Lighting  Roadshow  in  Vembo Theater

By Vassilis Ladonikolas....  www.alive.gr

(Automatic Translation)

T he 2-day Lighting Roadshow of the Kariotis Audio & Lighting company at the Vembo theater had everything: a lot of lighting (theatrical and television mainly), many different thematic sections and of course the necessary hands on and many questions, discussions and questions. He also had an interview with the theater producer and owner of the Vembo theater (and 8 other theaters), Mr. Tagaris, an enlightening speech by Mr. Andreas Tryfonas, while he also had a surprise, the live presence of the Compulite company, which apparently will be a valuable weapon in the quiver of Kariotis Audio & Lighting dealerships (only the official announcements about it remain).

Getting to know Prolights
The first day started with the interview of Mr. Tagaris with my boss (to be presented in a separate article), who told us about the history of the Vembo theater, but also about the whole industry of theater productions, as well as about the reduced bills of PPC thanks to the LED theatrical lighting...

Then, after watching a video with the history of lighting, before electricity, David Ferraz, Marketing manager of PROLIGHTS, took the baton, who introduced us to the Italian company that is the professional lighting division of Music & Lights S.r.L., which specializes in implementation of technologies and products for the entertainment industry.
In addition to PROLIGHTS, the Music & Lights S.r.L group includes Tribe, ArchWork, DAD, Music & Lights, Pro Audio, ProTruss, GDE and DigiLite. The company based in Minturno, Italy (between Rome and Naples) started about 30 years ago as a production and rental company and then continued exclusively as a manufacturer.
It should be noted that this is a family business in which the baton was taken over from the father and founder, Mr. Franco Sorabella (who remains the president of the company), to his son Fabio Sorabella (Maging Director), while the basic philosophy of the company is to manufacture quality lighting in reasonable prices. The main sectors to which PROLIGHTS products are addressed are rental, theater, installation, TV studios and broadcast, as well as the field of architectural lighting.
The company's products are exported to 70 countries, while as a company it is extremely extroverted as it participates in dozens of exhibitions every year. The average age of the employees in the company does not exceed 36 years, while 85% of their products are exported outside Italy. 10 people work in R&D.
The products are manufactured in Asia, but the quality control (like of course R&D, software development and all product management) is done in Italy and thus they achieve the affordable cost of their products. Regarding Quality control, David mentioned that every product is scrutinized before it leaves the factory.
David finally pointed out that they have paid particular attention to customer support, which means that when they present a product, they want the operators to have all the material in their hands (full manual, photometrics, diagrams, how to videos, etc.). Equally important, they always have products in stock and a large one at that. As David specifically told us, their stock in their warehouses in Italy is always sufficient and amounts (in cost) from 10 to 50 million euros. As we said, all products are designed in Italy and that is where the Source and Spectrum calibration takes place. Thus, if in two years someone buys the same product, even if the LED sources are different, the calibration is what makes them have the same performance. The Climatic Testing controls are equally strict and especially for IP 65 products, the control is done in real conditions with IP testers. As for their in-house Laser Workshop, they make their own gobos and have a particularly quick response to the design orders given to them by their customers. As David typically mentioned, the shipping time is longer than the production of a custom gobo. Full of enthusiasm, he also told us about the Interactive Showroom they have, while as he pointed out in his epilogue, they constantly host groups of customers in their premises (which is surrounded by a farm with animals and a lot of greenery).
 

LED Technology and development
David Ferraz made it clear to us that they are investing heavily in LED technology which they believe is the future for the majority of their products. The company's desire is to continue growing at a growth rate of 20% per year, something that seems ambitious, but it is possible and they have already achieved it. PROLIGHTS is included in the 5 largest manufacturers in the world, while their future plans include the manufacture of products in Italy and indeed in the immediate future, as well as to train the new generations in all areas.
They already have ready plans to expand their facilities in all areas as they have enough space around them. Precisely because the company, despite its size, remains a family business, their profits go back into the company and are reinvested and this is a particularly important element that is ultimately reflected in the quality of the products.
 
