Archive for January 9th, 2012

Las Vegas, January 9th, 2012 — Antelope Audio will demonstrate its audiophile-grade digital to analog converters (DACs) at T.H.E. Show in Las Vegas between Tuesday, January 10th and Friday, January 6th at The Flamingo Hotel, room 4044.

Antelope Audio’s high-end Zodiac D/A converters (DACs) are based on the company’s proprietary clocking and conversion technologies developed for world’s top mastering professionals and sound engineers in the music, film and television industries. Antelope brings to audiophiles’ home environment the highest audio quality available only at the leading and most technically demanding sound studios around the globe.

During T.H.E. Show, music lovers will have the opportunity to experience the pristine sound quality of all three models – Zodiac, Zodiac+ and Zodiac Gold. All of them utilize Antelope’s famous Oven Controlled Clock and Acoustically Focused Clocking as well as the custom USB chip, which allows audio streaming of up to 384 kHz.

Morten Lindberg the founder of Lindberg Lyd and the music label 2L, and several times Grammy Award nominee says “The Zodiac Gold is now our preferred DAC for proof listening of our 352.8kHz/24bit stereo master files.”

“The best way to experience Antelope Audio is to listen to our products first hand,” explained Marcel James, director of sales for Antelope Audio. “At T.H.E. Show, we will be reaching a very focused contingent of discerning audiophiles, who are keen to take the home listening experience to the next level. With our unique clocking and conversion technology, they can achieve that goal.”

Zodiac DACs: Unprecedented detail and clarity
The Antelope Audio Zodiacs help audiophile consumers and home listeners experience a new level of detail, sound clarity and warmth. Featuring a plug and play interface that connects seamlessly to a Mac, PC or just about any other digital media source, the Zodiacs deliver up to 384 kHz resolution audio, dramatically improving the listening experience on both loudspeakers and headphones. Antelope’s proprietary clocking technology, which is shielded from other electronic components to maintain a consistent temperature, is at the core of the Antelope sound and results in astounding accuracy, dynamics and stereo placement of the audio.

The Zodiacs are also particularly attractive to audio consumers who use headphones, being designed for precise monitoring with a wide range of headphone impedance. Ultra linear, dual stage headphone amplifiers, which are controlled by a dedicated volume knob, deliver smooth sound at both high and low levels.

To learn more about T.H.E. Show or to register, please visit http://www.theshowlasvegas.com.

Los Angeles – January 9, 2012 — As part of its 2012 NAMM Winter Show activities, the House Research Institute (HRI) [NAMM booth 1292, Hall E] will host special guest Uncle Joe Benson of Los Angeles’ KLOS radio on Saturday, January 21st from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Anaheim Convention Center. The popular radio announcer and entertainer will be on hand to greet booth attendees while discussing the importance of maintaining healthy hearing and hearing loss protection.

Since 1980, Uncle Joe’s voice has been heard by millions of listeners across Southern California, and his “Off The Record” music/interview program is syndicated on over 90 stations nationwide. As a radio personality on KLOS, his broadcasts reach nearly three million people across southern California.

KLOS has been serving the greater Los Angeles area for over 40 years, and has also made a positive impact through its continued community outreach efforts. The station still owns the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest blood drive in the country and was presented the Crystal Award for its exemplary community service.

“Healthy hearing is a topic that deserves much broader attention — especially within the music community,” commented Uncle Joe. “This year at NAMM, we are happy to help put the spotlight on the topic of noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) to educate folks not only on how fragile our hearing is, but also on the measures we can take to protect it and preserve it.”

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is usually painless, progressive, permanent, and completely preventable. It happens when a person is exposed for too long of a time to sound pressure levels of 85 decibels or more, resulting in damage to the sensorineural (“hair”) cells of the inner ear. It can be the result of exposing your ears to a sudden, intense impulse noise like an explosion or gunfire or extended or repeated exposure to loud machinery and recreational activities, such as loud music and video.

According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), 36 million American adults report some degree of hearing loss; an estimated 26 million of them between the ages of 20 and 69 have a high-frequency hearing loss caused by too much exposure to loud sound.

