We are here to Entertain-U!
Posted On: May 5
Welcome to the first entry of the new Immersion Multimedia Blog. In subsequent entries, we hope to bring you the good, the bad and the sometimes amusing events of the Entertainment Production industry – a behind-the-scenes peek if you will.
As a Business Owner, Producer, Musician, DJ, VJ, and Technical Director, I often run across things that are interesting, informative or anecdotal that I will share with you here, and I’d love to keep you up to speed on all things entertainment. I invite you to stop by regularly to keep abreast of all the goings-on.
Stay tuned – there is MUCH more to come!
The Fort Worth Wedding of Todd & Judith at Mira Vista Country Club
Posted On: November 10
On Saturday, November 9th, Immersion Multimedia entertained 200 guests at the Mira Vista Country Club for the Fort Worth wedding reception of Judith and Todd. Bob DeLillo was Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event. The entertainment package included DJ and VJ, LED lighting, dance floor wash, intelligent moving head lighting with custom gobos as well as Video Entertainment with music videos and ambient video on a 9×12 foot video screen. The crowd had a wide variety of musical tastes ranging from Metallica and Coldplay to Frank Sinatra, Michael Buble and The Beatles. The dance floor was packed all night and the crowd was so reluctant to leave that we completely lost track of the time and the Mira Vista management had to come remind us that they were going to have to shut the event down because they were paying their staff overtime! Congratulations to Todd and Judith for a memorable reception that we (or Mira Vista for that matter) will never forget!
CFF Holiday Cocktails For The Cure Charity Event
Posted On: December 11
On December 9th, guests gathered at Villa De Leon to welcome the holiday season and to raise money for the North Texas Chapter of The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation at the annual Holiday Cocktail For The Cure. Villa De Leon is the hottest new uptown address in Fort Worth, offering upscale condominiums overlooking the Trinity River as well as superb amenities. The party room overlooking the pool and several of the open 1st floor condos provided the backdrop for Fort Worth’s finest restaurants and chefs who served up their delicious specialties. Strolling wait staff served up wine and designer Grey Goose pomegranate martinis. Each room also displayed enticing silent auction items. CFF Executive Director Kathy Mills produced the event and Immersion Multimedia got the party moving with a DJ who kept the crowd dancing all night. We provided Video Entertainment on multiple plasma screens, custom graphics featuring each Chef and restaurant, a corporate logo loop, decor lighting and sound reinforcement to each remote party room. Guests partied and danced the night away as we raised some serious money for a great cause. Kudos to Kathy, Shannon O’Fallon and the entire outstanding CFF team for a great party!
Baylor Surgical Hospital at Fort Worth 2009 Holiday Corporate Party
Posted On: December 20
On December 19th, Immersion Multimedia entertained for the Baylor Surgical Hospital at Fort Worth holiday corporate party. This marks the second year for Immersion Multimedia’s affiliation with the Baylor organization’s event, and it’s done on a grand scale—great food, great entertainment and casino tables galore. The Baylor folks know how to have a great time! The party was held at the prestigious Fort Worth Club in the Grand Ballroom on a bitterly cold December evening. Over 600 guests were in attendance. We pulled out all the stops for this event – 2 9×12 foot video screens, full truss set up with high-powered LED lighting, X-Laser Pyro Lasers, Intelligent Moving Head Lighting, LeMaitre Radiance Hazer, and Strobe Lighting. We produced custom visuals and graphics for Baylor, as well as a DVD Production using over 300 candid photos and other photos taken at various hospital events throughout the year. Craig Bayless produced the video and added the music beds. Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia acted as Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event, with Craig Bayless as VJ. We coordinated not only Music, Lighting and complex Video Entertainment, but also handled introductions, stage turnover, awards, games and prize giveaways throughout the evening. Guests danced the night away until the wee hours of the morning.
What a great party to get you in the Christmas mood!
2010 Fort Worth, Texas Magazine’s Top Docs Party
Posted On: March 23
In early March, sample ballots notifying the medical community of the voting process and the ballot web site address were mailed to the members of the Tarrant County Medical Society and the Texas Osteopathic Medical Association by the Fort Worth, Texas magazine. Voting for the Top Doctors in various specialties took place online. Finally, on Monday, March 22, the medical community convened to celebrate the winners at the beautiful Times Ten Cellars in the 7th Street corridor. Immersion Multimedia provided the Entertainment Production and Bob DeLillo was emcee host and DJ for the Top Docs Party. Guests sampled some of the many wines made on-site by Times Ten’s vintners as well as delicious hors d’oeuvres prepared by several local chefs. In this very well-attended social event, some 400 doctors took time out from their busy schedules to come celebrate the many highly-regarded physicians who were chosen by their peers for this honor.
The Fort Worth, Texas Magazine’s Best Of 2010 Party
Posted On: August 5
The Fort Worth, Texas Magazine asked their readers to declare what is best about our city. The readers responded by rounding up their suggestions for the juiciest steaks, tangiest margaritas, hottest hangouts and everything in between. More than 13,000 votes were cast, and the results were published in the June 2010 issue. On August 4th, the Best Of 2010 Party was held at Casa Manana, where over 500 guests danced the night away to the theme “Moonlight and Martinis” and were entertained by Eclipse Entertainment, Trey & The Tritones and Immersion Multimedia, who provided themed entertainment in the way of high-energy stage lighting and music from the Roaring Twenties along with silent film clips, music videos and graphics on large video screens to complement the visual theme of the event.
KERA Radio Voiceover Spot for Fort Worth’s Amon Carter Museum
Posted On: August 20
August, 2010 – Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, recorded a voiceover spot for the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. The spot was recorded and produced by Immersion Multimedia in our own recording studio and a music bed was added. Engineering and post-production was done by Craig Bayless. The spot aired for two weeks on KERA Radio in the local market.
