Artificial Intelligence
Designed by Nikola Koeltic and Damir Belanic. PyroDigit firing with 60 modules of 14 cues and 15 modules of 90 cues.
One of the coldest evenings ever to grace the competition, clear skies and low humidity were the flip side of the unseasonal conditions. With it being the first week of the Quebec construction holiday, large crowds filled the stands despite it being a midweek night.
After the initial countdown, the audience held their collective breaths in trepidation as a narration started, but with no supporting fireworks. Then it became clear that the narrative was introducing the AI that was to run the show … and then it did various “system tests” of the sound, the flame projects and then the firing system, followed by another countdown, after which, the audience breathed a sigh of relief and the display started.
And what a display it was! Very precise angles, superb synchronization and excellent quality product. Great use was made of the site, though the shell patterns were more straight-up than angled, probably because of the use of large calibre shells and studatas. In fact, there were more studatas in this show than the rest of the competition so far this year.
The first half of the display featured longer versions of songs, which were all extremely well executed ranging from serene moments to very intense sky-filling periods. The flame effects were from three projectors that could spew flames from both sides at three angles as well as vertically. We haven’t seen this type of projector used in Montreal before, but we have had flames before. Fortunately, they didn’t over-use them, but, on ramp 3, they were rather far from the audience. Given that only nautical cakes were used, I think the flames could have been put on ramp 5 and would have been much more dramatic.
There were many interesting firing patterns used, one that sticks in my mind was the formation of three pyro “wigwams” due to the way the comets and stars overlapped. Great use was made of all of ramp 3 and the timing was very accurate. I did have the feeling that there was rather a dearth of colour and that a lot of gold and brocade effects were used, but I’m not convinced this is accurate, as there were many periods of colour, but it just seemed gold/brocade predominated, leading to a bit of a feeling of repetitiousness.
The soundtrack was very enjoyable, but it wasn’t absolutely clear how it linked into the theme, though the small narrative segments did help tie everything together, and the audience enjoyed the part where the “computer” was testing to make sure there was enough safety distance to fire a 12″ shell. Speaking of which, there were many large shells used and this compensated for the firing angles, especially as the use of ramp 3 below the shells was broad.
I was a bit disappointed about the nauticals used – really all we got were some “magic carpet” flare effects, though these were very broadly covering the lake. The finale built powerfully to a climax, but ended in a small anti-climax as the “computer” announced the show had been successfully executed and was to shut down. Many people wondered if there would be a final finale at that point as the music also continued.
Despite these small criticisms, this was a really excellent display and was very enjoyable. A fantastic debut from the Croatian team, even more remarkable given their tender age and no experience of seeing a prior show live in Montreal (which partly explains the countdown duplication in the opening narration). I believe this display will make it to the podium, though there are two strong contenders left and one prior challenger for a prize.