White Cyclorama

Aputure Space Lights now available!

We have invested in some really fantastic LED space lights for our studio and for rental! We placed four Aputure LS 600x Pro Lamps on our new Lighting Truss in our Cyclorama stage, and we have additional Aputure LS 600x Pros and a Aputure LS 300x available for rent. These space lights are amazing, they're RGBWW with a bunch of awesome effects, they draw a low amount of energy compared to traditional, non-LED space lights, and they run cool and quietly.  The space lights in the studio completely open up the entirety of our three-walled cyc for filming, and the additional lights really expand our creative offerings in regards to different styles of lights.

Along with the lamps themselves, we also invested in an Aputure Spotlight Mount Set with a 26-degree lens that can be used with the 600x and 300x, and a couple of F10 Fresnel attachements and barn doors for our additional 600x Pros. Again, this provides a broad range of tools that will really enhance your scene/production. If you would like more information, please visit our website for more information, and of course, rent some lamps from us and see what you can create!

As always, for the best Las Vegas Sound Stage and best Las Vegas video production rentals look no further than F11 Rentals!


IMG 8425 scaledLas Vegas Cyclorama Stage Open for Productions!

Las Vegas Cyclorama Stage Open for Productions!

Our beloved cyclorama stage is now up and running. We are still finalizing power distribution and our lighting grid, but we're operational. So, what does that mean, and how can it be used? Without the lighting grid, the full breadth of the stage can't be lit, but sections can. We have two 20 amp drops, which is more than enough power for most setups. Finally, with temperatures dropping, the studio space is habitable all day.

Our besties over at FiveSix Productions are filming on the set as we speak! They set up a 12x20' Green screen in the back of the stage to film some awesome marketing video for the next three days. There is also a potential shoot using one of the back corners of the stage, which is easy to light.

Beyond these smaller setups, still photography is also possible. Again, using a backdrop, or one of the walls/corners, we have the space and resources to shoot!

We relentlessly practice caution and safety with regards to COVID-19 and general set wellness. We have a long list of gear and tools available for your production. And to conclude, we are offering great discounts and deals through the end of the year on our rates.

We hope to host your next production/photo shoot soon!


IMG 7854 scaledHow to build a cyclorama stage...

How to build a cyclorama stage...

Las Vegas will soon have a brand new, state-of-the-art sound stage and film production studio! Whether you're creating a commercial, film, music video, or television, we're the ones to call. Our sound stage includes a three-sided cyclorama wall that is roughly 30'x30', and around 18' high! We're planning on a motorized light grid, so no ladders or scissor lifts! What on Earth is a cyclorama you may ask; let me tell you. A cyclorama in film and television is a wall that features a curve that seamlessly blends the wall into the floor or another wall. This gives the effect of having no visible lines and no shadows. Infinite possibilities!

You may wonder how to build something like that. Well, we didn't know either, so we did what you're doing right now, and got on the internet where the entirety of human knowledge (and stupidity) exists. And, keeping in mind low-attention spans, I'll make this quick-ish...

First, hammer drill, and, I cannot emphasize that enough: HAMMER DRILL! The hammer drill will make drilling into concrete much easier (it's still an awful task); it's not enough to just drill into concrete, you must also hammer the eva'livin' out of it (you may skip the gym after completion). Next, steel 2x4's will be the frame of your walls (in our case, two of the three walls we built). We spaced the 2x4's approximately every three feet. Then, drywall... oh drywall. There is no easy way of putting drywall up, except to just get in that scissor lift, and hope you don't cry in front of your colleagues when you're 20' in the air. So now, you have all your big pieces of drywall screwed into the neat frame you just built; next is what tough construction folks call "mudding".

Mud, like wet dirt? No, it's "all purpose, pre-mixed joint compound"; but, it's thick and wet like mud, so I get it. I had never "mudded" before, looked it up, and saw a bunch of people driving their over-sized trucks through fields of mud... no help there, so, I just went for it. For covering in/up the drywall screws, I just went straight out of the bucket. For "paper taping" the seams of the drywall, I found it best to put a thick bit of slightly watered down "mud" over the seam, place the paper tape, and then using two "blades" just flatten it out. Okay, this is boring.

How do you create the curves?! You buy pre-built "ribs" from a company that does archways, and you just screw them into the 2x4's and into the concrete on the ground; and for the vertical curves, you go straight into the walls (make sure you screw into a 2x4 for solid construction). Then, take a thinner sheet of drywall that is suited for bending when wet, and you bend them into shape. We took two spare ribs, put them on saw horses, and then a sheet of drywall and formed it into our mold. After you have your "mold" to shape the rest of the drywall on, you just painstakingly take each piece, start adding water and slowly add weight (sand bags) onto the center of the drywall sheet until is rests nicely into the mold. Once dry, you put it in place on the ribs, and screw in. We found that some of the sheets needed a little extra water while being screwed into place as they way not have been curved perfectly. Once that's done, it's back to the mud.

Here was the truly difficult part: using the joint compound to create a 1 1/4" gradient from the flat walls onto the curved pieces of drywall. Any bump or dip in the compound would create a shadow, which you cannot have. We started with small amounts of mud that we would attempt to build the gradient with by pulling to or from the edge... it didn't work. There was always a bump on the edge of the curved piece, and always a slight dip before the edge... it was confounding. The vertical curves were first, and we eventually were able to sand away our errors, and painstakingly fill in errors until we had no shadows. For the horizontal curve into the wall/floor, we went with a different approach. We took a 12" flat blade, and added a ton of mud to the edge of the curve on the wall, then, we aligned the blade's end to the edge of the curved piece of wall, the opposite end flat against the wall above it, and just drug the blade as far as the mud would go. This gave us a ton of holes and cracks, but it was an almost perfect gradient from the wall onto the curve. Then, for the second pass, we would go in and fix our little holes, gutters, groves, etc., worked much better! This took us from 6-12 passes (and sanding) on the horizontal curves, to just 2-3 passes on the horizontals. Much better!

The curve to the floor was the exact same process as the joint compound on the horizontal bit of curve, except, instead of joint compound, we used concrete. Luckily, the concreted didn't end up being much more difficult to work with. Let me wrap this up, it's getting boring I'm sure. There was a lot of sanding! We had to sand after each application of mud or concrete, and after two passes with paint. For paint, we did a thick, high quality white paint to help fill in little cracks and bumps, but mostly just used a white primer, as it's matte, budget friendly, and looks great. I think we're four or five coats in.

So, with masks on the entire time, for COVID safety and lung safety (from sanding and painting) despite the oven our studio is during the day, we powered through. We still need a couple more passes with paint, and I'm certain we'll find a blemish or two that need some attention, but, we're close. Next, professionals who actually know what they're doing will come in to run our three power drops (60 amps to the grid, and two 100 amp drops to the floor). Someone will add temperature insulation and air conditioning. We'll have someone install sound dampening items to the ceiling and walls, another person will put up our 10x20'-ish motorized light grid...

And, when that's finally done... we'll make cinematic magic!