The two projectors - each displaying 1920 x 1080 pixels - were rigged for rear projection using a soft edge overlap, and giving a full screen display area of 3200 x 1080 pixels across the 12m wide asymmetric surface. Gaskin has produced the show for the last nine years and this year wanted to attempt something radically different. The highly flexible Barco Folsom system enabled her to break the mould not only in live video effects but in image display quality. The system enables the mixing of multiple numbers and combinations of normally incompatible sources into different layers and aspect ratios, and then displays them seamlessly onto the same screen.
The Encore system in its full capacity enables the soft-edging of or routing to, up to 32 display devices. Available within each device is up to six scalable individual images and one non-scaleable background. It takes in any video signal and will give virtually any signal out. Previously this technology was prohibitively expensive and restricted to only the largest budget productions - but times are definitely changing!
Beki Gaskin was "highly impressed" with the results, in particular the size at which the PowerPoint texts, graphs and pictures were sharply projected and with the extreme clarity of the projectors. She also praised the slickness of the XL team who worked against a tight timescale and a challenging get in. The VT playback sources were stored on Sony DSR1000 hard drives and GVG Profile PDR 204 4 channel video file servers, integrated with the PCs running the PowerPoint presentations and controlled by a Dataton system. This was operated by XL's technical director Richard Burford, who also ran the Encore system.
XL's new fully digital three camera corporate PPU featuring new Sony D50 cameras were used for IMAG to screen, and to record the whole event. Each camera was also individually ISO'd to the Encore system so multiple camera angles could be displayed on screen simultaneously. XL also supplied the onstage comfort monitoring system, comprising Barco's latest 40" LCD technology, offering especially wide viewing angles.
(Lee Baldock)
