Lighting for TV, Entertainment & Special Events-Case Study

2008 Presidential & Vice-Presidential Debates

The lighting of the 2008 Presidential and Vice-Presidential Debates proved to be another challenge-packed assignment for Jim Tetlow of Nautilus Entertainment Design with four different locations, three different staging formats and for the first time, the debates were broadcast in high-definition. Produced by the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, this is the third Presidential election in a row that Tetlow has been tapped as Lighting Designer.

All debate venues were located at universities chosen through a several year process by the Commission.  The debates are typically staged in a field house or gymnasium; however the Ford Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Mississippi was the setting for this year’s first Presidential Debate. Although one would think that it would be easier to stage the debate in a theatre, this site proved to be a bigger challenge than the others due to the lack of rigging points over the apron and the audience.

“Ultimately, the debates are like classic ‘talking head’ interview shows, where you use portrait lighting for each speaker,” says Tetlow. “In a television studio, this typically means using some sort of soft fill light, whether they are halogen, fluorescent or LED sources. However, what makes the debates unique is creating portrait lighting from 55 feet way instead of the typical 8 to 10 feet in a broadcast studio.  It’s the wide shot that defines the height and distance of the lighting fixtures and, in the case of the debates, that means a wide shot of the set, which was over 40 feet wide.  To work at these long distances, ETC Source 4 ellipsoidals were used for the portrait lighting of the candidates and the moderator, while more general stage lighting for the candidate’s entrances was done with Arri 5Kw fresnels, and PAR 64s.  The background of the candidates’ close-up shot was a lightbox of text from the Constitution.”

All of the venues had their own special challenges based on the debate formats—podium-style (where the candidates had lecterns as their home base), a town hall-style (that allowed the candidates to walk freely around the set and speak directly with the live studio audience), and a large interview-style desk (where the candidates and moderator were seated). “One of the advantages of portrait lighting,” Tetlow states, “is that it allows the lighting designer the flexibility to independently balance the lighting of each candidate, the moderator and the set.” This worked well for all of the debates except the "Town Hall" meeting, which was staged in the round.  It was impossible to isolate the candidates as they continually moved around the stage and were surrounded by a live studio audience.  The solution was to create an evenly illuminated, 360 degree environment in which the candidates could work comfortably.”