The PROVANTAGE Handbook / Screen planning
Screen size is a legibility decision before it is a scenic decision. Start with the smallest important detail and the person furthest away who must understand it.
Then resolve aspect ratio, room width and depth, stage composition, ceiling height, display technology and whether relay screens are needed.
A four-step method
CONTENT.
VIEWER.
ROOM.
- 01
Identify critical detail
Find the smallest text, chart label, subtitle or image detail the audience genuinely needs.
- 02
Plot relevant viewers
Measure furthest distance and check off-axis seats, columns, cameras and scenic obstructions.
- 03
Test legibility
Evaluate representative content at representative distance. Simplify content if it remains too dense.
- 04
Resolve buildable size
Convert the requirement into available LED cabinets, projection surfaces, structure and stage geometry.
Worked planning example
A DEEP
BALLROOM.
SMALL DATA.
A 300-person ballroom does not automatically need a particular screen width.
If the last row is 28 metres away and the programme includes detailed financial charts, test those charts from 28 metres. The answer may be a larger main canvas, simplified slides, relay screens—or a combination. The headcount did not decide it; the information task did.
When relay screens enter the plan
ONE SCREEN
MAY NOT SERVE
EVERY SEAT.
Long rooms
Detail becomes too small at the back even when the main screen suits the stage.
Wide rooms
Side seats experience severe angles or scenic and technical obstructions.
Broken sightlines
Columns, balconies, cameras or room divisions interrupt the main view.
Different content roles
The main canvas carries scenic media while relay displays prioritise presentation detail.
Briefing checklist
SUPPLY THE
PLAN AND
THE CONTENT.
Share the scaled room layout, seating, stage, furthest viewing distance, sample slides, camera positions and ceiling constraints. That is enough to begin a meaningful screen-size study.
Understand pixel pitch →