Anaheim, Calif., – January 9, 2012 – Audio specialist Sennheiser (booth 6579) announced that its booth stage at NAMM will once again feature an impressive roster of emerging musical talent. The performances — all of which will feature the latest audio equipment from Sennheiser and its family of distributed brands — will begin on Thursday, January 19th at noon and will continue through Sunday, January 22nd.

Scheduled performances are as follows and may be subject to change (click here to download complete biographical information):

Thursday, January 19th

• 12:00 p.m. of Verona

• 12:45 p.m. King Washington

• 1:30 p.m. The wellspring

• 2:15 p.m. Border Radio

• 3:00 p.m. of Verona

• 3:45 p.m. King Washington

• 4:30 p.m. Border Radio

Friday, January 20th

• 12:00 p.m. So and so

• 12:45 p.m. Magnolia Memoir

• 1:30 p.m. Chantelle Barry

• 2:15 p.m. Katelyn Benton

• 3:00 p.m. So and so

• 3:45 p.m. Magnolia Memoir

• 4:30 p.m. Marina V

• 5:00 p.m. Katelyn Benton

Saturday, January 21st

• 12:00 p.m. Debby Holiday

• 12:45 p.m. Blame Shift

• 1:30 p.m. Raining Jane

• 2:15 p.m. The Material

• 3:00 p.m. Debby Holiday

• 3:45 p.m. Raining Jane

• 4:30 p.m. Kate Kilbane

Sunday, January 22nd

• 12:00 p.m. Honeymoon

• 12:45 p.m. Chlöe Lear

• 1:30 p.m. Marcus Eaton

• 2:15 p.m. Honeymoon

• 3:00 p.m. The Baron Sisters

• 3:45 p.m. Chlöe Lear

• 4:30 p.m. Marcus Eaton

Each year, the Sennheiser booth stage provides a high-quality, entertaining platform for emerging talent to heard by the over 80,000 people attending NAMM. For more information on artist performances, or to learn more about Sennheiser, please stop by booth 6579 or visit www.sennheiserusa.com.

Old Lyme, Conn., January 9, 2012 – High-end audio fans attach great importance to loss-free transmission of the sound signal between the source and the ears. In the past, wireless audio transmission has come up against its limits. Now however, audio specialist Sennheiser is opening up a new class of wireless listening with the new RS 220 wireless headphones. The digital wireless headphones have a full, detailed sound while offering total freedom of movement.

Headphone development is driven by the challenge of reproducing sound that is as lifelike and direct as possible. Up until now, cabled headphones had a far better audio quality than wireless headphones. But now, the RS 220 from Sennheiser is setting new standards. “With these digital wireless headphones, we have succeeded for the first time in combining wireless music enjoyment with high-end quality,” said Maurice Quarré, Director Product Lifecycle Management at Sennheiser Consumer Electronics, describing the new RS 220.

Superior wireless listening pleasure
Many years of experience in the field of wireless transmission and audio technology have gone into the development of the new digital headphones. Dynamic transducers with powerful neodymium magnets ensure clear, lifelike audio reproduction with a frequency response of 19 to 21,000 hertz. The maximum sound pressure level of the open, circumaural headphones is 106 decibels. In the RS 220, the transmitter sends the audio signals to the headphones without compression via a stable 2.4 GHz connection using the so-called Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) technique. “This is a frequency spreading process in which the output signal is spread to a width of 22 MHz by means of a specified bit sequence. If interference occurs at one point within this frequency range, the output signal experiences no interference as the data is transmitted with redundancy, in other words several times. As a result, only a minimal and inaudible part of the whole information is affected and the overall sound quality is not influenced,” explained Axel Grell, Senior Acoustical Engineer at Sennheiser. The headphones have a range of up to 100 metres without the need for the transmitter and receiver to be in the same room. A further advantage of the transmission process is the low latency and thus minimum delay of the audio signal.

