When your main reason for being is to convince major movie and TV studios to shoot their films in Los Angeles, your presentation had better be impressive. That's why FilmL.A. Inc.—the recently re-launched company that promotes filmmaking in the region—chose Kinetic Lighting Inc. to orchestrate its debut bash with video, audio, and lighting effects that would dazzle even Hollywood's seasoned elite.
The stellar event, keynoted by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and attended by other political and film industry luminaries, presented a tough challenge for Kinetic lighting designer David Jacobi. The venue was a former oil company lunchroom with limited available power, bathed in a drab military green, and used as a utility space by the building's owner, LA Center Studios. "What we wanted to do was transform this commercial-looking facility into a modern, hip nightclub, creating multiple environments in one space," explains Jacobi. "This required a great deal of imaginative lighting and projection techniques, not to mention a few buckets of paint."
Starting with the entryway, the Kinetic crew conceived a design that greeted arriving guests with a theatrically lit façade, on which a larger-than-life image of the FilmL.A. logo was projected. Dramatic red-carpet lighting and skytracker searchlights lent opening-night excitement to the event. In the reception area, up-lit columns and a strategically lit step-and-repeat banner of the FilmL.A. logo provided an ideal backdrop for photo ops.
The main party space featured a light and media spectacle intended to captivate attendees. Two separate video sources were used to project images on interior walls. "I went with LED fixtures to complement the video," says Jacobi, "we had an almost unlimited color palette, while using only a minimal amount of power. The effect got everyone immersed in the video without the need for larger screens."
Other highlights included: a 40’ bar with Color Kinetics ColorBlast 12 fixtures to create a dynamic effect of rich, changing color; atmospheric tube lights under the bar's edge; ColorBlast 12 up-lighting along a 120' wide, 10' high wall; colored lighting gels in all existing 2'x2' fluorescent fixtures; and breakup patterns on the exterior patio with up-lighting on perimeter trees. The multimedia motif and continuous music proved so popular with guests, they stayed for hours after the party's planned end time. This couldn't have pleased FilmL.A. and LA Center Studios more.
