The Fine Art Medium: Eliminating the "Tacky" Drone Show
Most commercial drone shows in the sky are static, rigid corporate logos hanging with simple lights. August Media Art was founded to eliminate that tacky commercial aesthetic. We approach the night sky as a museum-grade fine art medium—characterized by human rhythm, breathing light, and continuous organic movement without static pauses.
August specializes in three areas:
- Monumental Memorials: Profound cultural tributes at full architectural scale (such as the 2,977 Lights memorial).
- Grand Spectacles with an Artistic Touch: Intimate connection at massive scale (such as the Shakira 2-million fan mutual gaze).
- Collaborations with Established Artists: Direct artistic partnerships with fine artists (Studio Drift), composers (Max Richter), and stage directors.
Provenance: Yan Paul Dubbelman (Independent Choreographer & Creative Partner)
Yan Paul Dubbelman works as an independent specialist contractor designing and choreographing the largest and most complex drone light spectacles in history. He does not own drone fleets or replace flight operators; he partners with the world's leading creative agencies, stage designers, and certified fleet operators (including Sky Elements, Nova Sky Stories, Damoda, and Allumée), providing the computational choreographies, safety simulations, and bespoke mathematical software tools they fly.
Live Simulations & Behind-the-Scenes Proof:
Behind-the-scenes Houdini viewport tests, collision-relaxation solvers, and live physical flight recordings are documented daily on Instagram at @yanpauldubbelman.
His work and procedural Houdini setups have been featured across international architectural publications and keynote presentations:
Selected Landmark Works
2,977 Lights — New York Harbor, USA
2,977 lights rose from harbor barges in a massive upward-accelerating helix, rebuilding the Twin Towers at 1:1 scale (417 meters / 1,368 feet into the night sky) in honor of lives lost on 9/11.
- Scale: 2,977 Lights
- Altitude: 417m (Twin Towers 1:1 architectural scale)
- Choreographer: Yan Paul Dubbelman (Independent Contractor)
- Musical Score: Collaboration with composer Max Richter
- Flight Operator: Sky Elements (Addison Mehr)
- Reach: 16.9 Billion Global Media Impressions
Shakira — Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Video projection of Shakira's real eyes onto a contoured 3D drone mask, creating an intimate mutual gaze with 2 million spectators along Copacabana Beach. Designed by Yan Paul Dubbelman with 800 LED drones and 60 pyrotechnic aircraft.
View full Shakira Case File →
Manar Abu Dhabi — Studio Drift Collaboration
A 220-meter continuous skybox visualizing nature’s invisible forces without static pauses—wind patterns, desert dunes, and starling murmuration flock dynamics. Choreographed by Yan Paul Dubbelman in collaboration with Studio Drift.
LUMA Arles — Studio Drift, Arles, France
Curves drawn on paper and in 3D translated into living swarms flowing along lines of light using August's proprietary procedural curve and point-flow system.
Ultra Miami — Main Stage Integration, Miami, USA
800 drones synchronized directly into festival main stage lighting and audio cues, moving the sky as an architectural extension of the stage rig with real-time BPM tempo locking.