Kickoff 🚀
Lukas Runge
💡 The Challenges of Fixture Control
I’ve been fascinated by lighting design since I was 6 years old. From an early age, I couldn’t help but wonder why setting up lighting rigs is such a complicated and involved process.
Yes, in the end, it works — if you troubleshoot wisely and take your time to dig into the underlying issues. But in the fast-paced world of client work today, I rarely have that luxury. I’d much rather enjoy a moment of peace, maybe grab a drink 🥤, minutes before the show, confident that everything is running smoothly. Unfortunately, that’s rarely the case.
🏃♂️ The Last-Minute Sprint
More often than not, I find myself sprinting across the venue until the last minute ⏰. I’m configuring fixtures, fixing signal lines, or even replacing broken lights. And just when I think I’m done, I’m back at the front of house (FoH), fixing fixture definitions — or worse, writing new ones from scratch 😵💫.
As the event starts, I’m out of time for pre-programming. At that point, I have to run the lights with whatever state my showfile is in.
This process is far from satisfying 😤.
❌ Manpower Isn’t the Solution
Some might say, “Just get a systems technician to help with all the overhead.” Sure, that could work. But it’s really just a workaround — throwing manpower at the problem doesn’t solve the underlying issue. 🤔
I’ve always believed there has to be a better way.
💭 The Need for a New Approach
We already have network-based protocols like ArtNet and sACN. You’d think these would solve the problems, right? Since they are based on UDP and really only transmit DMX data 30 times per second via broadcast or multicast, what we can do with those protocols is really nothing more than what we could already do with DMX 🤷♂️.
What we really need is a new approach. 🚀
🌟 Enter SHIFTY
SHIFTY aims for exactly that. It is a new approach designed from the ground up to tackle the core problems lighting designers face. It aims to transform the user experience, offering a solution that finally addresses these persistent challenges once and for all ✨.
And because this is - as you already might have guessed - a huge task, we need your help. 🙏 You don’t need to be a technician or developer, it already helps if you just share this! 🌐
However, if you are a technician or developer, we invite you to join us on this journey. We are looking for contributors to help us design, build and (probably most important) test SHIFTY. If you are interested, please reach out to us on GitHub or via our contact form.
Let’s make lighting design a breeze together! 🌈