Scharff Weisberg recently added High End Systems' Catalyst projection system to the company's rental inventory. The system, which weds moving-light technology to high-end graphics projection technology, allows video projectors to move images anywhere in 3D space. The system is controlled from most programmable lighting consoles and uses a Macintosh CPU for image processing.
"We see this as the first of a new breed of revolutionary products in our industry," comments Scharff Weisberg partner Peter Scharff. "The applications for this are endless, the creative options are unbelievable, and once we get this into the hands of show designers, it's going to open their eyes to a whole new world."
The heart of the system is the Catalyst Digital Media Server (video processing computer), which offers an unlimited range of real-time image processing capabilities. Load a still or moving images or select from an extensive library of stock files. Then scale, rotate, zoom, edit, morph, color mix, overlay, or blend to create your desired effect. The moving mirror component, on the front of a projector, moves the video image around with the same flexibility as a moving light.
Scharff Weisberg boasts a staging, lighting and media resource company. "Our video staging department has a lot of expertise in projection technology and we can choose from any number of systems, large and small, in our inventory. Our lighting department has the consoles required to control the system. And the Scharff Weisberg Media Resource Center can digitize the files needed for the Media Server," continues Scharff. "I don't know of any other company that has all those capabilities under one roof."