A happy 10th anniversary to Francois and the team at Lachine, QC’s Lightemotion, an international design firm. We’re currently working on a feature story on a unique installation that took place in the Netherlands, celebrating the country’s iconic Ajax Football Club. The design was completed by Lightemotion, working in tandem with a number of European firms to bring an immersive experience to life. The firm has also recently completed work on The Revelry Casino and Resort in Atlantic City (pictured), the largest casino project in the US over the last 4-5 years – a great way to kick off its 10th year in business. Check the Summer issue for more on The Ajax Experience and the talented team at Lightemotion.

The very-soon-to-be-released Spring 2012 issue of Professional Lighting & Production includes a feature story on the annual New Year’s Eve broadcast from Halifax’s Grand Parade Square by CTV Atlantic. It’s a cool project that relies heavily on the small broadcaster’s in-house resources to pull off, and comes off looking like a far more high-budget project than it is (which is the ultimate goal of any production, provided “high-budget” is synonymous with “great looking”).

In any case, it reminded me that our Spring 2011 issue also included a story on a New Year’s Eve event – the Marina Bay festivities from Singapore (pictured). See the colour on the water? That’s thousands of “wishing spheres,” buoyand in the bay and illuminated from above.

Two very different projects (with two EXTREMELY different budgets) that both came together thanks to the creative thinking of some key lighting and video personnel. Keep an eye for the Spring 2012 issue, and if you have it, take a look back at the Spring 2011 issue for some damn impressive visuals.

So save for LDI and a few others peppered throughout the year, the first half of the year is essentially trade show season for lighting, video, staging, and other entertainment technology professionals – particularly in Canada.

How have your trade-only experiences been thus far? Tour Tech East’s All Access, Cinequip White’s February Freeze, and the Canadian DJ Show have all come and gone; USITT and Prolight + Sound are happening within the next week; and then we’ve got NAB, The PAL Show, Solotech’s En Coulisse, InfoComm, and others right around the corner. Did any have more (or less) to offer than you were hoping? Have you noticed any of these shows growing more or less attractive over the last few years? We’d love your input.

MDG has announced that it has been appointed the Canadian distribution partner for the entire Anolis range of architectural lighting products.

Anolis, the architectural division of Robe Lighting for whom MDG has recently become exclusive Canadian distributor, provides LED lighting solutions for indoor and outdoor architectural applications, including buildings, bridges, spaces, and public arts.

“The timing was impeccable,” says Martin Michaud, President and CEO of MDG. “It’s not everyday we get a superior quality product like Anolis and it’s a challenge we can’t wait to take on.” Continue reading →

Anyone made the trek to the Toronto Convention Centre to check out this year’s Auto Show? I myself have never been much of a “car guy,” though the year I had the opportunity to check out the show, I was floored. Cool cars, cool exhibits, cool people. It’s worth checking out.

Those that can’t make it should check our Spring 2012 issue of PL&P, as we’ve got a feature story on what Italian auto maker FIAT planned to make a splash for this year’s show. The exhibit uses a whole whack of LED video walls to achieve a really interesting overall theme that I know for a fact is turning heads on that show floor.

Any other exhibits leave an impression on you from a production standpoint?

CinequipWhite Inc. celebrated 10 years of its annual trade show, February Freeze at the new William F. White Centre on February 8, 2012.

This pre-NAB event, known for bringing together production professionals with the very latest innovations and technologies, is a great opportunity for any film, television, digital media, or audio professional to take advantage of this networking opportunity and technology showcase. Continue reading →

The team at Dartmouth, NS’ Tour Tech East has begun its transition into its new facility at 180 Thornhill Dr., just next door to its previous (and now secondary) facility at 170. The building boasts 225,000 sq. ft. on a single level, covering 7.3 acres on an 8 acre plot.

I took a tour with President Peter Hendrickson during the company’s recent All-Access trade show, and it’s absolutely massive. The building will help the company enhance its service department and shipping processes, and also allow them to introduce a new “express counter” for smaller rentals by DJs, bands, etc. This space will also act as a showroom, which has the company’s suppliers quite excited.

Congratulations to the TTE team for the giant step forward.

Just got word of an intresting event coming up in Toronto: the Digital Media Summit, happening at the Fairmont Royal York from March 21-22, 2012. Featuring presentations from industry leaders including Arianna Huffington (The Huffington Post), top digital experts from Google, Facebook, the CBC, Bell Media, and more, the conference will connect you with media and brand specialists that can help fine-tune your digital media strategies.

Find out more at www.digitalmediasummit.ca. There’s a current promotion in place to save 40 per cent on registration…

We’re only a few short weeks away from one of the biggest televised spectacles of the year, the Super Bowl XLVI Halftime Show. This year’s performer is the beautiful (circa 1990) Madonna, and I’m wondering if this year’s production might be a bit more “explosive” to make up for the fact that the 30,000 half-drunk, predominantly male audience may need the extra eye candy to get through the performance from the woman that wrote “Take A Bow.”

In any case, it should be quite the show, and we’ll undoubtedly have some news post-event about the different players involved and their contributions, so do stay tuned. It’ll be San Fran or New York vs. Baltimore or New England – any predictions as to who faces who and, if you dare, who’s taking the hardware?