Loyola’s Night Sky Dazzles With First Ever Drone Show for Family Weekend

On Sept. 26, as families and students spent time together on the ground, the sky above Loyola’s East Quad was lit up with a colorful spectacle seemingly intending to display  the Rambler Spirit. 

For Family Weekend, Loyola held their first-ever drone show that dazzled the night sky with flair. The performance featured 500 drones showing images of the LU Wolf, the famous Cudahy Library green doors and phrases like “Welcome to Family Weekend.” The show was free of cost. 

The show began with the programmed drones ascending into the sky to the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back.” Approximately 12 minutes later, the display closed with the drones going back into their cube formation in the sky and descending with Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now.” 

The event’s planning process began in July when the university reached out to Sky Elements Drones, a drone and light show company based in Dallas. 

Account Executive for Sky Elements Drones Tyler Jack said the company currently produces about 60% of the drone shows in the United States. Its shows can feature between 100 and 5,000 drones, with an average of about 300-400, according to Jack.

When Loyola first reached out to Sky Elements, Jack said the process began with educating the university on what a drone show “really is.”

A drone show is a large collection of drones flying in the night sky displaying images and quotes. Jack described each drone as a “pixel” that creates a larger image all together. 

The company shared examples of previous events and worked with Loyola to determine the purpose and vision of the event. 

Once the information was shared, Jack said he then connected Loyola with other teams, including animators and project managers who helped create the final show.

“We want to make sure that it feels very custom-built to the university,” Jack said. 

Assistant Vice President of Campus Support, Conference and Auxiliary Services Dawn Collins said she’s worked with the company and Jack from the start. She said her initial goal when considering a drone show was to help families better understand the Loyola community. 

“We weren’t sure if families knew what some of our sayings or images meant to our students,” Collins said. “We wanted to make sure they got to be a part of Loyola.”

Through storyboarding, a process outlining different concepts to focus the show around, the collaborative team nailed down specific images and quotes to represent the school. 

After storyboarding, Sky Elements created a video rendering of the performance to preview how the images would appear and move in the sky.

“You’re able to see down to the second how that show looks and moves before we’re even on site,” Jack said.

When the day came, the drones arrived on site several hours before the show. In this time – typically seven to eight hours ahead of showtime, according to Jack – the team tests and prepares equipment to ensure the show runs smoothly.

Drones can be launched from a variety of surfaces, Jack said. At Loyola, all 500 drones launched from the East Quad while audiences watched from the West Quad.

During Loyola’s show, the drones flew around 400 feet high and covered an area about 300 to 400 feet wide, Jack said.

“You’re putting on kind of a big giant screen in the sky,” Jack said. “90%plus of the shows are kind of geared towards one primary audience.” 

Although the drones were pre-programmed and followed a set path, two Sky Elements pilots were present on site at the drone exhibition.

One of these pilots, Yosef Dandis,  described pre-programmed drones as “drones with a mission.” 

Dandis said that while eyes are in the sky, the team on the ground monitors. He said they send GPS corrections from tripods to the drones to respond to any technical issues. 

Putting on the show required “a lot of hands,” Collins said. Campus Safety, Facilities and Campus Transportation all worked with her team throughout the event to help prepare the space and make sure everything ran safely.

As the drones descended back to land, attendees cheered in celebration of Family Weekend and Loyola’s first drone show.  

Local community members also came out to see the show. Mark Kaulas, 73, and Kim Kaulas, 72, both retired, live in the Rogers Park area and showed up to their first ever drone show. 

“It was better than any firework show — more immediate gratification with no break between sets,” Kim Kaulas said. 

Alongside community members, visiting families also enjoyed the Rambler spirit in the sky. Suzanne and David Campbell, parents of first-year nursing major Marin Campbell, said they thought the images displayed Loyola accurately.

David Campbell, 47, event attendee, said he “liked how it was really Loyola-centric in the sense that it all really tied to the university.” 

Suzanne Campbell, 46, event attendee, said she appreciated the fun colors and designs, adding that “it was a great length of time.” 

The show also featured moving elements, which made the animations come to life, Marin Campbell said. 

“The way that they made the wolf move was really cool,” Marin Campbell said. “It wasn’t just static, it was like a moving piece.”