Choice of several connection possibilities
The sound quality of a set of headphones is decisively dependent, among other things, on the connection between the audio source and the headphones. As the data between the transmitter and receiver is transmitted wirelessly in the RS 220, the feeding of the data from the audio source to the transmitter is particularly important. For this reason, the headphone system has an analogue, a coaxial digital and an optical digital input. Discerning users can decide themselves on the type and quality of the audio signal being fed in. Sensor buttons on the transmitter or directly on the headphones enable users to switch back and forth between the sources.

Lifelike sound experience
An important means of creating a musical effect is the transition between quiet and loud passages, as can be heard for example in Ravel’s Bolero. Conventional digital data transmission sometimes reduces this dynamic range, as an optimum signal volume for the entire data package is often assigned to the information when the analogue signal is converted into a digital data package. To preserve the original dynamics of a piece of music, the RS 220 completely dispenses with the automatic level control function. The data of the digital sources is transmitted unchanged, and the user can manually adjust the reference volume for the analogue inputs. As a result, the system comes very close to the audiophile ideal: a lifelike sound experience.

Maximum comfort
Operating the RS 220 is extremely easy. An on/off switch, controls for selecting the audio source and tracks, as well as a volume control are directly integrated into the headphones. There is also a control to individually adjust the volume balance between right and left. Setting up the wireless headphones for the first time is equally easy. Simply connect the transmitter to the audio or video device using the chosen connector, put on the headphones and switch on. The headphones come with rechargeable batteries that guarantee up to eight hours of listening enjoyment and which can be conveniently recharged while still in the headphones. As an added feature, the transmitter can also be used to supply a second optional set of headphones – for shared listening pleasure. The RS 220 will be available in late January and carries a street price of $599.95.

MONTREAL, CANADA – Jan 9, 2012 – Fabric Engine, a software engineering company focused on bringing multi-threaded, compiled performance to web applications, announced today that it’s Fabric Engine server technology now supports Node.js, boosting its computational performance more than 25X. Fabric Engine has published the results of its performance benchmark online, and will be showcasing its support for Node.js at NodeJam this January.

Fabric Engine is designed to tap into the power of modern, multi-core processing to bring true, multi-threaded, compiled performance to web applications. As web applications grow, they start to run into performance and scalability problems that dynamic languages like JavaScript are not well-suited to solve. Consequently, these applications need to be re-architected using compiled languages like C++, introducing significant costs to the developer. Fabric Engine gives the same performance as C++, yet retains the ease of use and speed of iteration of dynamic languages.

“With Fabric Engine’s server technology it’s possible to take current backend infrastructure and redeploy it to scale and gain impressive performance increases,” said Guido Vieira at Nexalogy, one of Fabric Engine’s early customers. “Fabric Engine has other advantages too. In addition to using a language very similar to Javascript for the high-performance operators (vanilla JavaScript/node for everything else), which reduces the need to learn or bring in C++ coders, you can avoid the whole code-compile-run cycle with its sometimes long delays, and use a more immediate execute model.”

Fabric Engine is ideal for compute-bound applications such as:
- Semantic analysis
- Real-time business intelligence
- Recommendation engines
- Large-scale simulations
- Image/video processing and 3D applications

Fabric Engine is now available for download to all web developers as a public beta. For more information about Fabric Engine, visit www.fabric-engine.com or send an email to info@fabric-engine.com.

About Fabric Engine, Inc.
Fabric Engine is a software engineering company founded in 2010 in Montreal, Canada. With a collective expertise in parallel computing, hardware optimization, software architecture, design, animation, rendering and production workflow, the Fabric team develops Fabric Engine, a web development platform that leverages the power of modern, multi-core processing to help developers create high-performance web applications. Fabric Engine is funded by Real Ventures. For more information, visit: www.fabric-engine.com.

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© 2012. Fabric Engine, Inc. All rights reserved. Fabric Engine is a registered trademark of Fabric Engine, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owner(s).

REGENSDORF, Switzerland — HARMAN’s Studer has appointed Ingo Hahn to the position of Product Manager. In his new position, Hahn will be responsible for the planning and development of new Studer products and enhancements to the existing Studer product line, while also providing support to Studer’s customer base.