The Dallas Wedding of Marisa & Jacob at The Filter Building at White Rock Lake
Posted On: August 22
On Saturday, August 21, Immersion Multimedia programmed music for the wedding ceremony and entertained 120 guests for the wedding reception of Marisa and Jacob. The nuptials and reception were both held at the very unique Filter Building in Dallas, Texas. Situated atop the southwest shore of White Rock Lake, the historic Filter Building boasts beautiful terraces and sweeping views to take your breath away. The vintage industrial interior serves as the perfect backdrop to carry out any theme. In the urban industrial style of the 1920’s, The Filter Building features exposed red brick walls, original iron trusses, and many windows overlooking the lake. Add to the mix spacious catering accommodations, simple parking and an easygoing staff, and it’s easy to see why The Filter Building is a definitive answer to your special event venue needs.
The weather was oppressively hot on Saturday which necessitated a last minute change of plans. The ceremony was originally planned to be held outdoors next to White Rock Lake with the reception following inside The Filter Building, but there wasn’t even a slight breeze off the lake to justify sticking to the original schedule. At the last minute, the decision was made by the bride to move the ceremony inside, which required rethinking the layout of the room so that we could accomplish a quick transition between ceremony and reception. Some great teamwork between all of the vendors involved allowed us to pull it off without a hitch, allowing everyone to remain cool and comfortable.
Bob DeLillo was both Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event. The entertainment package included sound reinforcement and music for the ceremony with ambient video providing the backdrop behind the couple and the officiant. During the reception, DJ, VJ and Visual Entertainment with music video, custom text graphics and ambient themed video on a large 10×14 Foot screen were provided. Both Marisa and Jacob are jazz aficionados as well as diehard Sinatra, Bennett and Buble fans, which was right up my alley – and it made for great dancing. The crowd danced and partied until way after sundown to a mix of music from the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and present!
Fort Worth, Texas Magazine’s Top Chef 2010 Competition
Posted On: September 10
The Fort Worth Texas, magazine names the 2010 Top Chef after an ultimate kitchen battle in which the area’s most elite chefs were tested on their speed, creativity and culinary skill and knowledge over a rigorous three-event shootout.
10 local chefs from Fort Worth and surrounding counties were nominated by the magazine’s readers and chosen by a Top Chef Panel, then were pitted against each other for the coveted title.
There were a total of three challenges — preliminaries on July 8th and August 5th and the finals on September 9th. Five chefs competed in each of the first two rounds to determine the final four. In the first round on July 8, competitors were chefs Juan Rodriguez from Reata Restaurant, Anthony Felli from Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, Lanny P. Lancarte II from Lanny’s Alta Cocina Mexicana and Keith Hicks from Buttons. On August 5th, the second round of chefs were Michael Thomson of Michaels Cuisine, Donatella Trotti of Nonna Tata, Franson Nwaeze of Chef Point Cafe, Blaine Staniford of Grace and Don Agate of Eddie V’s. Each round included a blind taste test, culinary Jeopardy, and, of course, the timed cooking challenge.
Morrison Supply Company’s showroom provided the setting for all three of the competitions. Overflow crowds for all of the events enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres prepared by the other competitors. Tim Love, the chef proprietor of Lonesome Dove Western Bistro and Love Shack, was the celebrity chef judge and host for each competition. You’ll remember Love as the Food Network’s Iron Chef winner as well as the Bravo Channel’s Top Chef masters contestant.
Emceeing each of the events were Emmy-award winning former sports anchor Scott Murray and Amanda Mazey, the host of Fort Worth, Texas magazine’s new TV show, FYI Fort Worth. Sponsors for the events included Thermador, Community Trust Bank, Ben E. Keith Food, Sloan Yorek with Brants Realtors, Ace Mart Restaurant Supply, Ben E. Keith, Grey Goose, Blue Sky Graphics, Silverwest Limousine, Times Ten Cellars and Immersion Multimedia .
Celebrities joining Tim Love on the judges’ panel during the three events were CBS 11’s Karen Borta, Mark “Hawkeye” Louis from 96.3 KSCS, chef/owner of Bistro Louise, Louise Lamensdorf, CBS 11’s Doug Dunbar, Jody Dean from 98.7 KLUV, Fort Worth, Texas magazine’s food expert, Judie Byrd, former Dallas Cowboy Jay Novacek, TCU baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle, and food writer Renie Steves.
Immersion Multimedia was responsible for Entertainment Production for all three rounds of the competition. It proved to be a formidable task, as we had to provide live video and audio feeds throughout the 21,000 square-foot Morrison showroom to various remote rooms where the overflow crowd watched the action on plasma and projection screens. We provided camera support for the live coverage, video mixing, stage lighting, television lighting and sound reinforcement. Musical entertainment and visual entertainment were also provided by way of on-screen custom graphics, corporate logos, ambient video and music videos keep the crowd entertained and the energy level high.
When the smoke cleared and the final votes were tallied, the much-anticipated winner was announced in what was a very close competition – Chef Donatella Trotti of Nonna Tata!
American Airlines Voiceover Spot for KERA Radio and KERA-TV Channel 13
Posted On: September 18
September, 2010 – Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, recorded a voiceover spot for American Airlines and The C.R. Smith Museum. The spot was recorded and produced by Immersion Multimedia in our studio and a music bed was added. Engineering and post-production was done by Kris Landrum. The spot aired for two weeks on KERA Radio and KERA-TV Channel 13 in both the local market and in the national market in conjunction with The Antiques Roadshow, running before and after the popular program.
