This was in solidarity with the #RedAlertRESTART action in the USA which saw over 2000 buildings lit in red all over North America on the same date, to highlight the critical stage of the live events and entertainment industry globally during the Coronavirus pandemic and the need for support and roadmap to re-starting.

Pula’s world-famous arena is the only remaining Roman amphitheatre in the world to have four side towers and all three Roman architectural orders – Doric, Ionic and Corinthian – intact! It was constructed between 27 BCE and 68AD, is among the largest six surviving Roman arenas worldwide and is also the best-preserved ancient monument in Croatia.

So … it is a VERY special place!

The lighting scheme was designed by Emil Koller, Dalibor Vidaček and Igor Svećarovski – who were very proud to have the chance to transform this already stunningly beautiful space into something even more unique for the evening.

The design utilised 12 x Robe MegaPointes, six MMX WashBeams and 12 x BMFL Spots which were supplied by rental company I.D.D. Production (Idea Design Decision Production).

The 12 x MegaPointes were positioned on the stage floor with the six MMX WashBeams rigged above a projection screen, all focussed on washing the Arena’s internal walls.

Six of the BMFL Spots were rigged on top of the columns above the auditorium, with six on the ground below, and all the lights were programmed and controlled via a ChamSys MQ500 Stadium console.

These Robe luminaires were chosen for their intensity, and also because they were left in place in the venue following a live broadcast for the opening of the 2020 Pula Film Festival a few days previously. So far this year, this has been the only event staged in the normally very busy Arena, after all public events and gatherings were stopped in March as the pandemic spread.

Zagreb Arena in Croatia’s cosmopolitan capital city – another key venue for live shows and events – was also lit in red for the occasion in a collaboration between six leading Croatian rental and production companies Eldra, Fakat, IVAS Grupa, Perinić Sistemi, Promo Logistika and Rhino Produkcija.

Robe's Croatian distributor LAV Studio was active in supporting the action at Pula, where they are also based. Like every company, organisation and individual in the industry, they are alarmed at the lack of government support and understand how imperative it is to get moving again.

“The event industry has been unable to work for the last 6 months and needs an urgent roadmap to restarting so event companies have a fighting chance to survive,” stated Davor Vujić, LAV Studio’s managing director, adding “if that doesn't happen soon, many companies will go bankrupt.”

However, he is optimistic that campaigns like #WeMakeEvents, #LightItInRed, #LetTheMusicPlay, etc. will make an impact.

“We are convinced there is a good chance of support because we are letting politicians and the public know we exist and that our jobs and lives are on the line!”

On the night – as is the case with all these actions – everyone involved in the production of these major Croatian sites was overjoyed to be back working, lighting up an outstanding building and doing what they love best ... momentarily returning to the 'old normal' world packed with events, challenges, awesome lighting and visual designs, etc.

“We look forward to a time – hopefully soon – when the situation is resolved, and everybody can return to the work / lifestyle they love with plenty of energy and enthusiasm to meet new challenges ahead,” concludes Davor.

Photo Credit: Loris Zupanc