Hahn joins Studer from DAVID Systems GmbH, where he worked for almost 10 years and most recently held the title of Product & Solution Manager, serving the company’s customers in the radio and television markets.

“I am proud and happy to join Studer in my role as Product Manager,” Hahn said. “Studer is renowned globally for its high-quality broadcast products used worldwide. I am looking forward to this new challenge and I am very happy to join this great team with its high level of broadcast expertise and knowledge.

“Ingo brings a wealth of experience from his time at DAVID Systems that will directly translate to his new position at Studer. We have many new products and technologies in development progress here currently and I am confident Ingo’s experience will benefit the Studer brand,” said Andrew Hills, Director Product Strategy, Studer, HARMAN Mixer Group. “He is going to be a great asset and addition to the expanding Studer team!”

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets — supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Lexicon and Mark Levinson. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 12,500 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.0 billion for twelve months ending September 30, 2011.

Considering a cruise? Do you long for the tranquil sounds and sights of the endless blue sea? Well, you can get closer than ever to the ocean’s tantalizing depths and the invigorating energy of a cruise in a new Royal Caribbean campaign lensed by East Pleasant director Xander™, and edited by Will Znidaric of Pleasant Post, in conjunction with JWT NY.

“The Sea Is Calling. Answer It Royally” campaign – which includes TV and online, an activation on tech website Gizmodo, a Facebook page, a wrapped Subway car in NYC and outdoor advertising in six markets – follows JWT’s 2008 blockbuster, “The Nation of Why Not,” also produced by East Pleasant and directed by Xander™.

“This was a dream project because of our long standing relationship with JWT and Royal Caribbean,” said East Pleasant and Pleasant Post EP, Sarah Roebuck. “There were numerous elements – real people, weather, a fully-functioning Shellphone – which made it very exciting to produce. It goes without saying that we’re beyond thrilled with the results.”

The campaign’s flagship :60 spot, which will run on national TV, captures urban pedestrians going about their daily routines when they hear a conch shell ringing from a park bench or other streetscape fixture. When they tentatively pick up the object, a calming female voice intones, “This is the sea calling.” The bewildered and fascinated passersby – who range from toddlers to professionals to young couples – find themselves drawn into a whimsical back-and-forth with the upbeat embodiment of the sea, who invites them for a visit.

Online and outdoor ads, which carry simple slogans such as, “Not 3G. Sea G. The Shell Phone Is Here”; “You Don’t Recharge It. It Recharges You”; “Helps You Connect with Family and Disconnect from Everything Else”; and “Rollover Plan: The Front, Then Back” urge would-be vacationers to further disconnect from society and connect with the sea.

“I was inspired from the very first collaborative meeting with JWT,” said Xander™. “I loved the concept of putting this shell out into the real world and seeing the genuine emotions that were evoked from people speaking to the ‘the sea’.”

Once East Pleasant wrapped production, they turned the footage over to Xander’s long time collaborator, Will Znidaric, at Pleasant Post. Describing the pair’s complementary talents, JWT ECD Richie Glickman said, “The thing I love about these guys is how hard-working they are. Xander™ is the smartest guy on set but he’s also willing to put in the hours to get the job done. We shot 8 days, in 4 cities and I only got sick of him once. And Will is just incredibly meticulous. He’ll spend 26 hours watching 13 hours of footage.” Glickman continued, “He has this way of finding moments that no one else sees. The stories he builds cover the gamut – odd, funny, sweet, but always true. Needless to say, it’s a great combination.”

The campaign has already made its way to the Royal Caribbean website where visitors will find a rotating gallery of potential vacationers listening intently to the soon-to-be iconic Shellphone. “The Sea Is Calling. Answer It Royally” broadcast campaign makes its debut in early 2012.

