Newsletter from 06/01/2012
New Year's Concert & New Year's Ski Jumping
MOBILE PRODUCTION
Sony China 3D Demo OBVan
Sony（China）Professional Solutions Group , founded in 2004, not only providing Sony high–end professional products, but also have system solution services, is a full service design and building organization that has already delivered more than 28 HD OB Vans and 38 HD studios to Chinese TV Station broadcasters in the last 7 years. in 2011 the first 3D OBVan in China was produced. Soon after its presentation to the public, Sony China introduced its 3D solutions to the Chinese market and collaborated with TV Stations in joint 3D productions. Sony China also won several 3D system projects this year. China Central Television will launch a first 3D TV channel in 2012. Sony will take the lead in 3D application internationally. With the development of 3D production in China, Sony China will provide more 3D system solutions for the expanding Chinese market.
Find the full specs of the 3D OBVan here
Euro Media France was Busy in December
StarFloor : Bercy transformed into a huge dance floor
On Saturday 26th November 2011, the Palais Omnisport de Paris Bercy got made-over into one huge dance floor! Following the overwhelming success of M6 and Fun radio at the first two such events, the adventure continued in 2011 to the thrill of some 17,000 aficionados of burning dance floors.
EMF in pole position for the ERDF Kart Masters
Started in 1993 in Bercy, indoor Kart racing will entered history on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th of December 2011. This time, history was made electrically, as the sports competition got ready for an unusual demo, its first 100% electric competition. The ERDF Kart Masters once again were slotted for the season’s finale, a pole position for both pilots and motorsports fans.
Noël Gallagher’s private concert
This December, Euro Media France was contracted to produce the private concert of Noel Gallagher, the former guitarist for the legendary rock band Oasis, to air on Canal+. On behalf of its client, Séquence, Euro Media France worked with a ‘Fly’ 7-camera live shoot for the show at the Casino de Paris.
Read more ...
Oxygen DCT Introduces Mobile Tapeless Edit Van
This new approach is a result of a close collaboration with Broadcast Networks, who are acclaimed for the design and build of quality broadcast and media systems for UK international broadcasters and media organisations including recent work for a new 3D production OB vehicle for Norway’s OB-Team. This latest collaboration came about as a direct response to market demand for fast turnaround, high quality and durable live productions that can be rapidly deployed with minimal set up and crew. This new approach allows crews to drive into a studio or location connect their cameras up and record without the rigmarole of unloading numerous flight cases and cabling up a plethora of equipment. This ‘ready-to-go’ approach saves time, reduces cost and dramatically improves reliability as everything is set up in the Discovery.
Read more ...
SPORTS
Four Hills Tournament in Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Cineflex gyro stabilized cameras on a helicopter and on the CamCat cable camera system were only two of a whole bunch of specialized cameras which covered the New Year’s Jumping Event. Wireless cameras, crane cameras, Sony Super SloMo cameras, HD1200 finger cameras from LMP integrated in the inrun track and behind the take take-off board, a Polecam and the Hi-Motion Ultra SloMo camera delivered images of the athletes at every moment in their preparations before, during and after the jump. The wireless transmission of the camera signal from the helicopter to the HD OBVan was achieved with the CT2440 ARINC transmitter from BMS in combination with the VLA 1903 LP receiving antenna. BMS equipment also guaranteed a continuous signal from the cabin lift carrying the athletes up the ski jumping hill. Finally BMS delivered the so called “Tele Tubies”-Rucksack receivers to give the ZDF presenters and moderators access to the TV signal everywhere within the stadium. Also engaged in the wireless transmission was HDwireless. Three Sony HDC-1500 cameras were equipped with LinkHD adapters and delivered signals from the athletes waiting to receive their points from the jury, or on their way up to their next jump. Also supported was a Sony HDC-P1. HDwireless equipped the camera body with a wireless transmitter and named it UltraLite Cam dedicated for the use with Steadicams.
Read more ...
