Clay Paky Sharpy Fixtures Shine on Fourth Season of Ukraine TV’s “Star Factory”

posted:

11/03/2012

ALIGHT is using Clay Paky fixtures to create the best shows in Ukraine

“Star Factory,” the hit talent show on Ukrainian television, is shining brighter than ever in its fourth season thanks to a complement of Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures. Adapted from the French series, “Star Academy,” the Ukraine version (“Fabrika Zvezd”) features 16 contestants who live together in a penthouse apartment and showcase their talents in a weekly elimination-match concert. The productions are full-blown with stage design and lighting, dancers and participation by some of the country’s most popular singers.

Maxim Balashov, technical director, leading lighting designer and one of the founders of ALIGHT, selected Clay Paky Sharpys for season four of “Star Factory,” which aims to raise the lighting design bar and put TV lighting on a par with the show’s high-end video elements and production design.

“Our company always goes with the times,” says Balashov. “Our staff regularly attends international exhibitions to acquaint ourselves with the world market and what’s happening in the lighting industry. We always have all the latest lighting equipment in our arsenal, so this year we bet on Clay Paky’s Sharpy. We’re pleased to note that Sharpy not only has justified our hopes and goals but also caused a furor in the Ukraine television market!”

Sharpy is a 189W moving head with an unprecedented brightness usually achievable only with far greater wattages. Tipping the scales at just 16 kg, Sharpy produces a parallel, laser-like beam with an output of 60.000 lux at 20 m.

Balashov is a prolific force in his country’s TV industry. He is estimated to have provided lighting design for 90 percent of all TV programming in the Ukraine and is the winner of the country’s Teletriumph 2010 and 2010 Best Lighting Design in TV awards. ALIGHT has inked deals with leading Ukraine TV networks to provide lighting services that require it to continually upgrade its technical equipment base. The company currently has 80 Sharpy’s (40 black and 40 chrome), 24 Alpha Spot HPE 1500’s, Shotlight Washes and 10 Alpha Profile 700.

We are immensely pleased with our partnership with Clay Paky,” says Balashov. “Sharpy is high quality and competitively priced. We will be promoting the brand in the Ukraine TV market, using Clay Paky fixtures to create the best shows in the country!”

He adds that ALIGHT staff members also plan “to attend various seminars, exhibitions and workshops to improve our skills in working with Clay Paky technology and boost our creativity.”