Swarovski Used 95,000 Crystals for This Year's Oscars

For the eighth year, the Austrian crystal house dressed the Dolby Digital Theatre in Los Angeles for the annual Academy Awards. Working with Tony Award-winning production designer Derek McLane for the third year running, a total of 95,000 Swarovski crystals were used to bring unprecedented sparkle to the event, which was watched by 36.6 million viewers around the globe.

Inspired by the old school Hollywood glamor of movie director and musical choreographer Busby Berkeley's work, Derek McLane's production designs included a gigantic crystal closedown wall featuring 22,200 Swarovski crystals. The wall was created by nine artisans who spent 580 hours assembling the 80ft by 40ft frame and the 250lbs of crystal. In addition, Swarovski provided 50,100 crystals for the three separate stage curtains, and a further 23,000 crystals for the theater's eighteen crystallized opera boxes. Since 2007, over 675,300 Swarovski crystals have been used in the set design for the Academy Awards and more than one million crystals have been incorporated into the costume design.

Hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, this year's ceremony saw Hollywood's leading lights take to the stage, with performances from stars including Anna Kendrick, Lady Gaga and Jennifer Hudson, as well as Tegan and Sara and The Lonely Island who sang 'Everything Is Awesome' from The Lego Movie.

Derek McLane, Production Designer commented "My inspiration for this year's crystal closedown wall was to create a Busby Berkeley-inspired field of radiated crystals, taking 22,000 crystals from Swarovski emanating out from the center, almost like an explosion. When it came to the stage curtains, I wanted to create a feeling that the entire Dolby stage was a forest made out of Swarovski crystals"

Nadja Swarovski, Member of the Swarovski Executive Board, commented: "The Academy Awards celebrate some of the world's greatest talents, so it was a pleasure to once again collaborate with a designer of the calibre of Derek McLane to bring Swarovski's trademark sparkle to the event. From the crystal additions to the opera boxes to the glamorous closedown wall, Derek once again helped us to truly elevate the Oscars experience"

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About Swarovski

Swarovski delivers a diverse portfolio of unmatched quality, craftsmanship, and creativity that goes beyond the manufacturing of crystal. Founded in 1895 in Austria, Swarovski designs, manufactures, and markets high-quality crystals, genuine gemstones and created stones, and finished products such as jewelry, accessories, and lighting. In addition, Swarovski Crystal Worlds was established as a unique venue dedicated to showcasing artistic interpretations of crystal. Swarovski Entertainment collaborates with established industry partners and exceptional talent to produce international feature films, while the Swarovski Foundation supports creativity and culture, promotes wellbeing, and conserves natural resources. Now run by the fifth generation of family members, Swarovski Crystal Business has a global reach with approximately 2,480 stores in around 170 countries, more than 24,000 employees, and revenue of about 2.33 billion euros in 2013. Together with its sister companies Swarovski Optik (optical devices) and Tyrolit (abrasives), Swarovski Crystal Business forms the Swarovski Group. In 2013, the Group generated revenue of about 3.02 billion euros and employed more than 30,000 people. www.swarovskigroup.com

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SOURCE Swarovski