For decades production lights have remained largely unchanged. The lights themselves were expensive, cumbersome, and consumed large quantities of power. Most producers chose to accept this as the nature of the beast. Seeing a need for a different kind of fixture, famed and three-time Oscar winning cinematographer, Vittorio Storaro, and his daughter, Architectural Lighting Designer Francesca Storaro, approached Fabio and Sergio DeSisti of DeSisti Lighting in Rome, Italy. Working in concert with the Storaros, DeSisti put their considerable design, optics, engineering and manufacturing skills into the creation of a new and innovative line of cinema lighting, The Muses of Light.

“We realized that with LED technology we were able to take lighting to the next step. Our Muses of Light range of products can replace large, high power consumption tungsten and HMI fixtures, and provide dimming control without the need for dimmers, at a fraction of the power requirement. We are certain when producers and DPs get their hands on these lights, they will be very excited,” explains Fabio.

The next step has been getting these innovative lights into the hands of creatives, and that has been the job of Paul Distefano, Northeast Regional Sale Manager of I-Light USA in Mountainside, New Jersey. “Our clients really need to handle these lights themselves, so we regularly send packages to studios for testing in advance of a rental request. That way the DOPs and Gaffers get to see them in action.” explains Paul.

One such person is Steve Ramsey. Steve is a respected Hollywood Gaffer whose credits include "The Time Traveler's Wife," "Leave the World Behind," and his current project, "Brooklyn," all of which have used the Muses line. “While many manufacturers are creating only soft LED panels that have limited short throw applications. The Muses of Light offer the Aurea, Melpomene, Tersicore, and Clio, four styles which embrace the occasions where we need to project a powerful shaft of direct light that still manages to arrive softly on the subject,” explains Steve. “We've been using all of these lights in situations where, in the past, we would have to use a 4k HMI or even a beam projector.”

Steve Ramsey is just one Gaffer on a growing client list: Muses of Light gear has been used in Woody Allen’s “Rifkin’s Festival,” Disney’s “Peter Pan & Wendy,” DOP Bojan Bazelli’s “Shogun,” and DOP Tod Campbell’s Netflix feature “Leave the World Behind,” just to name a few.

Sharing the lighting with filmmakers keeps Paul very busy. “We have recently demonstrated the Aurea for the DP & Gaffer of “Isle of the Dead,” being shot right here in Harrison, NJ, and we are hopeful they will also utilize the Muses on set.”

So far, feedback has been extremely positive. “In a landscape of ubiquitous soft panel LEDs, it's quite remarkable to see the new direction that Vittorio Storaro and Desisti have taken with The Muses of Light. You really have to see it to believe it,” explains Steve

“Prior to trying the Muses, most ask what the Muses are equivalent to in a conventional fixture. Once they test, they see those comparisons are not relevant and they see the performance and characteristics of the Muses and find innovative uses for them,” continues Paul. “We invite producers, DOPs, and Gaffers to reach out and arrange for a demo today. They won’t be disappointed.

I-Light USA is the exclusive distributor of DeSisti products in North America, which is good news for producers filming in New Jersey, as in-state rentals and/or purchases count directly towards potential New Jersey film tax credits. Through I-Light, producers can find the Muses of Light line, as well as the extensive line of DeSisti Fresnels, Soft Lights, and Space Lights, available for rental. For more information, video, and specifications, go to www.desisti.it, or contact them at I-Light USA at 908-317-0020 or info@desistiusa.com

Key technical specs for the Muses of Light:

• The Muses of Light produces the output of HMIs at almost 25%, and tungsten fixtures at about 10%, of the power.
• All Muses output variable white CCTs between 2700° and 6600° K
• Dimming is precise and super smooth all the way to zero with control via DMX and local control at the PSU
• The DC-powered LEDs are flicker-free, and have been tested with Phantom cameras at 42,000 frames per second.
• The largest Muse, the Aurea, only consumes 2KW. The entire line could run on batteries!
• All the Muses use passive, fanless, cooling and feature detachable electronics, capable of powering and controlling the fixtures up to 150’ away.
• All the Muses feature wireless DMX control capability via Lumen Radio

Aurea as the sun 1

Aurea as the sun 2

Talia on Holiday on Mars set