Robe Adds Color and Style to 2013 ALMA Awards

	2013 ALMA Awards. Photo: Kevin Winter, Getty Images Entertainment

Emmy award-winning lighting designer Oscar Dominguez from Darkfire Lighting used Robe MMX WashBeams for the first time on the 2013 NCLR American Latino Media & Arts (ALMA) Awards.

The star-studded extravaganza which celebrates the best of Hispanic talent, creativity, and contributions made to film, television, music, and the arts in the US was staged at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium and presented by Mario Lopez and Eva Longoria. Longoria was also the executive producer of the ALMAs and kept everyone on their toes this year sporting seven different and equally stunning dresses throughout the evening.

This was the fourth year that Dominguez has lit the show, a task on which he collaborated closely with production designer Steve Bass.

His starting point for the lighting was the detailed set and his approach to lighting this was very architectural, accentuating its prominent geometric cubes, bold lines, structural form, and white elements.

At the essence of the lighting design, according to the company, was the desire to bring energy and dynamism to the stage, reflecting the vibrancy and flair of Latino culture and vibes and also the sense of occasion and excitement.

Broadcast live on MSNBC, it had to look great on camera as well as in the audience.

Ten of the 12 MMX WashBeams were positioned upstage and used to help back-light the big production dance and musical numbers of the evening, where they worked extremely well. Two of the other MMX WashBeams were downstage in the providing low-level cross-stage lighting.

Dominguez really likes the framing shutters and notes the ability to zoom from 3- to 54-degrees is "phenomenal" making it a real "quality tool." He also appreciates the compact size, which means the fixtures can be ensconced and concealed in all sorts of places without intruding onto a set or sightlines.

Dominguez has used Robe products on several previous projects including MMX Spots, most recently on The Voice, so he had no hesitation in using the new MMX WashBeam for the first time on the high profile ALMAs.

Apart from being a self-confessed "new technology junkie," he also enjoys the adrenaline buzz and challenge of using new products in testing situations and so was happy to spec the MMX WashBeams. The fixtures were delivered, together with the rest of the lighting equipment for the event, by Los Angeles-based Illumination Dynamics.

Dominguez is a big fan of the LEDBeam 100 and used 30 of these on the show which were rigged inside some of the scenic pieces, stacked in multiples of three.

He also specified 20 MMX Spots which were hung around a pseudo-pros arch made from trussing.

The lights - which included a range of other moving and generic lights, were programmed by Felix Peralta using a grandMA2 console.

Dominguez, who specializes in TV lighting design and recently won an Emmy for Lighting Design on The Voice, now moves on to the new season of this popular singing contest where he will again be utilizing Robe products.