Elation lights collaborative virtual live event space
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“We wanted to give fans everything they’re used to seeing at a concert with moving lights, video walls, etc. and blend that with high-quality video streaming and a multi-camera setup for broadcast,” states Danny Zacharias of VYE, who designed lighting for the live stream space using gear from Elation Professional and sister company ADJ. “Add to that a Virtual Live Audience and this is really a virtual live event experience like no other.”
Zacharias started working on what would become VYE late in 2019 with business partners Maggie Seidel-Laws and Jayme Braun. VYE is a turnkey producer of professional virtual events that fans can watch from anywhere. VYE handles ticketing, streaming, producing, live production, and thanks to their strategic partnerships, the studio space, gear package, and crew
“This was a pre-pandemic plan for us, but in early 2020 we got the ball rolling quickly with production partners. Everyone is trying to figure out how to offer an experience without being able to do a traditional live event,” he says. “One of the things we wanted to do was to help artists monetize streaming and start performing again so they can get their crews back to work and connect with their fans.”
Zacharias worked with Genetic Productions, now part of PTP Live, to secure lights and video gear while audio specialists Clair Global provided the space while handling the audio side and internet backend needed to support a streaming space.
The rig of Elation and ADJ lighting gear, as well as video, is a professional setup that suggests an on-the-road look but one that works well with, and looks good for, broadcast. “A lot of the design and fixture placement is there to fill up the space for the various camera looks,” Zacharias says. “From all the different angles that we’d be shooting we wanted solid key light and back light and enough interesting beams and texture, but we didn’t want to overpower everything in the room.”
The 36 ft. wide by 24 ft. deep space is bordered with video panels on three sides and is packed with lighting to get the texture and looks they wanted.
Fulfilling the role as the main profile fixture are 13 Artiste DaVinci LED moving heads, a fixture lighting director Koop says is perfect for the space. “It ticks all the boxes and gives us a lot of design options to make individual looks for each song. Like the rest of the Elation gear we use, it’s also LED so there’s no added heat.”
Twenty-four narrow-beam DARTZ 360 LED movers wrap the stage to work from all around the room. They also help fill any negative space when the space is used for studio clients. ACL Curtain LED battens serve a dual purpose, as traditional footlights for low light looks and for texture in camera shots from positions across the back edge and fronting risers.
Filling holes with pixel effects or used to wash artists from sidelight positions are Chorus Line 16 pixel bars while WW Profile LED ellipsoidals are used as Lekos for frontlight. Cuepix Blinder WW2s punch out white light effects when needed. Populating the rig from ADJ are Hex Panel IPs for background eye candy looks, as well as Encore FR150Z white light Fresnels.
“What makes this even more special,” says Zacharias, “is Clair Global's Virtual Live Audience technology that allows artists to interact with hundreds of their fans on video panels around the room. An artist can see the audience rather than just playing to a camera.” There can still be 1,000s streaming like a normal live stream and they can even arrange an interactive virtual meet-and-greet with fans before the show.
The virtual livestream space at Clair Global in Nashville has been a success since airing its first performances this past summer with several artists performing like Lauren Alaina and Hardy. The space has also been used for other purposes like private artist/fan events and album launches.
