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Returning to Lititz with a Continuing Commitment to Positive Industry Change

‘THE Conference: Live at Lititz’ will return to the Rock Lititz Campus on Dec. 6, 7, and 8, 2023. Building on the success of the inaugural 2022 conference, which featured more than 620 attendees, 30 sponsors and vendors, and 70 diverse speakers, the number of available tickets is increasing to 800 for 2023. As Production Manager Charlie Hernandez puts it, a key point of discussion will be “How do we leave the industry better than we found it?” adding, “There are a lot of smart people in our industry. Let’s all get together and try to come up with solutions, have a conversation, and try to come up with different ways of doing things.”

Last Chance: Nominations for Regional Hometown Heroes Close Aug. 25

Each year, PLSN honors regional lighting production companies with our Hometown Hero award. This award—from nominations to winners—is selected by PLSN readers. The winning company will receive the Parnelli Hometown Hero Lighting Company of the Year Award on Jan. 26, 2024 in Anaheim, CA during NAMM. But hurry, nominations close soon. The deadline is this Friday, Aug. 25, at 5 p.m. PDT.

Emmy Nominated Production Design

Among the nominees for the 2023 Creative Arts Emmy Awards is NBC’s ‘Carol Burnett: 90 Years Of Laughter + Love’ for Outstanding Production Design For A Variety Special recognizing Production Designer Tamlyn Wright and Art Director Travis Deck. Here is a clip showing some of their work for this special evening.

75th Emmy Awards Nominations Announced

The nominations for the 75th Emmy Awards were announced this past week, including the nominees for the Creative Arts Emmys, honoring artistic and technical achievements in television. The 2023 Creative Arts Emmy Awards are currently scheduled to take place at the Peacock Theater over two consecutive nights on Saturday, September 9, and Sunday, September 10.

In Memoriam: Shawn McKeown, 1972-2023

Educator and production professional Shawn McKeown passed away May 28, 2023, surrounded by his family. He was 50. At the time of his death, he was employed by Full Sail University as Program Manager – Show Production. McKeown worked for Full Sail for more than 20 years holding a variety of teaching positions, including Department Chair, and Course Director.

Roadies Of Color United 2023 Conference Update

Discounted early bird registrations for the Roadies Of Color United 2023 Annual Conference are on sale now. These special rates are only available for a limited time, so act fast. The ROCU 2023 Annual Conference will take place September 28-30, 2023 in Atlanta, GA. Students can also take advantage of discounted rates but must present their student identification at check-in during the event. Additionally, all Roadies of Color United Association members will receive a unique discount code to apply toward their registration for even further savings. Use the link below to register today.Read More »Roadies Of Color United 2023 Conference Update

This Is Sefa Show Transforms With Help From CHAUVET Professional Rogue Outcast1 BeamWash

An observant pedestrian who passed DIE HALLE Tor 2 didn’t have to be a DJ music fan, to sense that something special was about to happen. Even by the standards of this popular club, the excitement that evening was out of the ordinary. The reason can be traced to a single word “Sefa.” Sefa Jeroen Vlaarkamp, known by the stage name Sefa (pronounced Sèfa), has been making huge waves in the music scene with his high powered  hardstyle and hardcore scene music, with Frenchcore as a subgenre. The eager anticipation that rippled through the long line outside DIE HALLE Tor 2 before his  This Is Sefa show was more than justified. Read More »This Is Sefa Show Transforms With Help From CHAUVET Professional Rogue Outcast1 BeamWash

A Wise Move for Robe

2023 Spot Festival in Aarhus, Denmark with lighting provided by Soundwise. Photo by Maria Stougård Mathiasen

Soundwise is a busy Aarhus, Denmark-based full production rental company, which was founded by Lars Thorsager in 2001, initially, as you might expect from the name, as an audio specialist. Their client base includes music and cultural shows and events, touring and corporates, the latter being a rapidly expanding sector. It’s that growth in premium industrial shows over the last year that has fueled a new investment in Robe moving lights, with 12 ESPRITES and 12 LEDBeam 350s joining the rental fleet.Read More »A Wise Move for Robe

OSA Lights Up Peter Frampton’s ‘Never Say Never’ Tour

OSA International, a full-service production company with offices in Nashville, Las Vegas, and Chicago, is supplying the lighting gear and product support for Peter Frampton’s comeback tour, Never Say Never. To visually bring his shows to life in concert, Frampton turned to Lighting Designer and Emmy-award winner Gregg Maltby and a full complement of OSA lighting. Although he had never worked with Frampton before, Maltby was hired to direct the Never Say Never tour and take the lead on the tour’s production design.Read More »OSA Lights Up Peter Frampton’s ‘Never Say Never’ Tour

Avoid Extinction by Adapting to Tech Changes

PLSN’s LD-at-Large, Chris Lose, notes that, after years of feeling like the “young gun on the crew,” where he could easily “work circles around lighting techs who struggled to adapt to new technologies,” he has once again started to “feel the creep of maturity” set in. The solution, he notes, is to guard against extinction by adapting to technological changes, detailing his journey from working with a Strand 520i to the Wholehog II, grandMA1, grandMA3, while eyeing a future that could include consoles that harness AI to optimize show production.

Virtual Horizons

At NAB 2022, roughly 50 out of 1,200 booths showed Virtual Production (VP) solutions. A year later there were 600 out of 1,500 booths in the segment. InfoComm 2023 also underscored the fact that VP as a market segment has moved from buzzy trend to something worthy of full blown R&D assets for manufacturers.