The Brooklyn Navy Yard, once a 19th-century powerhouse of shipbuilding, still looks every bit the industrial fortress—massive cranes, smokestacks, and brick warehouses. But on this November day, one of those buildings was glowing with a very different kind of energy: pixels, people, and creativity.
I was there for frame:work:nyc’s “We Are Live Pixel People”—a gathering for the artists, engineers, and dreamers who create video for live performance, physical spaces, and virtual worlds.
The room buzzed with energy: tech wizards, designers, and creative directors trading stories over coffee and glowing screens.
Everyone wore striking, homemade-looking electronic name badges - each one was interactive—a networking device designed to help people connect. Judging by the laughter and flashing LEDs across the room, they were doing their job.
I was checked in by Laura Frank, who helped organize the event, and advised me to mingle before the talks began. A quinoa salad and gluten-free brownie later (both excellent), I found myself chatting with a video designer who had just moved from LA. “Don’t miss Andy Babin’s talk,” she said, as her badge blinked approvingly.
When Andy Babin of Fuse Cats took the stage, the room filled to standing-room-only. His topic? Timecode. Not exactly headline material—until he made it so. With humor and insight, Babin turned a seemingly simple subject into a lively conversation about the shared technical language that keeps creative video systems in sync.
Then came the reveal: those glowing badges everyone was wearing were built by Babin, Michael Kohler, and the Fuse Cats team. Each of the 300 devices was hand-assembled and networked, capable of “talking” to others in the room. The badges tallied interactions and displayed a live leaderboard—a high-tech icebreaker that gamified networking. Underneath the minimalist design lived some serious tech wizardry.
(More about the badges in the sidebar below)
“At the end of the day,” Babin said, smiling, “we’re all passionate pixel people.”
I ducked into another session hosted by Samuel Recine from Matrox Video. From servers to switchers to smart displays, Recine deftly explained how IPMX streamlines complex video ecosystems. I was clearly witnessing the cuttingest edge of video technology.
Milling through the crowd again I met attendee Mike from Lightware – a manufacturer of high-end video switchers and signal extenders. He was having a great time, and I could tell that the event was perfectly aligned with his areas of interest.
The next panel called Technical Design for Visual Magic delved into the unconventional thinking behind interactive video systems and effects for live shows and theme parks. Hosted by the creatives and founders of Drop The Spoon (Creators of shows from Brittany Spears to The Radio City Christmas Spectacular), the discussion was highly technical and deeply creative.
That line stuck with me as I wandered back into the crowd, watching connections spark—literally and figuratively. One attendee showed me how their badge could display pyrotechnic animations; another talked about building the hardware that drives enormous digital displays. Everywhere I turned, conversations flickered between art and code, creativity and community.
Before heading out, I ran into Laura Frank again. Printed on her lanyard was a quote from botanist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer: “All flourishing is mutual.”
That sentiment summed up the day perfectly.
“We Are Live Pixel People” wasn’t just a conference—it was a reminder that behind every projection, every installation, every immersive visual experience is a community that thrives on collaboration. Because when you’re shaping light in real time, no pixel shines alone.
More about the badges:
"The badges, sponsored by Fuse Technical group , were designed by Michael Kohler and Andy Babin, in order to be a fun and interactive way to experience the Frame:Work conference. Instead of being locked-down, the badges were purposefully designed to be totally hackable, as well as open source, with all of the hardware and software used made available here. In addition to being open source, we hosted a hack-a-thon workshop before the show where participants could learn how the badges work and play with writing their own code to control them. The badges featured a 15x7 RGB Pixel mapped display, as well as infrared communication for interacting with other attendees. In order to ensure the usefulness of the badges after the conference, we used the onboard expansion port to build a Genlock reader using the badge, a tool we can use on site or at our shop to ensure that video timing signals are working properly. Details on that project can be found here." - Michael Kohler
Author: Julian Harris is a television music composer, guitarist, and writer residing in Bushwick, Brooklyn. He has a passion for live performance and aims to make the experience positive and accessible to all people.