The 2025 Junior Eurovision Song Contest shimmered with talent and production values, as 18 enthusiastic delegations battled it out to win this coveted competition. The event was staged in the Gymnastic Hall of the Olympic City in Tbilisi, Georgia, organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster, Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB).
The complete stage, lighting and video concept and design was created by Raphaël Demonthy of Sunrise Studios GmbH in Berlin, who specified nearly 300 Robe moving lights as part of a lighting rig of nearly 800 fixtures.
The Robe count included 54 x iESPRITE LTL WBs, 39 x ESPRITE Profiles, 26 x iFORTES, 12 x FORTES, 48 x Spiiders, 56 x MegaPointes and 36 x LEDBeam 1000s.
Raphaël’s FOH team were also controlling content for 13 x 4K video outputs spread across multiple surfaces, all of which combined to bring numerous spectacular and breathtaking Eurovision-tastic moments to this vibrant, action-packed broadcast show.
Lighting equipment, together with LED screens, trussing and rigging, was supplied by Bulgarian rental company ESC Rental, whose CEO Natalie Hadad worked closely with the event’s technical production manager and supervisor, Aleksandar Zdravkov, who is also CEO of company ProCinema Production.
This was the third Junior ESC that Sunrise Studios – led by Raphaël and his business partner and LD Chris Moylan – has lit.
It was a project made all the more enjoyable by close collaboration with a fabulous Georgian set design team comprising show creative director Basa Potskhishvili, show art director Tamar Potskhishvili, show co-director David Gurgulia, and Oto Tedoradze, who oversaw the stage construction.
The centrepiece of the scenic setup was a 12-metre diameter ‘drum stage’ based on the famous Doli, a traditional double-headed percussion instrument at the heart of Georgian folk music. This was positioned right at the centre of the 46-metre-wide stage, with its circumference clad in video panels and lit top and bottom and diagonally with LED tape.
In addition to this, there were three large semi-transparent LED walls upstage, and a series of different level decked terraces left and right, all adding depth and dynamics to the impressive wide-format production space.
With the large amount of LED screen involved, Raphaël knew that he would need bright, powerful, and reliable lighting fixtures, so he specified Robe products as the main moving lights.
The 54 x Robe ESPRITE LTL WBs (Wash Beams) were rigged on ladders – for optimal positioning – behind the main LED surfaces in a matrix formation. “We needed a powerful luminaire and specifically one with a bigger lens so we could really maximise the breakup effects requested by some delegations,” explained Raphaël, adding that these looked great as they blasted through the blow-through LED.
It was the first time he had used the iESPRITE LTL fixtures on a show like this and was even himself a little surprised at the impact and punch they brought to the picture.
The 39 x standard ESPRITES were then dotted around the stage on the decks and around the perimeter of the drum stage, where they were used for excellent cage-effect beams and other cool looks.
For key lighting, they used a combination of the 26 x Robe FORTE and 12 x iFORTE fixtures, which were positioned on the overhead roof trusses.
Raphaël stated that having the FORTE’s high CRI and plus / minus green and magenta filters available made it possible to definitively fine-tune the output to attain THE best levels and shifts for everything to look outstanding on TV and for the live audiences … AND for those in the live audience who were unable to keep off their smartphones for the duration of the show!
A major challenge when working in LED surface heavy environments like this is to find light levels that simultaneously allow the video to work as it should and function on camera – and with different camera systems!
“It’s absolutely essential to have all the screens and all the lights working harmoniously with all the cameras,” he underlined – a tricky balancing act, which was delivered with great style.
Raphaël has been using FORTES and iFORTES for key lighting since the fixtures were first available, and both he and Chris are huge fans.
“All that flexibility and power is exactly what you need for great key’ing and in this case achieving the myriad requests from delegations.”
He added that it is surprising how much latitude exists in key lighting depending on the main camera systems being used in different regions, and how that will affect expectations.
The 48 x Robe Spiider LED wash beams were scattered around the overhead trusses and utilised for the main wash effects, which worked brilliantly, as did 56 x MegaPointes deployed along the top of the three main LED screens. They excelled themselves as beams, specials, and camera flare effects.
The long row of MegaPointes was also an effect in its own right, and like many, Raphaël still believes there is a creative place for certain discharge fixtures on a design.
Above the audience on a series of trusses, 36 x LEDBeam 1000 fixtures were positioned. These are a little older now, commented Raphaël, but “still in excellent shape and worked very well for what we needed from these positions.”
Having all these Robe luminaires at the fingertips certainly enhanced the creation of an eye-catching opening show and interval act in addition to the 18 competing delegation performances, all ablaze with colour, drama, and individual visual expression.
Raphaël worked alongside his own fabulous FOH team of Fabian Schmidt, lighting director for show lighting; assistant lighting designer Marcel Knauf; key lighting operator Tobias Heydhausen and follow spot caller Matthias Hagel. His gaffer was Oliver Klaus, and the remote follow spotting system engineers were Matze Held and Christian “Rocket Chris” Glatthor.
The Sunrise Studios team also included the media server crew, comprising server operator Matthias Schöffmann with media server farming managed by Chris van Deenen of Trust Rental GmbH. Head of video planning was Sebastian Huwig, and the projection mapping guru was Martin Karl. Motion graphic designers were Sebastian and Natalie Zittlau, and Natalie was also the overall motion graphic design supervisor.
Raphaël had started work on this production approximately five months earlier, and fully enjoyed the talent, energy, and productivity of all the teamwork involved in producing this truly world-class event in Georgia.
This year, they also shared their Depence files with delegations wanting to create their own lightshow, but most relied on Raphaël and team to produce slick, showcased looks and styling for each one to support their song during an intense 7-day rehearsal period. This was quite short for an event of this complexity due to a late venue change.
However, the great spirit of collaboration and camaraderie enabled the production team to take major decisions like this and adjust all the related elements in their stride.
The Junior ESC 2025 was the 23rd edition and was won by France with “Ce Monde” performed by Lou Deleuze. Ukraine’s Sofiia Nersesian won the public vote to finish in second place with "Motanka" with Georgia, Armenia and Spain completing the top five places.
Photos by Chris Moyan