Blackout, specialists in rigging and drapes, worked alongside production designer Bill Laslett and set company Atlantic Enterprise Ltd to create a spectacular and glamorous awards night for The Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs).
The ceremony was held at the Odeon Theatre, Leicester Square on Sunday, February 19, 2006. Attended by some of film’s biggest stars--including Pierce Brosnan, Jude Law, Charlize Theron, and Renee Zellwegger--the BAFTAS BAFTAs are a key event in the film awards calendar particularly as they are just two weeks before the US Academy Awards. The event was televised to an international audience of 1 billion viewers.
Laslett felt it was important “to produce a concept that would be in sympathy with and complement the existing architecture” of the small, art deco Odeon theatre.
“The inclusion of a three three-dimensional steel framed voile spiral extending from within the confines of the stage out into the auditorium united both areas and at the same time gave the event greater scale and presence,” explains Laslett. “With the addition of an internally lit curved staircase and a 4m bronze Bafta mask backed also with a combination of voile and mirrored panels the overall effect produced a very exiting and glamorous result.”
Kevin Monks, project manager at Blackout adds, “Our team of seamstresses at Blackout spent a great deal of time and effort creating these dazzling effects and seeing the finished product makes it all worth while.” Laslett has worked with Blackout previously, such as on the Danish celebration of Hans Christian Anderson’s birthday, where Blackout created giant 18m-high voile stalactites.
“On this project, we were working to a tight budget and we are very grateful to Kevin Monks and his team at Blackout as they did a fantastic job that was within our budget," concludes Laslett. "We have even received a call from the Untied States congratulating us on the stage design. Blackout did us proud!”