
Robe Pointes to 2017 Apologue Part 2 posted: 20/07/2018
Mirror-Mirror is a dynamic kinetic installation created by German lighting / visual artist and imagineer Christopher Bauder from WHITEvoid, featuring contemporary dancer and crossover artist Qiu Jirong and one of seven provocative stand-alone segments making up Apologue 2047/2, directed by Chinese film director, producer, writer and actor - and former cinematographer - Zhang Yimou.
The work was produced by L!VE Kingway at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing in June and will tour China in August allowing a wider audience to experience how Zhang Yimou breaks the form of traditional stage presentation by blending Chinese folk arts with modern technology, creating a unique performance concept in the process.
For Mirror-Mirror, Christopher utilised 30 x Robe Pointes as his primary lightsources, which worked in unison with 102 x KINETIC LIGHTS WinchLEDpixels and 34 x Mirror Disc lighting fixtures.
Each mirror is controlled by three winches which give 7 metres of up / down plus pan / tilt, so they can move incredibly smoothly on XY and Z axes making their movement fluid and three dimensional. The mirror movement is controlled via ArtNet by Kinetic Lights' proprietary KLC software platform and the whole system is networked.
Christopher devised a storyboard for the eight minute piece and completed a previsualisation of the kinetic elements which included moods emotions, feelings, atmospherics while Zhang Yimou and his team directed the overall show, composed the music, and both of them suggested certain positioning and chorography for the dancer.
It was an evolutionary process which suited the development of all movement - from the dancer to that of the mirrors and lighting technology.
The Pointes are arranged on ladders in three layers, each with five Pointes, running upstage / downstage. Utilizing these traditional dance performance lifting positions was one thing, but the technique was fully subverted with the mirrors which were able to bend, reflect and refract the light beams in any direction in mid air
Combining the side-rigged Pointes with the moving mirrors massively increased the flexibility of the precisely positioned lighting fixtures.
Christopher first worked with Zhang Yimou on Weaving Machine another large scale kinetic installation that was staged as one of the eight sections in Apologue Part 1, presented a year ago in the same venue. This involved 640 internally lit balls on the same winch system and a solo female dancer, Rose Alice from London.
This was very successful, so all eyes were on the second edition of 2047 Apologue. Christopher wanted to retain elements from Part 1 so the fluid, seamless movement of the mirrors via the custom winches were the continuity, and the experimentation came with the moving lights and treatment.
Bending and reflecting the lighting in this way with the mirrors is something he has crafted over a number of installations, notably earlier this year in SKALAR at Kraftwerk in Berlin, a cathedral-like former power station that provided an imposing industrial setting.
SKALAR was lit with 90 x Robe Pointes in conjunction with 65 x double sided mirrors - each with a perimeter ring of 180 addressable pixels - suspended on 195 of the WinchLEDpixels.
It achieved great critical and popular acclaim, and the Pointe was his first choice of beam light for that. However Christopher knew that there was still a huge amount of more imaginative scope using these adaptable fixtures, so he spec'd them again on Mirror-Mirror for their brightness, precision, intensity and the clarity of the lightsource.
In addition to the accuracy of the lighting cues we needed a light with highly calibrated colours that matched perfectly. It had to be a quick moving fixture easy to handle and programme and also readily available. This and the crispness of the emitted light made it perfect for the installation .
I really maxed out the Pointes on Mirror-Mirror he stated, We could vary the looks infinitely with different gobos, strobing effects, frosts, etc., adding that the biggest challenge at the NCPA had in fact been pumping enough haze into the performance area in three minutes as that was all they had for between segment changeovers.
DMX from the Pointes was converted from ArtNet and integrated into the computer running KINETIC LIGHTS proprietary KLC software where Christopher and his team programmed the lighting looks and scenes as well as all the mirror movements.
The luminaires were supplied by German rental company MOTION on a dry hire basis and will also be on the tour which visits Tianjin, Xi'an and Nanjing in August.
Christopher really enjoyed working with Zhang Yimou again. Their different creative backgrounds and mix of alternative cultural influences providing a real catalyst for some spectacular visual synergy.
As a master of performance entertainment and live storytelling, it was a huge privilege to work with Mr. Yimou, commented Christopher. As a former cameraman, he knows a lot about lighting and has very specific ideas about colour and texturing so I took that on-board with my programming of the Pointes and had a complete free rein with the mirrors. It was a very satisfying and educative way to work .
Yimou is also known for directing the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, and the Beijings eight-minute show at the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics. For 2047 Apologue Part 2, his assistant director is Lulu He.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
05/08/2026
Thomson's Climate Crisis Toolkit for Media in Tanzania is being included in a new virtual library designed to ensure accurate and engaging storytelling arou...
05/08/2026
RSNs, teams, leagues, and streamers explore the present and future of local spor...
05/08/2026
As sports-production workflows generate larger volumes of unstructured data and ...
