Talkback » Event Industry

Diamond Vision takes the flag at Silverstone

Editor — Tue, 13 May 2008 06:41:24 +0000

Silverstone has renewed its contract with Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision for the supply of big screen systems for the F1 Santander British Grand Prix. The contract will see the UK screen hire specialists providing giant video screens to the world-famous racing circuit for a further two years.

The F1 Santander British Grand Prix is one of the UK’s biggest sporting events, drawing huge crowds from all over Europe. Providing the big screen systems for an event this size is no small task, as Diamond Vision managing director Steve Halliday relates; “This year we will be providing a total of 21 screens around the circuit, consisting of a mixture of mobile and modular systems. Getting so many systems in and operational over a short period of time is a logistical challenge. But having worked with Silverstone for a number of years now, we’ve gained an excellent working relationship with the circuit and knowledge of the site, so it doesn’t present too many problems.”

The majority of screens supplied to Silverstone will consist of Mitsubishi’s OD10 10mm outdoor LED screen. The OD10 is widely used by many hire companies across Europe, where it has earned a reputation for rugged reliability as well as excellent image quality. A total of nine Diamond Vision mobiles – each a fully self-contained OD10 screen system – and 12 modular systems of varying sizes will be distributed around the circuit. Content in the form of live action from around the site and spectator information will be provided by Silverstone TV.

As well as the race itself, Silverstone plays host to an impressive variety of non-racing events over the weekend and the Mitsubishi screens are themselves an integral part of the overall entertainment package on offer at the Silverstone circuit. Steve Halliday says, “In 2006, the Grand Prix weekend coincided with the World Cup. We relayed the matches to huge crowds around the circuit, which was greatly appreciated by the F1 fans.”

Based in Kent, Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision is one of the longest-established screen hire businesses in Europe. The company operates a fleet of nine fully self-contained mobile LED screens and holds large quantities of modular Diamond Vision screen in pitch sizes ranging from 8mm to 25mm. The company has a long association with major sporting events such as the World Ski Cup, the Red Bull Air Race and the FIA GT Touring Car Championship, and provides support for big screen projects and installations world-wide. More information on the Diamond Vision system and Mitsubishi Electric’s range of professional display systems can be found at http://www.MitsubishiDisplayEngineering.com

Mitsubishi Electric screens deliver peak performance at Audi Alpine FIS Ski World Cup

Editor — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:04:51 +0000

Sub-zero temperatures, treacherous icy roads and remote mountainous venues are all in a days work for Mitsubishi Electric’s Diamond Vision screens as they provide the big-screen action for this year’s Audi Alpine FIS Ski World Cup tour currently progressing across Europe.

Commencing in November last year, the competition visits 32 resorts across Europe, Canada and the USA before reaching its climax this month at Bormio, Italy. Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision provides LED screens for all the European Audi Alpine World Cup events, following the tour as it wends its way from Norway, through northern, central and southern Europe before reaching the Alpine ski resort of Bormio. This is the eighth consecutive year that Diamond Vision has provided LED screens for Audi Ski World Cup organisers, the Federation Internationale de Ski (FIS).

Due to its very nature, just getting access to each race venue provides a major logistical challenge, as Diamond Vision Operations Manager Steve Wood relates; “We operate truck-mounted mobile 44 m² LED screens for most of the venues, but access for the 40′ articulated units is sometimes a little tricky on icy mountain roads. Frequently the mobile rigs need to be towed into position. However even that’s not an option in several of the venues. In these cases, we use modular screens of between 30m² and 70m², flown into position by helicopter.”

Once in position, the screens are expected to operate reliably under extremely harsh conditions. Temperatures of minus 20 degrees Celcius, ice storms and blizzards are not unusual, providing a stiff test of the Mitsubishi screen’s reliability and endurance. Steve Wood comments, “In the last eight years we have experienced some really severe weather conditions, but the Mitsubishi screens have proved themselves to be very reliable and resilient. To date we’ve had no significant failures and have always had our screens operational for every race day, regardless of conditions.”

While the crews generally work on two-week rotations, most of the hardware stays on the road for the whole duration of the tour. “Reliability is obviously important for us as we have limited opportunities for running repairs,” says Steve. “The build quality of the Mitsubishi screens is a major factor in our being able to operate effectively in such harsh conditions over a period of months.”

Mitsubishi Electric’s Diamond Vision screen system is operated by most of Europe’s top screen hire companies, where its reputation for rugged reliability and excellent image quality has made it one of the most widely used screen systems in the world. Available in mobile, modular and fixed installation versions, and in a variety of pitches from 3mm to 25mm, it is also one of the most versatile. For more information on the Diamond Vision system, visit http:www.mitsubishidisplayengineering.com

New company promises event organisers more bang for their buck

Editor — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:10:24 +0000

Event organisers are “Missing out on significant revenue opportunities through ineffective media management”, claims the founder of a new business that aims to put live event organisers firmly in charge of their valuable media assets.

