DJ Mag Japan Special Interview：Miguel

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Q1. Could you introduce us to your occupation? What is your role at Production Club?

My occupation is Production Designer and Creative/Show Director. This means that I work with DJs and other musicians to create a visual universe for their live shows.

I direct and design stage, scenic, lights, video, lasers, pyro, SFX, choreography, show arc and in general the overall experience.

I come from a very small town in Spain. I love cats, robots and cars.

I drag everyday inspiration from the same world I experienced as a child: street art, comics, Hip Hop and street subculture in general.

My role in Production Club is partner and Creative Director. Besides live shows I also design events, interiors, art installations, games, visuals, conferences, pop-ups, festivals, parties - and pretty much anything that seems fun ^_^’.

Q2. How did you first get interested in creative design in the live event space? Do you have any formal training or did you teach yourself?

I got interested when I was a little child and I attended to Kraftwerk and Iron Maiden shows.

I was around 10 years old and both blew out my mind in a different way. Kraftwerk was hypnotic and stunning. Iron Maiden was brutal and raw, with a giant monster animatronic (Eddie) that today is still present in my memories.

I started designing creatures and environments around that time (mid 90s), but didn’t design a full stage until I needed one for my own DJ show in Barcelona more than 10 years later.

Regarding my training it’s a bit of both. I studied Computer Science applied to the creation of Music, Interactive Installations and New Media Art.

Then I merged that training with a few previously self-taught disciplines like music, dance and 3D design in order to create environments that people could immerse into.

One of the first ones was my own DJ show which was some kind of computer vision driven light and video 3D Mapping show.

Q3. What should we expect at the Skrillex's set at EDC Japan? Anything you can tell us about the stage design, visuals, and/or the process of creating it?

Wwwwwww... for this show we are creating special lights, visuals and iconic stage elements but I can’t share anything else for now, it’ll be a surprise!

I can however talk about the process:

We just received an email from EDC with the tech specifications and plots. I cooked dinner and went to see Sonny at his studio where he was working on some amazing music.

We looked at the festival plots and brainstormed ideas to make this show very especial. I feel we got some great ideas that I need to explore and design now.

It’s 3am but I have a lot of energy so I think I will work until the sun rises :D.

The creative journey with Sonny is always very rewarding.

He stays plugged-in during all the process, from the first until the last moment, just a few seconds before jumping on stage sharing his energy and ideas.

He just told me he’s already going to Japan on Monday (almost one month before) to work on music from Tokyo, but we usually communicate thru Facetime with no problem :).