As an acronym, LDI has undergone a few changes. It was once the signifier for the late Lighting Dimensions magazine, which, along with sister trade titles entertainment Design and SRO, in 2005 morphed into Live Design. That etymological trick preserved what has become a well-established name in the live-event production industry — the LDI Show (Nov. 19-23, 2014, in Las Vegas) — one that's become increasingly relevant to the house-of-worship environment.
It's a big show — over 9,700 attendees working in theatre, concerts, corporate presentations, clubs, theme parks, houses of worship and other live venues come from 88 countries to see the latest gear in action, refresh their knowledge, and replenish their creativity. More than 350 exhibiting companies provide attendees with live demos and the opportunity for face-to-face discussions about equipment, including lighting, sound, projection, staging and truss, and special effects. Here are a few key reasons why it's worth the time for those with staging, video, sound and lighting responsibilities to attend.
• Projection Mapping — the ability to transform an interior or exterior surface into something completely different is projection mapping's promise, and it's been delivering that for a variety of applications, including house of worship, for several years now. New developments in the category, such as improved software that can coordinate larger numbers of projectors on a single installation, and the steadily decreasing cost of ever-brighter projectors, which makes more complex mapping more affordable, will be on view at the show.
• Ongoing Education — The LDInstitute provides focused comprehensive technical training, including in-depth, intensive courses in video content creation, hands-on lighting console training, media-server training from Hippo School to ArKaos, a rigging and electrical boot camp, LED solutions, and more. This show will feature Projection Master Classes, an immersive two-day event bringing together top visual designers and leading projection professionals to discuss the creative, technical, and practical challenges involved in creating, programming, and mapping cutting-edge images, as well as the technical side from playback software and surfaces to projectors and networking. Also, this year is the second for a joint program with the University of Florida School of Theatre and Dance that allows any undergraduate and graduate students to take four professional training courses at LDI2014 in Las Vegas. These courses carry university credits that will be accepted by the students' home institutions towards their degree programs. Topics this year include “Entertainment Rigging Fundamentals.”
• Holographic Projection — You probably heard about the “appearance” of the late rapper Tupac Shakur at the 2012 Coachella festival. While that particular piece of visual sleight of hand was actually a combination of holography and CGI, it underscores how holographic projection will let designers make presentations more three-dimensional and thus more immersive. “Immersive,” in fact, will be a big buzzword at this year's LDI, as live events seek to pull attendees in ever deeper.
• The Elevator Version — The show floor will have over 300 exhibitors and an array of cutting-edge technology. LDI's annual New Technology Breakfast, held in the morning of each of the first two days of the show, Friday, November 21 from 8AM to 10AM and Saturday, November 22 from 8AM to 10AM is a way to get a fast overview of some key sectors, brands and products that will help you optimize your time at the show. Think of it as the elevator version of the show — each invited company gets five minutes to explain its key product or service. It's free for attendees and they serve free coffee and bagels.
• And finally, this year, LDI will present EDM@LDI — an entire section of the show floor dedicated to electronic dance music, its impact on the design world, and the gear and technology that have made the electronic dance genre the international phenomenon it's become. And we're not being facetious — a nascent trend is seeing a convergence of EDM and church. For instance, Modesto, CA megachurch Fearless hosts an EDM event at various nightclubs in the Los Angeles area every Sunday; and Baptazia: Super Sundays is all about bass & drums. Once upon a time, they thought rock & roll in church wasn't going to fly, either.
