Robe lights Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week
- Details
Lighting designer Juanjo Saunier chose 38 Robe MegaPointes, 20 LEDWash 800s, 12 Spiider LED wash beams and three BMFL Follow Spots running on three separate remote control BaseStations to assist him with creating the show.
Juanjo has worked on Spain’s premier biannual fashion show for around 10 years, both lighting the main show-space and various ‘off-site’ venues, and enjoys the buzz, vibes, and challenges of this seminal fashion event.
This year, Juanjo started with three different catwalk lighting configurations in the multipurpose room, all of which offered the 60 different shows designers a good and dynamic choice of settings. His lighting design ensured that all these different routes were beautifully and optimally lit for the cameras.
The first lighting setup comprised of 1.5m-wide linear light corridors created using a barrage of profiles in the roof, underneath which the runway could be built in various sized sections either five or three lanes wide offering even more adaptability for the individual shows.
The second configuration was a regular 30m-long rectangular-shaped runway with the two 30 metre up and down lanes connected by a 4.5m ‘short end’.
The third option was with the use of six follow spots – three at the front and three at the rear - providing dramatic theatrical style lighting. Having the BMFL follow spots on the RoboSpot system as the rear fixtures, Juanjo was able to pick up the models anywhere whatever catwalk areas were being used.
The overall objective was to ensure that each collection had a different look and feel that suited the pace and style of its show presentation.
An extensive trussing system was installed in the hall’s roof to accommodate lighting positions. Around 450 luminaires were used in total, with all lighting for the show-space event supplied by rental company Fluge.
Thirty of the MegaPointes were grouped in five blocks of six fixtures above and along the catwalk, with the remaining eight on boom stands either side of the stage area where the models made their entrance. They were all used for numerous effects.
Juanjo has been using LEDWash 800s in his work for some time. He appreciates the excellent white light output and the smooth and accurate replication of various different colour temperatures.
The Spiiders were on the side booms and used for wash effects at the stage / entrance area. “They continue to amaze me,” he declared.
The BMFL FollowSpots were rigged around the runway entrance / stage area and became the back follow spots as the models travelled the runaway.
Juanjo added four Robe PATT2013s as ‘scenic’ lighting elements for two shows – Hannibal Laguna and Brain&Beast.
He programmed and ran the lighting for all of these shows himself and worked closely on this event with Bochi Piaggio, José Espín and crew chief Jose Miguel Velázquez plus the rest of the Fluge crew. Like everyone involved in this show, Juanjo was delighted to be back working on-site and in an event space doing what he loved.
