Tennis fans and residents of Turin (Italy) enjoyed a spectacular visual show, presented twice each night over the eight days of the 2025 ATP Finals, the prestigious tournament that closes the ATP Tour season, held at the Inalpi Arena.
In the square adjacent to the venue, a fan village was built, created by the brand experience agency Filmmaster Events and lit by Sergio Cattaneo of Milan-based CUE Design, using 40 Robe iBOLTS units.
In addition to serving as a meeting and information point, and a showcase for official ATP merchandising and other tennis-related brands, the fan village also offered a wide variety of food stalls. This year —the fifth time the ATP Finals have been staged in Turin— the organizers also wanted to add pre-match entertainment that the public could enjoy while waiting to enter the arena.
Filmmaster Events, under the creative direction of Giulia Accatino and with content designer Romain Sabella (TK2), storyboarded and produced the video content, which was played out on a huge LED screen measuring 100 metres wide by 8 metres tall. To complement these visual narratives, they asked Sergio —with whom they had worked previously— to design a high-impact lighting spectacle.
Sergio received the brief and immediately thought he needed a series of powerful beams, capable of fulfilling two roles: on the one hand, supporting the visual show and creating an atmosphere of excitement and spectacle; and on the other, being visible from different points around the city and its surroundings. His first thought was clear: iBOLTS.
It was my first choice... right now there is nothing else like them, I absolutely love these fixtures! They are the brightest and therefore the best for this job, he stated.
Sergio also based his decision on the experience of two previous projects using iBOLTS, albeit in much smaller quantities, and was thrilled to be able to deploy 40 units. “It was essential that these lights and the installation could be seen from afar, while at the same time being enjoyed by everyone in the fan village. We wanted to emphasize that this was a special event, with a major sporting competition taking place right in the heart of the city”.
The power and colour quality of the iBOLTs were also key to generating the required energy and excitement. Sergio used a lot of white, cyan —the ATP’s corporate colour— and yellow, representing the tennis ball. He also needed a bright light source to counteract the ambient glow emitted by the LED screen and ensure the beams still stood out.
The designer pre-programmed the shows —a main four-minute show, plus several 30- and 50-second interstitial pieces— using Depence3, with the assistance of Alessandro Scotellaro at CUE Design’s studios. They then had one night on site to adjust focus and refine the lighting, which also included a laser as part of the show, along with 17 strategically deployed hazers.
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The lighting spectacle in the fan village achieved its goal: it attracted more visitors to the city, kept fans entertained while they waited for the matches to begin, and, being visible from the surrounding hills, generated strong buzz on social media. All of this helped reinforce Turin’s profile as the host of a world-class sporting event.
The lighting was supplied by ATS Srl, with the iBOLTs provided by Lucidiscena.
Photos: Giorgia Benvenuti and Andrea Padovan
