Creative and technical event production design and delivery specialist Pytch – based in Bristol, UK – has invested in 72 new Astera Titan Tubes – adding to their existing 32 Astera AX3 LightDrops.
The LightDrops were originally purchased for creating funky and original table centres for events, gala dinners, etc., and Pytch have produced some custom covers that refract and treat the AX3 light in different ways.
Pytch is known for its imagination, flair, and innovative approach to event presentation, and very recently for expanding its office space with the purchase and installation of the fuselage of a real Boeing 727 airliner! This comes with its own character, colourful history, gloriously kitsch interior … and is now anchored safely to a stack of containers in the back yard, serving as a unique space in its own right impressing Pytch guests and clients.
Recently Pytch ran a PytchLab session – an experimental event where different ideas and concepts can be tried and tested for effectivity and practicality – using the AX3s and the Titan Tubes to illuminate the underside of the plane numerous striking ways.
However, the Titan Tubes were specifically an investment for the three virtual studios that Pytch has been running since the start of the pandemic, which have steadily been getting busier, utilised for a range of corporate presentations, meetings and business events plus livestreams concerts, fashion shows and other broadcasts.
The initial 24 x Titan Tubes went into the first studio and were such a success that it was decided to replicate the look in the other two spaces so all were identical, explained Pytch’s head of lighting, Dan Giddings.
Initially they looked at the AX1, Astera’s original ‘pixel tube’ “I wanted a specific neon looking tube but something that was classy, elegant and that stood out from the slew of options on the market” stated Dan.
They did their research and comparisons, and Astera came out the winner!
Individual pixel control was a big thing as it adds to the versatility of the product and therefore be used for a wider range of applications.
Wireless operation and battery power are also a great asset inherent in and Astera product in terms of flexibility, and this will be invaluable once live events start to ramp up as events re-start post-pandemic, says Dan, however in the studios, they are all run wired.
“So, it’s handy to have the option of both” he confirmed, adding that the Titan Tubes are fantastic for creating band backdrops rigged on stands or for attaching to trussing towers for those wanting a rawer and more industrial feel.
Recently Dan designed lighting for a multiple artist recording session at Pytch for a collection of exciting cutting-edge musical talent – vocalist Ruth Royall, the Paper Dragon collective, d ‘n’ b producers Grafix and Toronto Is Broken, dubstep bassmaster Axel Boy and fluid d ‘n’ b impresario Somatic – all for the Our Space record label.
The goal was to record the footage for music videos and other promotional collateral and also to release full length streamed sets online in the future.
The session offered a great opportunity for Dan to use the Titan Tubes in some interesting and inventive ways and maximise their pixel mapping capabilities. He rigged the fixtures at ground level and at various hights around the studio for a strong and distinctive signature look that would work for all artists.
Photo: © Laurie Kaye & Emanuel Mayorga