Live Chat With Willie Williams, U2 Visual Guru

Dec 12, 2023 11:00am ET

75 Minutes

Starting back in 1982, and including such mega tours as Zoo TV in 1992-93, PopMart in 1997-98, Elevation in 2001, and U2 360° in 2009, Willie Williams—and his Treatment Studio—has been the designer and creative spirit behind the look for U2, collaborating with the band as their visual territory continued to expand. Now, 40 years later, their new show, U2:UV Achtung Baby Live has taken Vegas and the world by storm, opening the ground-breaking performance venue at Sphere, and creating a media storm in the process. Massive immersive video, a stage inspired by Brian Eno’s LED turntable, stunning visuals, dramatic lighting, and an incredible performance by one of the most venerable rock bands in the business. Join Willie Williams, Live Design, and ACT Entertainment in a live chat to find out what went into the heart and soul of this mega project.

Photo courtesy of Stufish Entertainment Architects

Speakers

Willie Williams

Designer

Treatment Studio

Willie Williams designs & directs live events and concert tours. His combination of hi-tech media and low-tech eccentricity first received acclaim through his work with U2. Their Zoo TV tour (1992-93) introduced multi-screen video imagery to concert touring, whilst the subsequent PopMart tour (1997-98), conceived with architect Mark Fisher, included the creation of the world’s first large-scale LED video screen. Williams’ work with George Michael, David Bowie and R.E.M. has also been highly respected as being both conceptually and technologically groundbreaking. His body of work is regarded as having contributed to laying the foundations of modern rock and pop show design.

David Johnson

Chief Commercial Officer

ACT Entertainment

As chief commercial officer for ACT Entertainment, David Johnson leads sales and marketing efforts across ACT’s many brands, supporting the entire sales team to integrate the multiple disciplines of the company and identify cross-sales opportunities.

Prior to joining ACT, Johnson spent almost six years as associate publisher/editorial director with Prism Business Media where he launched the Live Design franchise in December 2005. He was subsequently a publisher and managing director at Penton, where he became responsible for all aspects of the Live Design franchise, including the LDI trade show. He later became a managing director at Informa, managing multiple event/digital brands in the entertainment technology market, including the LDI, XLive, and WFX trade shows. Earlier in his career Johnson was editor of Entertainment Design magazine at Primedia.

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Date/Time:

Dec 12, 2023 11:00am ET

Duration:

75 Minutes