Links to Documentation​​​​​​​

In the Fall 2022 semester, I had the opportunity to fully design and 3D model a nightclub/music venue in 3D Pre-visualization for Live Entertainment, an AET class taught by Matt Smith. Along with the scale 3D model, deliverables included detailed annotated floor plans with dimensions and a branding package. The full documentation for this project is linked here.

Now, in the Spring of 2023, I am enrolled in AET Studio and have the opportunity to propose my own project. As a current lighting designer and programmer looking to find a career in Project Management, I was interested in creating a custom lighting package for the venue I had previously designed. I want to approach this from a project manager's perspective, so I want to create professional, industry-standard documentation that could be used if this were a real-world project. Further, I want to create a snazzy video showcasing the venue and lights with a crazy light show that I could program. I love to program lighting for EDM, which fits perfectly with the branding package that accompanies the venue.

The class is split into 2 modules, and students are given the opportunity to do 2 separate projects or to work on one larger project split into two distinct phases of production. I think that this project will take both, as I need to spend significant time learning and researching industry-standard documentation and compiling my assets before I can begin programming the light show, which will also take significant time.

First, I wanted to make sure that Capture would be a useful, industry-standard skill to learn. We use it here in the PLAI program, and I have personally seen it being used by professional lighting designers in both corporate and commercial settings. As part of my research, I found this link that lists both Vectorworks and Capture as industry-standard design tools.

To inform the design of my lighting plot, I found this excellent resource with a plethora of inspiration for my own plot. It is a list of 31 different professional lighting plots across a wide range of shows. My personal favorite was David Finn’s design for The Chicks’ 2022 revival tour. These documents are great examples of the type of documentation I hope to accomplish with my own creative challenge. The articles accompanied by each plot also feature interviews with the LDs who designed them, so there is a lot of rich information including what inspired their design, the creative limitations they had, and why they chose the fixtures they did. Similarly, I also found this article that discusses how a designer planned his rig for Kid Cudi’s 2022 world tour. The designer used all Ayrton fixtures and explains some of his decision-making processes.

Next, I wanted to find a resource containing some stage lighting basics. I feel I have a pretty solid understanding of these topics but I wanted to find a resource that I could use as a reference and help anyone reviewing my work understand the basic vocabulary and concepts of lighting design, as it tends to be very different from other AET concentrations. I found this article from Sweetwater that works great for this. I also found a second article in this series reviewing DMX controls, a very technical topic that will be particularly relevant in Module 1. Finally, I found a glossary-style resource designed specifically for people who aren’t specialized in lighting vocabulary, linked here.

Through the process of researching, I found other articles and resources that I wasn’t looking for but was happy to find. For example, I found this video explaining how to sync lights for live music performances automatically. It isn’t the method I plan on utilizing, but it is always good to have a plan B (and C, D, E… etc). I also found this playlist on youtube which features designs made entirely on Capture software. These videos are a huge inspiration and showcase exactly what I am trying to do. There are several examples that cover a variety of music genres, including an EDM mix. 

I also found some articles discussing how to design lighting for nightclubs in particular. This article emphasizes safety and this one outlines other regulations. 

From a sociological and interpersonal perspective, I am also interested in research that explores the cultural significance of nightclubs, raves, and other dance spaces - particularly for marginalized audiences. To inform my research on this, I have been reading Dance Music Spaces by Danielle Antoinette Hidalgo. The book covers how different DJs and clubs have been negotiating the balance of commercialism and authenticity in a capitalist world. This is helping me understand how certain business elements may impact the audiences’ experience as well as the sustainability of the venue. It is also informing me of what certain audiences are seeking to experience when going out to a dance music space. From what I have read so far (2 of 4 chapters) audiences are looking for a transformative experience where they can live in a fantasy space for the evening, escape the stressors and mundane, and connect with others and their body through communal rhythmic movement. The book mentions how lighting can facilitate this by separating the space from reality through visual reinforcement, something I am hoping to explore with this project.

For the music, I have found two options. One is an EDM track called “Hidden” by Alex Productions. It is licensed as CC By-NC 4.0, which means I can share and build upon the property as long as it is not used for commercial gain and I properly attribute the creator. If further licensing is required, I can also buy the rights for 19 euros (converts to just above $20) under a PRO license. This option is less representative of traditional techno but has a lot of interesting variations which would lend well to a dynamic light show. I also found a song from a Berlin local that is much more evocative of German techno called PS150 (M4KIA Grayscale Rmx CC by SA). This is protected under a CC By-SA 4.0 International license, which means that I could use and remix the property as long as I attribute it to the creator and protect it under the same license. I am not as interested in this track in particular, as it has some clips of sermons embedded into the track which might not be appreciated by the venue’s target audience. In my research, I realized that this was specific to this particular remix. The original track has the same techno sound without any religious voiceovers and is protected under the same CC license as the remix. At this point, I am leaning towards using “Hidden” because I feel as though it is more dynamic, allowing more moments to emphasize with lighting. 

