This book, written by award-winning scenic and lighting designer Kevin Lee Allen, explores the use of the Vectorworks Spotlight with Renderworks program for use in the entertainment industries. While the methods and techniques described are applicable to film, television, concerts, exhibits, and themed architecture or interiors, this tutorial focuses on a project that creates a lighting, sound, and set designs for the stage, the root of entertainment design.

From one step beyond traditional pencil thumbnails, this guide outlines a process of design development and collaboration with other designers and technical staff. The text is tutorial-based and directs the user to create two projects, each supported by a series of simple exercises. The first project is the creation of a simple 3D form, and the second project details the creation of scenic, sound, and lighting designs for a theoretical Broadway production of Romeo & Juliet. Each step of the process, created for either a sole practitioner or a designer working in a team, is laid out as an exercise with step-by-step directions and options to suit individual designers' work preferences and tastes. The tutorial is perfect as either a classroom text or a self-guided training option.

In addition to reflecting the features in Vectorworks 2015 software, the fourth edition of the guidebook will help readers use the new Deform tool, create temporary platforms with Stage Deck tools and model supports with Stage Lift tools, directly edit Light Position objects, and work with new rendering styles.

Recommendations and Tips

• This tutorial is intended for use with Vectorworks 2015 software and is most applicable for Vectorworks Spotlight with Renderworks 2015 software users.
• This hard-copy workbook includes a companion CD with exercise files that demonstrate the steps described in the tutorial.
• This book assumes basic working knowledge of computers and Vectorworks software. It builds on the skills outlined in the free Getting Started Guides, which cover the basics of drawing in both 2D and 3D.