Home   Statistics   Registration   Search   Language

More Navigation

 Montreal Fireworks Forum —› 2012 Display Reviews —› France - féérie reviews
Last poster Message


Posted: Jul 21, 2012 18:47:56   Edited by: Admin

Please post your reviews of the French display here!

Again, as I recently outlined on the weather thread, there is a risk for some scattered showers late this evening (and the early overnight) ahead of that same cold front - otherwise, partly cloud skies, as outlined previously.

Apologies for the late notification.

Trav.


Posted: Jul 22, 2012 08:27:07

Here is the video for France - July 21: http://www.burchcom.com/2012/index.html

If you want to download and save a copy to your hard drive, right click on this URL and select "save target as":
http://www.burchcom.com/2012/france2012_qtp.mp4


Posted: Jul 22, 2012 10:37:02   Edited by: fredbastien

Quinze ans après le feu d'artifice "Jules Verne" produit par JNS Pyrotechniek (Pays-Bas, 1997), Féérie a choisi "Les Voyages extraordinaires de Jules Verne" pour son 2e feu à la compétition de Montréal. Un très bon feu, au récit bien ficellé qui conférait une grande cohérence au spectacle. Comme cela avait été le cas pour le feu de Féérie en 2007 sur l'histoire de Roméo et Juliette, la narration était efficace: une ou deux phrases de temps à autre, juste ce qu'il faut pour situer les spectateurs, entre la mer, l'espace et le centre de la terre. Cette trame narrative s'insérait dans une bande sonore complexe de haute qualité, faite de courts extraits d'un grand nombre de pièces musicales (souvent des films), additionnés de sons d'ambiance.

La conception des tableaux était complexe, avec des effets pyrotechniques sur différents niveaux qui s'appuyaient les uns sur les autres pour former des ensembles très cohérents. À l'ouverture, par exemple, le bord de mer était bien rendu par les vagues bleues qui déferlaient vers la droite, et les oiseaux blancs qui valsaient au-dessus. Sur un autre tableau, des fontaines et des gerbes dorées disposées le long des rampes 3 et 5 (cinq plates-formes étaient installées au centre du lac) constituaient une base à laquelle s'ajoutaient des mines dorées, puis des bombes kamuros en quantité. Féérie a également fait un excellent usage du lac en s'éloignant des effets nautiques habituels, privilégiant les courtes comètes lancées horizontalement à la surface, notamment à l'aide de gâteaux disposés sur la rampe 5 et orientés vers les spectateurs. À quelques occasions, une proportion impressionnante de la surface du lac était ainsi recouverte de feux.

Au chapitre des effets pyrotechniques, quelques éléments m'ont semblé originaux, par exemple des bombes "champignons", créant une sphère tronquée d'étoiles blanches et bleues, avec une base rouge plus étroite (vers la 23e minute). La gamme de produits était cependant un peu restreinte, occasionnant la répétition de nombreux effets. La diversité des couleurs, surtout, était très limitée. La palette chromatique revenait régulièrement aux couleurs nationales (le bleu, le blanc, le rouge) et au doré. La synchronisation était bonne, respectée à la note près sur certains tableaux, plus atmosphérique dans plusieurs autres tableaux. L'occurence de quelques moments de plus forte intensité au cours du spectacle aurait probablement créé un peu plus d'effets sur les spectateurs. Le feu s'est terminé sur une finale un peu particulière: une grande intensification du feu mais brièvement, suivie par quelques effets additionnels de moindre intensité, qui ont un peu freiné l'élan de plaisir qu'on cherche normalement à créer à la fin d'un spectacle pyromusical.

Ces failles demeurent mineures et, en somme, ce fut une très bonne performance pyrotechnique de Féérie. Je ne suis toutefois pas convaincu que les Français se retrouveront sur le podium à la fin de la saison. D'autres concurrents sont à venir, au premier chef l'équipe créative de Grupo Luso Pirotécnia mardi.

