Award Recipients

As a fast-growing engineering company, Luminous Show Technology is honoured to have been recognised with a King’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade. The team’s passion for innovation and creativity within the special effects industry has contributed towards global success, all from their Exeter-based premises.

By conceptualising and producing impressive special effects, Luminous has made its mark on events, installations and experiences worldwide. Founders Mike Badley and Edwin Samkin launched Luminous back in 2017, with a drive to turn the physical elements of fire, water and air into unique SFX hardware.

Since then, the team has taken on many high-profile productions, providing equipment for events such as Disney’s touring productions, the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Terhal by Dragone in Saudi Arabia, and Harry Potter & The Cursed Child theatre shows across the USA, Canada, Germany, Japan and Australia.

Luminous is dedicated to producing the latest SFX creations and devising state-of-the-art concepts and hardware for global productions. Recently, Luminous has also introduced some exciting technology that has contributed to its outstanding growth. The cutting-edge equipment includes the HYDRA-TECH Digital Rain System that creates controllable rain and water effects onstage, and the SMOKE-TECH Cryo Curtain that generates large-scale smoke effects for live events.

Luminous has firmly cemented itself at the forefront of SFX developments, but not without its obstacles. Despite navigating the pandemic with a pivot towards making PPE, the business is now on top of the game of making record-breaking flames, mesmerising smoke and large-scale water effects.

With a small but impressive team, Luminous understands receiving this award is a remarkable achievement for a company of this size. Co-founder Mike Badley says: “We are so proud of our brilliant team for the work they deliver. This award is a fantastic recognition of the dedication and innovation they bring to their work. Every day the team work hard with creativity, and passion to propel us to new heights in the world of special effects engineering.”

Luminous plans to expand its innovative product range over the next 12 months, aiming for continued growth in overseas sales and global ventures.