I also recently watched a webinar on Pitching Lighting Designs by Craig Rutherford on Martin by Harmon’s Online Training platform. He discusses his workflow of designing light plot paperwork and sending it off to a potential client. This helped me to better understand a professional workflow for creating the types of documents and files I hope to make for this module. The one thing that varied between his workflow and mine is that he uses Cinema4D instead of Capture, but he recognizes it as a useful tool in the Q+A at the end. He mentioned that Cinema is better at rendering, but that programming on it is less user-friendly, so it’s better for short clips or still images. Since I want to make a video of a light show and emphasize my programming skills, I think Capture is still the best option for me. All of the notes I took from this course are linked here. 

I used Capture’s Learning video series to learn the fundamentals of the Capture software and regularly consulted with Matt Smith on best practices for my workflow. 

A lot of specific software will be required, and they all connect in specific ways. I have included a chart below which outlines the required software and its connections.

 

Because there is only 1 software that I am unfamiliar with, I believe the only specific training I will need is for Capture. Fortunately, it is very well-documented and they also have tutorials through the Capture Learning video series. The rest of my pre-production work will be continuing research to inform my design choices. I also have access to all of this software thanks to generous educational licenses but realized that the student version doesn’t allow exporting. Fortunately, there is one laptop in the PLAI lab with a license that can support up to 4 DMX universes.

I have access to Vectorworks and Reaper on my Mac. Therefore, most of the work I am doing in Module 1 can be done on my personal laptop. I do not, however, have the ability to use Capture or Hog4PC on my computer, so I will be relying on the PLAI lab to build the Capture file and do the programming work in Module 2. While this is definitely a challenge, I have been utilizing this workflow for my entire academic career so far so I am very used to it and do not see it becoming an issue in the future. While I cannot necessarily apply feedback in real-time during class, I can get in the habit of taking progress videos using screen recordings to convey my progress in class. From there, I will take all notes and feedback and apply it to the project on the PLAI lab computer, and take an updated screen recording before the next review. If I want to print out a large-scale light plot (which is often done in the industry) I would need to access a large-format printer to do so.

Revision: switched workflow strategies in Capture

After placing my venue in Capture, I immediately placed all of my light fixtures into the file without declaring a default plane. I was struggling because I was placing lights correctly in one 3D plane but lost them in other views. I consulted professor Matt Smith on this and he suggested I place one fixture type at a time and use Capture’s “clone” function to automatically generate more fixtures in a predictable format.

In the beginning, I had a lot of confusion about how rigging should be considered for this project. I was unsure of how in-depth I needed to be with my placement data (where the lights are hung and how that weight is distributed). I consulted with Matt Smith on this and realized that most rigging calculations are outside of the scope of these types of projects, as there is often a separate rigging engineer who would handle that side of the project. I also wondered if I should use only one company for my fixtures to optimize consistent color mixing, but was advised not to worry about that due to the casual nature of the environment (a nightclub).  I ended up using a variety of fixtures from Robe, Clay Paky, and Martin. I had a dedicated section of my Miro board to resolving unknowns. Everything in the “known” section was once an unknown that has been decided! The current unknown is referring to a stretch goal I have for myself that is definitely outside of this project scope, VR integration for improved visualization of this project for the SCDT Showcase on March 23.

As I was going through the process, there were several other unknowns that had to be solved. If the line of thought was more beneficial near similar concepts, I would leave them there rather than placing them in this section. I am including some of these decisions and solutions below:

My main observation is that I am having a tough time making final decisions on this project. I have stalled on making certain decisions around how many fixtures I want to use and where I want to use them but those choices need to be made soon to move on to the next milestone. The DMX limitations definitely assist in making these choices, as well as the theme of “versatile.”

Since the last production check-in (February 13) I have learned a lot about the pre-visualization workflow. Since I did not have experience with this particular process, there were a lot of things I could have done better. First, I noticed that there were a lot of redundant processes that I could have eliminated if I had known more about future steps. For example, I manually entered DMX addresses and channel numbers in Vectorworks before creating my Hog4 show file, which has a feature that patches fixtures automatically. Since I am human, I actually noticed discrepancies in the addresses and noticed some slight math errors I had made. Because these numbers are so specific, I ended up having to go back and manually revise most of the information. This happened again in Capture, where I manually entered channel information and DMX addresses before placing the lights in the right position, which caused them to get all mixed up. Part of this process was being perserverent when you’re running into challenges trying something brand new. A lot of this process was learning by doing, and now I have much more confidence in having the ability to complete this process.

Unknown: Where is the computer with the capture license?

In the PLAI Lab! When walking in, it is down the row of computers to the right-hand side. It is labeled PL-103. I have opened it up and confirmed that the license is up to date. It was a somewhat arduous journey to find it, because I had to check all of the computers until I found it. 

Unknown: How do I even do this? What steps do I need to take to get this done? 

I looked at several resources and found different workflows. I watched a webinar that outlined the process from 2 different perspectives and have talked to Matt Smith. The process is broken down in my schedule. I feel much more confident in the production phase now. 

Unknown: What fixtures am I going to use?

Prospective fixtures are put into this spreadsheet!

Unknown: Where will the fixtures go?

I originally had this Miro board “sketch” to represent where these fixtures might go. However, I gained a lot of insight working in Vectorworks, as the fixtures were placed in the venue to scale.