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation 2010 65 Roses Wine & Food Extravaganza
Posted On: October 28
On October 27, more than 900 guests gathered under a beautiful autumn night sky for the 11th annual Wine & Food Extravaganza held at Grant and Marci James’ La Paloma Ranch to benefit the North Texas Chapter of The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The event was chaired by Rhonda and Lloyd Walsh and was sponsored by American Airlines, Immersion Multimedia, Ben E. Keith, Coors, Central Market, Grey Goose Vodka, Blue Sky Graphics, Concussion, Eventide, S.A.M., Marcee and Grant James and Michaels Cuisine. 22 of the area’s finest chefs, headed up by Lead Chef Michael Thomson, put on a spectacular culinary display in 20 large tents decorated to reflect the style of their respective restaurants.
Immersion Multimedia produced and emceed the event. A centrally-located, large covered stage with truss, large outdoor surround-sound system and four 55-inch plasma screens was erected for the CF Auction. We lighted the stage itself with high-powered LED fixtures and Intelligent Moving Head Lighting was used to light the grounds and the roofs of the surrounding tents with gobos in the Cystic Fibrosis corporate colors of blue and purple. The surrounding large trees of the ranch were also lighted with high-powered LED lighting, bathing them in a blue hue to complete the lighting effect. We also erected a large 10×14 foot projection screen to broadcast the World Series live during the event as well as intermittently featuring it on the large plasma screens so that guests would not miss watching their beloved Texas Rangers win against the San Francisco Giants!
Immersion Multimedia designed custom graphics for a corporate logo video loop and individual slides for each Chef with their photo and their restaurant logo. Throughout the evening, we entertained with music, logo animations and music videos as well as broadcasting live video of past events, CF Corporate Videos and custom graphics of each auction item along with its description.
In a departure from prior years, the goal was to generate excitement and elicit emotion for the auction through the use of multimedia. The event was a huge success, raising nearly $350,000 for the North Texas Cystic Fibrosis organization!
A Hauntingly Good Time In Weatherford, Texas
Posted On: October 30
On October 29th, Immersion Multimedia entertained for a Halloween costume soiree held at the Weatherford Ranch of Wayne and Shelly Davidson. The event was co-hosted by Lonestar Truck and Trailer and by Michelle Dalton of Doctor Marketing, LLC.
Thunderstorms all morning nearly spoiled the event and had us rethinking where we’d set up our equipment, but around dinner the skies to the west of Fort Worth began to clear and by party time, everything was a “go” for the outdoor plans.
Guests sampled fantastic “haunte”-cuisine from the buffet and danced poolside to music by DJ/VJ/MC Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia. We transformed the patio and yard outside the main house into a haunted landscape using LED lighting, spooky foliage gobos, high-definition Halloween ambient video, vintage horror movie footage on large video screens, Halloween-themed music videos, dry ice in the pool, low-lying fog effects and eerie sound effects to set the mood.
The party was great fun despite the bone-chilling evening air as ghouls and goblins partied until the wee hours of the morning.
2010 Fort Worth Top Attorneys Party
Posted On: November 10
The Fort Worth, Texas magazine asked area attorneys to name the best lawyers in selected fields. In their collective opinion, these are Tarrant County’s Top Attorneys. On November 8th, we celebrated Top Attorney winners at the Ashton Depot in downtown Fort Worth. As the nearly 150 Attorneys in attendance mingled and sampled the hors d’oeuvres, wine and Grey Goose martinis, Immersion Multimedia emceed and provided musical entertainment for the annual event as we honored attorneys voted by their peers as being among the best from many areas of legal specialization. Congratulations to all of you!
Christmas at Fort Worth’s University Park Village
Posted On: December 4
The Fort Worth, Texas magazine hosted a holiday event at University Park Village benefiting Safe Haven, an organization which works toward ending domestic violence through safety, support, prevention and social change on Thursday, Dec. 2 from 5-8 PM. Admission to the event was a new unwrapped toy or cash donation. Guests enjoyed fantastic food served up by local restaurants as well as designer martinis and holiday cocktails. Immersion Multimedia emceed and entertained with holiday music and lighting for the event, transforming the outdoor courtyard into a holiday-themed venue with LED lighting and Intelligent Moving Head lighting with Snowflake Gobos to kick off the Christmas season in grand style.
We’re proud to donate our time to such a worthy cause!
CFF Holiday Cocktails For The Cure 2010
Posted On: December 7
On December 5th, VIP guests gathered at Michaels Cuisine on 7th Street to toast the holiday season and to raise money for the North Texas Chapter of The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Chef Michael Thomson hosted the event and outdid himself with delicious hors d’oeuvres, wine and cocktails. The restaurant was decked out in holiday splendor complete with a roaring fireplace in the main dining room, which served as a focal point for the auctioneer and MC. Immersion Multimedia got the party moving with dance music, karaoke, music videos and live piano music with an impromptu sing-along! Guests danced and sang until the wee hours of the morning and we raised some serious money for a great cause. Kudos to CFF Executive Director Melanie Hanna and her outstanding team for a great party!
The Fort Worth Wedding of Adell & Jordan at The Masonic Temple
Posted On: December 20
On December 18th, Immersion Multimedia entertained over 500 guests for the wedding reception of Adell and Jordan on a grand scale— great families, great food, great entertainment and surprises galore. These folks sure know how to have a party! The reception was held at the historic Masonic Temple in Fort Worth on a beautiful and comfortable December evening. From my very first meeting with this awesome couple, we were closely involved with the families in the planning of much of the event. Adell and Jordan told me early on that they wanted several themed segments during the reception. Because they were both graduating from Tulane University in New Orleans, they wanted a Mardi Gras portion including a parade. During the reception, the parasol-carrying bride and groom each led the guests in 2 winding conga-style lines to “When The Saints Go Marching In” by Al Hirt and “Christmas In New Orleans” by Louis Armstrong. At the end of this parade that had literally 200 people snaking their way throughout the venue, the couple ascended the stairs to balconies on each side of the ballroom where they tossed handfuls of beads to the cheering crowd below. We added to the Mardi Gras theme with jewel-tone lighting and Mardi Gras-themed visuals on the big screens. Other surprises during the evening included 1970’s and 1980’s segments complete with crowd props, music videos and ambient visuals on the screens from each respective era. Finally, since the wedding was only 1 week before Christmas, the couple wanted to address the holiday in a grand style. We obliged with tons of Christmas and holiday music videos, Christmas-themed visuals, red, green and blue LED lighting for dance floor washes, and huge white snowflake gobos lazily moving across the expansive ceiling.