Visit East Pleasant
View Media

Credits

WEB

Client: Royal Caribbean
Spot Title: The Sea is Calling Web Long Form (featured)
Air Date: January 2012

Agency: JWT
ECD: Richie Glickman
Copywriter(s): Larry Silberfein, Paul Fix
Art Director(s): Georgina Hofmann, Carlos Fernandez
EP: Kristen Barnard
Producer: Shane Smith

Prod Co: East Pleasant
Director: Xander™
DP: Damien Drake
EP: Sarah Roebuck
Producer: James Blom

Editorial Co: Pleasant Post
Editor: Will Znidaric
EP: Sarah Roebuck
Producer: Natalie Rose

Post/Effects Co: Artjail
Lead Flame Artist: Steve Mottershead
Flame Artist: Graham Holly
EP: Leslie McCartney

Telecine Co: Pleasant Post
Colorist: Tristan Kneschke
EP: Sarah Roebuck
Producer: Natalie Rose

Music Co: Pulse
Composer(s): Dan Kuby ASCAP, Saunder Jurriaans SESAC, Danny Bensi ASCAP
Publisher: Kuby Tunes ASCAP
EP: Dan Kuby
Producer: Dan Burt

Sound Design/Audio Post Co: JWTwo
Sound Designer/Mixer: Andy Green
Producer: Greg Tiefenbrun

Shoot Location: New York City, NY; Austin, TX; Portland, ME; Chicago, IL

BROADCAST

Client: Royal Caribbean
Spot Title(s): The Sea is Calling :30 (featured), Cold Weather :30 (featured), The Sea is Calling :60
Air Date: January 2012

Agency: JWT
ECD: Richie Glickman
Copywriter(s): Larry Silberfein, Paul Fix
Art Director(s): Georgina Hofmann, Carlos Fernandez
EP: Kristen Barnard
Producer: Shane Smith

Prod Co: East Pleasant
Director: Xander™
DP: Damien Drake
EP: Sarah Roebuck
Producer: James Blom

Editorial Co: Pleasant Post
Editor: Will Znidaric
EP: Sarah Roebuck
Producer: Natalie Rose

Post/Effects Co: Artjail
Lead Flame Artist: Steve Mottershead
Flame Artist: Graham Holly
Flame Assist: Beau Dickson
EP: Leslie McCartney

Telecine Co: The Mill
Colorist(s): Fergus McCall
Producer: Dee Allen

Music Co: Pulse
Composer(s): Dan Kuby ASCAP, Saunder Jurriaans SESAC, Danny Bensi ASCAP
Publisher: Kuby Tunes ASCAP
EP: Dan Kuby
Producer: Dan Burt

Sound Design/Audio Post Co: JWTwo
Sound Designer/Mixer: Andy Green
Producer: Greg Tiefenbrun

Shoot Location: New York City, NY; Austin, TX; Portland, ME; Chicago, IL
About East Pleasant
East Pleasant, an Emmy Award-winning production company founded in 2004, is a group of creative individuals layered in years of expertise on both the agency and production sides of the advertising industry. The studio is a highly flexible entity, able to handle traditional or nontraditional TV commercials, films, web projects, episodic TV, music videos and documentaries of any scope, perfectly tailored to its clients’ needs.

Company principals – which include EP Sarah Roebuck and Directors/Founders Xander Strohm, Damien Drake, Stash Slionski and David Weinstein – oversee a diverse, globetrotting team of producers, directors and editors who focus on shooting beautiful imagery that tells relevant stories. This group has produced work for some of the most recognizable brands in the world – Nissan, Nokia, Nike, Kenmore, Clinique – while teaming with top agencies Wieden + Kennedy, TBWA, JWT, Time Inc., and Skinny to name a few.

More info: TRUST 646 452 3388 (NY) 310 451 5153 (LA) trustcollective.com

Absolute is following the addition of VFX heavyweight Dan Dixon to its staff with the hiring of two additional grade-A talents: Senior Producer Melissa Stephano and Senior CG Artist/Lighter Kevin Couture.

Both talents, who join Absolute after their outstanding freelance collaborations with the studio, bring tremendous portfolios and deep industry experience. Stephano is a highly regarded postproduction professional whose experience in design, graphics and VFX includes work for Verizon, American Airlines, Optimum, Nike, Fox, American Express, Crayola, MiraLAX and Crest. Couture is well versed in lighting/rendering, texturing, and modeling

Absolute EP Sally Heath noted, “These two hires really cement Absolute’s commitment to building a team of strong, talented, creative, experienced people. In Kevin and Melissa, we not only have a pair of career perfectionists, but people who enjoy the business and consistently rise to the challenges presented.”

