CHALLENGE:

Use the Hoover Dam as the Northern Hemisphere’s largest projection screen at a size of 420,000+ square feet – equal to the size of almost 9 football fields and more than 87 average-size IMAX screens.

SOLUTION:

Digitally scanning the Hoover Dam so it could become the largest man-made projection screen. This has never been done before and was an enormous undertaking, requiring months of negotiation, planning, preparation, and setup. 3D video projection mapping – the relatively new technique of using specialized software to warp and mask a projected image – allows for images to fit onto irregularly shaped screens like the curved surface of the Hoover Dam. 60 projectors were synchronized to create an image with a resolution of 4592 x 2048 pixels on the dam a half-mile away. In addition to the complexity of the projector setup, the output of the projectors was impressive in itself. Together the 60 units generated about 1.37 million lumens, equivalent to the output of more than 1,400 60-watt household light bulbs and was acclaimed by The Guinness Book of World Records as “The Greatest Light Output of a Projected Image” an official world record! The technology used at the Hoover Dam had never been applied before on a scale this massive, with such a large screen requiring a high amount of light output.

RESULT:

The International Media and DTNA employees were treated to a once-in-a-lifetime experience. More importantly Siam has been invited back by the Reclamation Authority at The Hoover Dam to work there any time in the future.