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NOVA News Minutes
Virtual Fireworks
(running time 01:28)
Transcript
July 7, 2003
Narrator: A fireworks show over the U.S. Capitol
building. But look carefully. This performance is "virtual."
This program could make shows more precise and imaginative
than ever. As shown on PBS's NOVA, the pyrotechnic
symphonies of today owe everything to software that controls
the launch of each firework with split-second timing. But no
matter how precise the timing, a producer could only guess
how things will actually look at show time.
Alberto Navarro (Infinity Visions): Before, I say,
oh, this is okay, and let's shoot it and see how it looks. I
hope it looks good.
Narrator: Navarro, who produces shows all over the
world, improved the computer program so it would simulate
displays in real time, from any angle.
Alberto Navarro (Infinity Visions): I press play and
I see it. And I can move my camera and say let's see how it
looks from down here.
Narrator: With a click of a mouse, he can change his
shells and fire at will.
Alberto Navarro (Infinity Visions): It's gonna speed
up the process of improvement of your own ideas.
Narrator: The result is a show that owes more to
choice than chance.
Alberto Navarro (Infinity Visions): It gave me a
great satisfaction. I had a different feeling watching this
show this year than ever before. Because what I was seeing
is what I had seen many times.
Narrator: A consumer version of the software has just
been released. Navarro hopes it will inspire a new
generation of firework designers. I'm Brad Kloza.
Name That Shell
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Anatomy of a Firework
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Pyrotechnically Speaking
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On Fire
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