While we often describe the Rosco DMG SL1 as a versatile light for any occasion, it’s always more interesting to see that versatility in action. Lighting Designer Anthony Cals recently shared how he has utilized the fixture’s slim profile, powerful output, and full-spectrum color rendition for a variety of event lighting projects – including virtual events, press conferences, and even DJ lighting for an underground nightclub vibe inside a museum.
Anthony used nine DMG SL1 fixtures to light a new production studio for the global PR firm Notified. The studio was designed to provide their customers in France with a world-class solution to power in-person, virtual, and hybrid events. According to Notified, the new production studio “delivers powerful, broadcast-quality capabilities to help any marketer, event planner, or organization create professional-grade content for virtual audiences.”
Anthony’s main challenge with this project was the low ceiling heights. He needed powerful fixtures that didn’t hang down too low into the studio space. Anthony shared how “the DMG SL1 lights were perfect for this project because of their slim profile.” He was able to easily hide the lights from the camera, and he also noted that he didn’t have to worry about the weight of the lights. Anthony outfitted the SL1 fixtures with a variety of beam-shaping accessories, including the flat diffusers that came with the fixtures, Domes, and Barn Doors. This, combined with DMX control, provided the Notified studio team with a homogeneous lighting design that enabled them to light any virtual event from all angles.
Although a press conference might seem like a simple lighting setup, Anthony had a recent project where he needed to figure out how to light a press conference so that the Eifel Tower could be seen in the background windows. Once again, he needed slim-profile lighting fixtures that he could keep out of frame by hiding them in the ceiling soffits of the space. More importantly, he also needed lights that would be powerful enough to balance with the ambient light so that the windows wouldn’t blow out in the background of the shot.
“The choice was simple,” Anthony said. “Only DMG Lights could provide the light output I needed in this reduced space with zero noise.” He ended up lighting the space with four DMG SL1 fixtures, all equipped with flat diffusers, and he controlled the lights using the myMIX app.
Anthony programmed the SL1 fixtures so they would accentuate the natural daylight coming in through the windows. He set them to 5000K and, because the press conference was held relatively early in the morning, he added a small amount of magenta to mimic the trace of sunrise still present in the Paris sky outside.
When Anthony was asked to create an underground nightclub atmosphere inside Le Bourse de Commerce museum in Paris, he needed a lightweight, easy-to-install lighting setup that would accentuate the performance. He ended up hanging several Astera Tubes from the ceiling to wash the space in color, and then he flanked the DJ table with two SL1 fixtures that were outfitted with flat diffusers and mounted vertically.
The pair of SL1s served two purposes. First, Anthony kept them on a low output to illuminate the DJs against the concrete wall of the space. But then he also had them pulse brightly to illuminate the crowd dancing near the DJ table.
Based in Paris, Anthony Cals has specialized in lighting design for over 20 years, and in 2021 he created his own company – LEARTHO. Since then, he has worked on projects for the Louis Vuitton Foundation, the Homolog fashion show, and events at Le Palais des Congrès de Paris. For more examples of Anthony’s work, please visit the LEARTHO website: www.leartho.com, or follow @_leartho_on Instagram.
If you would like to learn more about the fixture that Anthony used in the lighting designs described above – please visit the DMG SL1 product page on the Rosco website.
Lacey Colter November 09, 2023 Questions?
Marketing Manager - Film/TV/Broadcast: Lacey Colter has been working in the entertainment industry since 2015. She started in production before transitioning to a cinema lens manufacturer and now covers the film and television market for Rosco. She has spent years of her career interviewing a variety of industry professionals.