It is the brainchild of entrepreneur and philanthropist Paul G. Allen - a co-founder of Microsoft. The Hospital is a state-of-the-art facility for creative industry professionals in the music, art and film worlds. The unique mix of facilities will allow projects to be carried out under one roof, as they have all the necessary technical facilities for recording and production.
Housed in the two basement floors of The Hospital, The Studio is Europe's first end-to-end High Definition video production studio. Paul Daniels, head of engineering and operations at The Hospital, specified a Compulite Spark 4D system. Daniels commented: "After being open for six months it was clear that we needed a lighting console in-house, capable of moving light control. The Compulite Spark 4D was an ideal choice as it is an extremely powerful console in a very small package. It allows us to re-locate to other areas within the facility where TV or event lighting control is required . . . This, combined with Compulite's popularity in the TV market, ensured visiting operators would be familiar with the system."
The BBC TV centre in London has recently purchased its second Compulite SparkTOP system. Compulite systems are used extensively for moving light control throughout the complex, mainly hired in for specific productions, but with a SparkTOP installed in the Newsnight studio. Technical development manager, Danny Popkin, who purchased the second SparkTOP system, comments: "Compulite systems are regularly hired in for productions in our studios, which has meant that without an in-house desk there has been a lack of opportunity for our lighting staff to further their knowledge on programming and operating moving light consoles. The SparkTOP is set-up with WYSIWYG in our offices to enable vision operators and supervisors to try things out and learn more about the console without tying up a studio. It will also be used for pre-programming large shows such as Sports Review of the Year and for other in house productions."
ITV Yorkshire's well-equipped studios are fully digital and compatible with 16:9 production. They are used regularly to stage many different types of entertainment and lifestyle shows, small scale drama, commercials and comedies as well as corporate videos and presentations.
Neil Salmon, lighting designer and operator for ITV Yorkshire, purchased his first Compulite Spark 4D system in 2001 and has recently purchased a second Spark 4D system through Stagetec's northern dealer Flashlight in Manchester. Salmon comments: "We have had our existing Compulite system for a number of years and it has been used on a wide range of productions. The system has proved to be exceptionally flexible and reliable, combined with the excellent support provided by Stagetec Distribution and the popularity of Compulite systems in television, a second Spark system was the obvious choice."
(Lee Baldock)
