STREET SIGNS & DYNAMIC DESIGNS
By Andrew Leyenhorst
MANUFACTURING MOMENT FACTORY ’ S PUBLIC SPACE PRODUCTIONS WITH CREATIVE DIRECTOR CHERYL CATTERALL
BY ANDREW LEYENHORST
MONTREAL ’ S JACQUES CARTIER BRIDGE
Creative firm Moment Factory is renowned for its extravagant productions all around the world , ranging from augmented-reality experiences to artistic exhibits to live concert and streaming productions for some of the world ’ s biggest stars . The Montreal-based company was behind Billie Eilish ’ s Where Do We Go ? – The Livestream , Halsey ’ s Manic World Tour , the Red Hot Chili Peppers ’ The Getaway Tour , and Muse ’ s boundary-breaking Drones World Tour , to only scratch the surface .
Moment Factory is also known for its spellbinding Lumina Night Walks , and has collaborated with many other well-known brands and institutions , including the NBA on ESPN , the Canadian Museum of Nature , and the National Arts Centre . While this only represents a portion of the impressive clientele that
22 | Summer 2021
Moment Factory works with , it makes a strong case for its excellent reputation as one of the world ’ s leading live multimedia firms .
In the absence of blockbuster concert tours and the shuttering of just about everything else within the show industry , Moment Factory has still managed to keep running strong through their work in other sectors , especially that in the domain of public spaces ; an area of live production that is still rather understated in today ’ s landscape .
As such , Professional Lighting & Production reached out to Moment Factory and caught up with Creative Director Cheryl Catterall , a company veteran who has overseen countless projects across many sectors , to discuss what goes into a developing a public space production , the unprecedented degree of collaboration required , how they contribute to communal unity , why they ’ re important for the future , and more .
PLP : At the beginning of a public space project , how much are your teams typically involved in the conception of an idea ? Does Moment Factory approach municipal governments with pitches for projects , or do they come to you ?
Cheryl Catterall : Well , I think I ’ ll start out by saying – because this ’ ll come back throughout our discussion – but there is no typical public space project . I would say it varies based on who the stakeholders are ; it can be a very different process . But very rarely a municipality says , “ We ’ re going to do this .”
So , projects that influence the public space can be a retail property that has a largescale lighting or screen installation , could be a cultural institution that ’ s street-facing , could be a public partnership that ’ s funded by different instances that can either be both public or