Ayrton is an active sponsor of the Women In Lighting (WIL) project with the aim of promoting the work of women lighting designers across the entertainment industry, showcasing the skills and capabilities of these talented women, celebrating their achievements and encouraging others to become involved.
One of the most interesting ways of raising awareness of WIL is by sharing the inspirational stories of those women already working in lighting, and WIL interviews – of which there are in excess of 160 on the website – are a major facilitator of this.
WIL has recently released two new Ayrton-sponsored interviews with women lighting designers: Nashville-based Sooner Routhier, an award-winning designer, producer and director, who has worked with an impressive list of headline artists including KISS, The Weeknd, Motley Crüe, Muse, Rhianna and, currently, Coldplay; and LA-based Emmanuelle ‘Gigi’ Pėdron, a French-born lighting designer who has worked with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, My Chemical Romance, Garbage and Prince.
Sooner Routhier
Routhier is a creative powerhouse in the live music industry and, through Sooner Rae Creative, has redefined entertainment lighting and production, whilst also mentoring bright new talent.
In her interview with WIL co-founder, Sharon Stammers, Routhier talks about her initiation and pathway into lighting, her inspirations, collaborations and creative processes. She also speaks of the challenges of turning ideas into reality and the logistical challenges that are the legacy of the pandemic, touches on the issue of sustainability and keeping up with technology, and gives some advice to women starting out in entertainment lighting.
Listen to the full WIL interview with Sooner Routhier here:
https://youtu.be/y2FtoQ9VgfE
Emmanuelle ‘Gigi’ Pedron
Celebrated for weaving art and spontaneity into her lighting designs, Pedron is a lighting design graduate of the School of Fine Arts of Lorient in France. Having worked in live music for over twenty five years, Pedron tells Stammers how her artistic curiosity brought her to discover lighting design as her medium. She talks about the importance of networking, collaboration, working within budget and her famous customised consoles! And shares thoughts on LED lighting, new technology and the architects, artists and LDs who inspire her.
As a passionate music lover, a true connection with the music and the bands she works with is intrinsic to Pedron’s designs, as is her unusual condition of Chromesthesia – the ability to immediately ‘hear the colour’ of a song. Pedron also speaks of her biggest challenges and her attitude to working as a woman in the live music industry.
Listen to the full WIL interview with Emmanuelle ‘Gigi’ Pedron here:
https://youtu.be/008UmsvjYeY
Women In Lighting is a global project co-founded by Sharon Stammers and Martin Lupton of Light Collective. Well-established in architectural circles, the project is fast becoming popular in other lighting disciplines. Over 160 inspirational interviews with female lighting practitioners can be watched on the WIL website at www.womeninlighting.com