Primer on multi-screen presentations

May 24, 2013 6:04 AM

Hi Mefi I'm dreaming up a small theatre work that involves projections. I've done single screen presentations but I want to look into working with multiple screens. I've never done this. Where on earth do I start?

The work is still being developed, but say I want to work with three screens. Sometimes the three screens have three separate projections, but maybe I want to treat all three as a single screen. Trigger visuals live and whatnot. How do I do this?

Do I use LEDs or projectors?
Do I need a laptop per projection? How do I control the visuals?
What software do I use?
What is the cheapest option for a low budget theatre person?

Will accept any non-wikihow links. You may have to speak slowly when explaining, I am very new at this.

Thank you everyone.

posted by mooza to Technology (3 answers total)

Our theatre department uses QLab to manage live triggers and all the media. With three screens, you could do this with one Mac Pro and a lot of video cards or four macs each driving a display talking over a network.
posted by advicepig at 6:21 AM on May 24, 2013

Did you say, multi-projection?
Module 8on a Mac and a projector or two should get you started. This is one of the tools that video mappers use and is very fun.
posted by svenvog at 10:07 AM on May 24, 2013

You want Qlab. It is the easiest and best program for this. If it is a short run the do rental licenses. There are other programs like Isadora and Watchout but they have steeper learning curves and would probably be overkill. You'll want a big Mac pro with multiple video cards and then projectors or screens are really up to you and the scenic designer. Projections done right can be pretty expensive, and done wrong can look terrible and be a huge headache.
posted by Uncle at 11:16 AM on May 24, 2013