UVLD (Unlimited Visibility Lighting Design) provided the lighting design and projected the Catalyst-driven video content for the general sessions of IBM PartnerWorld 2006 which brought together thousands of the computer giant’s business partners and executives at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center in Las Vegas. With the theme, “Without Boundaries,” IBM PartnerWorld explored the unlimited transformational potential of On Demand Business.
“We have done the lighting design for PartnerWorld for the last five years,” notes UVLD principal Gregory Cohen. “This time our client, TBA Global Events, also asked us to do a mission critical part of the creative: project all the Catalyst-driven content for the video screens. Bringing this role under the umbrella the lighting designer seems to be part of the convergence trend: we exploring the space where lighting and video merge.”
During the daily walk-in for the general session, attendees viewed both IMAG and high-res graphics on five contiguous projection surfaces, resembling a single big screen, all controlled by UVLD via Catalyst. When the session commenced, the surfaces split apart and the video followed the screens offstage to their home positions. After the split, UVLD remained responsible for two Catalyst-controlled screens. The video projectors were 10,000 lumen Sanyo XF45s, provided by Creative Technology.
“The screen-split could have been done with LED panels but that proved cost prohibitive,” says Cohen. “So we decided to use Catalyst media servers and orbital heads on the end of Catalyst projectors” for the five contiguous projection surfaces and for the two discrete screens.
UVLD collaborated with TBA’s graphics department to coordinate which of the bold graphics and textures, plus a typographical treatment for a Lenovo segment, would be directed to which of the split screens. Cameron Yeary served as UVLD’s Catalyst programmer.
UVLD also supplied an extensive lighting complement for the general sessions whose lighting was designed by Cohen. A dozen Martin Professional MAC 2K Profiles, positioned upstage, gave a sense of perspective to the PartnerWorld presentations. Six MAC 1200W and 42 MAC 2000 Performers acted as spot fixtures, treated the scenery and created aerial graphical looks. Thirty-four MAC 2000 Washes washed the deck as well as the audience in reverse shots. Two dozen MAC 600NTs were deployed under the stage illuminating from below perspective lines painted on a translucent muslin panel.
Seventy-eight ETC Source Four® 10º and 20 19º 750W elipsoidals served as video key lights and fill. Thirty 1K Scoops and 72 Source Four PARS acted as house lights, and four DF50 hazers rounded out the inventory.
UVLD was also charged with lighting John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival who headlined the final evening’s entertainment playing a 90-minute set. “Most artists of that stature travel with their own lighting designer, but in this case we were thrilled to take on the additional responsibility,” says Cohen.
After four days of lighting the general sessions, UVLD applied its same lighting package to the live entertainment. “After so much time with the rig, programming the headliner was a blast,” says Cohen. “Because we were familiar with how to best use the gear we had, we could quickly program the band looks.” The Catalyst proved a fun way to take traditional video shots and mix them in with lighting looks: “We could grab an interesting shot from the program, like John’s hand strumming his guitar, and combine it with textured clips that looked like fire, and play it on the fly with uptempo red and yellow lighting.”
At TBA Global Events, Mary Reynolds was the executive producer for the PartnerWorld event and Jose Nicoletti technical director. Scott Riley served as programmer for UVLD, Pete Campbell was production electrician with Robbie Greenberg serving as his assistant.