We pulled out ALL the stops for this event – 2 9×12 foot video screens, LeMaitre Radiance Hazer and high-powered LED lighting, X-Laser Pyro Lasers, Intelligent Moving Head Lighting and Strobe Lighting all flown from aluminum truss. We produced custom visuals and graphics exclusively for the couple’s wedding. A big highlight of the evening was a special surprise music video produced by and starring members of both families and set to the music of “I Gotta Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas. We used this video after dinner was completed as a transition between the special dances and general dancing. The video proved to be a huge delight for the crowd who, toward the end of the video, was urged to join the families and the bridal party on the dance floor—and pack it they did!
Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia acted as Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event, with Tim Cranford as VJ, and Chris Hollis rocking the lighting. We coordinated not only music, lighting and complex visual entertainment, but also handled introductions, timeline management and coordinating all of the special spotlight events throughout the evening.
This reception will be remembered for many, many years to come! Thanks for the memories, Adell and Jordan – and congratulations to both of you.
Blogging Success through “Accidental” S.E.O.
Posted On: January 4
1. Riddle your posts with Keywords.
When you write about your business, you’ll inadvertently use keywords in your posts that prospects use in searches. By writing about Entertainment Production, Disc Jockeys, Wedding Receptions, etc., the words you type on the screen as visible text are automatically creating search-engine friendly copy. Try to make the keyword placement natural so it doesn’t seem contrived or out of place.
2. Be opinionated.
People like blogs. Why? Because they are written by people. People want to know what other people think, and believe it or not they want to know what YOU think. So tell them exactly what you think using the least amount of words possible.
3. Don’t mince words.
Give the maximum amount of information with the least amount of words. Drive your point home to the reader like a rush of blood to the head.
4. Mo is not always Mo Betta.
A long post is easier to forget. A short post is the opposite. Period.
5. Make it catchy and entertaining.
Capture your whole point in your headline. Check out National newspapers to learn how they do it. Also, you’ll never gain audience loyalty by always tooting your own horn. Make your blog somewhere around 75% informational and 25% self-promotional.
6. Utilize lists with bullet points.
People love lists. They structure information in a format that’s easy to digest.
7. Make your posts easy to scan.
Insert a sub heading after every few paragraphs. Make sentences and headlines concise and to the point.
8. Be Stylin’.
People like to know what to expect from you. Once you’ve have settled on a unique style for your audience, stick to it.
9. Link like crazy.
Support your post with links to other web pages that are contextual to your post.
10. Edit, Edit, Edit.
Good writing is 50% about the editing. Before you hit the submit button, review your post and cut out the fluff that you don’t need.
Happy Blogging!
Fort Worth Super Bowl XLV ESPN Watch Party!
Posted On: February 4
Super Bowl madness invades Fort Worth! As all of DFW welcomes visitors from all over the world for the big game, Fort Worth is the host city for the AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers, and ESPN commandeers Sundance Square to set up live, massive broadcast operations for the week prior to game day. Despite 3 days of unusually inclement weather, the fan’s spirits are not dampened, and the snowy downtown streets are still bustling with activity. Parties and high-profile events are scheduled all around Fort Worth and Dallas.
On Thursday, February 3, Immersion Multimedia joined with i-Entertainment and Eclipse Entertainment to entertain for the Fort Worth Convention & Visitor’s Bureau/Fort Worth Initiative’s ESPN Watch Party. Traffic and snow and ice on the streets made load-in a bit challenging as we had to park 7 blocks from the Visitor’s Bureau offices and truck in the gear from there! We got the opportunity to tour the ESPN facilities and watch the broadcast live. Many guests were in attendance at the event, including Mayor Mike Moncrief and former Cowboy great Jay Novacek. The FWCVB offices were decked out in AFC red with high-intensity LED lighting in all of the building windows facing Sundance Square and with red lasers in the elevator entry foyer. Guests sampled great tailgating cuisine and cocktails in the FWCVB offices as they danced to music by Immersion Multimedia. We produced a video loop featuring the corporate sponsors of the event. As a member of the steering committee for the Fort Worth Initiative, Immersion Multimedia is proud to be involved in this event to promote our city as we’re being watched on the world stage during this week.
The Fort Worth Wedding of Brittany & Ross at Diamond Oaks Country Club
Posted On: February 19
On Saturday, February 18th, Immersion Multimedia entertained 150 guests at the Diamond Oaks Country Club for both the wedding ceremony and the wedding reception of Brittany and Ross. Bob DeLillo was Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event. We provided music and sound reinforcement for the wedding ceremony, and the reception entertainment package included DJ, LED lighting, dance floor wash, intelligent moving head lighting and a custom gobo dance floor monogram.
Congratulations, Brittany and Ross!
Fort Worth, Texas Magazine Top Docs Party 2011
Posted On: March 29
Sample ballots notifying the medical community of the voting process and the ballot web site address were mailed to the members of the Tarrant County Medical Society and the Texas Osteopathic Medical Association. Voting took place online.
Immersion Multimedia was honored to emcee and provide musical entertainment for the event which was held on March 28th at the Brownstone Restaurant in the 7th Street corridor. The doctors took this opportunity to put aside their bedside manner as they let their hair down and danced the night away to music from the 70’s, 80’s , 90’s and the present!
We’d like to congratulate the 393 highly-regarded physicians who were chosen by their peers for this honor.
