Australian TV lighting
designer Ian Anderson (of Mitech Design) wasted no time in commandeering GLP’s new
LED-based impression X4 Bars as soon as they arrived in the country, pressing them into
service on the latest series of X Factor.
The inventory was
provided by Show Technology, the German manufacturer’s
exclusive distributor.
The order was
processed by Søren Storm from GLP’s Singapore base, while Ian Anderson admits,
“As soon as the demo stock arrived at Show Technology, I grabbed them.” He was
soon deploying as many as 18 of the 20” and 40” high performance battens within
the set, knowing that the 7:1 zoom range would give him the option of creating
either a narrow angle light curtain or a wide angle backlight / wash.
Constantly striving to
improve the cosmetic look of the X Factor set he said that the X4 Bars provided
easy and straightforward integration. “We often have completely different floor
packages for performances that we can wheel on and off — usually within a
three-minute commercial break — and the Bars were perfect in that respect.”
Anderson has now
served as lighting director on all six series of the X Factor franchise, which
is beamed live to air from Stage 5 at Fox Studio in Sydney, and is produced by
Fremantle Media Australia for the Seven Network. And for the last four series Mitech
Design have also provided technical production management services.
Other than the X4 Bars
over the years he has used many of GLP’s impression series, including X4, X4S,
Impression 90 and Impression 120 on many TV shows for which he has been
responsible — often supplied by major rental company, Chameleon Touring
Systems.
“Equally the support
from the team at Show Technology is always exceptional,” he says.
Any skepticism as to
how they might read to camera was immediately overcome. “I was unsure how the
X4 Bars would look on television, as so often we see LED products that just
can’t keep a clean beam look on camera. But as soon as I saw them I knew they
were going to be perfect.
“The zoom in them is
superb. It really makes all the difference on camera to be able to get a very
clean beam to cut through all the other elements, whether it be moving lights
or the hundreds of square meters of video screens we have. As with all the X4
products the color rendition is great especially in the reds and ambers.”
In addition to their
high quality optics, the fixtures also boast exceptional dimming, which ensures
smooth even fades without color shift, as well as full pixel mapping capabilities
and a motorized tilt, for fast refocusing.
Summing up, Ian
Anderson says, “We have a pretty tight creative team and when one of us
suggests something new we all just tend to want to make it work. The team fell
in love with the Bars instantly. They have been operating flawlessly, and we
are about to give them another run — but this time flown.
“Although this has
been my first outing with the Bars it certainly won’t be the last!”
Pictures credit: Tarsha Hosking
Watch the X Factor video featuring the X4 Bars: Jess & Matt debut their
would-be Winner Single: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POrZZFXdowk