PROLIGHTS  Film  &  TV  Lighting
Then Davide Bernarello, Business Development Manager of PROLIGHTS, specialized in Television and Studio TV Lighting, took the floor, presenting us the products of the EcL Soft Lighting series which he had right next to him.
Davide pointed out to us that they started in the field of film 2.5 years ago with great success in a difficult market like England, where ARRI dominated almost universally. EcLPanel is the product line of PROLIGHTS with which they dynamically entered the field of lighting fixtures for television, film and theater productions. The series includes many different models for different individual productions.
Davide started the presentation with the EclNanoPanel TWC, a compact sized soft light with wireless control via CRMX and W-DMX. The Nano panel has the same engine inside as its bigger brothers, but also supports batteries for greater portability and flexibility It supports CCT control, while allowing you to work up to 40khz which practically means that an extra 'fast' camera can also be used. The Nano Panel has only 30Watt consumption with many features and many accessories. Next we saw the new ECL Panel TWCXL and then the Ecl panel TWC and its smaller siblings TWCJR4x1 and TWCJr. The TWC (all in the soft light family) is a compact 2x1LED with 740W RGW+Warm White LED that features a wide range of white reproduction from daylight to tungsten tones supporting high CRI, TLCI and TM30.
Quiet too thanks to the multiple fan modes, while it can also work with standard batteries...

Then he showed us all the accessories for the EcLPanel family that can support any need for support, adjustment, configuration and placement (Diffusor filters, egg crate, brackets, Snap Grid, Snapbag, Fat-rabbit etc... It should be noted that they also have rain covers for all products in the series. For Spektra he told us that it is the most sophisticated color system, while the most important parameter for him is XY. He pointed out to us that the panels of the series also support cinema effects, while he also thoroughly presented the stand alone control from the back panel of the lights. He also presented us with the new firmware 2.9 and its main features. Next up was ECLSoft LinearIP, the bar of the series that has 230W RGB + Warm white, producing 13,000 lumens. It has 15 independently controlled pixels with an integrated cinema effects engine. It supports multiple color control modes (RGBW, RGB, CMY, HIS, XY, RAW Direct, CCT linear etc). It also has many accessories such as optical filters, beam shaping, etc. It supports wireless control via CRMX + W-DMX, as well as Ethernet. Of course it has an IP 65 waterproof rating. Davide then introduced us to the Astera-like ECLSoft Tube100. It is 100cm long and is a light for many jobs. It also works with a battery, supports wireless control, has a 48Watt RGB+Warm White LED with 16 independent control sections. It supports IP 65 for outdoor use and has a high CRI(93) and TLCI
 

Compulite: the surprise we were talking about
Also present at the Lighting Roadshow here in Vembo was a Compulite Vibe lighting console (Compulite's flagship to be exact), which tested all the lights on display. The console did not come alone to the presentation, instead it was accompanied by Aviv Shukrun, Compulite's R&D Manager, who took to the Wembo stage to introduce himself and his company. 'His company' in this case is a literal expression, as Aviv (who is a big basketball fan and consistent supporter of the historic Hapoel Tel Aviv) works for his father Yehuda Shukrun's company, who is also the CEO. As he told us, Compulite is a private company that has been active in the field of lighting for the last 45 years, since 1978 and is the only manufacturer in Israel in the field of lighting, while they also hold dozens of patents. It was the first company worldwide to implement a computerized lighting console. This is the C-120 which was based on a microprocessor, while it was quite affordable compared to other Mini-computer solutions of the time.
They were also the first to implement a control console for Moving Light heads and specifically for the heads of the legendary Telescan Movie Mirror. They initially started out with the production of three types of consoles based on the same software, from 82 – 86 they built a large line of consoles mainly for the theater market, while in the late 80s and early 90s they introduced almost one console every year with new hardware / software . At the turn of the century they were the market leaders with new technology and the Windows-based Vector series.
This was followed by the Dlite family, which was aimed at smaller venues and applications, followed by the Vectror Violet Vector Ultra Violet, which were the next generation of the company's consoles. Followed by CompuDim2 (Intelligent Digital dimmers) to reach the present and top Vibe (the one we had in front of us here at the Vembo theater) which incorporates the know-how and experience of 4 decades. As Aviv typically told us, at Compulite they always look for new technologies and try to think 'outside the box'.


The ultimate Vibe
The Vibe is their flagship console to date. It is literally based on new technologies, has a new operating system, large touch screens, runs on Windows 10 and incorporates a particularly powerful Intel core i7 processor, has 32GB of Ram, has an external graphics card, 4 networks and 2 SSDs of 240GB. According to Aviv, the console is very responsive and supports an ergonomic editor. It hosts 56 physical controllers on its desktop, supports up to 256 universes from a single processor, and is equally easy to learn and operate. It is available in two versions, Vibe and Vibe M. The next series is Vector which was presented in 2004, but still has the same software fully upgraded, while as you can see its range has many models and colors...

