GLP casts new light on historic TV show
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He was then overjoyed when he was offered to design the lighting for the 50th anniversary of the show - all the more so as he knew German TV veteran, Thomas Gottschalk, would be hosting it.
Gerdon’s task was to create a modern set for the 50th anniversary, which at the same time needed to connect with the look of the original studio (Berlin Union Studios). "It needed to pay homage to the old hit parade,“ explains Gerdon, describing the challenge set by the show’s production.
"It was clear to me in which direction this design would go,” he continues. And much of this would require the implementation of GLP’s innovative solutions. “The back wall of the set would be the first anchor point,” he explained, and this involved a large-scale Mero space frame structure.
“I wanted to illuminate these elements, both flat and homogeneously, but also use it accentuate certain songs. For this there is actually no real alternative to the impression X4 Bars from GLP. They are the ideal product for this,” he says.
A total of 82 of the longer X4 Bar 20, and an additional four X4 Bar 10 found their way into the lighting design.
In order to get more depth into the set, a black gauze was installed behind the rear Mero scaffolding wall as a final layer, which was intended to serve as a screen for animated gobos. “My first choice at this point was the new GLP impression S350,” says Gerdon, who already reports good experiences with this light in various other TV formats. “The S350 has the perfect combination of optimal colour reproduction and high brightness, despite its low weight and low power consumption.” A total 56 impression S350s were used in the ZDF Hitparade show.
Also on the two side stages further fixtures from GLP were used. “These are almost invisible within the set but appear in the camera image to wonderful effect. For closing some black holes in the set I was looking for small, compact and virtually invisible fixture that would appear later in the camera image for the well-known stars. Aside from being discreet, the perfect fixture would still need to deliver high output. The GLP X4 atom is simply unique in the market which is why we used a total of 48 pieces.”
Last but not least a number of the “good old impression X4 and X4 L” were used, concludes Gerdon. “These are simply flexible workhorses with which we could quickly and effectively light decorative surfaces. This is much more convenient when making necessary changes to a scene without having to drive a cherry-picker into the finished set.”
(Jim Evans)
