As a result of this , the trail had 11 distinct zones . These included elements that you would expect from a traditional light trail , including LED beacons , architectural lighting and pixel chains , with creative and interactive show experiences including hydro screens , aquatic and 3D projection mapping , immersive holograms of forest creatures , holographic floating fairies and interactive motion tracked fireflies .
For the 2022 light trail , storytelling was a key component , influenced by LCI ’ s expertise in the attractions industry . According to Paul , “ While there was no pre-existing IP or storyline , we wanted to incorporate narrative elements by featuring characters throughout the trail to establish a cohesive and unforgettable experience that would ignite the visitors ’ imagination .”
Concept delivery
LCI delivered the full audio , visual and lighting production , including technical design , concept creation , original media and audio scores , installation , show programming and onsite maintenance throughout the live dates .
“ The trail loops around the Obelisk Pond so we wanted to use this feature to its full advantage . There were two main viewing points so we were able to engineer the solution so that some elements made an impact in both locations , whilst both presented unique show experiences ,” says Paul .
The first water experience , ‘ Lake View ’, featured six dual 3kW pump flower head jets creating illuminated water fountains , while the ‘ Obelisk Bank ’ featured 50x250W RGBW uplighters and 12x400W RGBW uplighters . The second water experience featured a water screen with a 30mx14m hydro screen and a Christie 20k DLP projector .
The trail also had a fairy disco with 19 3D holographic fairies that appeared to be floating in the trees , a LED tunnel of light , and a Dreaming Tree projection mapped sequence . LCI added levels of interactivity and real-time media into the experience in the Firefly Forest with an infrared camera detecting the motion of approaching guests and increasing the intensity of the 600 RGB LED nodes .
One significant challenge that the team faced was that the forest is not a uniform space , which meant that they had to work with nature and draw inspiration from the surroundings and intricacies of each location .
According to Stafford , one of the main trends that they noticed is that people stayed a lot longer than previous years . “ The experience is more immersive with distinct show moments , so people are staying to watch ”. Stafford mentions .
For IMG , this was the second year of a five-year contract with The Crown Estate , who own and manage the park . Working in a public park brings with it certain considerations , both during the build and during the live show days . Directional audio was essential to ensure that no sound spilled over to local residences and there was a strict curfew for all lighting fixtures to be switched off after 10.30pm . With just one month to put all of this in place and testing needing to take place after dusk , this presented a challenge for LCI when it came to checking new media renderings and lighting sequences .
“ Sustainability has been a key consideration throughout . All lights , including site fixtures , were LED , we had a no plastic agreement with our food and beverage vendors and had an extensive recycling scheme in place ,” explains Stafford .
“ Looking to the future , we want to continue building on the storytelling elements and intricacy of the production that we put in place this year ,”. “ Bring on 2023 !”
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