The Worshipful Company of Lightmongers is one of the modern Livery companies and number 96 in order of precedence within the City of London. Being a modern company, it has all of its members involved in the lighting industry through engineering / manufacture, design, architecture, electrical installation and distribution. Two of WCL's main objectives are to foster the art and science of lighting and to encourage invention and imagination in the use of light through annual awards.
"The Lightmongers are pleased to have worked with the ALD in creating an award which will recognise the work of new designers in the field of live performance entertainment lighting. Taking part in the Award brings you and your work to the attention of the experienced lighting designers and other industry professionals on the judging panel," says the WCL.
Winning the Bursary brings you and your work to the attention of all the members of the ALD, the wider lighting profession and potentially everyone attending PLASA London 2014. Winning can give you real help and a boost to your professional career in live performance lighting design.
Prize:
The winning applicant will be presented with a cheque for £750 at PLASA London 2014 at ExCel in October. They will also be invited to attend one of the Lightmongers dinners where award recipients are acknowledged.
Judging will take place by a panel from the ALD in August, and the names of the winners will be announced at the PLASA show - regularly attended by all major lighting manufacturers and many designers - where the winning portfolios will be displayed.
Eligibility:
To be eligible to enter this competition, you need to be a lighting designer in the early stages of their career, working in live performance (theatre, concert touring, dance corporate events etc.). The definition of this is that you must be no more than five years since your first paid, professional, credited lighting design as outlined on your CV, as requested below.
Submission Information:
You will need to put together a compact, high quality printed portfolio - something you might take to a meeting with a director or maybe an agent to help you get work. Your portfolio should be no bigger than A4. The winning portfolio will be on display at PLASA.
Your portfolio should show high quality work from two to four productions that were realised within the last five years where you are credited as the lighting designer. It should demonstrate your imaginative and creative approach to lighting design. The Portfolio should also show the judges something of how and why you achieved your end result.
Images: You should aim to include no more than six well-chosen images/photographs from each production. These should show the judges what you can do with light. It is probably a good idea to provide a caption for each image to give it a context. Alongside images of the finished work, you may wish to include visual inspiration, mood-boards, story-boards, extracts from your cue synopsis and lighting plan, and other paperwork relevant to the design. Choose the best you have - quality over quantity.
Writing: You will need to include a page of writing outlining your approach to lighting design. This should be no more than about 500 words. You may also wish to provide a brief overview of the main challenges of each production. However, you should aim to let your pictures do most of the work - lighting design is a visual art-form.
Credits: Please remember to follow good professional practice and give full credits for each production. These will usually include
