France's ESC Honor is Safe Thanks to Airstar's Brilliant Performance

	ESC's blue carpet, under the light of Airstar's lighting balloons

With over 185 million viewers each year, the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) is considered as one of the most popular music events in the world. When Portuguese artist Salvador Sobral won the 2017 edition, giving Portugal its first victory since the creation of the competition, pressure was high for the hosts to hold an unforgettable edition the following year. So on the 12th of May, 2018, all the eyes and cameras of the world turned to the city of Lisbon for the 63rd edition of the ESC.

Although the French delegation did not get the expected results, Airstar, the French manufacturer and world leader in lighting balloon technology, delivered a remarkable performance for the opening ceremony at the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT) of Lisbon, on the banks of the Tagus.

Before battling it out in Lisbon's Altice Arena, one of the country's largest concert halls, delegations from 43 countries gathered at the MAAT to walk on the ESC's "Blue Carpet," under the light of Airstar's lighting balloons.

The blue carpet is an important moment for all participating artists, as they are given an opportunity to meet media and fans alike. It is also their last opportunity to party before the show.

In order to meet the drastic technical requirements from the organizers, Airstar specified and installed no less than 30 Crystal and Solarc lighting balloons. A flagship product of the French company's events range, the Crystal lighting balloon brings reliability, efficiency, a strong aesthetic aspect, as well as an evenly spread and glare-free lighting.

Raphael Vaz, head of Airstar's Portuguese subsidiary, explains: "We've had lengthy discussions with the client, and we were able to come back with a solution that was a perfect fit for such a high profile event, but also perfectly adapted to the constraints of the venue. We wanted to bring out the magnificent façade of the MAAT as much as possible while respect the imparted time and the limited space that was available, so we quickly opted for the Crystal range, since it brings a powerful and efficient light, and can be deployed very quickly and easily."

As an unmissable show for millions of fans and onlookers around the world, who are switching their TV each year regardless of the time zone -- whether they are in Europe, Australia, or the US -- the Eurovision focuses the attention of a global audience. It was therefore essential for the organizers to be able to rely on a lighting technology that would not only be glare-free for the guests but also and flicker-free in order to cope with the many cameras and photographers covering the event, and facilitate their work.

"In agreement with the client, we opted for an HMI lighting source inside the balloons, giving both excellent levels of brightness and a perfect rendering for broadcasted events," says Vaz.

The size of the balloons and their arrangement was also particularly important. In order to obtain the required striking visual aspect, the Airstar team worked closely with the ESC's director of photography. Measuring 160cm in diameter, each Crystal was mounted on telescopic poles around the blue carpet, thus optimizing lighting as well as ground space occupation, while the Solarc lighting balloons -- which boast an impressive 3m of dimension -- were directly rigged directly above the Crystal on the museum facade, ensuring a striking yet balanced visual impression.

"Installing the Solarc took a lot of ingenuity, as we couldn't afford to risk any damages to the building. So we deployed cables of different lengths, and thanks to the expertise of the teams on site, we finalized and delivered the project in a record three days. We are absolutely thrilled with the success of this project, and the customer was extremely satisfied with the result."