〜Innovative drone art will color the night sky on the last night of the year 2024 under the theme of “IF”〜
(HQ: Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Koaki Sasaki; hereinafter “Red Cliff”), a drone show planning and management company, will collaborate with the Kobe Illuminage to be held in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, to present the RED CLIFF ART LABEL The showcase “MANI MANI (between the two)” will be held for the first time.
RED CLIFF ART LABEL Showcase “MANI MANI“
REDCLIFF is launching a new challenge, “RED CLIFF ART LABEL,” to create a different experience from previous drone shows.
“MANI MANI” was created with the hope that ‘between the stars and us’ will be beautiful forever, and for RED CLIFF ART LABEL, it is a blank canvas to be painted together with the artists. For viewers and event organizers, it aims to evoke an art experience and an art museum in the sky.
Six signals presented by up to 500 lights floating in the night sky
The “MANI MANI” canvas in the night sky will appear on New Year’s Eve, 2024, for approximately 30 minutes starting after 21:00. The theme of the first event is “IF (Imaginary F = Fruits & Flowers),” with 500 drones emitting light as they work together with artists to create an artistic expression that appeals to emotions through music and light movements. Please enjoy this special moment to deliver the message of “IF” from the night sky of Kobe, Kansai to the world.
Participating Artists
*Alphabetical order
Six works are scheduled to be performed in approximately 30 minutes.
1.404.zero
■Title
“Algorithmic Sky”
“Algorithmic Sky” is an audiovisual drone show born out of an exploration of universal algorithms that transform raw input data into valid formations for drone choreography while adhering to constraints such as speed, acceleration, and distance between drones. The resulting work was synchronized, both accidentally and intentionally, with soundscapes recorded on analog modular synthesizers in Japan, creating a seamless connection between space, movement, and sound.
■Profile
404.zero (Kristina Karpisheva/Alexandre Lesius) Formed in 2016, this audio visual architectural duo creates immersive experiences through generative art using mathematics, coding and sound science. Building on their interest in the unknown and the cosmos, they have created innovative tools and artworks that have been highly acclaimed at numerous international festivals.
2.Hiramoto Tomoki
■Title
“Seeing the Lost”
Losing something is synonymous with gaining something, just as losing 2024 and gaining 2025. 2024 was another year of war around the world. Perhaps we gain peace by losing war. Maybe it is capitalism that lies beyond the loss of war. I hope that by looking at things from a non-unilateral perspective through the night at the end of the year, we will have an opportunity to think about the world in the coming year again. Drones may be a weapon and a stage effect that colors the night sky, but this work is an attempt to express what lies beyond the loss of these weapons.
■Profile
Born in 1987, he was involved in the founding of FabLab Japan and established wip in 2015. He has been involved in a wide range of projects from product to space design using digital technology, and participated in the podium project and drone production for the opening ceremony of an international sporting event in Tokyo in 2021. He is the author of the book “3D Printing Handbook/O’Reilly Japan” and a regular contributor to design magazines.
https://tototomoki.com
3.MeyaMeya
■Title
“Treasure in view”
Treasures to be found in the space appearing in the night sky as a gift from the world of “MeyaMeya” appearing in the winter of Kobe in 2021, 2022, and 2023 will create a spectacle through a change of perspective that inherits the artistic heritage of “MeyaMeya” nurtured in Kobe and fused and sublimated by traditional Japanese aesthetic sensibilities. We celebrate the “treasure” of the dots of light that assemble and weave together – the beauty hidden in Kobe itself.
■Profile
MeyaMeya: Experimental anonymous audiovisual unit.
4..MIRAI + RYU
■Title
“VETI”
Human beings, born on a small planet called Earth, are a species that, through the invention of radio and technological advancement, spins messages into the air. That message is based on the spirituality of “love your neighbor. We are beings who love the next planet and the next galaxy as we love our neighbors, and our mission and our stance is to expand the chain of such love, just as cells act and live together. The simple sound of Morse code releases the rhythm of “being together” from the earth to the air. The code of love thus emitted from the earth will cross the infinite space and time, quietly announcing that someday, somewhere, we are a species that loves our neighbors.
■Profile
Born in Chiba, Japan in 1994. Studied computer science and VFX in the U.S. and lives and works in Tokyo. He expresses gravity, reflections of light, and invisible forces in his own unique style, and works on a wide range of projects from graphics to scenography. His many creations include collaborative productions with Utada Hikaru, XG, and others, as well as installation works.
https://www.instagram.com/i_am_mirai.s
5.Riomar McCartney（upcoming.studio）
■Title
“Star’s Whisper — A Sandbox of Our Universe”
The work is inspired by birdsong and the intricate patterns of the universe. First, the dots are placed in a sandbox in a precise grid. As the music begins, the dots move and flow into organic, textured movements. However, only those that follow the geometric pattern light up, while others dim and are activated when a drone passes near their path, causing the pixels to glow in response to the drone’s approach. The soundscape combines fantastic, operatic human voices, static sounds reminiscent of radio noise, and rhythmic beats tuned to resonate at specific frequencies.
