Need advice for projector and screen solution

[Egidijus]

Hello,

we are planning several shows were big projection screen would be used as a background, but I am new to these solutions, so I need some advice.

Requirements for screen:
size - ~7m x ~4x (~22ft x ~13ft)
rear projection
view angle - >120° (because people will be as near as 6m)
screen need to be compatible to projector with ultra short throw lens (as I understood not all can do that?)
screen need to be portable


Requirements for projector:
need to be compatible with ultra short throw lens (space in the back is limited - 4-5m)

and with projector there is a lot of other questions:
which technology is better - DLP (issue - rainbow effect) or LCD (issue - screen door effect, dead pixels)?
how many lumens I need for big screen with no other light/small lights on scene for clear background?
why projectors contrast vary from 1000:1 to 1000000+:1? Or is it no big deal?
which projector light technology is better? Is it worth to change metal-halide lamps or is it better to use laser technology?


I found only scraps of information about big rear projection screen so I would appreciate any information about that.

Also I found projectors variety in technologies used for lighting, image forming and other parameters combinations overwhelming for new guy so I would really appreciate if You could share Your knowledge and experience.

 

[MRW Lights]

Well... it depends. Budget is going to be your first and biggest question, if budget wasn't an issue you'd be golden and the solution might be readily available.

Now back to reality. What is the lifetime of the projection screen? This might inform your choice of a video vs projection surface option.
Rear Projection material is available from some usual suspects at decent market rates and 22ftx13ft might be reasonable again depending on your budget.
Rear Projection does have it's advantages, but you'll need a bigger projector and better material to sell the art.

We recently built an 8'x16' projection wall for a show. We ended up going with a wall for texture purposes, but the original discussion did lend itself to projection material, both rear and front.
You will always need a brighter projector than seems adequate. Minimum 2 lamps and don't bother with anything that's not chip driven. That's my opinion, but I imagine you'll find a similar opinion quickly.

What is your projection control? That will also inform your choice of projector. The output of your video server, projector control, mapping capability and remote control are all important factors to consider.
If you're playing a quicktime movie via vga from a laptop... don't put it in a $500K Christie projector...

The gambit of video is both still essentially young in the entertainment field and yes extremely overwhelming even if you've done it a lot.

So.... it depends. My standard workflow is "What's the budget? what content am I projecting? What is it being, or what does it want to be, projected on? How much time do I have to fix it every time I set it up? How much more can I get in the budget?" Rinse and repeat.

 

[Egidijus]

Budget for this part of the project is around 25.000-30.000€ (maybe we will be able to push it if it will be necessary).

It is gonna be mobile show, so screen will be folded and unfolded every time and I guess it might not be very good for screen it self, but I have no idea what lifetime of such screen is. And of course I would like it to be ass long ass possible. But I didn't come across of any such information and it seems it is worth to check if there is any.

MRW Lights - maybe you cloud name some suppliers who sells such screens?

I didn't thought about projector control. I just assumed that laptop and HDMI cable is enough, but it seems I might be wrong... I need to research that. Maybe you have some pointers?

 

[BillESC]

In terms of a RP screen, ScreenWorksUSA offers a 16 x 27' truss fast fold complete kit for $ 8,403.

It is the projector that will consume the rest of your budget if not more. For example an 8000 lumen laser based projectors will run upwards of $ 16,000 with the lens an additional $ 3,000

 

[MRW Lights]

MRW Lights - maybe you cloud name some suppliers who sells such screens?

I didn't thought about projector control. I just assumed that laptop and HDMI cable is enough, but it seems I might be wrong... I need to research that. Maybe you have some pointers?

There are lots of vendors, I tend to stick with vendors where a Rep get's to know me and my space and who I can have a genuine conversation with. I'll gladly spend a little more to order from someone I trust. In general you won't go wrong with the folks at Barbizon, Rosco, BMI, Production Advantage, 4Wall or ALPS to name a few in the US. it really depends on where you are, how fast you need something and who has the best knowledge of the item you need. Now in Lithuania I can't say I have any local resources, but someone around here might.

Projector control can be crucial depending on your production. I try to build from the media to the surface that way I'm projecting the best image through the best output devices getting me to the end goal of the best image on the given surface. Best here meaning best by budget, choice and availability. The price tag may not necessarily mean better if you're using multiple scalers and converters to process your image. The least amount of augmenting you need to do to the image I find to be the best.