Tag: Inspire Moment

Sydney Counts Down To An Inspirational 2015

Spectacular aerial footage from inside tonight’s Midnight Fireworks display will be captured by drones and broadcast live for the 1st time anywhere in the world.

The drones will fly up to 1,000 feet above Sydney Harbour, recording high-resolution footage of the fireworks as they launch from the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House and barges on the water.

Live footage from 2 drones will feature in the ABC’s TV broadcast and Sydney NYE Telstra YouTube Show.

A 3rd specially-built drone equipped with six cameras will capture amazing 360-degree views of the fireworks that audiences can view after the event via the Sydney NYE Telstra App.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the celebrations to welcome in 2015 were shaping up to be Sydney’s best yet.

“Our Sydney New Year’s Eve team and pyrotechnic experts are busy putting the finishing touches on tonight’s displays, and I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us,” the Lord Mayor said.

“We’re expecting large crowds tonight, so if you’re coming into the city, make sure you arrive early to secure a good spot and download the Sydney New Year’s Eve 2014 – ‘Inspire‘ app to receive live updates about the event.”

“If you’re staying at home, tune in to our fantastic broadcasts, which will include never-before-seen drone footage of the fireworks – giving you the chance to be part of the event without having to leave the house.”

“Wherever you are, and however you celebrate, there’s no doubt that Sydney will be at its best tonight as we countdown to the dawning of the New Year.”

The 9PM Family Fireworks and Midnight Fireworks displays will feature 7 tonnes of fireworks, including 11,000 shells, 25,000 shooting comets and more than 100,000 individual pyrotechnic effects.

More than 1.6 million people are expected to line the harbour foreshore to view the displays, which are recognised as one of the largest and most technologically advanced in the world.

The centrepiece of tonight’s displays will be the Sydney Harbour Bridge Effect – the top-secret, 12 storey high LED design that will be revealed at midnight.

The Bridge Effect ties into this year’s Sydney New Year’s Eve theme, Inspire. After debuting tonight, it will continue to shine brightly above the harbour from 8pm to midnight on Thursday and Friday night.

Pre-Show Entertainment will begin at 6pm when former fighter pilot Matt Hall performs daring aerial displays above the harbour. At 7pm, tug boats will blast tonnes of water into the sky from Millers Point to Fort Denison and back again.

Following the 9PM Family Fireworks, the Harbour of Light Parade will see more than 50 illuminated boats carry over 8,000 people on a majestic passage around Sydney Harbour.

A 3rd mini-fireworks display, known as the ‘Inspire moment’, will also feature at 10:40pm to keep crowds entertained during the countdown to midnight.

Audiences around the harbour and at home are being encouraged to become part of the celebration by using the hashtag #SydNYE to tweet messages about how Sydney will inspire them in the New Year.

The tweets will appear live on the Sydney Harbour Bridge Pylons throughout the night, and will be seen by millions of people across Australia and more than a billion worldwide.

For up-to-the-minute information on tonight’s celebrations, follow the hashtag #SydNYE and @cityofsydney on Twitter.

For more information, visit sydneynewyearseve.com

Sydney New Year’s Eve 2014: ‘Inspire’ – Program Of Events

6pm & 8pm Air Displays above Sydney Harbour

Flying ace Matt Hall performs flyovers with aerial displays
7pm Fire Tug Water Display on Sydney Harbour 

Tug boats blast tonnes of water into the sky from Millers Point to Fort Denison and back again.
8:30pm Pylon Projections on the eastern side of the Sydney Harbour Bridge

Projections will come to life on the pylon’s surfaces after sunset and huge images will be projected throughout the night.
8:40pm Acknowledgement of Country Ceremony on Sydney Harbour

A ceremony that reflects a respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and honours the relationship between traditional custodians and the land.
8:45pm Sydney Harbour Bridge Effect

The Sydney Harbour Bridge lights up in a design that features over 13 kilometres of spectacular LED rope lighting.
9pm 9PM Family Fireworks display

An 8-minute fireworks display at a family-friendly time, complete with a soundtrack appealing to young children.
9:15pm Harbour of Light Parade®

Features more than 50 illuminated boats that carry over 8,000 people on a majestic passage within and around Sydney Harbour.
10:40pm The Inspire Moment

An inspirational mini-fireworks display to keep crowds entertained during the countdown to midnight.
Midnight Midnight Fireworks Display

A show-stopping grand finale display on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Opera House, barges along the harbour and city buildings.