Music by Yusuke Osumi（WATARIGARASU Ltd）
■Profile
Yusuke Osumi is a designer, programmer, and art director based in Tokyo. With a focus on creating installations and artworks that explore genres of music and media from the physical to the digital, he works with artists and brands to approach ideas through graphic, editorial, and art direction, He is also the founder of upcoming.studio, a design collective that partners with artists and brands to approach ideas through graphics, editorial and art direction.
https://www.instagram.com/riomarmccartney
https://upcoming.studio
6.SMTO
■Title
“Floating Scape”
The concept is to “create a dynamic Karesansui in the sky.
“Karesansui” is an attempt to express part or all of ‘nature’ in a garden, not the material things in the place, but a part of the whole providence of nature with different materials. The work is based on the question, “What happens if we try to express part or all of nature with the same attempt as ‘Karesansui’ using modern technology? This work is based on this question. Now that digital technology has made dynamic expression possible, how can we express a part of nature using a drone in a three-dimensional space that is capable of 3D expression in the true sense of the word? This time, the challenge is how to express a part of nature using a drone in a three-dimensional space where 3D expression is possible. The work can be viewed from anywhere in 360 degrees, and is a meditative work that uses a natural algorithm to create movement.
■Profile
SMTO Experimental anonymous audiovisual unit.
MANI MANI -between the stars and me
It is the last day of the year 2024 in Kobe, Japan.
A cold wind caresses my cheeks as I pass from the mountains to the sea.
The voice of countless stars is a gift to my heart.
I fly away.
At that moment, infinite silence spreads across the sky and earth.
They shimmer and float in the silence.
Tiny dots nestled in each other’s radiance.
Between the stars and me.
Between the stars and me, it, communes,
In the silence, it breathes.
Supervisor
Junichi Takekawa
Creative Director
Representative of David Watts inc. He creates experiences that transcend the boundaries of time and space between art and technology to discover the moment when human creativity emerges. He constantly explores new experiences by planning, designing, and directing projects that transcend different industries and sectors of thought. Creative director of MUTEK.JP, Asia’s only festival of electronic music and digital art, and board member of MUTEK Japan, a general incorporated association. Director of PEACE NIPPON PROJECT, a general incorporated association that bequeaths the message of Japanese beauty. Director of Japan Drone Show Association. Member of Butterfly Studio.
*…as of December 24, 2024, according to our research.
Outline of “Kobe Illuminage Countdown NEW YEAR Festival 2024-2025” and “REDCLIFF COUNTDOWN DRONE SHOW 2025
Date & Time: Tuesday, December 31, 2024, 21:00 – 26:00 / Entrance starts at 21:00 (*)
Date & Time: Tuesday, December 31, 2024, 21:00 – 26:00 / Entrance starts at 21:00 (*)
Location: Roadside Station, Kobe Fruit and Flower Park Osawa (2150 Kami-Osawa, Osawa-cho, Kita-ku, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture)
Admission fee:
Countdown ticket: Adult 8,000 yen / Child 4,000 yen / Pet 500 yen
Countdown ticket + LIVE MUSIC: Adults 15,000 yen / Children 10,000 yen / Pets are not allowed
Infants under 1 year old are free of charge.
Tickets: Available at the following URL
https://www.asoview.com/channel/tickets/VCWWwuPJah
[Collaboration Program]
REDCLIFF COUNTDOWN DRONE SHOW 2025
Part 1: ART LABEL SHOWCASE ||| MANI MANI（approx. 30 min. from around 21:20)
Part 2: COUNTDOWN DRONE SHOW 2025
Organizer: Red Cliff Inc.
Supervisor: Junichi Takekawa (Part 1)
Director: Kenji Kobashi (Part 2)
*…Please note that the show time is subject to change without notice. Also, depending on the weather on the day of the event, the drone show may be cancelled due to safety being the top priority. Please check the official X’s Red Cliff account (https://x.com/redcliff_drone ) for the latest information on whether or not the event will be held due to weather conditions.
REDCLIFF COUNTDOWN DRONE SHOW 2025
Kobe Illuminage Outline
Sponsor ：Japan Illumination Association
Supporters ： Hyogo Prefecture, Kobe City, Kobe Convention & Visitors Bureau, Sanda City, Japan Association for the 2025 International Exposition, Inc.
Cooperation ：Kobe Agricultural Administration Public Corporation, CI Hotel & Resort Co.
Inquiries : Illuminations Secretariat
Phone : 06-6452-6452
Email ：mail@illuminagegroup.com
Instagram ：@OFFICIAL_ILLUMINAGEGROUP
URL ：https://illuminagegroup.com/