Blue Ridge PBS Television Voiceover Spot
Posted On: May 20
May, 2011 - Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, recorded a voiceover spot for Blue Ridge PBS Television, The Virginia Department of Conservation & Recreation and its Platinum Sponsor, Alpha Natural Resources, for the documentary, “Virginia State Parks: 75 Years and Still Growing”, a high-definition production that makes tracks across all of Virginia’s State Parks, one of the best managed and preserved systems in the country. The spot was broadcast over a five-state listening area and was made into a DVD for sale to the public. Immersion Multimedia produced the spot in our own studio with Sound Engineer Kris Landrum.
We look forward to a continued relationship with station Production Manager Carol Jennings and the entire Blue Ridge PBS team!
The Fort Worth Wedding of Renee & Ron at The Piazza In The Village
Posted On: May 22
On Saturday, May 20, Immersion Multimedia entertained 150 guests at the beautiful Piazza in the Village in Colleyville, Texas for the wedding reception of our long-time friends, Renee and Ron. The Piazza In The Village is a special events venue located in the Village at Colleyville, and has been featured on national television on WE TV’s Platinum Weddings and TLC’s Four Weddings.
Bob DeLillo served as Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event which was held in the intimate Village Ballroom, providing the music as family and guests celebrated and danced the night away.
The Fort Worth, Texas Magazine’s Best Of 2011 Party at Casa Manana
Posted On: June 6
The Fort Worth, Texas magazine asked you for your suggestions to a variety of new and returning categories –over 70 of them– for the best that Fort Worth has to offer, and you responded as you always do — in great numbers and with enthusiasm. The restaurant, entertainment and nightlife scene in Fort Worth — especially Downtown and along West 7th Street — has exploded in the last five or six years. But you narrowed it down to the best of the best, and on June 4th, we gathered to honor the winners and celebrate at Casa Manana with the Best Of 2011 Party, produced by the fabulous Kathy Mills Productions! Guests arrived to find a jungle-themed atmosphere, sampled cuisine served up by the area’s finest restaurants and were entertained by Jurassic Rock, Eclipse Entertainment, the M-80’s and by Immersion Multimedia. We transformed the theater into a lush African outback, using high-end stage LED lighting, intelligent moving head lighting with jungle foliage gobos, high-definition African Safari and jungle footage on large 10×14 foot video screens, 80′s and jungle-themed music videos, low-lying fog effects and jungle sound effects to set the mood.
The party was a huge success, with well over 500 guests in attendance to honor the winners. Congrats to all!
The 2011 Fort Worth Top Dentists Party
Posted On: July 30
On July 28th, Immersion Multimedia emceed the 2011 Fort Worth, Texas magazine’s 2011 Top Dentist Party, produced by Kathy Mills Productions and held at the beautiful historic Ashton Depot in downtown Fort Worth. Bob DeLillo was DJ/Emcee as Immersion Multimedia entertained with music for the annual event, sponsored by the magazine to thank local Dentists for their contribution to the community and to honor those Dentists voted by their peers as the top in their field.
Congratulations to all!
Commercial Production for Lakecrest Cosmetic Surgery Center, Granbury, Texas
Posted On: July 30
July, 2011 – Immersion Multimedia produced an On-Hold Commercial Loop for Lakecrest Cosmetic Surgery Center in Granbury, Texas. We added royalty-free music beds to the loop, interspersed between various commercials advertising cosmetic procedures by noted Cosmetic and General Surgeon, Dr. Steven Peterson. Kris Landrum engineered the project and did all of the post-production in our studio.
Cendera Center, Fort Worth, Texas
Posted On: August 1
I can’t say enough about this unique new venue. There’s simply nothing like it in Fort Worth. Or anywhere else that I know of, for that matter.
Cendera Center is a fabulous multi-purpose venue that can be used for small or major concert events with its movable stadium seating, killer line-array sound system, staging and LED lighting, but can morph to a wedding reception venue with buffet areas, intimate perimeter uplighting and table seating, or to a state of the art corporate meeting room with high-definition large video screen for presentations, flexible staging and chair seating. It’s also got complete kitchen facilities for catering, comfortable dressing rooms/green rooms, parking for 260 cars and is conveniently located at 3600 Benbrook Highway in west Fort Worth.
In owner Brian Collins’ own words: “I have a passion for music and the arts. The west side had a huge need for a place to showcase great artistic talent of all genres. That’s why we created Cendera Center – to give the community a place to connect and be inspired. From great music to family celebrations, Cendera Center can facilitate your next special event. We’d love to have you!”
If you’re planning your next event, give them a look—I promise you’ll be impressed with both the facility and the staff. You can reach them at 817-984-6800, or visit them on the web at cenderacenter.com.
The Fort Worth, Texas Magazine’s Top Chef 2011 – Final Round
Posted On: August 6
When the induction stoves were turned off, the duck entrees were plated and the final judges’ votes were tallied, Chef Don Agate of Eddie V’s Prime Seafood was the last chef standing in the Fort Worth, Texas magazine’s 2011 Top Chef competition. Agate faced fellow first-round winner Chef Blaine Staniford of Grace and second-round winners Chef Brian Olenjack of Olenjack’s Grille in Arlington and Chef Eric Hunter of Fire Oak Grill in Weatherford. The event was held at the newly-opened Cendera Center on the Benbrook Traffic Circle in Fort Worth.
Immersion Multimedia handled the Entertainment Production for this final round of the competition held on August 4th. The crowd of 500 guests watched the action on 3 large projection screens. We provided dual camera support for the live coverage and live video mixing with custom graphics, a corporate logo reel, ambient video and music videos. Before the cooking competition began, Fort Worth, Texas magazine owner/publisher Hal Brown asked us to provide music entertainment to build excitement for the main event, and then following the announcement of the winner, Bob DeLillo entertained the crowd, who were soon dancing in the aisles. Even though it was a weeknight, invited guests stuck around and partied well into the night.