For more information, visit sydneynewyearseve.com

Sydney Skies To Light Up 3 Times In 1 Great Night

Master pyrotechnician Fortunato Foti is preparing to inspire Sydneysiders and visitors with his most colourful fireworks displays yet this Sydney New Year’s Eve.

Fortunato – a 7th-generation pyrotechnician whose family has been making fireworks since 1793 – has created a series of stunning new colours and shapes for this year’s displays, including silver and gold palm trees.

To mark his 15th year involved in the event, multicoloured fireworks and a special red glitter effect will also feature in the displays, which are recognised as one of the largest and most technologically advanced in the world.

A pyrotechnic crew of 45 will launch 7 tonnes of fireworks throughout the night – including 11,000 shells, 25,000 shooting comets and over 100,000 individual effects.

A 3rd mini-fireworks display, known as the ‘Inspire Moment’, will also feature at 10:40pm to keep crowds entertained during the countdown to midnight.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said 1.6 million people were expected to gather around the Harbour on Wednesday night to enjoy Sydney’s world-famous fireworks displays.

“For 15 years now, Fortunato Foti and his crew at Foti Fireworks have made Sydney New Year’s Eve a night to remember with their imaginative, innovative fireworks displays,” the Lord Mayor said.

“This year’s celebration promises to be just as spectacular, with new colours, shapes and a special 90-second show at 10:40pm that will build anticipation before the main event at midnight.”

Over the years, Fortunato and his crew have created dozens of original fireworks for Sydney New Year’s Eve, including shells in the shape of hands, musical notes, koalas, bees and birds.

Fortunato said his lifelong passion for fireworks means he is not daunted by the challenge of creating something exciting and new each year.

“We started working on Sydney New Year’s Eve back in 1999, and we quickly learnt what works best – and what doesn’t work so well – for a show of this size and scale,” Fortunato said.

“We’ve reached a point now where each year we walk away thinking ‘that was the best show we’ve ever done’ – and that just spurs us on to do even better the following year.”

“This year we’ve focused on making the displays as colourful as possible – you’ll see a lot of metallics, as well as bright reds, greens, blues and purples – and some fun new shapes, including palm trees with shimmering centres and multicoloured ends.”

“The displays will also have a lot of variety – because they’re synchronised to a specially curated soundtrack, the fireworks change as frequently as the music does, keeping audiences entertained and surprised.”

“For us, fireworks are truly inspirational, so we hope that the displays reflect our love and passion, and that they inspire everyone watching – both around the Harbour and across Australia and worldwide.”

For more information, visit sydneynewyearseve.com.

Sydney New Year’s Eve 2014 – ‘Inspire’ acknowledges the support of Leadership Partner – Telstra, Charity Partner – Engineers Without Borders Australia, & NSW Government agencies and landholders including the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority and the Sydney Opera House Trust.

See Your Tweets Light Up The Bridge!

This Sydney New Year’s Eve, for the 1st time, the world’s most famous bridge will be lit up with tweets from Sydneysiders and visitors about how the harbour city will inspire them in 2015.

In the lead up to the world-renowned Midnight Fireworks display, audiences gathered around Sydney Harbour – along with those watching at home – will be encouraged to use the hashtag #SydNYE to tweet New Year messages that tie into this year’s theme, Inspire.

The tweets will appear live on the Sydney Harbour Bridge pylons throughout the night, and will be broadcast around Australia and the world in coverage of the 1st major city to ring in the New Year.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said Sydney was known as the ‘New Year’s Eve Capital Of The World’ for good reason, and this year’s event would not disappoint.

“Each year, more than 1.6 million people gather around the Harbour foreshore, and millions more around Australia watch at home, as Sydney rings in the New Year with the most spectacular fireworks display in the world,” the Lord Mayor said.

“This year, for the 1st time in Sydney New Year’s Eve history, our audience will become part of the celebration as their New Year tweets are displayed on the Harbour Bridge pylons throughout the night.”