Stephano joins the Absolute staff full time after helming a pair of impressive projects, for American Airlines and Verizon. For her inaugural project as a staff member, she has been hard at work on Pumagility for Droga 5, while also collaborating with mcgarrybowen, the first of many projects she has planned with both agencies.

“Absolute has been a perfect match since the moment I walked into their facilities,” said Stephano. “They have an amazing staff that puts out an astonishingly diverse array of great work. I love the direction they are heading in, with a constant eye on improvement and expansion.”

“To fill this senior producer role, we wanted someone who was not only experienced, but also intimately familiar with the locale – both production companies and agencies – and understood the needs of the business and industry,” Heath stated. A veteran of both the agency and production worlds, including time spent at Click 3X, Charlex and Grey, Stephano was a perfect fit. “Melissa clearly has the talent, commitment, passion and ability to fit that description. We couldn’t be happier to have her here.”

Couture, who is already working alongside Dixon; is a CG and lighting standout who came to Absolute to work on Droga5 and Smuggler’s Pumagility campaign. “Within hours of Kevin’s arrival, our Creative Director who was working on this project informed me that he was the most talented CG person he’d come across in years, and that we had to keep him, which is rare, but refreshing and exciting!” exclaimed Heath.

When Heath realized that Couture had already collaborated with Absolute on a highly regarded, complex, and stunning campaign for Sherwin Williams via Buck; she knew the studio had found its new lighting guru. “Dan Dixon was naturally keen to have a colleague with an amazing eye, gravitas, humor and experience. That person is Kevin, all we had to do was seal the deal!” Heath added.

Couture, who joins Absolute from freelance positions at MPC, Psyop, and Buck, to name a few, is thrilled with his new role “I’m ecstatic to be working with the incredible caliber of talent in place at Absolute, especially Dan Dixon,” he enthused. “This studio is really a step ahead of the rest of the postproduction world. It’s an honor to be invited into such an elite club.”

Both Stephano and Couture are currently immersed in a project debuting Jan. 21st in collaboration with a Washington, D.C.-based agency and a prominent New York production company. Look for a detailed announcement soon.

Visit Absolute

About Absolute
Founded in 2004 by David Smith, one of the world’s leading Flame artists, Absolute is a high-end VFX studio working within the commercial, emerging media, music video, and film communities. With offices in New York and London, Absolute over the years has collected numerous industry accolades including two BTAA awards, a D&AD pencil, a Cannes Lion, an APA Collection Diamond, three Andy wins and an MTV video statue. The New York office opened in 2007, helmed by CD Dirk Greene, to further facilitate Absolute’s international client roster with a growing Flame and CG service.

More info: TRUST 646 452 3388 (NY) 310 451 5153 (LA) trustcollective.com

The Jack Morton Worldwide-produced general sessions at Dreamforce 2011 and VMworld 2011 reaped the benefits of using Prelite Studios, LLC to previsualize their extensive lighting design needs. In addition, Prelite helped make the transition to the lighting rigs for each conference’s gala concert – Metallica headlining Dreamforce and The Killers at VMworld – smooth and efficient.

Dreamforce 2011, the ninth annual conference held by salesforce.com, is now the world’s largest enterprise software conference. Salesforce.com is an enterprise cloud computing company whose cloud platform and apps, including its flagship CRM solution, helps employees collaborate easily and connect with customers like never before. Dreamforce registered 45,000 live attendees this year with another approximately 35,000 joining online.

Lighting designer Paul Efron utilized Prelite onsite at San Francisco’s Moscone Center during the load in; Prelite cofounder Tom Thompson acted as Prelite host and Efron’s assistant lighting designer.

“I use Prelite any time I can, especially when there’s a compressed load-in because there are so many advantages,” says Efron. “Prelite enables us to previsualize so much in advance – we save time we don’t have onsite, can adapt more easily to unforeseen changes and integrate better with the gala act.”

