The new visual system has simplified and facilitated the dynamics of worship and Bible studies, while bringing parishioners closer together, because the screen is visible anywhere in the 20,000m² of the church.
Richard Santa
More and more professional audio, video and lighting solutions are used in temples, churches and houses of worship to convey the message of the faith and facilitate communication with their parishioners. That is the case of the Revival Church, which has 60 headquarters in 9 countries and has recently implemented a screen 16 meters wide by 9 meters high at its headquarters in Bogota, Colombia.
AVI Latin America spoke with Unilumin Sales Director Lucas Crantschaninov, led display manufacturer tasked with providing the display for the church in January 2021. He told the details of this project, the needs of the client and the final result.
AVI: Tell us what the project consisted of and what kind of systems were implemented? 
Lucas Crantschaninov: The church "World Revival Center" contemplated in its remodeling a 16:9 screen of 16 meters wide by 9 meters high, which are in total 144 square meters of LED screen.
Unilumin was the only company to offer a consistent solution within the client's budget, capable of integrating it with the client's various video sources, in its most varied signal formats.
Missing a few days for the delivery of the screen the client opted to change the format of the screen for 38.4m wide by 3.84m high (aspect ratio 10: 1), which generated a series of last minute technical adjustments, with installation of the 144m² scheduled to start on a Thursday, and the grand opening of the screen scheduled for Sunday, next to the anniversary of the temple.
The local technical team, together with Unilumin's team of experts, were able to execute and conclude the relevant adjustments on time, delivering the project underway in the evening hours of Saturday, and the inauguration was shocking.
AVI: Tell us what kind of space the system was installed in, the special features of the place, and how many people on average stay or use the place.
Lucas Crantschaninov: The Avivamiento church in Bogotá is the largest in Colombia, and one of the largest in Latin America, with capacity for 25,000 people before the pandemic. The screen should be viewed from anywhere in the church's 20,000 square meters, and integrate various cameras and stages, working with low latency and high refresh rate to avoid camera sweeps.
AVI: What prompted the end customer to do the integration of the aforementioned systems?
Lucas Crantschaninov: The renewal of the space and the intuition of allowing and promoting the approach of its parishioners to prayer, being on a par with technology and innovation.
AVI: How did the system work before the modification you implemented?
Lucas Crantschaninov: There were different screens, of different sizes, resolution, brightness and qualities, distributed throughout the space of the church, with two types of simultaneous signs, distributed from a "house-mix" in the center of the church.
AVI: Tell us about the system, how it is currently integrated with AV systems, and how you achieved that integration.
Lucas Crantschaninov: The 144 square meter screen is connected to the "house-mix" by TCP protocol, from where it connects to a Tricaster system that handles HDMI, DP, and SDI signal sources with low real-time latency + touch screen. In addition to the giant LED screen, there are two 86" auxiliary touchscreen screens used to interact with Internet parishioners.
AVI: Please describe the type of integrated equipment
Lucas Crantschaninov: - A Unilumin UDA 4 LED display of 144 square meters
- A Sending card NovaStar H2
- Two 86-inch UA touchscreen screens
- A Tricaster
AVI: What advantages have you found in this process, or how has the end customer benefited?
Lucas Crantschaninov: The new visual system has simplified and facilitated the dynamics of worship and Bible studies, while bringing parishioners closer together, not only because the screen is visible anywhere in the 20,000 square meters of the church, but also because technology allows the connection of the public with the message that is transmitted in all liturgical activities.
AVI: Were there any technical or logistical difficulties when implementing the system?
Lucas Crantschaninov: The last-minute changes in the configuration of the screen (cabinet arrangement), from 16:9 to 10:1 generated a series of structural and configuration complications, in order to allow this new arrangement. With the support of Unilumin's expertise, it was possible to make all the mechanical adjustments, updates and fine adjustments of relevant software so that, in record time, the screen was operational for its inauguration on Sunday.
AVI: Now tell us why you chose the technology and brands mentioned for this project.
Lucas Crantschaninov: The World Revival Center made a thorough evaluation to choose the manufacturer and model of its LED screen that met its needs, not only in terms of specifications of this, but also in terms of service, attention, pre and after-sales.
Unilumin met the budget, delivery times, technical specifications, pre and post-sales support, and references of solutions in the region, carrying the best score and being the solution chosen for this project.
AVI: Could you tell us about end-user satisfaction with this technology?
Lucas Crantschaninov: Revival is very happy with the result, and in fact they argue in expanding the size of the current screen. Interaction with their parishioners has increased, despite the distance imposed by COVID. The technology has delivered the expected closeness, and the image quality and reliability of the Unilumin solution has delivered results beyond expectations.
