Stage Directions: Printhead StudioTM, the newly rebranded digital printing division of Rose Brand Inc., introduces its new direct dye digital printer and expanded capabilities. The newly acquired state-of-the-art technology is Durst’s Rhotex 500 printer. Printhead Studio managers have configured the printer to go beyond 4-color CMYK printing, to produce 6-color CMYK+OV prints. The 6-color printing process adds orange and violet to the standard four colors that most printers use, which are cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The additional colors add greater depth, richness, and color accuracy.
5 comments:
Printed drops are becoming more and more desirable and are showing up more often in scenic designs. I’ve now worked on at least four shows that have had a large printed drop as part of the design. I worked on one show this summer that had a drop that spanned the entire width of the stage and about 2/3 of the height of the proscenium. We looked around a few different vendors but I don’t recall Printhead Studio being one of them. The vendor that we did choose was able to give us a quick turnaround time and a decent price, however the colors were not as high quality as we thought they would be. For that reason, I really appreciate this new technology and improved color accuracy. Printed drops are difficult because the colors often aren’t quite what you are looking for. This will definitely be a vendor that I keep in mind in the future.
This technology seems like it brings nothing but good things. The additional color richness and accuracy means more designers will have access to drops that are exactly what they want instead of compromising based on the availability of something that’s “close enough.” This new method creates fully customizable, quick, and now, with the infusion of dyes (rather than just surface paint) a longer lasting cloth drop. I would say it sounds a little too good to be true, but I imagine the price point makes up for that. I am curious exactly how much this service costs and what the turnaround time is. How many theatres will be able to afford this? One potential challenge is that unlike a rented or borrowed drop, if this drop arrives and isn’t quite right you can’t just ship it back for a partial refund. I imagine you’re stuck with it because I doubt Rosebrand offers any sort of satisfaction guarantee.
So I am split on this. I like the idea from the design perspective of more vibrant, rich color that is infused so it lasts longer but what worries me is this: First, smaller theatres who rely on rented drops may not be able to afford something like this and to echo what Rachel said above, you may not be able to ship it back if it’s not right. It also means that a company like Grosh has a tougher time competing in the market place. In search for the faster, almighty dollar, a company could be forced to eventually closed because who wants to rent a painted drop from Grosh when you can get a fancy printed, longer lasting drop for just a bit more money. Secondly, Scenic painting is an art. Just looking at things around our own CMU paint shop, there is real talent in the work and skills of our scene painters. All this fancy printing stuff means that they too may be out of work someday. If everything can be printed on fabric, then why not just by that and use that to skin the set instead of doing the detail painting by hand. It’s faster for sure and the cost offset would depend on how much it would cost for materials and labor to hand paint versus to have it printed and shipped and installed by a tech person. It’s a really nifty idea, but I feel like there are consequences that are yet unknown and when reared, will be ugly.
As a potential theatre set designer this was an amazing article to have read. I didn’t know much about printing scenic drops let alone this new Rose Brand printer. I personally an going to be a weird set designer because I hate painting and don’t like to physically build things. This article has made me believe there are enough technology that i can still be a successful designer. I think with this advancement in scenic technology the level of realistic reality on stage will be heighten to an all time high. This also means that the fantasy worlds will also become more and more realistic in nature. THis is what excites me the most. The fictional realism is the kind of theatre I want to focus on, and i think that tools like the new Direct Dye Digital pointer, will be a major asset to make this possible and affordable.
This is all well and good, but how much does it cost? I suppose that in the end what really matters is if it will cost less than paying scenic artists to do it. The lead-time may not be any shorter than traditional painted drops depending on complexity and how busy Printhead is. Printing is great and can produce incredible results. I see this going the way that the CNC router has gone here – it is a matter of convenience. We use it because we have it. Sometimes it is essential in the process whether it is for complexity, precision, or repeatability. I think the same concepts can be applied to digital printing. We might end up using it just because it is available and not in cases where it is critical that we use it. Digital printing can also mean more work on the designer’s end because they have to create a file that is of high enough quality for the digital print to look good. We should cover digital printing in more classes.
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