Rear Projection

[DMX Will]

Hi Guys,

 

I'm after some information about rear projection, particually about rear projecting onto a sheet/material.

 

I'm a mobile DJ, and have a nice light rig for mobile purposes (I do other work too). I'm looking at the possibilities of having 1 or 2 screens to project visuals, maybe the odd photo either side of the disco.

 

I have a friend/colleuge who has two HP projectors (around 2200 ansi lumens each I believe), and we are after a solution on the cheap to rear project onto. My inital idea is a standard bed sheet (obviously cut, sized and possibily bordered with a black material and then hung from a truss).

 

My question is, does anybody know if the image I will get will be clear/visible enough to make it worth my while. Obviously it would be used in a dark room, with only scanners/movers on the dance floor near.

 

Any suggestions/advice/comments/past experiences appreciated.

 

Thanks,

 

Will.

[Jamtastic3]

A bed sheet is a good idea - though remember to FIRE RETARD it! Scrim or heavy gauze works too and you may find the beams come through nicely from the rear - espeically good with haze.

 

What's the material clubs use? kinda lycra-ish that you find stretched in triangle forms above the crowd???

[pumphouse]

The projectors will be plenty bright enough for your application.

 

You'll probably get something on a bed sheet, but I think you would get a large hot-spot in the line of sight to the projection lens. I would recommend a trial first before investing a lot of time and effort.

 

One other thing to bear in mind is that you need to check the position with the local council in the areas which you operate regarding premises licences and the inclusion of cinema operations. The definition of cinema is based around any public display of a moving image, unless it is a live TV broadcast, or solely for promotional (advertising) or educational purposes. Visuals at a disco/band night wouldn't come under this exception and would therefore require the venue to have cinema included in their premises licence. I went through this loop with my local authority a few years ago (under the old licensing system), but the definitions and exemptions have been pretty much transferred into the new system. I'm not saying this is sensible, but it is in black and white.

 

Incidentally, all cinema material that is shown and does not have a certificate or exemption from the BBFC needs to be approved by the local authority.

 

These requirements also apply to the incidental use of moving visuals as part of a theatre piece - the Theatre operations bit of a premises licence doesn't cover this.

 

Different local councils may of course have different views, but this is what I went though with mine, and I suspect many venues, promoters and organisations are unaware of this.

 

Jason

[DMX Will]

Just for the reference for other members. This worked a treat.

 

I purchased 2x King size black flat sheets (bog-standard sheets) and a double size white flat sheet.

 

The black sheets each had a hole of 1.6m x 1.2m (Keeping the 4:3 ratio for projecting). This hole was then replaced with half (ish) of the white sheet, sewn in hey-presto.

 

The results were amazing with a 2.5 lumen projector. Results below with the venue's "house lights" on.

 

http://virtualsights.bustedjump.com/dmxwill/screen1.jpg

 

http://virtualsights.bustedjump.com/dmxwill/screen2.jpg

 

Edit: Distance from projector to screen (shown in the second picture was just short of 3m)