PixelFLEX Extends the Creativity of the 2016 Miss Florida Pageant

	Photo: Trenton Dick

Taking center stage inside the Lakeland Center, the 2016 Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant showcased 48 contestants all vying for the opportunity to compete for the coveted title of Miss America. Held in conjunction with the Miss Florida Outstanding Teen Pageant, production designer Trenton Dick was once again working behind the scenes at Miss Florida, and was asked this year to build upon the previous pageants LED video design. So with an expanded budget and some increased expectations, Dick decided to create three LED video walls for the event using FLEXLite Plus 6.9mm and FLEXCurtain HD 12.5mm LED video technology from Nashville, Tennessee-based PixelFLEX.

"We used the PixelFLEX LED video technology for the first time in our 2015 pageant design and the producers loved it so much they really wanted to expand our video design for 2016," began Dick. "With the opportunity to expand the design, I knew I wanted to create a large center screen using a high-definition 6mm product, and then I wanted to create two LED video towers that would be stage right and left of the center screen to give us the space to be more creative with our custom graphic content. From the very first day we set it up, the producers were absolutely ecstatic with the new design and it actually made people stop for a moment to truly take it all in."

Knowing he wanted to use 6mm technology for the center screen, Dick began speaking with the team at PixelFLEX about what might be available in their rental inventory. Once he learned about the high-definition 6.9mm FLEXLite Plus he chose to use 60 panels that when assembled would measure 13' tall x 24' wide for the center LED screen.

"This was actually the first time I had used the FLEXLite panels, which were exactly what I was looking for," explained Dick. "When I first saw the technology in action, I was blown away by not only how sharp and clean the images were, but also how bright it was too. Anytime I do a center screen for this type of production going forward, I am definitely going to use the FLEXLite Plus 6.9mm product because it was absolutely amazing."

The FLEXLite Plus builds on the importance of meeting every need for every client. With new and improved features, FLEXLite Plus is capable of a 15-degree curve in any direction, and is one of the highest resolution curve-able LED displays on the market. Because of its bright, dense display and high refresh rate, FLEXLite Plus photographs and videos smoothly and its tiles are calibrated directly out of the box to help decrease failure, and insure perfect color and brightness of the user's LED screen. Additionally, the preview test button allows for easy viewing of signal and power connections.

Dick continued, "Since we went with such a large center screen, I decided to use the FLEXCurtain HD 12.5mm product line for the side fills. I had worked with the technology last year so I knew exactly what it could do and the walls were each about 20' tall x 4' wide. Matching the content between the two systems actually worked out well, and the FLEXCurtain really allowed us to extend the creative space of the design."

The Parnelli Award-winning FLEXCurtain HD is a lightweight and flexible LED video screen ideal for high resolution video playback and video effects for indoor or outdoor applications. Its hi-res LED video can be driven by any DVI output, and the multi-directional, flexible design of the FLEXCurtain HD makes it easy to store and transport. The company says the FLEXCurtain HD is 60-90% lighter than the competition, and using the quick-lock system, 500-sq.-ft. of FLEXCurtain HD can be setup and broken-down in under 15 minutes.

"With the increased LED design, I was a little bit nervous about the load-in schedule because we only had one day to set it up and go because the preliminary rounds started the very next day," admitted Dick. "I had a crew of about three to four techs helping me and once we got everything unpacked it all went together rather quickly. On the center screen, we did four rows of 15 panels and once we got the first row centered on the pipe everything else went together like clockwork and we had the LED walls up in no time."

As the 2016 Miss Florida Pageant drew to a close, Courtney Sexton took home the coveted crown and title, while Anjelica Jones was named Miss Florida Outstanding Teen. But regardless of the outcome of the pageant, the technical team behind the production knew they had created a winning video design with PixelFLEX LED video technology.

"Using the Resolume control software, we were able to create some very dynamic motion graphic effects that could layer on top of the contestant photos, sponsor logos, and static backgrounds," concluded Dick. "After we did a bit of final programming to size all the elements correctly for the LED walls it all worked exactly as we hoped. At the beginning of the design process the producers clearly stated they wanted to expand on the design we created last year, and by adding the FLEXLite Plus with the FLEXCurtain HD that is exactly what we did and the show looked great."