At the beginning of the year, it felt hard to put a cap on what was an incredibly eventful 2022. But it just goes to show that sometimes good things only get better, and that hard work really does pay off.
In 2023, we produced some of our most exciting, transformative events ever, and we’re so proud of what our team, partners, and clients accomplished. We wanted to share just a few of the highlights, as well as a peek behind the scenes at the people (and tech!) that made it all possible.
Events in Ottawa: Making magic with sound & light
Fire & Ice Winter Festival
Ottawa’s Fire & Ice Winter Festival is one of the flagship events on our annual calendar, and this year we took things to a whole new level. With stage projection mapping for the festival’s concert line-up, ten art installations that guests could walk through and immerse themselves in, and an interactive LED video wall with built-in AI, this was our most involved, high-tech production yet – and we’re thrilled with how it went.
See how it all came together here:
We’re honoured to partner with Centretown BIA on this event every year. Read the full event recap here to learn more about how we helped make this year’s festival the most magical one yet!
Ottawa Tulip Festival
We were thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the Ottawa Tulip Festival again this year. The festival is one of Ottawa’s major tourist attractions, and we wanted to create an unforgettable experience that elevates our beloved city to residents and visitors alike.
We’re incredibly proud of our “Battle of the Atlantic” sound and lights show, which was performed every evening on the Dow’s Lake boardwalk. The show told the story of two courageous Canadian Naval ships in the midst of the Second World War, blending storytelling with our own sound and light alchemy to create a multi-sensory experience that brought history to life in a whole new way.
We used our newly upgraded video LED wall for a daily “Movies in the Park” feature that was perfect for those balmy, early summer evenings.
The video wall was also put to great use by the many kids who visited the festival and loved the interactive game we created for them. (Who are we kidding, the grown-ups and young at heart loved it too!)
KFEST & K-pop Contest
2023 marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Canada and Korea. To celebrate, the Korean Cultural Centre Canada (KCC) and the Embassy of the Republic of Korea hosted their largest-ever Korea Week, including the brand new ‘K-FEST’, a full day of events that included cultural booths, food, and – our favourite part – a massive K-pop contest and concert. With over 15,000 attendees, it was a huge success.
We were honoured to work with the organisers to produce the K-pop contest, a mind-blowing cover dance-off that we hope becomes an annual Ottawa tradition. Our event alchemists outdid themselves on the stage design and production, creating a vibrant backdrop for the contestants’ crazy moves that kept the off-the-charts energy from the competitors and crowd going all night long. The evening’s grand finale was a concert featuring solo K-pop artist, and former leader of IZ*ONE, KWON Eun-Bi, and the K-Pop boy group, KINGDOM. It was a truly inspiring evening and one of the highlights of the year for our team!
Capital Pride
Capital Pride has been one of our longest-standing partners, and every year we embrace the challenge of coming up with a new stage design that captures the heart, joy, and freedom that make this event such a delight to work on. The photos tell it all… and we can’t wait to do it all again in 2024!
It was a privilege to work with Avant Garde Designs on the video mapping, audio, video, and lighting design & production for Caivan’s Annual Gala. This project turned into a total design playground, and the results were absolutely breathtaking. They included:
- Full room video mapping
- A jungle themed video wall for the DJ booth
- A giant suspended neon lights cage
We’ve shared a few photos here, but check out our Instagram post to watch some incredible video footage of an incredible evening!
Nature Nocturne
We were proud to sponsor four Nature Nocturne events hosted by the Canadian Museum of Nature over the course of the year. These memorable events turn one of Ottawa’s most important museums and architectural venues into a delightful blend of cultural exhibits, themed activities, and dance floors that are always smash hits.
With themes of Garden Party, Pride, Masquerade, and Glow, we jumped at the opportunity to add a little lighting magic to these events… and the occasional visual illusion to keep things interesting.
More unforgettable highlights
We couldn’t let a 2023 recap go by without also mentioning these incredible Ottawa events. We’re so proud of our design and production work at each one.
JON Festival 2023
We partnered with Wall Sound & Lighting to help make this brand-new hip-hop and R&B festival’s stage design, audio, lighting, and visuals a massive crowd-pleaser. The festival is confirmed to return in 2024, and we’re excited to see how it continues to grow!
AfroFest
We loved doing the stage design, AV, and production for this absolutely electric event!
Latin Sparks
The Latin Sparks Festival celebrated their 10-year anniversary this year, and this party always brings the heat…. so we made sure our stage design and lighting sizzled, too!
Tour de Gatineau
The Tour de Gatineau is an inspiring women’s cycling race that is part of the Union Cycliste Internationale’s program of international competitive cycling events. Our outdoor video wall was put to excellent use throughout their individual timed trials, road race, and award ceremonies.
Canada Day in Barrhaven
We celebrated Canada’s 156th birthday in style at the Barrhaven Canada Day celebrations, where we integrated LED video wall panels into our stage design for dynamic on-stage video content that perfectly complemented the talented performances and festive atmosphere.
National Art Gallery – Jean-Paul Riopelle Gala
We collaborated with Chic & Swell to produce this annual fundraising gala at the National Art Gallery. Our video wall and lights production made the perfect backdrop for their jaw-dropping performance artists!
RCGS Geographica Dinner
The Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s 94th annual Geographica Dinner convened dignitaries, astronauts, explorers and community leaders in a celebration of their achievements in storytelling, geography, and exploration over the past year. We were proud to contribute to the event’s video production, which included bringing our video wall, projection, and camera work to the stunning venue at the Canadian War Museum.
Making event design happen: our team, crew, and partners
None of these incredible events happen on our own. Our team of event alchemists and the many freelance crew members who support us are absolute dynamite when it comes to dreaming up and implementing a creative vision that is unique to every show we do. They are what make the magic happen!
We’re also incredibly grateful for the network of brilliant partnerships we’ve built over the years. These amazing affiliates are an absolute joy to work with: Chic & Swell Event Designers, ASA Live, Oxygen Events, Avant-Garde Designs and so many more. And a special shout-out to our essential vendors, including Wall Sound & Lighting, Christie Lites Toronto, Theatrixx Technologies, and CR34TE – just to name a few! Their collaboration was pivotal to making 2023 another successful year of outstanding events.
Upgrading key pieces of our event design technology
Top-notch event production means always staying at the front of what’s possible when it comes to audio-visual technology. In 2023, we made a couple of investments in essential AV equipment that levelled up our ability to create stand-out events and memories for our clients and their guests.
2.6mm LED Video Wall
In 2022, we acquired Ottawa’s highest-resolution indoor/outdoor LED wall, and it was an instant hit. So this year, we upgraded our setup with an additional set of indoor-only LED video wall panels that offer an even brighter, crisper, and more immersive video experience.
To learn more about video walls, how we use them when designing and producing special events, and what to consider when adding them to your own event, read our guide here.
ZENIT B200 Wash Light
We’re also very excited to add a new suite of powerful indoor/outdoor waterproof, battery powered and wireless wash lights to our inventory. These ZENIT B200 lights are incredibly bright, adding high-resolution colour and brilliancy that pop on even on the brightest summer day. They’re also versatile and adaptable – an essential feature when every event we do is custom-designed and completely unique.
From stunning colour washes to dynamic effects, these lights have been a game-changer in our lighting design, giving us even more ways to create those ‘wow’ moments that make each event a truly illuminating experience.
Here’s to 2023!
2023 was one of our best years yet, and we want to raise a glass to every client, team member, partner, and guest who made it so special. At the same time, we’re always looking ahead. We have big plans for 2024, and can’t wait to welcome you to our next magical, unforgettable event!
