All lighting was supplied by the country’s leading lighting rental company, Q-99.

The show was staged at the Sibamac Arena in Bratislava in front of a live audience of 4000 and the live transmission broadcast by Slovakia´s largest private TV channel Joj (pronounced ‘yoy’).

Kubanka has designed the show’s lighting for the last 9 years and Q-99 has provided lighting and sound for the same duration.

Each year the visuals get more complex and ambitious in terms of technology, says Kubanka, explaining that it’s a collaborative effort between himself, lighting cameraman Milan Dostal, director Jiri Adamec (both from the neighbouring Czech Republic) and scenic designer Michal Klang.

“Michal’s sets are always a challenge to light” says Kubanka … and this one was no exception. Measuring 45 metres wide and 14 metres high, it was constructed from a series of translucent Lexan cubes, located all over the stage. These - and the way they were lit – were metaphor for the gloss and glamour of diamonds!

Adding that bit of additional sparkle and glitter to the set were 16 Anolis ArcWash 136 RGB fixtures, which supplemented the general stage and runway lighting.

The main task for lighting was to create a show that looked good for the live audience as well as on camera, and to ensure that the light levels were consistent all over the stage and set.

The competition featured several different sections including traditional beauty pageant elements like the swimsuits and eveningwear parades, added to which, the contestants also had to demonstrate how their talents went beyond their looks, with a singing/dancing and ‘other’ performance section. Each section needed its own distinct and fresh lighting look and feel.

Additionally, three of the country’s top pop acts performed in the ad breaks, so the stage also had to be lit for them.

With Robe and Anolis combined, things looked really impressive. ”I had such a wide range of choice” comments Martin Kubanka, who used 14 of Robe’s powerful ColorWash 1200E AT fixtures over the stage, plus 32 Robe ColorSpot 575 ATs and 10 LEDBlinder 196 LTs. It was the first time that Kubanka has used the Anolis ArcWash units, and he says, “they really helped light the space efficiently, adding an extra layer of depth”.

Q-99 has invested heavily in Robe moving lights over the last 3 years, and has recently started buying Anolis LED products.

They have the largest quantity of Robe fixtures for rental in Slovakia. “Robe is an excellent brand from the hire company perspective” says Q-99’s Marek Adamik “There’s a good section of fixtures for all types of application, they are extremely reliable – they never come back broken!”. He adds that they get great service from Czech distributors KVS LIGHT TECHNIC and also from Robe Show Lighting directly.

Martin Kubanka operated all the moving lights for Miss Universe Slovakia 2007 himself, using two GrandMA consoles. In addition to the moving lights there were a selection of ‘white light’ sources including 31 ARRI HMIs 1, 2 and 5Kw fresnels, 6 Griven Colorado 2500MK IIs and 4 Robert Juliat follow spots, plus 8-lite and 4-lite Molefeys, ETC Source Four PARs and a 2 x 2.4 x 9 meter video wall.

Q-99 also supplied audio for the event, consisting of an EAW rig with Mackie 500 and AMEK Recall 56 consoles.

They have also supplied a host of other top TV shows with Robe fixtures this year including Stars on Ice, Let’s Dance, Millionaire and the upcoming Bailando show and Hit of The Century – both for channel STV1.