Following the success of OCUBO’s Lisbon Under Stars immersive spectacle, the creative studio has returned to produce another ambitious project – the LUMINA Light Festival. Held annually in the Portuguese coastal town of Cascais, the LUMINA Light Festival is an international event, showcasing light art, video-mapping, multimedia and interactive projects, in both urban and natural environments.
CEO, artistic director & co-founder of OCUBO, Nuno Maya, explained: “Targeting the general public, LUMINA is a free, open and plural event, created for a wide audience and to be enjoyed by every member of the family, taking them on a sensory journey full of light, sounds, and movement. With the investment of the Municipality of Cascais, embassies, institutes, brands and other companies, LUMINA is a unique event that gives Cascais its own special identity. It reflects the support and commitment of the municipality that we can offer a diverse cultural event to the citizens of the region.”
Each year LUMINA has a clear artistic and curatorial approach, which has always evolved based on experience acquired from past editions of the festival. In this year’s edition, LUMINA has focused more on interactive multimedia installations and performance-based works, given the rising prominence of interactivity in installations at light festivals.
The 2018 incarnation of LUMINA Light Festival consisted of 17 works of art; namely seven light installations, an interactive light installation, a performance light installation, and eight mapping / projection-related works. Two of these installations – Colours and Forms by OCUBO, The BLKBRDS & JUKEBOX crew, in the Citadel of Cascais, and Of Dreams and Life by Robert Sochacki, in the prominent Casa das Histórias Paula Rego, were realised using technology from AV Stumpfl.
The most notable pieces of kit in this inventory were a pair of AV Stumpfl’s new PIXERA two media servers. These compact, 2U systems can play back uncompressed 4K content at 60fps and come complete with a redundant power supply. As well as the PIXERA two systems, the team made use of AV Stumpfl Wings Engine Raw and Stage systems.
Maya commented: “AV Stumpfl products are the best in the market for video mapping synchronisation with DMX light. This had been responsible for the success of one of the greatest multimedia works of the light path, Colors and Forms, a 360-degree installation with video mapping, dancers and live music.”
Cooperation is at the core of LUMINA Light Festival. OCUBO sometimes partners with other artists to co-produce artworks. As well as collaboration with these artists, there is a strong relationship with the ETIC (School of Innovation and Creation Technologies) and an array of technical partners such as shipping company MSC (which has provided LUMINA with its shipping containers) car manufacturer Renault, Portuguese train company CP (Comboios de Portugal), Airstar, Futurdata, and of course, AV Stumpfl.
Maya said: “AV Stumpfl was undoubtedly essential to the success of this festival. We have been working with their products for some time, and we recognise their excellence, especially their screens and the new PIXERA servers, which we used for the first time. The materials and software were undoubtedly a great solution for this festival.”
To conclude, the CEO also paid tribute to the event’s latest home: “Cascais provides a beautiful backdrop for the festival, and leads the audience on beautiful luminous path, not only to discover the artworks showcased at the festival, but also routes that people don’t take every day and interesting corners of the city that they see in a new way. That said, LUMINA can of course adapt, from towns to cities, and is always willing to illuminate new places.”