The big scope of Dreamforce and the short load-in period – less than three days for the entire show and approximately 850 lights – made Prelite an essential first step for Efron, he recalls. “We were lighting the entire South Hall of the Moscone Center, including all the architectural aspects. Prelite allowed us to rough in a lot ahead of time, previs the scenery and get the focuses in place.”

“It took quite a bit of programming to create a show of that magnitude,” says Prelite’s Tom Thompson. “The South Hall is often divided into three, but Paul lit the entire hall and its walls and arches, mostly with moving lights, plus the stage.”

Prelite came in especially handy when it was decided to move part of the stage more than 20 feet upstage after everyone arrived onsite. “The stage size and position changed dramatically,” Efron reports. “But Prelite gave us the flexibility to adapt onsite, which was huge. No matter how well you prepare, things still happen onsite and it’s better to see them in Prelite than when you’re up in the air.”

Efron deployed VARI*LITE VL3500 spots shuttered to the walls and scenery, VL3500 washes to zoom out wide and shoot far, and VL100 spots for the far side walls. Martin MAC 301s off the center rig were used for effects play-ons with LED PARs inside the truss. “The salesforce.com CEO likes to walk out in the house so we used followspots to catch him, and we washed the audience with broadcast support lighting, which we also preprogrammed,” he adds.

After the first day’s general session there were about six hours to ready the stage for the gala concert by Metallica. “Metallica had their own rig – similar to what they use for a stadium tour in Europe – from lighting designer John Broderick,” says Efron. “Because of the short turnaround Tom modeled their lighting in our system in advance: John gave us his files and Tom gave him back a file to work with. It would have been very difficult to do without Prelite.”

To save time, Metallica’s rig was hung as part of the Efron’s general session rig. “We got it to fit with ours and stay out of the sight lines of the main projection screen,” Efron notes. “It was great to be able to take a look in Prelite and make sure our sight lines were clear.”

Following the concert the lighting changed back for another general session the next day.

The general session programmers were Phil Shearer and Rob Smith; the Metallica programmers were Rob Koenig and Troy Eckerman.

VMworld, the convention for the latest virtualization technologies and strategies, which can help organizations realize their visions for a cloud computing approach to IT, was held at The Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas.

Lighting designer Norm Schwab teamed with Prelite host Mike Robertson to program the general session onsite during the load-in for the event, which featured massive projection surfaces – a main screen about 100 feet wide flanked by 200-foot surfaces – plus a cyclorama almost 70 feet wide. Some 12,000 people attended three general sessions in the room with The Killers concert sandwiched in between.

“We worked closely with Jack Morton creative director Don Richards who did a lot of the media content for the screens,” says Schwab. “We lit the cyc to match the videos in color, texture or pattern using custom gobos to coordinate with the projections’ triangle and cloud motifs. There was little time to program anything live – we would have had no chance without Prelite.”

The most challenging aspect of the conference for Schwab was a SMPTE-synchronous event – a tour of the history of computing and virtualization without narration – that ran during the opening module. “It was a stunning widescreen, stylized computer animation – feature-film quality,” he recalls. “The lighting had to complement it and spread over 400 feet of the room. We covered the cyc in the middle with lighting effects and lit the audience with color, pattern, sweeps and other movements to enhance the media.”

To accomplish that, Schwab ran SMPTE time code through two grandMA lighting consoles, one of which programmed the stage effects and the other the house effects. “We could see the lighting and the media in Prelite, synchronize them and see what everything would look like before the show,” he explains. “We only had about eight hours with the actual rig before the event, so working with Prelite was a real benefit.”

Approximately 1.5 miles of trussing was installed for the general sessions. A complement of 500 moving lights, including Martin MAC 3s, 301s and 2000s and Clay Paky Alpha Beams, was supplied by Christie Lights.

“There were no major surprises onsite,” says Schwab. “Setting up for The Killers concert after the first day’s session was the most complex activity.” To transition to the festival-style event hundreds of trees were brought in along with tipis, food stations and alternate stages. The space was changed back for another general session the next day.

Seth Rappaport and Jason Mack were the programmers for the general sessions with Rick Voigt producer and Chuck Knuth technical director.

