Seen on screen

Content to fit the technology? Or technology to fit the content? It’s been an often-asked question over the years, with content creators agreeing that only in the recent future has the appropriate thought been put into what is shown on screens at events across the region.

For many of those in event production, the primary concerns about a screen at an event centre around pixels, size and weight loading. At the forefront of event organisers’ mind, however, is the content to be screened. Traditionally, a distinct disconnect between the two has often occurred, resulting in screens not suitable for the content, or vice versa.

Fortunately, this has changed, with a greater partnership than ever before between all links in the event chain, resulting in the appropriate correlation between content and screens more often than not.

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“What used to happen, predominantly prior to 2008, is that there would be an event or something, and the organiser would say ‘we’re going to put 12 screens here, it’s going to be great!’, but no-one thought about the content, and I think that’s starting to change.

Today’s it’s more of a case of coming up with the idea and then, if it’s the best way to make it work, putting up 12 screens,” explains Martin Lindros, film and digital director at Action Impact.

“You don’t put a screen up – you want to show content and that necessitates a screen,” adds Matt McLean, VP, client and creative services at the firm.

Established in 2005, Dubai-based Action Impact is a brand experience agency whose film and digital division has developed content for some of the region’s most iconic names and biggest events.

“We do animation, sound, design, full production, editing, writing – pretty much everything from A to Z, in-house,” says Lindros.

“We’re all about creating brand experiences. Ultimately, what we try to do is to engage with end users and within the video department especially, that’s such an emotional connection.

We find with both the Arabic and English speaking worlds out here, a digital medium allows us to get very close with those end users,” explains McLean of the firm’s approach to creating content for its clients.

Media Pro AV, which as well as offering event organisation and kit solutions, also has a flourishing creative studio in-house, says the language and cultural diversity that exists locally can mean challenges too.

“Content created to suit locals and expats seated in the same room with different perspectives can prove challenging,” explains the firm’s operations manager A George Mathew. He adds: “Time as a factor is also least considered by clients when content changes are expected at last minute.”

According to Lindros and McLean at Action Impact, there are a number of considerations when developing on-screen content.

“Some of the suppliers might not want to hear this, but we have a lot of clients who say, ‘we want that screen, or that kit’ and we say, ‘well do you really? Is it actually going to achieve what you want it to achieve, is it the best way to deliver a message to your end users?’” says McLean.

“We look at it from a different angle – coming up with the content and then finding the right kit and medium – from projection to an LED screen - to show that off to its best potential, rather than the other way around.”

Adds Lindros: “We’ve done a lot of work where the content is looped on a screen in the background – almost like a live painting. Most of the time that’s something that is played for five hours or more, so that gives us a challenge - it almost has to be something that is silent and you have to think about how do it so that you don’t bore people, but so the content is not too busy so that it distracts them from the main event. You have to think about the pace but also about how to incorporate elements that draw your eye to it.”

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