Regarding their Dimmers, Aviv admitted that he knows he surprises us by talking about dimmers, but their dimmers are still used in many applications. Regarding Ethernet Products, Aviv informed us that Compulite was the first company to use Ethernet in DMX protocol. The presentation closed with the top productions using Compulite consoles around the world and these include, among others, the BBC, Italy's RAI, La Scala in Milan, the Opera of Poland and Gaul, the `Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, the National Tokyo theater, the Oprah show in America, X-Factor in many countries, Ninja Warrior and Guns n Roses on their tours...

As for their future plans, Aviv told us about expanding the Vibe LX and M family, while they are currently working on a smaller model that they hope to show off at the Frankfurt show.
 

Ellipsoidals and Fresnels
Then David took the stage to guide us through the rest of PROLIGHTS' products for theatrical lighting (but also for the film and studio sectors). This is how he introduced Eclipse CT+ and Eclipse FS to us. CT+ is a six color mixing LED with Luxeon-C light source with 96x3W 6 color custom LED, with high CRI (97) and many 'theatrical' functions such as tungsten emulation in dimming, color gels, Virtual CTO, but also welcome studios' facilities' such as the possibility of green correction in linear white CCT. Its linear white CCT extends from 2,800 to 10,000K with a CRI of 97. This was followed by the presentation of the company's Fresnels. Present was the EclFresnel VW with 250Watt Variable White LED light source designed to replace a conventional 1000Watt lamp, with linear white CCT from 2700 to 5600K. Its zoom range extends from 17 to 64 degrees. The EclFresnel TW has a 260W 6 color custom LED light source, CCT from 2800 K to 10,000, while regarding its optical system the zoom range ranges from 17-91 degrees manual. Its accuracy in white rendering was impressive for its class, as well as its ability to create shades thanks to its 6-color custom LEDs (red, orange, green, royal blue, blue and lime) Finally, the EclFresnel 2КТW was the most powerful of the present Fresnels with light source 500W 6 color custom LEDs and CCT from 2800 K to 10,000.
The zoom range varies from 17-76 degrees manual. Designed to replace conventional 2K Fresnels with ¼ of the power consumption. Of particular interest was the EclCyclorama 100 that we saw live from Davide. It is a cyclorama with a fairly slim silhouette, 1 meter long and only 12 centimeters high for problem-free placement at the front or back of the stage.
The LED light source it uses has a power of 330W RGB+WARM WHITE and as we found, the brightness it produces is remarkable for the category. Its optical system is designed to support an extensive asymmetric beam angle. The units can either be connected to each other or placed at a distance from each other without creating dark areas or lighting gaps. The unit supports multiple modes of control and operation, via DMX, RDM, Artnet and Wireless DMX.
 

Andreas Tryfonas for the theatrical lighting
On the second day of the Roadshow, Mr. Andreas Tryfonas, lighting designer and installer and producer of artistic events, spoke to the attendees about theatrical lighting, but also about safety rules on the stages. It was an extremely interesting speech that makes sense to be presented whole and complete.
That is why aLive has agreed with the presenter in order to quote the presentation in an independent article in the near future. A (yet) useful & entertaining Roadshow from Kariotis Audio & Lighting The Roadshow closed with discussions, questions, but also hands on from the guests, who saw all the lighting fixtures of the presentation up close, while Compulite's recently arrived lighting console Vibe, with Aviv Shukrun, proved to be a real attraction. to leave no one complaining,

We thank the Kariotis Audio & Lighting company for the invitation and the Vembmos theater and Mr. Tagaris for the hospitality.
It was an expectedly well-organized (the Kariotis company is a fact that has set the bar high for the organization for a long time) lighting roadshow, with immediacy, lots of information, enough theatrical and cinematographic / studio lighting that was divided between the two days.
It was also a first-class opportunity for Greek lighting professionals to get to know a company with a huge portfolio and many lighting solutions such as the Italian PROLIGHTS, but also to get a taste of Compulite's lighting consoles, which it seems will soon be available in our country and officially (representation) through Kariotis Audio & Lighting.

See you again…