‘Tweet the Bridge’ is just 1 exciting new element of this year’s $7.2 million Sydney New Year’s Eve celebrations.

During the 9PM Family Fireworks and Midnight Fireworks displays, 7 tonnes of fireworks – including 11,000 shells, 25,000 shooting comets and more than 100,000 individual pyrotechnic effects – will be launched from the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House and barges on Sydney Harbour.

A 3rd mini-fireworks display, known as the ‘Inspire Moment’, will also feature at 10.40pm to keep crowds entertained during the countdown to midnight.

As in previous years, the crowning glory will be the top-secret Sydney Harbour Bridge Effect. This will form the centrepiece of the fireworks displays, featuring 13 kilometres of LED rope light and reaching 12 storeys high.

“With an exciting Pre-Show Entertainment program, 3 fireworks displays and the dazzling Bridge Effect, this Sydney New Year’s Eve promises to be a truly unforgettable evening,” the Lord Mayor said.

NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for Tourism and Major Events, Troy Grant, said more than a billion people worldwide watch as Sydney Harbour shines behind the backdrop of one of the largest and most technologically advanced fireworks displays in the world.

“I can’t think of a better way to start each year, than Sydney and NSW in the global spotlight with hundreds of images beamed around the world of our magnificent Harbour,” Mr Grant said.

“Major events such as the world-famous Sydney New Year’s Eve are why Sydney is regarded as Australia’s global city, and help drive visitation and contribute to the NSW Government’s goal of doubling overnight visitor expenditure by 2020.”

The Creative Ambassador for this year’s event is Australian screen legend and storyteller Jack Thompson.

Mr Thompson has been working with the City of Sydney and Sydney New Year’s Eve creative agency Imagination Australia on plans for the event since early this year, including writing his own poem describing how Sydney inspires him – ‘I Am Sydney’.

“It is such an honour to be able to represent my home town – one of the world’s truly great cities – as the Creative Ambassador of 2014 Sydney New Year’s Eve,” Mr Thompson said.

“Sydney is filled with stories that inspire, from the ancient engravings of the Gadigal people in the sandstone of the headlands to the unique architecture of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.”

“As we prepare to celebrate the year that’s passed and look to the future at what lies ahead, I encourage Sydneysiders and visitors alike to join with us and share their own inspirational stories of Sydney.”

This year’s official Sydney New Year’s Eve charity partner is Engineers Without Borders Australia (EWB). The non-profit organisation works with communities worldwide to provide clean water and sanitation, energy, basic infrastructure, waste systems, communication technologies and engineering education.

CEO of EWB, Lizzie Brown, said: “EWB is very proud to be the charity partner for the Sydney New Year’s Eve celebrations for a 2nd consecutive year.”

“This is a unique opportunity for our organisation to celebrate the inspiring contribution that the Australian engineering sector makes towards creating lasting social change in Australia and around the world.”

People coming into the city on New Year’s Eve will have access to a range of tools to help them plan a safe and enjoyable night, including the official 2014 Sydney New Year’s Eve website, which features an interactive vantage point map and live transport and road closure information, and the Sydney NYE Telstra app.

A new printed event guide will also be available for audiences to pick up from Sydney Airport, major transport hubs throughout the city, hotels, tourism information kiosks and the City’s libraries and community centres.

The City is committed to making Sydney New Year’s Eve an inclusive event for the many Sydneysiders and visitors with a disability. A live audio description will be broadcast on 2RPH, and designated accessible viewing areas and accessible route maps will be available online.

Those who would rather stay at home on New Year’s Eve can tune into ABC TV’s broadcast, listen to 104.1 2DayFM’s live fireworks soundtracks, or live stream the Sydney NYE Telstra Show on YouTube.

And for the 2nd year in a row, the City has teamed up with the Royal Australian Mint to develop a souvenir coin celebrating the Inspire theme with colourful images of fireworks.

2014 Sydney New Year’s Eve acknowledges the support of Leadership Partner – Telstra, Charity Partner – Engineers Without Borders Australia, & NSW Government agencies and landholders including the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority and the Sydney Opera House Trust.

For more information, visit sydneynewyearseve.com