Concert
Late February 2010, George Michael hit Australian shores for the first time since 1998. Known for being a consummate performer, not only did he deliver and a great performance, but a stunning stage setup with massive LED screens for his fans that have waited 22 years to see him perform in Australia.
VuePix® P18 LED Mesh Panels were used extensively on stage for additional graphics to be streamed from the main screen. Four screens comprising forty Panels each, 4 Wide x 10 High, two of the screens being above the band on either side of the stage, and the other two were positioned out wide, facing out providing visuals for the audience at the sides of the stadium.
The popular panels VuePix® LED Mesh panels have been used extensively on some of the biggest events, tour and television shows to great effect. The VuePix® P18 LED Mesh Panel continues to be a success with wide usage from touring productions such as George Michael, Powder Finger and many trade events.
 |  |
With a demanding tour date schedule, VuePix ® P18 was ideal – not only great visual performance, but the innovative VuePix® LED Mesh system making assembly/set up and breakdown extremely fast and easy.
George Michael has enjoyed one of the most successful and enduring careers in the history of pop music, selling more than 100 million records globally and encompassing six US No. 1 singles, a Grammy award, three American Music Awards, an MTV Video Music Award and two prestigious Ivor Novello awards for song writing. His record “Faith” has sold over 20 million copies alone.
VuePix on Australian Idol
This years Australian Idol has totally been transformed with the ‘wow’ factor the VuePix ™ P18’s provide. Not only are the new VuePix™ P18 SMD LED mesh panels underneath the stage area, additional VuePix™ P25 RGB LED mesh panels are rigged on vertical curved truss around the stage. 8 vertical fingers have been created in a teared effect. Each P18 panel is 1552 x 576 mm, while the P25 panels are 600 x 600 mm. All graphics are run seamlessly through the screens simultaneously.
VuePix™ is known for its rich colours and modular design that allows amazing screen configurations and graphic reproduction. Whether creating video content or when graphic based material is used, VuePix delivers an impressive display output with maximum flexibility of use – which is a key for ‘live’ work when requirements change from act to act.
 | |
The AFL Grand Final Breakfast
The North Melbourne Grand Final Breakfast is a breakfast function organised by the North Melbourne Football Club for the morning of the AFL Grand Final.
The breakfast marks the traditional beginning to Grand Final day and is one of the big social highlights on the Australian sporting calendar. Watching the event is a ritual for many footy fans and the function plays a huge role in the pre match build up for the AFL Grand Final. The breakfast includes a Grand Auction, with all proceeds being donated to the Starlight Children’s Foundation.
Clifton Productions were employed to provide lighting and visuals for 1500 guests that attracts the who’s who of Australian sport, politics and culture and includes performances from some of the biggest acts in town.
28 x Robe ColorSpot 1200AT and 24 x Robe ColorWash 1200AT’s were used for room washing and rigged above the triangular stage. Also rigged, hanging from the fingers above the stage were 6 x Robe ColorSpot 700EAT along with 31 x iLED LEDSource 36’s for multi colour stage washing. 8 x iLED ColorBank 54’s were placed inside cones to illuminate up these set pieces.
On the back of the stage 10 x iLED Star Drapes were installed with a VuePix P10 display of 12 panels behind the band stage. This was driven by Catalyst media server and switched from the generic holding slide to funky graphics for each of the performances on stage.
Behind the main table on stage, a banner of VuePix P6 LED panels were configured 10 panels wide by 2 panels deep. This screen was primarily used for sponsor’s logos in the background of this table. With a resolution of 1280 pixels, this screens images were processed by a Folsom ImagePro. All room visual media was operated by James Pavey from Clifton Productions. Lighting Tech’s were Aaron Humber and Justin Ogge, with Lighting Designs by Alex Saad and Don Collins.
|
Production Manager Brad King from Cliftons Productions says “Everyone was extremely happy with the room visuals and overall effect of the AFL Breakfast. This event was a great success and we are happy to be apart of this yearly event again”.
 |  |
2009 Brownlow Medal
The Brownlow Medal Count is the most prestigious annual award on the Australia sporting calendar. Staged at the Palladium Ballroom at Melbourne’s Crown Casino complex, the 2009 Brownlow dinner was attended by over 1000 sporting celebrities and VIPs, broadcast live on Australia’s Channel 7 TV. Clifton Productions supplied a large array of equipment at this years 2009 Brownlow Medal event. Robe moving lights, Anolis LED fixtures, VuePix P6 LED Screens and iLEDpro fixtures were all in full force, used on stage and throughout the venue.
