Chris Gyoury and Sarah Burmeister, co-owners of Means St. Productions, spent the greater part of their working lives as director and producer, respectively in the film and television business in Europe, South Africa and the United States.

When Means Street Productions was awarded its first television series “Good Eats” for the Food Network in 1999, they were presented with a dilemma.  For the preceding twenty years all their production was TV commercials, where budgets are typically substantial and the medium of choice is 35mm film.  “Good Eats” required video production with only twenty-six days to produce thirteen half hour episodes – all on a budget about equivalent to three or four 30-second commercials!!

After deciding on mini d.v. as the capturing medium they had to find an economic way to light the large kitchen set location and an assortment of other location interiors and exteriors.  An overriding issue was that the subject was food, and food lighting has to be soft and controllable.  Conventional lighting instruments were outside the budget for a shoot of this duration, so they designed and built a range of lights which are now known as the Gyoury Evolved Lighting System.