Now White Light are delighted to announce the winners of those bursaries: Chris Clarke and Petter Skramstad.
Both students won their prizes by fighting their way through a demanding selection procedure designed to mimic many parts of a real world 'pitch', thus allowing even those students who didn't ultimately win to gain experience in presenting ideas to a client. Students first had to prepare a 250-word written design proposal for the fictitious client explaining how they would light one of a London building, a pop song, a number from a musical or a scene from a play.
At this stage, four students were selected. These four then had to complete full design proposal, including visualisations, plans and schematics, for a scheme to be produced for a fictional budget of £10,000. To better mimic true theatrical practice, this budget was cut to £6000 mid-way through the proposal period!
The final proposals were presented to a panel of working professionals for judging. This panel included Tony-award winning lighting designer and Association of Lighting Designers chairman Rick Fisher, production manager Rodger Neate - currently working on the new ABBA Musical Mamma Mia - as well as John Simpson and Bryan Raven of White Light.
The panel selected Chris Clarke for Satan, a piece of music to be staged in the environment of Charing Cross Railway Station, and Petter Skramstad for Images, a presentation of a piece of Norwegian music. Petter and Chris received cheques for £1000. Both were also invited to the Royal National Theatre's annual Christmas Lighting Designer's Lunch, to receive certificates commending their achievements.
Commenting on the selection procedure, White Light's General Manager Bryan Raven noted that "the standards of the entries were exceptionally high, which is encouraging for the future of lighting. The winners were selected not only for the quality of their proposals but also for the quality of their work in presenting those proposals - something that, though some may think it sad, is just as important as overall creativity for anyone planning to make a living in lighting!"
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