The art direction of the Brownlow’s was by Designer Mal Nichols of Mal Nichols and Associates. “The design elements had to be 3 dimensional to allow lighting and texture to the back drop of the talent”, says Mal. “And the lighting had to be flexible to allow for subtle changes within the presentation incorporating the background. We also utilized LED down lights in the base of the 3D boxes to create a textured feel behind the talent”, says Mal.
In the Atrium of the Crown Casino 10 x Robe REDWashes, 8 x Robe ColorWash 1200AT’s and 4 x Robe ColorSpots 1200AT’s were used as guests entered the red carpet area. Lighting Designer Rob Coia says “This years telecast of the Brownlow was a great success for Channel 7 on the tail end of a huge year in AFL Broadcast. It was the first time that I had used the new Robe REDWash LED fixture that Clifton Productions have as part of their inventory. I was very impressed with its performance, I used the REDWash to dress the walls and columns in the Atrium for the red carpet arrivals to provide some colour and shape for the background surfaces which appeared in most of the camera shots.”
|  |
Rob continues, “They worked especially well in the Atrium , we usually have a great deal of difficulty getting the dark walls in this area to read on camera, but this year it was the best look so far, rich colours and bright! Richard Grenfell, who knows that space very well, programmed the lighting for the Red carpet arrivals and created a great balance between faces and walls. The REDs have an incredible light output, as well as a vast array of colours from full chroma saturation through to more subtle pastels, I found it a great tool for the task, especially when available power is an issue”
In the main Palladium room, Robe moving lights were used to accomplish the room looks, set and stage dressing. 48 x Robe ColorWash 700EAT, 44 x Robe ColorSpot 700EAT, 4 x Robe ColorSpot AT along with 18 x REDWash fixtures were used. “We are really happy with the newest additions to our Robe inventory – being the Robe REDWash. The feedback we are getting from clients is amazing!, says System Tech Aaron Humber from Clifton Productions. It was vital that the Robe’s provided even coverage across a large area as there were a number of wide camera shots within the broadcast. The ‘RED’ in the REDWash is short for Red Emitted Diodes, a unique LED lighting concept developed by Robe.
 |  |
The Brownlow lighting was controlled by two GrandMA consoles, operated by Alex Saad and Andy Edis. A third “house” GrandMA was operated by Andrew Killengray to control the 140 Roboscans for tables,pin spots, and all the “house” architectural LED .” the lighting system was substantial in size and quantity , it proved to be extremely reliable with next to no faults“
One large VuePix P6 display was used on stage to run content through in conjunction with a second VuePix P6 screen behind the lectern for guest speakers. Andrew Edis from Impact Media Images supplied and operated Catalyst Show and custom images. The Catalyst was controlled via the GrandMA. This was incorporated in modules within the set of allowing direct vision on stage. Over 100 Visio color tubes were used for illumination on the set and stairs.
As early as Round 20 in the vote count, Gary Ablett Jnr had an unassailable lead and finally won the 2009 Brownlow Medal, finishing with a total of 30 votes.
VuePix at Parklife
One of the biggest moments on the annual dance music calendar finally ‘landed’ in October, with Parklife 09 officially signaling the start of the summer dance festival season.
Vuepix Centre Stage on the Rihanna and Chris Brown Tour
Rihanna and Chris Brown recently headlined their first Australian tour kicking off their first show in Brisbane.
It was double pleasure for music fans with two of the hottest young international RnB singers wowing sold out crowds with their acrobatic and visual extravaganza.
Clifton Productions recently supplied 220 Vuepix P25 screens to Big Picture Australia for the Rihanna and Chris Brown Tour. With a touring crew of 120 people, including lighting, video, audio, laser & pyro team this show was set for a visual feast.
 |  |
The Vuepix screens configured 16 panels wide by 8 panels high, totaling 128 panels which was featured on the main stage. From upstage to down stage, further Vuepix displays were rigged in 7’s with larger assemblies of 2 panels wide by 10 panels high, fanning out to 2 panels wide by 7 panels high towards the rear, and 2 panels wide by 4 panels high configurations to the front.
|  |
System Tech Matt Downs from Clifton Productions says “We didn’t take any spares on the tour, but we recommended reducing the main screen size to allow for spares but the client wanted a ‘wow’ visual impact.” “It was a risk, however we are very confident with this product.” This clever design of the Vuepix screens nicely framed the stage and drew the audience in, making this smart visual presentation with rich graphics and imagery ignite the stage. Mainlight SoftLED was also included on stage for the beginning of Chris Browns set.
