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Background
VH1 Supersonic has been an annual fixture in India’s music festival circuit since 2013. The 2020 edition featured beer behemoth Budweiser pairing up with Dutch icons Awakenings to celebrate the full spectrum of techno music. The collaboration brings the latest international talent to Indian shores alongside local favourites.
Duration
NOV 2019 – FEB 2020
Skills
Spatial design
Creative Operations
Motion graphics
Awards
WOW ASIA
Gold Festival of the year for Supersonic 2020
Sliver Sponsorship activation of the year for Viacom 18: Supersonic x Budweiser 2020
Role
I worked as an Individual contributor with the Reset Live team. The project kicked off as a stage design role.
A quick turnaround of the stage design led to the scope being expanded to include motion graphics and Lighting Design.
Finally, I also oversaw the execution of the operations during the festival runtime.
Goals
To create an incredibly memorable experience that took audiences deeper into the techno music culture while representing the three stakeholders.
Audience feedback and critical acclaim would define a successful outcome.
Why Me?
My recommendation came courtesy of Shipra Venkatesh, technical head of the festival. We had previously worked on a few projects.
The endorsement resulted from scale-accurate technical designs coupled with a deep understanding of the aesthetic aspects of electronic music.
The Workflow
As with most large-scale projects, there are many stakeholders. Each aspect (Design, Marketing, Production) must flow across multiple specialized teams. The no. of feedback loops causes strain on the overall vision. In the process section, we will look into how this issue was minimized.
Sustainability
Stages are resource intensive and generate a reasonably large carbon footprint. Here are some of the most significant offenders:
Operational talent
Festival headliners travel with their front-of-house crew. The crew usually consists of an audio engineer, lighting designer and visual artist. This is not the reality for the rest of the lineup. Techno DJs generally travel solo or with a manager at most. In the absence of dedicated staff, the responsibility of lighting and visuals falls on the technicians who work at the AV equipment rental companies.
INVESTIGATE
ITERATE
INTEGRATE
IMPLEMENT
The design for a stage is a unique brief. Unlike identity systems or product design projects, the output has a shelf life measured in hours. Over the years of practising stage design, I have borrowed heavily from marketing and product design techniques. The constraints and affordances of the medium have resulted in the development of a unique process.
Investigate Research
Investigate Audience
After the initial research into the teams and organizations, I looked into the audiences. From the feedback I had consolidated from the marketing teams, we could hone in on three key personas.
The main takeaway from this exercise was the audience’s need for social media-friendly design. This meant that the composition should be well-lit and visible from angles. Although traditional underground techno culture pics were frowned upon, Awakenings and Budweiser appealed to a different audience segment.
Iterate Initial sprints
This is when the form-giving exercise begins. For the first design sprint, I started by sketching a concept consisting of a LED wall suspended over the audience. After the sketch was created, the production team had a few renders made, and we reviewed a few versions. During this process, we gathered valuable insights into each team’s preferences concerning aesthetics, stage size, fixtures, and layout.
Iterate The pivot
At this point, the workflow got to me. The feedback loop between teams was not productive. For the second sprint, I decided to change the approach. I took stock of the inventory available in terms of construction materials, production staff and AV tech. I did this to create practical constraints for a feasible and cost-effective design.
I then built the stage using the available components, and all the feedback gathered from the earlier sprint. The new process required a software suite called Vectorworks. The integrated software concept, inventory and 3D rendering.
45°
TURN
The teams would gather at the Viacom office and have feedback sessions. The beauty of vector works was that the changes could be implemented and rendered on the spot, allowing for a live design session. The Awakenings team would occasionally drop in via video call for feedback.
While in a session, a member of the production team mentioned “turning the cube by 45°”. The offsetting of the cubes actually ended up being a major part of the stage’s appeal.
It was only at the end of the meeting that I realized that he was suggesting something completely different. By then, however, we all agreed and so it stayed just the way it was.
Iterate Experience
A Major benefit of switching softwares was the ability to accurately place the point view exactly where the audience would be. This ability took the guesswork out of the hight for the audience canopy. It also allowed the placement of the set such that it would be visible from all the way at the back.
Next step was the light and screen placements. We were able to design the lights and screens so they would look great from all angles and not hurt the audience’s eyes.
With all things considered I was able to develop the designs in record time. There were also alternatives, that would allow for cost effective solutions if required.
As we had saved time during the design, I was able to take up the responsibility of operating the on-screen graphics and lighting for the duration of the festival. In this mode of working, I am able to channel my full vision. I have been doing similar projects as an artist so this was really familiar territory for me.
Integrate Motion graphics
The motion graphics were designed specifically for the stage and the pixel-map. The main aim was to use these graphics to distort the perception of space using the stage design as a frame of reference.
The graphics were created in after effects using the trap code plugin.
Implement Handoff
While the design phase is exciting, the greater challenge lies in communicating how the construction. While creating the execution manual I had two main objectives:
Awards
WOW ASIA
Gold Festival of the year for Supersonic 2020
Sliver Sponsorship activation of the year for Viacom 18: Supersonic x Budweiser 2020
Outcome
The clients were pleased with the overall outcome. They could see the merit of this intensive pre-production pay off in the form of a smooth setup and 2 awards from WOW Asia. A great bonus was the integration of brand logos as a part of the motion graphics.
Personal view
It was a delight to see people drop by the Budx Awakenings stage when the gates opened and just park themselves there for the whole day. The experience was distinct enough to be its own thing and dynamic enough to keep their attention engaged throughout.
Client
Viacom 18 – Vh1, Budweiser
Agency
Reset Live, Awakenings (Netherlands)
Special mentions
Shipra Venkatesh – For giving me the opportunity.
Emran Khan (Reset Live head honcho) – For letting a plucky upstart change the workflow… mid project.
Shyam Agrol (Vinayak Lights) – For always being on point with lighting operation.
This was a very large with over 200 individuals responsible for its final form, I have surely missed a few.
© Dhananjay S. Naidu 2013-2022, all rights reserved