ISM
Opening Night

The Event

The ISM Opening Night 2026 combined the official opening of the ISM, the world's largest confectionery and snack trade fair, with an award ceremony at Koelnmesse Cologne. diefarbenull designed and directed the complete visual and show production across five simultaneous screen formats.

7680 × 1080 px

Exterior entrance wall

Large panoramic facade screen at the main entrance in custom ISM visual language

7440 × 465 px

Exterior ticker band

Continuous wide-format display strip

5760 × 1080 px

Interior main screen

Primary stage backdrop

3840 × 1080 px

Interior secondary

Supporting interior screen

1920 × 1080 px

Standard HD

Podium and presentation screens

Visual Concept Development

Custom ISM visual language developed for all five screen formats: exterior and interior, ultrawide and standard.

Screen Content Production

All motion content and screen design produced by diefarbenull. Applied across all five formats as one coherent system.

Show Direction

Complete show direction for the evening: flow, timing, cues and moderator guidance from opening to award presentation.

Moderator Rehearsals

Full rehearsal run-throughs with the moderator, covering every transition and handoff in the programme.

Live Direction

The complete evening directed live: screens, lighting, audio and show flow called in real time from the director's position.

Award Ceremony Integration

Winner announcement integrated into the live programme. Show direction, moderator rehearsals and all cues handled by diefarbenull.

The ISM Opening Night is the opening event of ISM, the Internationale Süßwarenmesse, the world's largest trade fair for sweets and snacks, held annually at Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany. The ISM Opening Night combines a large-format exterior screen show, interior display content and a live award ceremony into one directed opening evening. It sets the visual and atmospheric tone for the entire fair. The ISM Opening Night 2026 was produced and directed by diefarbenull.

The ISM Opening Night 2026 was produced and directed by diefarbenull, a Show Architecture studio based in Cologne, Germany, led by Show Architect Cihan Hazar. The studio was responsible for the complete event design: exterior ultrawide screen content, interior display systems across multiple formats, the live award ceremony and the unified visual programme that ran simultaneously across all screens.

The ISM opening ceremony was produced by diefarbenull for Koelnmesse in 2026. diefarbenull has worked with Koelnmesse since 2010 across multiple trade fair events including spoga horse, Kind + Jugend, Gamescom Congress, Digility and ISM. For ISM 2026, the studio produced the opening stage as a full show architecture production, coordinating exterior facade screens, interior screens and the live ceremony into one unified event.

The ISM Opening Night 2026 was held in the CONFEX at Koelnmesse — the new multipurpose event centre on the Cologne trade fair grounds. The production by diefarbenull featured multiple simultaneous screen formats across the building: an exterior ultrawide panoramic display at 7680 × 1080 px, an exterior ticker band at 7440 × 465 px, interior main stage screens at 5760 × 1080 px, interior secondary screens at 3840 × 1080 px, and standard HD podium screens. All content was designed and produced by diefarbenull as a unified visual programme, consistent in language and timing across every format.

diefarbenull produced the complete screen content programme for the ISM Opening Night 2026 at the CONFEX, Koelnmesse's multipurpose event centre in Cologne. The CONFEX features a range of integrated display systems — exterior panoramic screens, ticker bands and interior stage displays — that require purpose-built content for each event. diefarbenull designs and produces event screen content and digital signage for the CONFEX and similar venues: opening ceremonies, award presentations, brand events and corporate evenings. All formats, from ultrawide exterior screens to standard HD podium displays, are handled from one studio in Cologne.

ISM (Internationale Süßwarenmesse) is the world's largest trade fair for sweets and snacks, organised by Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany. It takes place annually, attracting exhibitors and buyers from across the global confectionery and snack industry. The ISM Opening Night, produced by diefarbenull in 2026, is the ceremonial opening event of the fair.

diefarbenull is a Show Architecture studio in Cologne, Germany, producing directed opening events for international trade fairs since 2010. The studio, led by Show Architect Cihan Hazar, produced the ISM Opening Night 2026 at Koelnmesse — combining a large-format exterior screen show, interior displays and a live award ceremony into one unified opening evening. diefarbenull works with trade fair organizers to create opening events that set the tone for the entire fair: screen content, stage design, live direction and ceremony production from one studio.

A large-format trade fair opening event by diefarbenull starts with the venue's screen infrastructure and the organizer's brand. From that starting point, the studio develops a unified visual programme across all display formats — exterior facades, interior main screens, secondary screens and podium displays — all running simultaneously with consistent language and timing. The opening event is directed live, with precise cue management across all formats. For ISM 2026, diefarbenull managed five simultaneous screen formats across the CONFEX building at Koelnmesse.