Matt says “The Vuepix screens worked without fault at every show once it was up and running. It took 1 hour 20 minutes to set up and test all 128 screens which is great.” ” I like Vuepix as they are easy to set up, easy and simple cabling and there are endless configuration possibilities.
As you can see Vuepix held its own amongst all the other technology used on the tour”.
Continuing on to say “The video operator said that the Vuepix screens were one of the easiest screens he used to set up and operate anywhere”. Matt says “Following on from this production, Vuepix continues to generate extensive interest and is featuring on more and more tours and festivals”.
Vuepix redefines the imaging landscape and customise LED video screens and curtains to any specifications. Already installed in many stadiums and sporting arenas, and adopted by small to large rental houses for production and touring, the Vuepix range is affordable, versatile and simply put – an impressive addition to any production house inventory.
VuePix adds versatility to Olympic Broadcast
Channel Seven’s recent coverage of the Beijing Olympic Games featured the VuePix P6 high resolution LED Video Screen.
Channel Seven’s broadcast has been viewed by over 17 million Australians, outpacing all other Olympic Games and other major events over the past five decades.
Beijing 2008 was the first time the event has been broadcast in HD, with Channel Seven broadcasting over 17 hours a day of 1080i coverage.
The Broadcast was hosted from the Channel Seven studio of the International Broadcast Centre in Beijing. The Channel Seven Production was designed by accomplished Australian Designer Mal Nichols, where elements of the set were designed to maximize the limited space that the studio occupied in the
Broadcast Centre.
Mal wanted flexibility in lighting effects incorporated into the design, and so the lighting rig included a 20 panel VuePix LED Video Screen, 50 iLED Color Tubes, and 70 iLED ColorBank 54’s, supplied by Clifton Productions – who also constructed the set.
Mal Nichols states that the goal of the lighting in the television production was to “create atmosphere, and increase options and flexibility” in a very small environment. This was the key motivation behind incorporating the VuePix screen, as the versatility of the screen allowed various content to be relayed to the audience – including live to air feeds and computer generated graphics. It was also imperative that the screen had brilliant resolution, so as to ensure that the quality was maintained for 7’s HD broadcast. Mal states “the resolution was of surprisingly quality for a 6mm, and there was no strobing through the screen”, which was essential for a flicker free broadcast.
This impressive screen was VuePix’s P6 RGB SMD 3in1indoor model. The P6 is a high resolution (6 mm) display with a calibrated brightness of 1000cd/m2 and a pixel density of 10, 000 pixels/ m2 to deliver unrivaled light output, and incomparable color depth and uniformity, best suited for broadcast conditions. The content was powered by a multi-format image processor that accepted Channel 7’s HD SDI signal and digitally scaled it to 1024 x 768 (to fit the format of the screen) with ease. This signal was then sent through the VuePix’s video processor, which can accept a wide range of incoming signals: S-Video, composite, DVI and VGA. The screen was configured via the VuePix LED Studio software.
James Pavey of Clifton Productions supports the screen by stating “it looked good and went together easily”. He goes further to say “there were many positive comments from crew and guests on the set”. The VuePix range of leading LED video screens for indoor and outdoor use is distributed exclusively in Australia by the ULA Group.
Vuepix Debuts at Motor Show
Vuepix makes it Australian debut at Melbourne International Motorshow.
The latest in High Resolution video screens is the Vuepix range of LED video solutions, distributed exclusively by the ULA Group. Making its official launch at Entech 2008, the Vuepix screens have quickly made their way into the production world with a debut at the Melbourne International Motorshow this March.
Purchased by Clifton Productions, the Vuepix P10 LED Video Screen was featured on the Kia stand at the Motor Show. With a very successful start to the year, and the launch of two new models, the Kia Display at the show needed to have significant impact. The Vuepix screen certainly helped with this, and was used to display full color moving images of the Kia, as well as text and static images.
| |  |
The VuePix P10 LED screen delivers superior high resolution. The screen has a pixel pitch of 10mm and is completely modular for ease of rigging and setup in touring and production applications. The VuePix P10 LED screen is equipped with SMD RGB 3 in 1 LEDs and has a pixel density of this screen is 10 000 dots/m2. The P10 screen is ideal for synchronous display of all kinds of text, graphics, pictures, signs, and any signal from DVI, VGA, Composite, Component and S-Video.
LEADERS IN LED SCREENS & DIGITAL DISPLAYS
Australia 1800 883 749
New Zealand +64 9 218 6532
International +61 7 5509 4633