Tim Love, the chef proprietor of Lonesome Dove Western Bistro, Love Shack and the Woodshed Smokehouse, which is slated to open soon, was the host for each of the preliminaries and for the final competition. Chef Tim Love is the Food Network’s Iron Chef winner as well as the Bravo Channel’s Top Chef masters contestant.
Emceeing the competition were Emmy-award winning former sports anchor Scott Murray and Amanda Mazey, the host of Fort Worth, Texas magazine’s TV show, FYI Fort Worth. The judges were Chef Tim Love, Courtney Dabney, last year’s Top Chef champion Donatella Trotti of Nonna Tata, and five-time Pro Bowler and former tight-end for the Dallas Cowboys Jay Novacek.
I was particularly impressed with the very personable Cendera Center staff and with its top-notch technical staff headed up by sound engineer and AV guru, Mike Horn. These guys did a marvelous job with the sound and the lighting and were absolutely great to work with!
The Fort Worth Summer Wedding of Sarah & Wes at Stonegate Mansion
Posted On: August 22
On Saturday, August 20, Immersion Multimedia entertained 300 guests at the beautiful Stonegate Mansion for the Fort Worth wedding reception of Sarah and Wes. Bob DeLillo was Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event. The entertainment package for the reception included DJ, Visual Entertainment with music video, custom text graphics and ambient themed video on a large 9×12 video screen as well as LED lighting, dance floor wash, intelligent moving head lighting and custom gobos.
Special thanks to Craig Ryon of Stonegate Grand Events, LLC, Paige Walker, Catering Event Manager of Reata Restaurant and Luke Lashley, CEO of Lashley Media for making our job a lot smoother.
Congratulations to Sara and Wes and to their families!
Blue Ridge PBS RSO Television Spots
Posted On: August 27
August, 2011 – Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, recorded 11 voiceover spots for Blue Ridge PBS Television in Roanoke, Virginia and the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra. All of the commercial spots will be broadcast over a five-state regional market to market various upcoming events for the symphony from now through June 2012. Immersion Multimedia produced the spots in our studio with Bob DeLillo as the voice talent and with studio engineer Kris Landrum handling production duties.
Total Immersion Of The Audience: How We Got Our Name.
Posted On: September 2
By effectively utilizing LED lighting and video entertainment and decor lighting, we give our target audience the sense that they are immersed in, lost in, or emotionally involved in the event—even if they don’t ever dance. Here are some entertainment production techniques that we use that will allow you to gain control over the atmosphere of a room:
- Use video screens large enough to allow your media to be projected life-size. We generally use at least one 9×12 foot screen. We prefer the use of 4:3 aspect ratio if possible to completely fill the screen with the image.
- Lower your video screens almost to dance floor level and use them as a backdrop along one side of the floor to allow the audience to imagine they are a part of the video itself. This isn’t only for the dancer’s benefit! We have often seen guests who are not dancers that were mesmerized by watching the video entertainment all evening. In all probability, these guests would often have left the party early out of boredom.
- When showing live concert music video, use DMX control to match your dance floor lighting to the concert lighting in the video to make the audience feel as though they are literally at the concert and being entertained by the performer. This is very effective during cocktail hour.
- Make your video screen (and not you) the focal point of your show by placing it center stage.
- Use DMX lighting control tastefully and judiciously to create moods based on the genre of music you are currently playing. Sometimes simple LED lighting dance floor washes are very effective for slow songs as well as slow-moving intelligent moving head lighting in a contrasting color to the LED wash. Conversely, use faster programs for LED and moving head lighting to coordinate with higher energy music. Experiment with overlaying both wash and moving heads together.
- The addition of haze, if permitted, does wonders to create mood and excitement by allowing the audience to view the “aerials’ created by the light—that is, the actual beams of light reflected off the ambient particles of haze in the air, instead of just the termination of the light beam on the floor, ceiling or other surfaces around the room. Lasers and gobos in moving head lighting, in particular, can create such dramatic beams when focused toward the dance floor that they give the sensation of literally “wading” through beams of light. In general, the more detailed the gobo, the more beams of light that will be created by it.
- Lighting does not have to be confined to the dance floor. As a matter of fact, LED décor lighting can help you transform the remainder of a room so that even those that are not dancing can be affected by the mood of the room. Often, the rest of a room is dark, cold and uninviting, and this lighting technique can help to literally paint the room with light.
- If at all possible, attempt to gain control over the ambient lighting in the room. Being able to dim or to completely turn off the architectural lighting in the room is a very valuable option.
- Certain lasers can be used to create a “liquid sky” effect over the crowd’s heads to give the sensation of a solid ceiling of light. Other types of lasers can be used to project hundreds of pinpoints of light on a ceiling to give the illusion of twinkling stars in a night sky, or holographic projectors can be used to project moving clouds on the ceiling.
- Utilization of wireless DMX technology can allow for positioning of lighting literally anywhere in the room without the need for wiring an entire room with DMX cable. This can allow you to virtually leave no surfaces unlit.
As Entertainment Directors, I think that we have a unique opportunity to help our audiences forget about life for a while—to help create an ambience or a mood that will strike a chord somewhere deep inside them, to evoke fond memories, or to stir powerful emotions perhaps not felt in a long while through our music, video, and lighting. If we can somehow “transport” them to another place and time at least for a short while through total audience immersion, then we will have afforded them an unforgettable experience.