About Prelite

Prelite was founded in San Francisco February 2000 by Tom Thompson and Norm Schwab as a place for lighting designers and programmers to use technologies to previsualize lighting projects. Its success led to the launch of Prelite NY in June 2001 by Kim Grethen and Rodd McLaughlin. The bicoastal company provides studios where previsualization and creativity take center stage away from the distractions and interruptions of a chaotic work environment and where clients save time and money and minimize stress. Prelite also offers on-site previsualization services for those who prefer the convenience of working at the venue. For more information, visit www.prelite.com or contact Thomas Thompson at 415-883-7727.

CHULA VISTA, California, January 9, 2012 — Hitachi America, Ltd., Digital Media Division, Business Solutions Group today introduced the BZ-1 Interactive Projector, designed specifically for corporate environments. The BZ-1 Interactive Projector has all the functionality of an interactive whiteboard built into it, eliminating the need for additional hardware. The BZ-1 raises the standard for performance by combining interactive whiteboard functionality with Hitachi’s industry-leading projector technology.

The new BZ-1 is ideal for business applications, offering easy setup even in rooms where space is limited, with an ultra-short-throw lens that enables it to be mounted close to a wall or projection surface. This prevents obstructed images and shadows, with no light shining in the presenter’s eyes. The BZ-1 also comes with a stand to project the image onto a tabletop surface.

The BZ-1 Interactive Projector features a simple menu system that provides easy access to many functions. Business users will find a wealth of graphics tools, templates, colors and resources for creating compelling presentations, and PowerPoint, Word, PDF, JPEG and other formats can be imported directly into the BZ-1, which also offers a variety of video and audio inputs and high-quality optics for clear and sharp images. Users can write, draw, and manipulate and resize projected images by using Hitachi’s pen-sized Interactive Control. Users can also save, print and email projected images right from the interactive menu bar.

The BZ-1 offers 2,500 ANSI lumens brightness, WXGA resolution and a throw distance of 56 cm (1.8 feet) for an 80-inch (16:10) diagonal image. The BZ-1 also has an RJ-45 Ethernet jack for connection to a local area network (LAN), providing the ability to network, control and maintain the projector from a remote location. A built-in speaker and 10-watt amplifier eliminate the need to connect external speakers.

The BZ-1 contains a variety of convenience features. Its Input Source Naming feature, a Hitachi exclusive, lets the user customize the names of input sources if desired. In addition, Hitachi’s exclusive Perfect Fit image adjustment system enables easier installation, by allowing the user to adjust the four corners and sides of the image one by one to achieve optimum picture quality. The projector’s remote offers My Memory, My Screen and My Buttons options for fast access to frequently used functions and sources. The BZ-1 is designed for easy maintenance, with a hybrid air/fan filter that allows less frequent cleaning, and an easy access lamp compartment.

“We recognize that simple, intuitive operation is a key to success in the corporate market,” said John Glad, product manager, Hitachi America, Ltd., Digital Media Division, Business Solutions Group. “The BZ-1 is not only easy to use, but it also extremely easy to set up and provides a variety of functions at an affordable price point.”

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ABOUT HITACHI
Hitachi America, Ltd., headquartered in Tarrytown, New York, a subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., and its subsidiary companies offer a broad range of electronics, power and industrial equipment and services, automotive products and consumer electronics with operations throughout the Americas. For more information, visit www.hitachi-america.us. For information on other Hitachi Group companies in the United States, please visit www.hitachi.us.

Hitachi America, Ltd., Digital Media Division, Business Solutions Group markets LCD projectors, interactive panels and whiteboards and security and observation system products through value added resellers, system integrators, distributors and OEMs.

Hitachi, Ltd., (NYSE: HIT / TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 360,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2010 (ended March 31, 2011) consolidated revenues totaled 9,315 billion yen ($112.2 billion). Hitachi will focus more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes information and telecommunication systems, power systems, environmental, industrial and transportation systems, and social and urban systems, as well as the sophisticated materials and key devices that support them. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company’s website at http://www.hitachi.com.