Fred


Posted: Jul 22, 2012 20:53:22   Edited by: Enkil

Excellent display by the French firm. This was a very enjoyable display Some of the scenes were very original and creative with interesting effects. Synchronization was almost perfect, but I sometimes felt that the display was a bit too complex at times, and not necessarily in a good way (minor criticism). Very good song selection, except some of the added sounds were a bit irritating.

Finale was good, but too short. Excited for Luso!

My rankings so far (rated from La Ronde):

1. France
2. Canada
3. Switzerland
4. Japan
5. Greece


Posted: Jul 22, 2012 21:42:54   Edited by: reflections_of_earth

That was an average show from Feerie. The soundtrack of the show flowed very well although there were a few songs where the songs were cut abruptly. The synchronization was a bit too weak for my taste and the one shot sequences looked really messy. Usually many comets would unintentionally fire for each cue which causes a domino effect by having some blind spots at a later part of the show. I sometimes find it hard to see the connection between the shells and the music which is bad. The quality of the effects were not bad but there were a few good shells from zaragozana such as the photoflashes and the gold spangle shells. The firing patterns of the roman candles and cakes were very interesting but they would sometimes overlap effects with bad results, it looks messy. What's good about their show though was that there was no long periods of darkness which is always a good thing specially for the ones watching live. The finale was probably the best part of the show. I think Feerie could have done a much better job in the synchronization department and they could have edited the show so that it would look cleaner.

Can't wait for the next 3 participants! All of them are my favorites

My ranking so far:
1. Greece (91%)
2. Canada (90.4%)
3. Japan (86%)
4. France (84%)
5. Switzerland (79%)

Vander


Posted: Jul 23, 2012 00:48:10   Edited by: Robert Fendrich

I have been able to attend 2 displays this year (Japan and France), with 2 to go. The pace of the French display was intense and it did have some beautiful sky filling moments and neat nautical effects, but overall I had hoped for better. In particular, the use of color seemed somewhat limited and redundant (concentrating too heavily on reds and greens). There was nothing that compared with the Japanese shells with their multiple brilliant color changes and the wonderful rapid- fire Japanese one shot sequences. The French show was good, but not, based on past shows I have seen, Jupiter level outstanding.


Posted: Jul 23, 2012 19:40:00


Posted: Jul 25, 2012 16:52:41

Bonsoir,

Je trouve que vous êtes très gentils concernant la performance de la France !

Bande sonore : nulle
Synchronisation : aucune, mais que synchroniser sur une telle bande sonore ?
Tableaux et produits répétitifs.
Aucune trame dans l'histoire.
On croit que cela s'arrange sur "Parasdise" mais ça ne dure qu'un temps !
En bref, du bombardement pur et dur sans aucune sensibilité.

Un seul point positif : les produits utilisés. S'ils les ont importés, probablement des produits ATPM vu les couleurs.

Bye Féérie, bon retour en France.


Posted: Jul 26, 2012 17:16:59

Pleasant weather conditions were present for the French display, with moderate humidity, late-evening temperatures at 25 C, and partly cloudy skies - conditions that were conducive to a relatively large audience! Some brief, light showers had made an appearance during the late-afternoon to early-evening period in association with an approaching cold front, but these pockets of precipitation had quickly subsided in time for the fireworks. The very light winds, however, were sometimes a problem, leading to occasional smoke build-up that had marred sections of the display.

This was a very enjoyable display by feerie of team France, whose theme proposed to take the audience on a pyrotechnical voyage that was centered on some of the popular works and journeys of French author, Jules Verne. For this thematic approach, I thought that the French did a wonderful job in showing off the transitions from segment to segment while amplifying the overall atmosphere by using some emotionally-driven soundtrack, such as Requiem for a Dream, Paradise, the Pirates of the Carribean theme song, etc. Many of the effects used were also implemented accordingly to demonstrate various important sections of the music selections, and the pyrotechnics were commonly executed in an interplay that augmented the overall feeling of these songs, most notably in relation to the combination of low to mid-level photoflashes near mid-way into the show. I did not enjoy all of the songs, but most of them worked well in tandem with the fireworks, the theme, and the fluidity of the show. The often artistic nature of the display was also a welcomed addition to exemplify the thematic premise, and I found that the nautics towards the end of the display further supported the theme. As a result, the conceptual design of the show was very well devised and organized, and portrayal was adequately brought forward by the choice of music and effects, as well as the good synchronization.

