Fabric for Silhouette Windows

[adaml]

Hi. So, I'm working on the design for a production of "The Admirable Crichton", and I want to build these sort of windows. The play's four acts are evenly split between a fine British home, and a desert island. The production will be in a small (100 seat) black-box theater with an audience on four sides. I'd like to hang these windows from the grid in three of the four sides of the theater (three windows total). They would be Victorian style windows, and rather oversized. The idea is that, if lit from the front, the windows would appear as a solid color window, (ie. sky blue), but when lit from behind, a silhouette of palm leaves would appear to represent the jungle backdrop of the island, while still preserving some of the fine Victorian aesthetic (if you're unfamiliar with the play, it involves social structures being radically altered when a British family is shipwrecked - although radically different from the upstairs/downstairs system in Britain, certain dictatorial aspects are maintained with a former butler ending up as governor of the island). Thus, the jungle backdrop can be viewed through bright green light, which could then fade slowly to oranges and later to a darker blue as the sun sets (we would be using color-changing LED lights). The idea would be to have the window frames made of wood with fabric stretched behind them. The fabric I'm currently looking at would be a natural-colored Leno filled scrim. This is based on a few small tests I've done with a fabric sample book, and Leno seems to display a pretty clear silhouette when the material is right against something, as well as absorbing lots of color. Has anyone done something like this or have any fabric suggestions? Fabric is expensive and I'd like some advice before we purchase anything.

 

[lwinters630]

Several thoughts come to mind. If you are projecting the silhouette with a multi-bulb led par or color block you will probably get a over shadow and distortion. using a gel fixture like a leko or par will give a sharper image. To light from the front would mean you will need a gobo in order to frame just the window. Perhaps placing color block led fixtures from the back side 12" above and 12" below and 12" away may give an even wash or sun rise/set looks. then place the palm 12" back and centered so the color blocks miss it and a source-4 with a color scroller centered behind that. This should give the ability to mix some of the leds with the Source-4 silhouette fixture.

Other material to consider is coroplast. It is basically translucent plastic cardboard material Coroplast | Graphic Arts | Printing and is not very expensive. it can be lit from either side. You may also use black plastic strapping used to bundle boxes and skids. 1/2" x 3,000' Poly Strapping Kit - Postal Approved S-3823 - Uline It is 1/2" wide and works very well for window dividers. On the coroplast you may be able to light the blue from the front and place the palm leaves inches from the back and then use the led par directly behind it with out getting multi-shadows because of the closeness.

Or what about using whitish 8mil plastic like from home depot and stretch it tight like a rear projected cyc. All far less expensive than sharks tooth. I thought sharks tooth scrims are for when you want to see through it.

Final thought what about using a lcd projector to project everything, palms and sunsets, either from front or rear. This would solve the overshadow problem and require only one fixture source (the projector) for each window.

 

[adaml]

First of all, thank you for your detailed response. I really appreciate it. I hadn't thought about plastics - I'll look into it for sure. I realize this may have been ambiguous, but I intend for the palm pattern to be a cutout affixed to the rear of the window - the look would be very similar to what I drew in the mockup. I ruled out sharks tooth scrim because of the whole disappearing thing, but filled scrim doesn't seem to have that problem, at least in mall scale tests. The material is also available in cheap cutting scraps which would be more than sufficient. If incorrect, having the pattern itself touching the material will nearly eliminate the overshadow and distortion. Last year, we did a play where shadow puppetry was essential and we used a projector screen readily by parnells. I like the plastic idea a lot actually. Thanks!


(I think I just rambled a bunch, so sorry about that.)

 

[derekleffew]

White PVC shower curtain liner, which can be either front or back lit, stretched over a frame. Black electrical tape for the muntin bars.
.

 

[kicknargel]

The leno-filled scrim would probably work--haven't tried it. The shower curtain liner would be great for sure and I use Coroplast a lot for this kind of thing. I've also used Rosebrand poly mus for shadow play, and it works pretty well, and has the advantage of being flame retardant. Scrim is exactly wrong.

What I don't get, but probably just because I don't fully understand, is how this works in the round. Won't you be able to see the leaves on the windows opposite you at all times?

 

[spong8]

Well, being a frugal person, could you possibly use the color of the lights to conceal a painted on silhouette of a jungle on the material used in the windows? Use a blue paint for the palms and they'll "vanish" in the blue light and when in the jungle scenes will appear blackish in red/orange lighting.

 

[adaml]

Sorry for the very late update. I thought I'd share some photos of the finished set (with the windows included). I ended up stretching natural leno filled scrim from rosebrand on a frame. The crosshatch pattern is physical in front of the screen, and the circle and leaves are cutouts behind the screen. The color is done by color changing LEDs. I tried to pick pictures that show how it works in the round. There is a total of three windows, one in each of three corners. (The fourth is open as the audience must enter that way). Thank you all for your help.