Tom worked in close collaboration with a creative team including production designer Anne Brahic and art director Aaron Black. He was also assisted by over 250 Robe moving lights.
With some of the most popular country music stars taking the stage for the event plus a series of sometimes unexpected collaborations, the show was kick started with a full on DJ Zedd / Lady Antebellum set.
The CMTs present a series of fan-voted awards for country music videos and television performances, broadcast live on the CMT network with voting administered via CMT's website.
This year Tom chose 93 x Robe Pointes, 136 x LEDWash 1200s and 64 x LEDWash 600s as a major part of his lighting rig.
It's Tom's fifth year designing the event which is high energy and by far the edgiest and most talked and tweeted about country Awards show.
Over the years he has crafted his own distinctive 'live' style of lighting for shows like this, taking lighting elements from rock 'n' roll, large scale spectaculars and theatre disciplines, an oeuvre which retains all the improvisational drama of live performance with the specific nuances demanded by TV and broadcast.
"With aesthetic values already high, the producers have a wonderful knack for upping the ante every year in terms of presentation and style," confirmed Tom, adding that they come to the table with incredible energy "wonderful ideas and a new freshness", a process that challenges all involved to keep up.
Tom used the Robe Pointes and the LEDWash 1200s as the workhorse fixtures of the rig, dotted around a network of trussing mainly in the front and 'mid' positions above the stage.
The LEDWash 600s - still holding their own as a premium quality LED wash light - in this case supported the LEDWash 1200s and Pointes, providing general coverage across the stage and set.
A total of six grandMA2s were used for the show ... four for lighting control and two to run all the video content.
VER's Nashville facility provided both video and lighting equipment. The show was produced by Michael Dempsey Productions, the executive producers were John Hamlin and Margaret Comeaux from CMT and the telecast was directed by Joe Di Maio with whom Tom has collaborated on many huge shows over the years.
(Jim Evans)