The negative attributes of this display, for myself, are mostly related to limited color variety and product diversity. Although the color choices (often in a patriotic combination) usually reflected the rhythm and feel of many of the soundtracks, it sometimes led to the feeling that a few segments appeared somewhat similar with respect to representation, much like what had been seen in Switzerland's show, except without the excessive use of shells for many segments. Again, the musical selections were relevant, but there were some points where the fireworks were not always doing them justice, perhaps partially attributed to the limited color scheme. For example, although I thought that the Requiem for a Dream piece was well demonstrated, as compared to Greece's attempt, I had thought that a more varied color choice would have been appropriate, especially towards the climax. At other times times, perhaps due to smoke build-up, lighter colors emerging from the mid to high-level shells tended to drown quickly, particularly the blues.

Other than limited colors, although the product diversity was good, it was not quite to the same extent as what had been shown by previous competitors. In this respect, I was hoping to see a few more nautical effects in between the show, and I would have appreciated the integration of a few large caliber shells (though it was previously disclosed that no 10 or 12" shells would be used for the display in its entirety) to make an appearance for the conclusion of a few soundtracks (including, again, Requiem for a Dream). Music choices were numerous and had been arranged for some particularly effective transitional points, but there were a few points where the musical connection to the theme was not too clear, and, at times, the transitions were a little abrupt. That said, the subtle variations in rhythm and pace helped to convey the theme better in places where the soundtrack connection itself was vague. The brief bits of narration, though sometimes a little disruptive, did not destroy the fluidity of the show. Lastly, I found the show to be original, although we have seen previous displays employ a "voyage" approach (such as Spain 2009). Still, the concept was very unique in the manner that it had been implemented, particularly in terms of structure/organization.

As for the finale, its progression was very good. However, the activity following what appeared to be the conclusion led to the feeling of an anti-climax, as the level of intensity was much, much less relative to the energy and tempo that had preceded it. Still, a wonderful conclusion to a fabulously crafted performance (transitions, choreography, and structural design) and was more than enough for me to say to myself, "Happy birthday, Trav!"

It's difficult to say how this display will be ranked, but I personally feel that France does have a chance to pick up a Jupiter this year for the reasons specified previously.

Here is some footage that I'd like to share from the French display (taken from Notre-Dame/de Lorimier):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVeKCTZeV28

Trav.


Posted: Jul 27, 2012 09:19:42

I was slightly late in my reviews and pictures, but I worked a lot yesterday to bring (almost) everything in check.

Two displays a week + living in Sherbrooke = Running like hell to get the reports done in time (I can't imagine doing the interviews like Paul and Mylene on top of the rest...)

I found the French show to be very enjoyable, as I like Jules Verne's stories a lot and I felt they were clearly represented throughout the display.

The narration was very good, as it was short enough to know immediately to which story we were witnessing at this moment in time - I could even recognize those I didn't read previously.

The Around the Moon segment, on Lucia di Lammermoor from the Fifth Element and music from Avatar was very moving. I almost felt being in the cannon projectile that was orbiting the moon in this story.

The "magic carpet" effects were also quite impressive, with nautical bengals on the lake in very wide fronts and roman candles firing directly at the audience from ramp #5.

I found the "false finale" ultimate segment to be quite effective, as it gave the feeling that the display was not done yet. It's true, per Travis' comments, that its relatively weak intensity made a big contrast with the penultimate volley of shells, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I like it when I'm led to think that the display is over, but it's not. It's way better than the other way around, that is when the Ferris Wheel lights up when we expect the real finale to begin...

I think that at their point in the competition, theyhave a very good chance to win a Jupiter, but I haven't seen the Canadian display yet (in video, as I was at the Nations Lake fireworks festival at that time).

My review, pictures, video and post-display interview are on Pyro Québec
 

Page loading time (sec.): 0.022
Powered by miniBB 1.7b © 2001-2004
montreal-fireworks.com

Promote Your Page Too