With minimal time on-site to rehearse the lighting and laser effects accompanying the grand finale for the fireworks spectacle that wrapped up the orchestral music celebrating Belgian National Day 2023—and no time at all to synch the visuals with the fireworks themselves—Painting with Light relied on previz software to ensure that the 15-minute finale would have maximum impact for the 60,000+ onsite attendees and huge broadcast audience.
Painting with Light’s Luc Peumans collaborated closely with Laser System Europe’s Patrick and Nathan Awouters and pyro specialist Arteventia’s Edouard Grégoire on the finale’s design. “The big challenge,” explained Peumans, “was blending these three very different disciplines in a high impact show that could catch everyone’s attention after watching the two-hour music festival event.” With IP-rated fixtures for the outdoor show, including many from CHAUVET Professional, the production team relied on the Syncronorm Depence previz suite and timecode to synchronize lighting and laser cues with a simulation of the fireworks created by Arteventia. The final show was fully time-coded and synched to the music track.
“While all of us involved work on massive events worldwide, it was a very proud and magical moment to be producing and presenting such a unique live experience on this huge scale for our own country and highlighting our heritage, history, and one of the country’s landmark monuments,” said Peumans. “This really resonated in highlighting some of the original and creative show and production talent right here in Belgium.”
From “Project Focus,” PLSN, September 2023, page 26