The new company, Event Integration, is the brainchild of Christopher Milnes, former Managing Director of big-screen specialists Massteknik UK and well-known personality within the European event production industry. Event Integration combines hardware and media content management into a truly integrated solution that allows organisers to make the most of the wide range of revenue opportunities that now exist through concerts, festivals, sporting fixtures and public gatherings.

“What we are trying to achieve,” explains Christopher, “Is the bringing together of all the disparate elements of a major event to ensure that the event producer has the opportunity to derive maximum value from their brand. An integrated approach which encompasses the whole event – from design to rights management and out-of-home advertising – is massively important in fully developing the commercial aspects of an event.” With technology moving rapidly, Christopher warns that some producers are missing out: “Organisers sometimes fail to grasp the potential that exists today, meaning that opportunities often remain significantly underexploited.”

The key to Event Integration’s approach is its ability to manage both the hardware and media aspects of an event. Christopher continues, “We provide the delivery infrastructure, such as LED screens and OB facilities, as well as collateral equipment such as plasma screens in hospitality areas; but we also provide and manage the media content. Having both elements under the management of a single entity means that it is far easier to leverage the value of this content. For example, in the short term such as onward transmission to live TV, or in the longer term, such recording and offline editing for later release.” Event Integration also provides the means to capitalise on the value of an event’s media delivery channels through sponsorship, DVD sell-through and even e-commerce. “With 3G services now widely available”, comments Christopher, “An event’s video screens can effectively become point-of-purchase advertising for music or video downloads. With the technology available to us on-site, we now have the capability to produce, market and deliver media content virtually in real time through webcasts and download. For an organiser or event sponsor, that’s an incredibly powerful marketing tool to have at their disposal.”

Event Integration began trading in the Summer and has already been in action in Europe and the Middle East. “The response from clients to our combination of on-site media management and event hire services has been extremely positive,” says Christopher. “Clients have been quick to realise the kind of value that we can add to their event. We expect next year is going to be rather busy!”

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Genesis concert backdrop uses 9 million LEDs

Editor — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 17:28:00 +0000

From LEDs magazine

03 Jul 2007

Phil Collins and his mates have pulled out all the stops on their comeback tour, with a massive LED stage backdrop.

An astonishing backdrop containing more than 9 million LEDs has been created for the Genesis “Turn It On Again” world tour. XL Video UK has supplied 15,089 Barco O-Lite LED panels with 270 control boxes, plus 102 Mitsubishi 16:8 high-resolution LED panels.

The O-lite panels make up a spectacular back wall measuring 13 metre high and 55 metre wide. This is surrounded and topped by 7 lighting towers (“ribs”) reaching heights of up to 28 metres, with the entire structure resembling a giant conch shell. This was designed by Mark Fisher/Stufish.

The screen provides a 3D-curved wall and an elegant architectural backdrop immediately behind the performance area. It is an interactive canvass for video playback, graphics images and IMAG which are integrated with lighting effects (designed by Patrick Woodroffe), helping to create the show’s unique visual identity.

The O-lite modules are fitted into customised touring frames designed by XL Video and made by Brilliant Stages. They are populated at different pitches to give multiple resolutions across the whole surface.

The O-Lite screen ends with two elliptical Mitsubishi LED screens at either side of the stage.

According to Stufish’s project executive designer Jeremy Lloyd, the O-lite screen is by far the most complicated that’s ever been created in terms of engineering and processing,. It presented a real challenge to the video boffins who take care of the processing, mapping and programming of the hard drives that feed it with provocative and engaging images.

The show also incorporates a few interesting video special effects, one of which is a head shot during the song “Mama” for which the band wanted to replicate an image from the track’s original 1980’s promotional material. This is done live by Phil Collins activating (via foot pedal) a small light positioned at his feet while his face is framed with a tight camera shot – giving a ghostly shimmering halo of light around his face. The XL crew has rigged up a little camera in the pit so Collins can see the image this is producing and tweak it to his liking by moving his head in relation to the light.

Stuart Heaney of Blink TV, leads a video team of 14, has been involved in the Genesis project since January, and part of the overall video brief was the design of special dollies to house and transport the O-Lite sections on tour. These were built by Brilliant Stages, and are an important part of some extremely meticulous pre-planning by Heaney, the XL Video and Stufish teams and tour riggers.

The entire video setup takes three and a half hours each day to install, and 2 hours and 40 minutes to pack up ready to move to the next venue. With 90 trucks and over 250 crew, the Genesis tour is wending its way through Europe, before going to the US until the end of the year.