His creations have been performed for world leaders, diplomats and even royalty but Glenn Turner isn’t yet a household name in St George.
Mr Turner is the mastermind behind Oracle-Liquid; a laser and fountain show company running for the last 23 years.
His work has been seen by millions of Australians from his work on the X-Factor, Perth Skyworks and most recently at Vivid.
But the success came from much humbler beginnings.
He started his career at a mechanic but quickly found a love of electronics.
‘’I had it in my head that I had to get out of here, this is not me. I went to the boss and said I’ll finish this car but after that I’m going,’’
At 17 he found an apprenticeship at Phillips who were developing the first laser CD players.
He started taking unwanted parts home and started experimenting in an old shed at his mother’s house.
‘’I just started designing moving optics and scanners and software to drive them,’’ he said
‘’Then I started doing some shows with lasers and making money out it. Eventually I turned it into a business and it grew from there.’’
Growing the business was a slow process but he built it bit by bit.
It was the chance to put on a show in Malaysia that proved one of the big breaks.
He has continued to evolve by developing water shows including water curtains and water fountains.
He points to 2008 as a major change in the industry when diode technology was introduced.
It morphed again around five years ago when the marked boomed in China.
Mr Turner is hoping he’ll be at the forefront of the next change by developing a new laser system that can be mounted straight onto the lighting rig.
‘’It’s a culmination of all the different things that have been wrong in the industry or that are changing,’’ he said.
‘’I always try to look ahead and not respond but more look where is it going to be.
‘’Clients want more for less so you have to look at how you can give that.’’
The idea was scribbled on a notepad five years ago but took the past two years to develop. It will be launched early next year.
He said the end result means less cost for the business and to their clients.
He said the secret to his success was multitasking.
‘’I’m a multitasker and can do a lot of things and there’s not a lot of people like that,’’ he said.
‘’There’s not enough money that you can hire a person to do this or a person to do that.’’
He’s hoping that some of his works could be shown locally; pointing to Dolls Point as the perfect place for a water and laser show.
