18 projectors and three months of work were necessary to carry out the 3D mapping in the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral of Medellín during the 2013 holiday season.
By AVI Latin America
The city of Medellin, Colombia, has gained wide international recognition for organizing for the holiday season and the end of the year, a Christmas decoration with lights and figures in different parts of the city that attracts a large number of tourists.
By December 2013 to this decoration they decided to add a 3D mapping on the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral, through which the history of the city and its department, Antioquia, was traced, which stole the show during the days it was in operation.
"Art, technology, culture and history of the city of Medellín were part of this great audio and video show that highlights the progress of the region, paying tribute to outstanding artists and personalities who appear and disappear on the canvas offered by the façade of this architectural icon of the city," Leonardo Vilar described it, project manager of the company Sonic Design, one of those in charge of the intervention.
The mapping recounted the history of the city and the department since 1890, the year in which the construction of the city's cathedral began. In total, there were five segments that covered the progress of the region, including its transport systems, moving from the train to the metro, and always playing with the structure of the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral.
Three months of previous work
Empresas Públicas de Medellín, EPM, the entity in charge of organizing Christmas lighting in Medellín, held the first 3D mapping show as part of the Christmas lighting during December 2012. For 2013 he decided to perform the show in the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral considering this building as a great icon of the city that allowed additionally to explore in a better way the technique of 3D mapping given its richness and architectural complexity.
Leonardo Vilar commented that the 3D mapping carried out in 2012 used four Panasonic projectors of 20,000 lumens that provided an appropriate luminosity and resolution for the building.
The new project of the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral required a substantial increase in the number of projectors to achieve the necessary image quality and also required a set of Coolux servers for the synchronization of images and geometric adjustments necessary for video mapping on this façade.
Achieving the results obtained required three months of previous work to carry out all the audiovisual production. In addition, the use of 18 projectors of the company Barco FLM-20 processed with Coolux Pandoras Box servers as a central brain of video playback, geometric correction, blending and audio playback through a surround system composed of Adamson Spektrix / Spektrix Sub speakers and Lab-Gruppen amplifiers.
The companies Diorama Post participated in the project with the script and production of the mapping content; the technical direction and projection was in charge of Sonic Design; for the logistics part, Era Electrónica was appointed; and interactive mapping by Dream House.
Security, the challenge
The show was held in Medellín's Parque Bolívar, a place located in the downtown area of the city that, especially at night, presented security problems. Although today, after the social intervention of the local authorities, the situation is very different.
Therefore, the safety of the area was one of the main challenges to take into account, due to the amount of equipment during the time of assembly and operation of the show. "This is an area of the city that suffers from insecurity at night. It was interesting to observe through the days the change that this show was generating in the neighborhood, the visitors and even the safety of the area itself, "said the Sonic Desing Engineer.
In the end, during the 40 days that the screening lasted, four daily shows of ten minutes each were held for seven days a week, without any safety problems or technical failure in the entire time of the show. Throughout the mapping season in December 2013, a very positive impact was generated in the neighborhood and the city by summoning tourists, citizens and spectators who would not normally tour this area as part of the Medellín tourist circuit at Christmas time.
Leonardo Vilar concluded that "This 3D mapping show has been highlighted and praised by international critics thanks to its technical and artistic quality. It is worth mentioning that this show was carried out by the same technical and artistic team that developed the remembered 3D mapping show for the celebration of the Bicentennial of Colombia in the Plaza de Bolívar in July 2010."
Integrating firm: Sonic Design
Manufacturers (brands) involved: Boat, Coolux, Adamson, Lab Gruppen
Professionals involved: General Technical Directorate: Eng. Leonardo Vilar
Company covered with the installation (end customer): EPM
Installation dates: 1 December 2013 to 6 January 2014.
