
Nena Celebrates 40th Stage Anniversary With GLP JDC1 posted: 17/11/2017
ZDF honours the Hagener pop icon with a brilliant show, as Manuel da Costa relies on the new hybrid strobe from GLP
When pop icon Nena celebrated her 40th stage anniversary, the radio and TV host Thomas Gottschalk led a constant stream of top international stars coming and going to honour the occasion. Peter Maffay, Gianna Nannini, Wolfgang Niedecken von Bap and Dieter Meier of YELLO were among the illustrious guests along with other well-wishers like Sasha, Samy Deluxe, Frida Gold or The Boss Hoss. Even Dave Steward insisted on passing by for a duet.
Impressively staged, the event was set in the round in Hamburg's Mehr! Theatre. For the occasion lighting designer, Manuel da Costa, was commissioned by Herr! Media, a production company which specialises in music production.
Manuel and Nena have known each other and worked together for many years. For example, the lighting designer and the musician collaborated closely on the format The Voice Of Germany. But over the years I have also worked with many of the guests and artists who appeared during the evening, notes Manuel. That is something that happens naturally over the years.
As a fitting setting for the evening, set designer J rgen Hassler let himself be inspired by the architecture of the Mehr! Theatre. Consequently, he felt the event should be big, stately and resembling a cathedral. The evening was to be a mixture of gala, concert and unplugged music and I wanted to pick up on all these elements in my lighting design, said Manuel, setting out his concept. It was not that simple, because as beautiful and inspiring as the location was, there were so many factors that made it difficult to implement. In fact, the hall only houses two static, loadable beams on which all suspension points, trusses and other loads have to be set. For the rigger, that meant a lot of groundwork, he recalled.
However, the selection of the correct lighting for the event simplified things he said. Fixtures from GLP have always been our first choice, explains Manuel. In the TV sector, they are almost indispensable. For example, the impression X4 (of which 77 were used in this production) is compact, light, bright and is both a wash and effect light in one. In addition to that, the impression series luminaires are wonderfully slim and inconspicuous in the camera shot due to the absence of a base, continues the lighting designer. The impression X4 can even be used as a white light, if necessary, so these lamps are really universal.
Just like the impression X4 moving lights, the impression X4 Bars are part of Manuel da Costa's toolbox. These Bars are great in terms of flexibility and expand the possibilities tremendously. Sharp beams can equally be accomplished as full coloured surface washes. In total, more than 200 impression X4 Bar 20 were used.
New in the portfolio for Manuel da Costa, however, are the JDC1 hybrid strobes. I still needed something to make a real difference, an eyecatcher for the camera image - and the idea with the movable strobe was very convenient. Initially, I was really impressed by the punch of this strobe, but then I started to do more with these lamps. The combo of super bright strobe, RGB tiles above and below and the movement effects is the real kicker. At one moment a vibrant strobe, at the next moment filigree lighting effects in the middle of a homogenous colour surface. As for the contrast, which can be built up between the gleaming white in the middle and the tiles, I have not had such a versatile lamp in my hand for a long time. In fact, he ordered 44 pieces of the new hybrid strobes for this production.
After the recording, which took place in September this year, all involved were visibly satisfied. The team of gaffer Dennis Muhl, Jonas K nig, who was responsible for the design and moving lights and Tillmann Schulz on the white light (all components from the company mdc licht.gestalten.) went in blind' but worked intuitively and did a fantastic job. The preliminary planning was done by Christoph Dahm in cooperation with PRG and Hassler Made. Many thanks to PRG, who once again provided perfect support, and GLP once again delivered 100% reliability and great lamps.
Manuel da Costa and his team will be looking for more of the same in 2018, with more new lamps from GLP.
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
28/11/2025
Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...
28/11/2025
It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...
28/11/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...
28/11/2025
The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...
28/11/2025
Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....
28/11/2025
The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....
28/11/2025
The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...
28/11/2025
We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...
28/11/2025
DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...
28/11/2025
The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...
28/11/2025
Friday 28 November 2025
Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...
28/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...
28/11/2025
Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...