The mainstage, a gargantuan 132m wide x 36m tall assembly, was designed by the festival's art director, Florina Dascal, to resemble the silhouette of a griffin with its wings spread wide. A multifaceted lighting design by Andrei Predut of Apart Productions integrated the wishes of incoming artists whilst simultaneously delivering an identity that was instantly and unmistakably recognisable as UNTOLD.
   

© Courtesy of Untold Festival - Photo © Julien Duval

Providing the atmosphere to accentuate the lighting were 10 MDG Me2 fog generators supplied by Blame Me For This Show.

Predut's lighting design comprised 817 fixtures, but with many having multiple beam outputs, the number of lightsources far exceeded the number of fixtures. "What matters is what you can build with them," says Predut, whose aim was to create lasting impressions that live in the memories of the 500,000 festival goers long after the event had finished.

Predut devised a plethora of wide-ranging looks that encompassed the stadium, enveloped the audience from fixtures all around the arena, and formed innumerable and varied images on stage that spanned the width of the undulating wings - the fluid appearance of which hypnotized the audience - up to the tip of the height-defying fin over centre stage.

© Courtesy of Untold Festival - Photo © Julien Duval

"For the sum of the fixtures to become the 3D composition we envisioned, rather than just a bunch of coloured dots, we needed a special atmospheric treatment," he states. "The arsenal tasked with delivering that treatment comprised a deployment of 10 MDG Me2 fog machines, assisted by blowers and custom-made punctured tubes. The choice was mainly driven by the need for reliability, thus, selecting MDG as the industry standard in fog generation was a no-brainer. We devised a web of sources that covered from the black box to front-of-house, the wings and even the delay towers in order to deliver an even and lasting coverage."

For a few nights above Cluj, it appeared that the mothership had landed as the stadium took on an almost extra-terrestrial appearance. "What it brought to each person - and what they took away when the festival ended - remained a unique and personal experience for every individual," continues Predut. "The MDG kit delivered just as expected and we made the most of it. The countless flawless images taken by the photo/video team testify to this more than any words we could offer.

"The MDG brand was always our trusted ally throughout all the UNTOLD editions and most certainly will remain our go-to solution for the future."

Predut and Apart Productions, were supported by the production management team, with Radu Rus and Marius Balan facilitating the procurement of the equipment required to bring the project to life.

Apart Productions can be contacted at www.apartproductions.ro

© Courtesy of Untold Festival - Photo © Alive Coverage