The winners of the 24th Montreal International Fireworks Competition, L'International des feux Loto-Québec, are Pyrotecnico from the United States (Gold Jupiter), Howard and Sons from Australia (Silver Jupiter), and Sunny International from China (Bronze Jupiter). The awards ceremony was held on Wednesday, August 6th at La Ronde and followed by the traditional off-competition closing display produced by Panzera. However, the absence of Grupo Luso Pirotecnia was unexpected and surprised several viewers.
Pyrotecnico's 32-minute display featured the most impressive setup. With about 7000 pieces located on five firing ramps, three 10-meter towers and three semi-circular structures, ʺRock lovesʺ was the most complex show performed this year. These special structures allowed some outstanding note-synchronized effects, as you can see with this video. Designers Ralph Piacquadio and Rocco Vitale tempted the audience and the jury with a show structured along the values promoted by rock music. ʺRock lovesʺ was the first display presented by Pyrotecnico in the Montreal International Fireworks Competition.
Following that second performance of Howard and Sons, winner of the Silver Jupiter, there was a general agreement that the Australian team had learnt a lot since its introduction in 2005. ʺEvolutionʺ featured a wide range of high-quality pyrotechnic pieces on all firing ramps and close to 30 nautical platforms scattered on the lake. Designer Stuart Bensley has prepared a powerful start and has avoided all narratives, thus providing a strong and dynamic performance.
Rewarded with the Bronze Jupiter, ʺForever loveʺ, the show designed by Jim Shih told a Chinese love story, supported with a narrative and a printed summary distributed to the viewers in the grandstands. Sunny International has manufactured all products used in this display, which featured numerous bees and Sunny's famous shaped shells. The music was a nice mix of Chinese, classic and movie pieces. Some sequences of the show can also be watched here. Following the Gold Jupiter in 1992 and the Silver Jupiter in 1993, this is a third prize in six appearances for Sunny.
The absence of Grupo Luso Pirotecnia from the podium was a shock for many people and one of the main topic discussed during the night. The designer Vitor Machado and his team has built a soundtrack with music of award-winning movies often heard in pyromusical shows. This traditional choice was augmented with creative pyrotechnic effects, some made with a set of eight arcs. Some sequences on the music of ʺJawsʺ, ʺMission: Impossibleʺ, and ʺBe Our Guestʺ were unforgettable. The Portuguese contestant achieved a perfect balance between originality and tradition. Video excerpts of that show can be watched here. For sure, the result should fuel thinking about the current jury formula, specifically about the selection process and the training of the jury.
Firms from nine countries have competed in Montreal from June 21th to August 2nd. In addition to the winners, the 2008 line-up included Prestatech-Artifices (France), Pirotecnica Morsani (Italy), Hanwha (South Korea), Grupo Luso Pirotecnia (Portugal), Garden City Display Fireworks (Canada), and Pyrovision GmbH (Austria). Along with Pyrotecnico, the French, Italian, Canadian, and Austrian teams were also new entrants to the Montreal competition.
The Jupiter prizes were awarded by a popular 19-member jury. Each display was assessed according to five judging criteria: pyrotechnic pieces, pyromusical design, technical design, soundtrack, and synchronization (see our introduction report for more details).
2008 Overview
The 24th Montreal International Fireworks Competition was held despite some threats. Firstly, the weather was disturbing most of the time. Though only one show (the Canadian one) has been done under rain, showers and thunderstorms threatened eight of the ten displays. Despite the increasing media coverage and more agressive marketing tactic to fill the grandstands, it is obvious that the attendance declined. Whereas the last displays of the competition usually bring the summer largest crowds at La Ronde, the amusement park was almost empty few hours before the shows due to heavy rain.
A second threat to the competition remains the transportation issue. Hanwha has been seriously hurt by these constraints since their arsenal never left South Korea. Montreal-based company Ampleman supplied most of the material and the contestant has had to redesign its show with the available stuff. Pyrovision from Austria also experienced delays and lost one day to set-up its show. In 2007, the same bad luck happened to the French contestant.
Fortunately, these constraints did'nt prevent the contestants to achieve great performances. At least two obvious trends have continued this year. The first one is the broadening of the set of companies invited to compete in Montreal, bringing fresh blood to the event. With five new entrants in 2008 and 27 since 2001, it is a dramatic change with the eight previous years since the number of recruits has doubled (14 new contestants from 1993 to 2000).
The second trend is the more intensive use of the space available to display fireworks. The new technical design criteria, introduced this year, captures this component of the pyromusical shows. This year, the Italian display was the only one to use neither additional floating platforms (the 5th ramp), nor nautical effects. To bring the fireworks closer to the audience is not the only impact of this trend. It also increases the complexity of the extravaganzas since contestants have to include pyrotechnic effects fired from many places and to combine them in creative and effective ways.
The Montreal International Fireworks Competition provides the audience opportunities to enjoy an outstanding range of pyrotechnic effects manufactured around the world. Some original effects were displayed in Montreal this year, like shells of comets with rising tails bursting in different colours (Australia) and Vicente Caballer's whistling double-ascension girandolas (Canada). In opposition with the previous years, all displays have begun on time and significant technical failures were rare.
For comprehensive reports, photos, full videos and a forum, please visit Paul Marriott's website, montreal-fireworks.com. Info and comments in French are also available on Mylène Salvas' blog.
Text, photos and videos: Frédérick Bastien