The Fort Worth Wedding of Elizabeth & Peter at The Marquis On Magnolia
Posted On: September 18
On Saturday, September 17, Immersion Multimedia had the pleasure of entertaining around 120 guests for the wedding reception of my good friend and colleague, Dr. Peter Naus, and his beautiful wife, Elizabeth. The reception was held at the very unique Marquis on Magnolia in Fort Worth, Texas. Centrally-located on Magnolia Avenue near downtown Fort Worth and the Medical District, The Marquis on Magnolia is a historic building and offers a unique, spectacular banquet hall, with an open-glass elevator, vintage décor, grand spiral staircase and soaring ceilings. From weddings and receptions to theme parties and awards banquets, The Marquis on Magnolia provides the facility and the expertise to make your special occasion a truly memorable one.
The 100 degree summer weather was oppressively hot on Saturday afternoon and the western sun streaming through the large windows in the upstairs banquet hall cast a glare on the video screens, which made it rather difficult to see the video and graphics. Some great teamwork by the Marquis’ facility staff allowed us utilize some blinds to block some of the sun’s glare and allowed us to pull off the video entertainment without a hitch, as well as helping the guests to remain cool and comfortable.
Bob DeLillo was both Master of Ceremonies and Entertainment Director for the event. The entertainment package included DJ, VJ and Visual Entertainment with music video, custom text graphics and ambient themed video on 6×8 foot screens. Both Elizabeth and Peter are classic country music lovers so we provided lots of classic music video footage of Grand Ole Opry performances as well as current country music videos and music from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, and it all made for great dancing. This fantastic crowd danced and partied until way after sundown and this reception may just hold a record for the longest-ever marathon version of the Cotton-Eyed Joe!
Congratulations, Liz and Peter—have a great time in Hawaii! Also, many thanks to Olivia Arreguin and her staff for all of their help in making our job a lot smoother.
“The Fort Worth Hollywood Wedding” starring Cara & Ryan — Now Showing at The Marquis on Magnolia
Posted On: September 25
On September 24th Immersion Multimedia returned to the Marquis on Magnolia, entertaining over 200 guests for the wedding reception of Cara & Ryan on a grand Hollywood scale— great families, great food, great entertainment and surprises galore. From my very first meeting with my friends Cara and Ryan , we were closely involved in the planning of much of the event. I knew early on that this reception would be special, unique and trend-setting. Cara and Ryan told me from the beginning that they wanted several Hollywood movie-themed segments during the reception, and they certainly tested the limits of my creativity, but Immersion Multimedia broke new ground with this event! The bride and groom entered on the red carpet to the 20th Century Fox fanfare and we reworked the actual 20th Century animation sequence using the couples’ names instead of the words “20th Century Fox”! We added to the event’s theme using such ambient visuals as “Applause” cues for the audience and “On Air” graphics, as well as vintage theater Intermission footage (Remember: “Let’s All Go To The Lobby…” and “It’s Intermission Time!…??) on the big screens. Other surprises during the evening included 1980’s segments complete with music videos, ambient visuals and movie clips and a special OU fight song clip especially for the groom and his friends. Interspersed throughout the whole evening were various vignettes of classic movie scenes with countdown leaders. There was even an Italian tribute to the groom’s heritage in which I led the crowd in both a cake march and in a traditional dance of the Tarantella while members of the Armstrong family distributed trays of homemade Italian cookies to the crowd, recalling a long-standing Italian family tradition at weddings in which the family shows their gratitude to the guests for attending.
We pulled out ALL the stops for this event – 2 6×8 foot video screens, full lighting trusses with high-powered LED Bar lighting, X-Laser Pyro Lasers, Intelligent Moving Head Lighting, LeMaitre Radiance Hazer, and Strobe Lighting. During the Bridal Party introductions, we panned the moving heads around the venue to simulate the searchlights at a Hollywood premier. All custom visuals, movie clips and graphics were designed and produced exclusively for the couple’s wedding. Some big highlights of the evening included a photo slideshow of Cara, Ryan and their families, and a special surprise music video which was produced by Bob DeLillo, starred Cara and Ryan and was set to the music of “Kiss The Rain” by Thriving Ivory. We “premiered” this video once dinner was completed as a transition between the special dances and general dancing. The video featured a montage of classic movie kiss scenes and it proved to be a huge delight for the crowd who, toward the end of the video, were surprised to see that the final kissing scene was that of the bride and groom! Immediately following the videos, we urged the crowd to join the families and the bridal party on the dance floor—and pack it they did!
Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, acted as the Master of Ceremonies, DJ, VJ and Entertainment Director for the event, with Donavon Singleton rocking the lighting. We coordinated not only music, lighting and complex visual entertainment, but also handled introductions, timeline management and coordinating all of the special spotlight events throughout the evening. This reception will be remembered for many, many years to come!
Thanks for the memories, Cara and Ryan. Congratulazioni per il vostro matrimonio — L’amore a voi due! Enjoy your honeymoon in Italy—I’m jealous…
Southwest High School Class of 1991 Reunion
Posted On: October 3
On October 1st, Immersion Multimedia entertained for the Southwest High School Class of 1991 Reunion. The party was held in the beautiful lobby of the Carter Burgess Building in downtown Fort Worth adjacent to Grace Restaurant, which handled the delicious catering for the event. Over 100 alumni and guests were in attendance.
We love doing class reunions mostly because we really enjoy doing themed parties, and reunions give us a chance to really dial in on a theme! We produced custom visuals and graphics for the Class of 1991, and really had a ball with music videos, TV and movie clips from popular shows from the year, as well as commercials and even newsreels covering top world events from 1991. We used a 9×12 foot rear-projection video screen as a dance floor backdrop, full truss set up with high-powered LED bar lighting, X-Laser Pyro Lasers, Intelligent Moving Head Lighting, LeMaitre Radiance Hazer, and Strobe Lighting. Bob DeLillo, President of Immersion Multimedia, acted as the Master of Ceremonies, DJ, VJ and Entertainment Director for the event, with Donavon Singleton handling the lighting.
