Solar Meninos de Luz

Solar Meninos de Luz, thanks to its partnership with the company SRCOM, took part in the Copacabana New Year’s Eve celebration, which this year was concerned with sustainability. This event was also planned to emphasize the Rio+20 world conference, to be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2012, with the purpose of renewing world leaders’ commitment to sustainable development on Earth. With the theme 2012 – The Planet’s New Year, the end-of-year party brought several novelties, from pre-production to the firework display.

The participation of Solar Meninos de Luz was related to the social aspect of sustainability. Fifteen of our students made a technical visit as observers to the event’s organization, on Thursday and Friday, the 29th and 30th of December. The young people met several professionals from different areas, responsible for making an event of this scale work, and also had access to restricted areas, such as production, creation and press rooms, security, dressing rooms, VIP areas, backstage, stages… It was quite a learning experience!

For our student Lucas Gomes, 16, going behind the scenes of the world’s biggest New Year’s Eve party was an important opportunity. “I’ve enjoyed New Year’s Eve in Copacabana for years, but I’d never seen the other side, the production, how hard people work. Day and night, rain or shine,” said Lucas. “Every day that goes by I’m getting more interested in the technology area, because it’s present in everything we do in the world nowadays. And I’m also developing a taste for the production area! For really making the event happen and seeing it happen!” he said.

All the carbon generated by the firework smoke was neutralized by planting native buds from the Atlantic Forest. Besides, the main stage, called Sun, was made out of certified wood. The idea is for the metallic structure to be re-used 100% after each event from now on, and for all the canvas to be turned into pencil cases, to be distributed in public schools, by the NGO Tem Quem Queira. The Sun stage was all white, so that 3D images projected from towers around the beach could be seen. “The stage is an artistic frame for the artists,” said Abel Gomes, a member of SRCOM, the company that produced the New Year’s Eve party.

Solar’s participation was officially announced at a press conference held on the morning of the 16th at the Hotel Windsor Atlântica, in Copacabana, by the Tourism Secretary and RioTur president Antonio Pedro Figueira de Mello. “New Year’s Eve launches the initiative. With the golden age Rio is experiencing, we can’t ignore sustainability. In my opinion, little has been done about this global matter. Let’s start doing our part,” said the secretary.

The Copacabana event boasted four stages, 11 firework rafts and artists such as Beth Carvalho, Moraes Moreira, O Rappa and international DJ David Guetta.

The firework display, accompanied by beautiful music, had six thematic phases: Welcome Rio+20, with colors representing the forest; Solar Energy, with hot colors like red and yellow; Water, with fireworks suggesting jellyfish and waves; Fauna and Flora, with fireworks suggesting flowers; Wind, with white and blue tones; and finally Optimism, in the color gold, representing Rio’s golden age.

To see the photos, click here.