Wallern a.d. Trattnach (Austria) – Super Furry Animals returned to the road in 2026 with Taith Supacabra, the Welsh band's first UK tour in more than a decade. The band chose a deliberately compact run of dates in intimate rooms, playing at Glasgow's Barrowland Ballroom and the O2 Apollo in Manchester before closing at O2 Academy Brixton in late May. PRG supplied video for the tour, with an AV Stumpfl Vario 64 frame system as the show's primary projection surface.
The tour had a small number of dates in smaller venues, leaving little truck space and budget for a bespoke projection surface. Still, the show's content demanded a screen that could hold detail and color under a full projection rig.
"The screen had to pack down into a very tight space, and our proposed solution had to be modular," says James Hancocks, technical account manager of music for PRG. "The small number of dates, and the choice to play more intimate venues, led to a budget that didn't allow for a custom solution for the projection surface. We knew the screen needed to be a proper surface to get the most out of the projectors, and it couldn't be a gauze or another material."
Vario was the answer. The system is built around a basic frame that can be sized to almost any format, and it’s manufactured at AV Stumpfl's facility in Austria. Surfaces stretch onto the frame with press snaps and pack flat for transport alongside the frame components. AV Stumpfl offers close to 30 surface materials as well. For Taith Supacabra, the specification was Flex White CI, a premium front-projection vinyl with a matte white face and a gray, fully lightproof rear layer.
The particular frame PRG carried on Taith Supacabra is an unusual size, and that is precisely what keeps it in the inventory. "The unique size makes it a surface that keeps being useful for clients that want something a bit different from the usual 16:9 stock that everyone has," says Hancocks. "It allows us to offer something a bit different."
On this tour, that translated into a screen running the full width of the stage. This was used sparingly for monochromatic designs across the opening songs before the show opened out into color.
Beyond format, the decision came down to what a touring frame has to do every day. Vario systems are designed for repeated assembly over long service lives, with global parts availability behind them. That's a real practical consideration on a tour working with different local crews in different rooms every night. The screen itself is part of that picture too. The material is flexible enough to fold down into the same tight transport envelope as the frame components, it washes clean with water, and it is flame retardant for venue compliance on both sides of the Atlantic.
"The way it can go together night after night, and you know it will work – that's great." says Hancocks. "And the ability to get spare parts easily wherever you are in the world is a plus too."
That consistency showed in the load-ins. Since every Vario screen follows the same assembly scheme regardless of size, crews new to the system got up to speed quickly.
"It went together like a dream," says Hancocks. "The modularity of the components means it is quick for any local crew to put up or tear down."
The projection design placed a pair of Panasonic 13K projectors in a side-by-side blend to fill the full width of the Vario surface. A Panasonic 31K was also in the rig, but worked exclusively as a front-of-house key light on the band rather than onto the screen, leaving the blended image on the Vario surface uncompromised by spill.
The content came from visual artist Sam Wiehl, who has worked with Mogwai, Yann Tiersen, Forest Swords and more. His art direction also shaped the visual world of the Liverpool International Festival of Psychedelia. Wiehl was brought onto Taith Supacabra by production company Neon Black, working with the band and production manager Shaun Kendrick. The group developed the show through storyboards, test runs and a rehearsal period at PRG. Across the set, Wiehl manipulated 3D visuals live in Unreal Engine, building a three-act structure that opened in monochrome and escalated toward the finale.
"The show wanted to slowly introduce the AV element and build up to a production crescendo," says Sam Wiehl, visual artist. "The set was broken into three sections – monochromatic black and white including lighting, then a color introduction, the more psychedelic section, and then a third section with a more frenetic approach towards the finale. We played with a mixture of recognizable elements of the Super Furry Animals visual world and introduced a detailed, audio-driven particle world, all run in Unreal Engine. We described the color moment as a kind of Wizard of Oz moment, as everything including the lights hit a technicolor burst."
Running the show live rather than to a timeline was a deliberate choice and one the setlist demanded. "We wanted the flexibility to produce a show that felt different each time. The setlist would change from show to show and we wanted to adapt accordingly," says Wiehl. "I'm controlling the camera in Unreal live, with the audio affecting the worlds I'm in. I could generate the right energy to suit the tempo of the tracks each night. I love performing live and being able to react in the moment."
The surface choice did a lot of work to keep those visuals popping night after night. AV Stumpfl's Flex White CI is a diffuse screen with a gain of 0.96 and a recommended viewing cone of ±55°, so brightness and color rendition hold for the audience at the edges of the room as well as those square on to the stage. This is a real consideration in venues where much of the crowd is both close in and well off-axis. The screen's totally lightproof backing keeps stage wash and rear spill from lifting the blacks, which matters in a show that opens on monochrome designs. And the material is rated for 8K-plus content, resolving the detail in Wiehl's renders rather than softening it.
"The fact that the lighting also increased in the opening meant we needed a real punch on the screen for it all to feel right and in balance. The Vario 64 screen was great and totally gave us the definition we needed," says Wiehl. "The hit was 'Hello Sunshine', and after a few tweaks on my side, we got the spectrum of sun colors ranging from golds and yellows to purples and pinks to create the right effect."
The rooms themselves also shaped how this psychedelic content was built. "The widescreen setup created an unusual ratio for the audience, especially as we performed in venues with low ceilings. Maintaining the scale of the show was absolutely key," says Wiehl. "We also utilized projections onto the band and the audience to create additional immersion, allowing the show to spill out of the screen in certain moments. The content was designed to be organic and in places abstract, utilizing the spaces we were in."
For a surface asked to hold that range of content, through haze and shifting lighting states, the first real test came in rehearsals. "It really popped," says Hancocks. "When we had it set up in rehearsals, the creative team walked in. And they were really blown away with how the image looked on the screen."
Wiehl had been waiting a long time for that moment. "It was great to see months of work finally on a large screen," he says. "The image looked great, and I think there was a genuine excitement between all of us that once we were rolling, we'd have a great show."
Taith Supacabra is a great demonstration of what a modular projection screen is for. Working within a tight transport envelope and a modest scenic budget, PRG was able to put a distinctive, full-width, projection-grade surface in front of a returning band and their audience. And with a frame system that assembled the same way every night and that could be supported anywhere the tour went, it kept the work seamless. Vario has been in the AV Stumpfl range for more than 40 years, and it continues to earn its place in touring inventories for exactly those reasons.
About AV Stumpfl
AV Stumpfl is an international technology company specializing in the development and manufacture of projection screens, media servers and their software. These systems are used worldwide at events, airports, conferences, museums and theme parks, as well as in the film industry for the presentation of 3D backdrops. AV Stumpfl cultivates a unique 'togetherness' within the company and has been recognized several times as a special employer. Founded in 1975, the company celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2025. Visit www.avstumpfl.com or PIXERA.one for more information.