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s 12th Annual 65 Roses Wine & Food Extravaganza
Posted On: October 22
On October 19, more than 1,000 guests gathered on a crisp fall evening for the 12th annual 65 Roses Wine & Food Extravaganza held at Grant and Marci James’ La Paloma Ranch to benefit the North Texas Chapter of The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The event was chaired by Chandra Geren Thomas and Robert Thomas, co-chaired by Amy and Byron Biggs and was sponsored by GM Financial Services, American Airlines, Immersion Multimedia, Central Market, 360 West Magazine, Glenwood Energy Partners, Rhonda and Lloyd Walsh and Autobahn Motorcar Group.
21 of the area’s most renowned chefs, headed up by Lead Chef Michael Thomson, put on a spectacular culinary display which was complemented by fine wines from around the world — all set in large tents which were decorated to reflect the style of each chefs’ respective restaurant.
Immersion Multimedia produced and emceed the event. A centrally-located, large, covered stage with truss, large outdoor surround-sound system and four 55-inch plasma screens was erected for the CF live auction. We lighted the stage itself and the silent auction tables with high-powered LED fixtures. Intelligent Moving Head Lighting was used to light the grounds and the roofs of the surrounding tents with gobos in the Cystic Fibrosis corporate colors. The large, surrounding trees of the ranch were also lighted with high-powered LED lighting, bathing them in a magenta hue to complete the lighting effect. We also erected a large 10×14 foot projection screen to broadcast the first game of the 2011 World Series live during the event as well as intermittently featuring it on the large plasma screens.
Immersion Multimedia designed custom media and graphics including a corporate logo video loop and individual slides for each chef with their photo and their restaurant logo. Throughout the evening, we entertained with music, logo animations and music videos as well as with CF Corporate Videos and showed custom graphics of each auction item along with its description during the live auction.
1st Annual freshmeet meetBALL Costume Soiree in Dallas
Posted On: October 29
On October 27th, we entertained for the 1st annual freshmeet meetBALL Costume Soiree held at The Haunted Ross Avenue Wedding Chapel in Dallas. This event was also the the launch party for our friends at The Venue Marketing Group’s latest venture, freshmeet – an event industry portal filled with resources for event pros, where you can post events, post news, post jobs, search for jobs and more!
Guests enjoyed cocktails and catering by Chef Richard Pratt, VIP access to the Hellmouth Hostel Haunted House and a special live appearance by the band Outside Walls. The decorations were off the chain—featuring animatronix figures of Frankenstein, Witches and Goblins.
We kept the party rocking with dance music all evening and helped set the mood with video entertainment on two 9×12 foot video screens. A full lighting truss with LED Bar lighting, X-Laser Pyro Lasers, Intelligent Moving Head Lighting, LeMaitre Radiance Hazer, and Strobe Lighting completed the eerie atmosphere. We produced custom Halloween visuals and graphics exclusively for the event, including a corporate logo reel for all of the freshmeet meetHEADS. A big highlight of the evening was a special surprise flash mob dancing to Michael Jackson’s Thriller!
Despite the inclement weather and the fact that the Texas Rangers were playing a World Series game that evening, the party was a huge success. Congratulations to Kristie and Christian Vento on the kickoff of their newest business!
A New Twist on the Old Photobooth!
Posted On: November 1
Ever been to a wedding reception or a party and seen a photobooth? Renting a photobooth for your wedding, party or corporate event has become very popular, but the traditional photobooth – you know, the one that spits out the photo strip– has actually become a little bit commonplace. If you’re considering one of these for your next event and want something really fun and unique, check out the Costume Photobooth by Shapshots By Rhonda Kay! The photo quality of using a professional photographer to staff the booth along with the use of back drops and props made their photobooth SO much more intriguing, especially watching the guests’ personalities unfold and being surprised with who selected what! It’s amazing what people reveal when they hide behind a costume, or while “secretly” getting their photo taken with a bunch of onlookers nearby. Snapshots By Rhonda Kay’s many props include a variety of hats, goofy glasses, boas, tiaras, and much, much more. Just imagine what a fantastic addition these photos would be as an addition to your wedding album!
For details, Call Rhonda Brunson at 817-680-5044.
Fort Worth, Texas Magazine 2011 Top Attorneys Party
Posted On: November 29
The Fort Worth, Texas magazine asked area attorneys to name the best lawyers in selected fields. In their collective opinion, these are Tarrant County’s Top Attorneys. In November, we celebrated Top Attorney winners at the Fort Worth Club in downtown Fort Worth. The Top Attorneys will be announced in the December issue of the magazine.
As the nearly 150 Attorneys in attendance mingled and sampled the hors d’oeuvres, wine and cocktails, Immersion Multimedia emceed and provided musical entertainment for the annual event as we honored attorneys voted by their peers as being among the best from many areas of legal specialization. Congratulations to all of you!
CFF Holiday Cocktails For The Cure 2011
Posted On: December 6
On December 4th, VIP guests gathered at Michaels Cuisine on 7th Street for the annual Holiday Cocktails for the Cure event to toast the holiday season and to raise money for the North Texas Chapter of The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Chef Michael Thomson once again hosted the event and delivered with delicious hors d’oeuvres, wine and cocktails. The restaurant was resplendent in yuletide decor complete with a cozy, roaring fireplace. Immersion Multimedia rocked the party with dance music and music videos and we also provided sound reinforcement for the live auction. The party was a great success as guests danced until the wee hours of the morning. More importantly, we raised some serious money for a worthy cause.
Kudos to Sarah Richardson from CFF for all her hard work in coordinating an awesome party!
Key Contacts
Robert DeLillo
President and CEO
Creative Director, Audio Visual Artist and Voice Talent
Phone: 817.966.2762
bob@immersionmultimedia.com
Terry St. Peters
Technical Director
terry@immersionmultimedia.com
Kris Landrum
Studio Engineer
