Coemar’s Infinity ACL hit the scene last year, sporting a Philips MSR Gold 300/2 FastFit lamp and claiming its place as the first moving ACL fixture available on the market with a focusable blacklight, variable beam size, and variable beam control. With its seven rotating aerial effects, the ability to produce moonflower and split color beam effects, and CMY color mixing, this fixture has features that quickly appealed to these end users. It’s been seen worldwide on projects ranging from concert tours to television to dance, including Univision’s Premios Lo Nuestro 2010, the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Carnevale Ballet at the Spanish Embassy in Rome, Robin Williams’ Weapons of Self Destruction HBO Special, and Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 tour.
Here’s what the users have to say.
Patrick Dierson, associate designer with Performance Environment Design Group and co-owner of video content developer Idyll Hands Imagery, has been using Infinity ACLs on several productions, including on the Jay-Z Blueprint 3 tour. “I have become a huge fan of the fixture,” he says. “Several months ago, I used a complement of 18 units in Madison Square Garden for the New York Rangers 2009/2010 Season Opener. What was amazing about the units was that, flown to the ceiling of the Garden, they managed to do a fairly even wash of the entire hockey rink, as well as being able to cut through a rather intense wash of broadcast television lighting, a feat that has been difficult to achieve even with 1,200W fixtures.”
For the Jay-Z tour, he says, “The units are all mounted on the stage deck at various heights directly in front of a massive LED video display, and they have become a replacement where we’ve traditionally required the output of a 3,000W Xenon fixture in order to compete with video. I’m blown away by this little guy. It just has incredible output for a 300W lamp. Its ability to punch through broadcast lighting at a sporting event as well as cut through the output of large video displays is unmatched at the moment.”
Dierson also makes note of the unit’s complement of rotating gobos, which he particularly likes, and adds, “A surprise bonus is the speed at which the unit moves. It’s extremely fast as well as being smooth at slow speeds.” The only function he sees lacking is a frost feature, which he says, “would give it the ability to wash areas within a closer proximity to the unit, whereas now it’s simply not designed to do so with a level of finesse.”
Lighting designer Carlos Colina put the fixtures on Univision’s Premios Lo Nuestro 2010 awards show, mostly taking advantage of their aerial beams throughout the rig, including using more than 40 fixtures in the air, another 15 on the ground, and eight more for special effects for specific musical acts.
“Since they first appeared last year, I have used them on all my shows,” says Colina. “That speaks for itself.” Like other users, he refers to “the punch that you get out of a 300W fixture. The size is also a great advantage. They can go just about anywhere. I also really like the split color effect. It’s not just a white beam; the variety of effects that you have to choose from makes it a valuable asset to any lighting rig.”
Andre Serafini, president of Miami Gardens, FL- based Beachsound & Lighting Inc., has the fixtures in his inventory and says they have fast become the rental house’s most popular and most requested lighting fixture. His company has used the units on high-end events, including one for sports agent Drew Rosenhaus, television shoots for Univision, and festival events.
“My corporate meeting planner clients have asked us to have them in every event they do,” Serafini says. “No one has ever said that about any lighting fixture we have utilized. The incredible punch of these lights washes out [other fixtures]. We utilize them for effects and eye candy.”
Serafini says his team likes the fixture most for its punch and color. “Even our audio staff is blown away by them, and they usually hate lighting products,” he says. “You can actually see these beams in the daylight.”
As far as improvements, he jokes, “Give us a fixture that is cable-less, lighter than air, self-powered, and with a built-in hazer. Really nothing could be improved—superb money-making product with great ROI.”
Brad Hafer is the VP, director of account management, at Atomic Lighting, which has supplied Infinity ACLs to the Jay-Z tour, Univision, and HBO, as well as for the 25th Anniversary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Benefit Concert at Madison Square Garden, VH1’s Divas and Hip Hop Honors, among many others.
Hafer says that the fixture works well for aerial effects and to fill negative spaces. “It’s a light cannon out of a small pistol—a very powerful punch in a small package,” he says, adding that he loves that “it’s a 300W source that looks like it is a 2kW. Really, its size can go on stage around band gear, and it’s not obtrusive sitting there but does steal the show when it’s in use.” He notes that the only change he would make is the fact that “the data goes in one side and the power, the opposite.”
Coemar products are distributed in the US by Inner Circle Distribution. For more information, visit www.coemar.com.