05/08/2026
Three aspiring broadcasters will contribute on-camera and inside the production ...
05/08/2026
Adam Meeks attends the premiere of his film Union County, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Sundance Institut...
05/08/2026
Major discounts, updates & remakes of early VST plug-ins
Steinberg are currently celebrating two significant anniversaries, with this week marking the 30th ...
05/08/2026
Flagship monitor range gains wireless remote control
KRK's flagship studio monitor range has just been upgraded, with three new fifth-generation models ...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz launches next phase of Airways New Zealand Air Traffic Control s...
05/08/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents the R&S MP007, a man-portable tactical direction findin...
05/08/2026
Advertisers invested $53.6 million in the retirement sector in the last 12 month...
05/08/2026
Nielsen CMI and Ad Intel data reveals who's visiting IKEA, where else they s...
05/08/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare deduplicated campaign reach across computer, mobile, connected TV and linear TV across all measurable CTV publishers in...
05/08/2026
Stranger Things' Leads All Streaming Titles with 23.3 Billion Minutes in Fir...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
QuickLink, the leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest integration solutions, announces the appointment of Kane Peterson to its Nort...
05/08/2026
XR research reveals marketers believe they have control over production costs, yet budget overruns, campaign delays and creative cutbacks remain commonplace
Se...
05/08/2026
Game On Live Studio Uses Blackmagic Design to Stream Tropical 7s
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Every match of world's largest youth rugby...
05/08/2026
Chris Fitzgerald to Head TDC's Experiential Growth
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Technical Direction Company promotes Chris Fitzgerald to...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
05/08/2026
Profuz Digital is set to launch a powerful upgrade to its Profuz LAPIS digital media management platform at IBC this year at Stand 8.A88. France Galop, Canal+ F...
05/08/2026
KRK, a Gibson brand and leader in professional studio monitoring for nearly four decades, launches its new V Series Five Studio Monitors, the latest evolution o...
05/08/2026
Network expansion, continued customer growth and stable financial performance characterized Magyar Telekoms business results for the first half and second quart...
05/08/2026
Wednesday 5 August 2026
The Sky Foundation launches new bursary programme to su...
05/08/2026
Charlie Sheen Launches Mostly Sheenius in Partnership with Red Seat Ventures After Decades as One of the World's Most Recognizable and Interviewed Celebr...
04/08/2026
Live production in the cloud is a growing trend across the industry, and Major L...
04/08/2026
LAFC co-managing owner will succeed Don Garber on Jan. 1, 2027, as league prepar...
04/08/2026
In 2022, when the PGA TOUR was breaking ground on its new, state-of-the-art broa...
04/08/2026
Provided by POVORA, the new camera angle offers a dealer's-eye view of the c...
04/08/2026
Spiideo will provide the camera setup, with NEP handling broadcast integration and off-site video operations...
04/08/2026
Production team streamed more than 750 youth rugby matches using ATEM switchers,...
04/08/2026
Agreement gives KTC early access to NDI's Advanced SDK for integration across commercial displays, digital signage, and interactive panels...
04/08/2026
Twelve projects across four categories recognize collaborative work in productio...
04/08/2026
Multi-year agreement will introduce SkeleTRACK, semi-automated offside, automate...
04/08/2026
Three mc 56 consoles, dual A__UHD Core engines, RAVENNA networking, and HOME management supported live sound, monitoring, and international broadcast production...
04/08/2026
New contribution products support ultra-low-latency video transport across fixed, remote, and mobile production environments...
04/08/2026
Company will showcase updates across PRIME, Chyron LIVE, Paint, virtual production, newsroom workflows, and venue control...
04/08/2026
Exhibit will feature SilverBack, VersaBrix, VersaFrame, VF-9100, and FiberSaver-10G platforms...
04/08/2026
Platform updates target cloud-based production, high-density ST 2110 monitoring,...
04/08/2026
Live Media Group will take control of Gravity Media's U.S. mobile-unit fleet...
04/08/2026
Amp-modelling rigs get major upgrade
HeadRush have recently released a major firmware update that brings some powerful new features to their Prime, Core and...
04/08/2026
Generate a choir from a single voice track
Following years of development, Am I Audio have just officially launched their debut plug-in. Created in collabor...
04/08/2026
Official EMT-endorsed reverbs now available to all
Two more of Universal Audio's renowned UAD plug-ins have just gained new native versions that can be ...
04/08/2026
SBS helps Australians understand why every Census counts
Media releases
As Australia prepares for the 2026 Census on Tuesday 11 August, SBS is helping ensur...
04/08/2026
Canada invests in the future of HF communications with Rohde & Schwarz solutions After selection by the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) as the p...
04/08/2026
Blendkit Expands Beyond Blender
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Popular 3D Asset Library Launches Alpha Plugins for Maya, Godot, and Rhino
Blend...