Nashville-based CK Productions owner Keith Hoagland has announced the arrival of the company's custom-bbuilt portable WYSIWYG design studio, the first of its kind in the area. This system was created to have the most up-to-date, state-of-the-art technology and most impressive graphics, speed, visibility, and power. Added to that is the ability to fit the system into one flight case for easy travel and set-up for lighting designers on the go. Hoagland designed the studio specifically with compact size in mind, but still wanting the most updated and cutting-edge power and performance that the WYSIWYG program can give. "That's what we are so excited about," Hoagland says. "This system is going to be one of the most competitive and top-of-the-line systems out there, topped off with amazing details--such as the fact that the video card alone contains 256 MB of RAM, and the computer itself is as small as a toaster! All of these features will be a huge benefit to any designer who wants to save time, money, and have the most advanced available technology at their fingertips."
Hoagland adds, "It includes WYSIWYG Version 6 with four Wyg-it2 units. So we have eight outputs of DMX with an Intel P4 computer system at 3.0 mhz and a 533mhz front cache speed. Then there is 1 gig of ram with a 120 gig hard drive, the 256 mb of video ram on a graphics card that can handle up to three monitors. We currently have two 17" LCD Flat screen monitors with stereo speakers built-in as well as the system has 5.1 audio built-in."
CK Productions is partnering with Premier Global Production, also based in Nashville, on this new system. Troy Vollhoffer, president of Premier Global Production, comments, "The mobility of this portable WYSIWYG design studio is a great opportunity for the designer--local or international--to have the chance to design their entire show in their own studio--or living room, for that matter. Then they have the opportunity to bring it to our facilities and let us instantly fly the design for them to see it in reality."
Keith Hoagland is currently on the road with country artist co-headliners Keith Urban and Carolyn Dawn Johnson, which is also a Premier Global Production account for both artists. "We just finished using the Portable WYSIWYG Design Studio to program Keith Urban's and Carolyn Dawn Johnson's Canadian tour," Keith notes, "I had to actually design this show while out on another tour this summer. It was a delight to have such a small system to be able to wheel into my hotel room with a console, and program a complete show in detail for both artists. Two days later the show was programmed and the clients were excited about seeing the actual outcome."
Hoagland has been in the music industry since 1989. His lighting and set designs have been seen at concerts nationally and internationally, and he has worked with artists ranging from Aerosmith, Rush, Brooks and Dunn, and Michael W. Smith, as well as has had his work featured in music videos, CD covers, and magazines.
Vollhoffer adds, "Keith is a veteran lighting pro in our industry as well as a great programmer with full technical knowledge at every level. This Portable WYSIWIG Design Studio he has put together is going to serve a great purpose to designers everywhere and we are looking forward to this partnership." Premier Global Production is one of the top lighting companies in the industry, with clients such as Backstreet Boys, Rush, Tim McGraw, Little Bow Wow and many many more. The company specializees in lighting and staging and is a full-service production company with offices in Nashville, TN and Regina, SK.