Live Event Technology Solutions ›› News ›› Creative Technology 2020 Unwrapped – A Year in Review
Creative Technology 2020 Unwrapped – A Year in Review
Twelve months of events at Creative Technology
No one could have foreseen what happened to our world and our industry in 2020. Without question, it has been the toughest and most extraordinary year in our history.
Alongside the massive human and economic impact this pandemic has had on the wider world and tragically many of our families the impact on our industry has been intense.
We have seen clients and competitors disappear or restructure almost beyond recognition, we have reluctantly said goodbye to many loyal and committed staff across our business units, making tough decisions today to protect business for tomorrow.
We have also seen arguably the most intense period of change and innovation our industry has ever seen.
I continue to be amazed and incredibly proud of the innovation and pace of development I am seeing across CT as we develop and roll out an ever-evolving range of facilities, services and software to support our customers transition into the world of virtual and hybrid events.
Whilst we cannot deny business has been tough, this brief resume of our year reminds us of some of the progress we have made and highlights a tiny selection of the incredible events we have done, despite COVID.
With the support of our incredible clients, the amazing staff who have and continue to work tirelessly to bring about this continuous innovation and our parent company NEP, I know we are doing much better than many and that we will emerge from this crisis as a changed but healthy and even more dynamic organization.
We wish you all well for the Holiday Season and thank every one of you for your continued support.
Graham Andrews
CEO of Creative Technology
Creative Technology (CT) have selected a small variety of events which highlight the range of creativity shown by our team, and clients globally throughout this unusual year.
January: Al Wasl Inauguration
On the 29th January 2020, Creative Technology Middle East delivered an award-winning visually spectacular event for the Al Wasl Dome Inauguration which sits at the heart of the Expo 2020.
High profile dignitaries and royalty were treated to a stunning bespoke projection mapping and immersive audio experience which showcased the UAE’s history and innovations, many of which will be on show at Expo 2020.
Creative Technology were honoured to take home the award for the Events and Entertainment Project of the Year for this fantastic event at this year’s AV Magazine Awards 2020.
February: CT Ireland Rebrand
February 14th saw Ion Solutions rebrand to Creative Technology Ireland. Ion Solutions was acquired by CT in July 2019, and in the following 7 months, prepared to transition to the CT brand, including new livery on vehicles, staff uniforms, web site, stationary etc.
The integration of the Irish operation into the global CT family had proven to be a very smooth transition, as both organisations shared similar values and cultures, and the decision to rebrand followed a careful programme of communication with clients, suppliers, and staff, to ensure that everyone understood that the local CT company would still provide the same level of service and commitment, with the same people leading, as before. The rebrand proved to be a huge success, and both the clients and staff have seen the benefits of having a large organisation to support the local operation.
March: Folding@Home
Creative Technology is home to hundreds of media servers each with the latest in GPU’s and processors. Ordinarily, these servers are key to delivering live events for our clients but following the outbreak of COVID-19 throughout Europe and beyond, and the related reduction in live events, we have found ourselves in a position to really get creative with our technology. Fighting back against Coronavirus in the best way we know how, and this comes in the form of the Folding@Home project run by Stanford University.
April: Global XR Studio Rollout
In April CT took on a global initiative to accelerate the build out of XR studios to support the ongoing need for virtual and hybrid events. Successfully launching XR studios in Hong Kong, Dublin, London, Dubai, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
Watch a video explaining the XR capabilities
May: Oriflame Global Summit
Oriflame’s Global Diamond Summit was originally planned as a large-scale live event in Los Angeles, celebrating and inspiring the company’s Brand Partners from around the world. Following the corona crisis and travel restrictions, it was decided to instead go with a global live broadcast show, inviting more than 4 000 online viewers on May 14th. Creative Technology (CT) supported the project with a custom set design in a studio in Stockholm, including a complete technology solution of audio, video, lighting, camera production and live remote links. The livestream was carried out by CT’s own tecViz Live and Presenter Software providing a secure stream and login to the invited.
June: Ford F-150 Virtual Launch
Building upon the success of the adrenaline-pumping Ford Mustang Mach-E reveal event last year, Creative Technology assisted global experience company, Imagination for the Ford Motor Company virtual launch of the all-new F-150.
July: Porsche Sports Cup
This year, we supported Porsche China in several events. From the beginning of the year where Porsche did their first online event across several social media platforms, to the annual Porsche Sports Cup where Porsche enthusiasts were treated to an actual sports car feast to indulge them in high-speed driving competitions after months of inactivity and a pop up sneak peak of the Taycan in an outdoor display.
August: VJ Day Projection UK
The BBC decided to commemorate the 75th anniversary of VJ Day with an audio-visual spectacular located at the famous Horse Guards Parade in London, aired on 15th August on BBC One. It was an unprecedented opportunity to use this iconic venue, available only because of the unforeseen social distancing restrictions put in place which had halted the usual timetable of parades and public access. The visually spectacular and highly moving event was broadcast around the world commemorating 75 years since the end of World War 2.
September: Opening of Seoul CT Office in Korea
Opening a new office is always a challenge. Doing it during a global pandemic with travel restrictions was an even greater challenge this year, but it did not deter us from working towards our plan. Thanks to our superb team support from our group company, CT successfully opened our Seoul office in September. With this new addition to our portfolio of global offices, we are even more confident that we are able to provide events, whether virtual or live, anywhere in the world and have the same quality of service that is synonymous with CT. CT Seoul is currently working on providing large amounts of LED and technical support for virtual production, and developing high tech solutions to support the needs of our clients.
October: League of Legends World Championship 2020
It is the 4th consecutive year CT has provided technical support for the League of Legends World Championship. This year’s finale has been even bigger than before; the size of the main LED displays in total was over 1800sqm. The month-long championship was held in a high tech studio in Shanghai supported by CT, followed by a finale with a live audience size of over 9000. It was the only major live e-sports event in Shanghai this year. To avoid the disappointment of not being able to allow a live audience during the month-long championship, the quarterfinals and semi-finals, CT and our client RIOT/Concom worked closely to ensure the high tech studio was visually stunning and engaging all throughout the competitions.
November: League Lounge Dublin
CT Ireland hosted the Leader’s Lounge summit at our RDS Studios. The Leader’s Lounge, organised by Titan Experience, the sports management group, brought together leading sports figures such as Stuart Lancaster, Paul McGinley, Lisa Fallon, and Jim Gavin, providing insights and inspiration for corporate, sporting, and others in leadership positions.
December: CT Gives Back
We are saddened we are unable to celebrate the festivities with you this year but are pleased to have instead been able to contribute and donate to some chosen charities across the globe.
We hope our support can spread a little seasonal cheer and joy to those who need it most.
Thank you for your continued support this year and let’s hope 2021 has some exciting live events in store for us all!
Best wishes for the holiday season and happy new year!
