The 3rd International Drone Show Competition, initiated by SPH Engineering’s Drone Show Software (DSS) team, announced its results. Participants from 31 countries competed for the right to get to the final and become the winner in one of five categories. Applications from drone show operators, event companies, firework enthusiasts, 3D animators, and other professionals involved in the drone show industry were evaluated by an international jury, composed of representatives of the media industry, drone enterprises, creative and design agencies, experienced high-tech entrepreneurs, etc. PLSN Editor, Michael S. Eddy was one of the judges for the 3rd International Drone Show Competition.
In the third, already traditional and long-awaited, Drone Show Competition, the concept was expanded, and such unique nominations as “Best Drone Show Storytelling” and “Best Simulation with the Integration of Drones and Fireworks” appeared. This expanded the range of participants and gave them an opportunity to talk in detail about the unique concepts of their work, their history of creation, and the incredible ideas behind the movement of each drone figure soaring in the sky.
Among the 51 finalists, you can find a Guinness record, synchronization of ground and aerial shows, shows that have been flying in a series for several months, as well as shows dedicated to protecting the environment or the history of entire countries.
Every year the level of drone show operators and choreographers is growing at an incredible speed, so the task of the jury was not an easy one, and the organizers of the Competition decided to establish a number of special prizes and increase the number of initially planned winners. Please love and favor – winners of the 3rd International Drone Show Competition:
- 2 winners in the “Best drone show animation” nomination: Drone Show Animations team from Portugal & Diffuse x Titouan Malivoir from France,
- “Best drone show storytelling“ nomination winner: Celestial from the United Kingdom,
- 2 winners in the “Best drone show at the event” nomination: Kaohsiung City Government Bureau of Cultural Affairs from Taiwan & Andrei Golenev from the United Arab Emirates,
- “Best promotional drone show” nomination winner: Lumasky from the United Arab Emirates,
- “Best integrated show: Fireworks and Drones” nomination winner: Sky Elements from the United States of America.
Special prizes are awarded:
- Pixis drones from the United States of America for the “Best drone show for the celebrity”,
- Dutch Drone Shows from the Netherlands for the “Best show demonstrating the capabilities of small drone show fleets (50 drones)”,
- Tom BetGeorge from the United States of America for the “Best combination of music, lighting design & drone show”,
- Cyberdrone team from the United Arab Emirates for the “Best drone show for the anniversary”,
- Teemu Eskola from Finland for the “Best drone show animation with eco concept”,
- UMILES Drone Light Show from Spain for the “Best drone show broadcast live”,
- Andrei Golenev from the United Arab Emirates for the “Best drone show combined with performing arts and historical memory”,
- Sky Elements from the United States of America for the “Best project promoting drone show service”.
Winners will enjoy specially developed drone show operator kits (a set of items that an operator always needs for a comfortable process of organizing a drone show), will receive many valuable prizes, such as Flyfire Kaiken 5-Drone Kit complete with all required accessories to fly, DJI Avata Fly Smart Combo, iPhone 14 Pro, GoPros HERO11 Black, will be granted diplomas. And the winners in the nomination “Best drone show animation” get the opportunity to present their choreography at the International Drone Show Festival in 2023 in Spain.
According to Alex Levandovskiy, head of the Drone Show Software division at SPH Engineering, participants presented an incredible growth of the industry; “This Competition showed that the drone show industry is indeed one of the fastest growing areas today. I am delighted with the level that some of the contestants have reached in just a few months. A number of companies offer the market such ideas that it seems as if better and more interesting is no longer possible. But drone show choreographers, show producers, and leaders of drone show teams push the boundaries of the possible every time! Every finalist is strong! We would love to reward everyone, but rules are rules! Next year we will further expand the concept in accordance with the wishes and requests of the community.”
The 3rd International Drone Show Competition was established to bring together the best representatives of the drone show industry and present their wonderful drone light shows and projects to the whole world. The organizers of the Competition are not going to stop supporting the drone show community and creating new opportunities for it!
See the Competition results at https://droneshowsoftware.com/competition and watch the winning videos on YouTube and Instagram.
The partners of this year’s Сompetition were:
- Flyfire combines the best of design and engineering into the next generation of autonomous flying drones & will present the winners in one of the nominations Flyfire Kaiken 5-Drone Kit complete with all required accessories to fly. Kaiken – light show drones, compact, robust, and extra-bright,
- Flock Drone Art, who will work with the winners in the “Best drone show animation” nomination to prepare the final choreography and who will take this choreography to the sky at the Festival with their fleet,
- Finale Fireworks team provided access to the Finale 3D Pro license to everyone who wanted to take part in the nomination “Best integrated show simulation: Fireworks and Drones”. Finale Fireworks dedication is to provide software for professionals and enthusiasts ensuring to enjoy every aspect of creating a firework show,
- And others.
About SPH Engineering
SPH Engineering is a global provider of UAV software solutions, integration services, consulting and custom development to expand drone applications. Its innovations support UAVs of different manufacturers and advanced drone technologies for surveying, data collection, and entertainment. Founded in 2013 in Latvia (EU), the company has a global customer and partner network in 150+ countries.
