Barco UDM revives legend of the orient

Protecting our land for ages, dragons have always been a reputed icon in the Orient. In the Longtan River Scenic Area, Wanyuan, Sichuan, China, one dragon-related legend in specific has been passing from one generation to another and finds its origins in the unique local culture with over thousands of years of history. Every year, numerous tourists flood to the picturesque area. To contribute to rural vitalization and further advancements in local tourism development, the scenic area has now joined hands with Barco to unveil a magnificent real-mountainous-view proAV performance called Longtan: Mystical Land. In its debut show held on November 29, 2020, the performance uncovered the origin story of the Longtan River for tourists and locals as well.

Instant installation secured by strong power of action

The performance was held in the open amidst adverse outdoor conditions including cold weather, mosquitoes and rain. Other problems like constrained installation space or overload projectors also posed a serious challenge to the set-up. Fortunately, Barco’s team is experienced in outdoor installations and the projectors can perform steady operations with outstanding stability in testing circumstances. Backed by Barco’s powerful visualization technology, it took less than 200 days for the 400-member cast to complete the settings with concerted effort.

UHD presentation at close range

China’s legend took shape on a 60m-long rockery background and another 450m² setting in the woods. To present an immersive viewing experience, the audiences watched the real-view performance from up close. This choice brought a daunting challenge in terms of image resolution, brightness and color. Barco devised a package of display solutions - 19 UDM-W22 projectors with special lenses for broad coverage.

Immunity from optical loss attained through flexible projector installation

Different from typical projection installations, which project images on smooth surface, this real-view performance projects the image on the uneven and complicated surfaces with discontinuities like leaves or rocks. This causes difficulties in imaging and serious optical loss. To address the problems, Barco’s team conducted a field survey and made flexible adjustments to the installation of laser projectors from deciding on the most appropriate angle subject to checking in on specific on-site requirements. In addition, 3DLP technology was used to ensure color accuracy, brightness, and consistency in imaging regardless the impact of optical loss.

Many old tales have been forgotten in the ever-changing times. And Barco is excited to be part of the mission to preserve the treasure of different cultures through our proAV technology.