Olympic Games: Cycling BMX
Having made its debut at the Beijing 2008 Games, BMX Cycling is the most recent discipline to have been added to the Olympic programme. Explosive and thrilling, BMX was a welcome addition to the Olympic programme. The pulsating, all-or-nothing nature of the sport has its roots not just in its format – tight turns, hazardous jumps and fierce jostling – but in its competitors. The first Olympic BMX gold medals were claimed by Latvia’s Maris Strombergs and France’s Anne-Caroline Chausson. The BMX races at London 2012 will be held on a short outdoor track, with the riders starting on an 8m-high ramp. The course is built up with jumps, bumps and tightly banked corners. Following individual time trial seeding rounds, eight riders compete in heats, with each race lasting around 40 seconds. BMX bikes have only one gear and one brake. Most racing riders use wheels that are 20 inches in diameter, roughly two-thirds the size of wheels used on a standard road bike. Bikes need to be strong enough to endure the wear and tear from the jarring landings after jumps, yet light enough to remain fast and competitive.
Read more ...
Olympic Games 2012: Sailing
The waters of Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour will play host to 10 exhilarating Sailing events during the London 2012 Olympic Games. Mastery over ever-changing conditions on open water requires skill and nerve. Both will be essential for competitors in the Sailing events, 14 days of competition that should offer plenty of excitement and drama in the beautiful but testing waters of Weymouth Bay, on the south coast of England. The venue comprises the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) and the adjoining commercial marina. It has kick-started the regeneration of the former Naval Air Station at Portland, now known as Osprey Quay, where new residential, commercial and marina facilities were established. Weymouth and Portland provides some of the best natural sailing waters in the UK, with facilities on land to match. The site has already hosted numerous international sailing events, including the 2006 ISAF World Youth Championships attended by over 60 nations.
Read more ...
UEFA EURO 2012: ABC Products' Cranes are in for the 4th Time
For the fourth time in a row the German brand ABC Products by Movie Tech will provide the cranes for the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine. Equipped with remote heads of the "Pelé" type, a total of ten "Crane 120" will be located in the coaching zone and behind the goals to catch the scenes for the thousands of viewers watching the games on their home television screen. Over the years, the ABC Products cranes proved their performance not only in terms of safety and reliability in the UEFA and FIFA stadiums, they also met the superior technical requirements of the international television crews: a resilient system with accurate mechanisms allowing precise and smooth tilt and panning, perfect balancing and stability as well as quick and easy set up. In addition, the stable square section construction is lightweight and extremely stiff, making the cranes top performers in all shooting conditions.
Read more ...
SHOWS
The New Year's Concert 2012
Even if the production of the event is a living tradition since more than half a century, ORF has to reinvent the broadcast of the event every year in a new way. Only then it is possible to bring the incomparable atmosphere of the most famous concert of the world to the millions of TV viewers around the plnet and make it tangible. Thanks to an excellent team, best of bread technology and good cooperation between all the partners, the New Year’s concert – which was garnished with live ballet performances from the “Oberen Schloss Belvedere” – again was an incomparable cultural highlight for the audiences at home. With a total of 17 cameras in the “Goldener Saal” – including for the first time a CamCat-colibri, a rope camera running below the ceiling diagonally from the gallery right up to the organ left – and another eight cameras for the three live ballet performances from the “Oberen Schloss Belvedere”, performed by the “Wiener Staatsballett” – the two and a half hours program achieved its high quality goals.
Read more ...
Red Carpet: John Legend Live Concert in Paris
John Legend was joined by Ayo, the Platinum-selling singer, for an emotional interpretation of “Better Days”, then He performed one song with Parisian street musicians and two acts of his own album. This important and prestigious live streaming was operated by EV CORP. The production was set up in the theatre and composed with a TriCaster 850 EXTREME. EV CORP was operating the capture of the event, video mixing with TriCaster and the satellite connection was sent out directly to World Of Betters website via a SNG vehicle. EV CORP is specialized in professional video equipment rental, especially for broadcast production and provides video services for events’ broadcast. Their studio is equipped with a TriCaster 850 EXTREME and although they use other video switcher, they mostly work with TriCaster.
Read more ...
wysiwyg Scores Big at Canada’s Grey Cup Halftime Show
The hugely popular Vancouver-based rock band Nickelback performed for the Pepsi Max Halftime Show, playing songs off their albums All The Right Reasons, Dark Horse, and Here and Now. Production Designer for the halftime show was Robert Sondergaard and TV Lighting Director was Jason McKinnon, both of Electric Aura in Vancouver. Sondergaard used wysiwyg R27 Perform during the whole design process to communicate the design look to the show producer, Patrick Roberge Productions as well as Nickelback. He explains, “In the lead up to the Grey Cup, there were a number of parties in a variety of cities who needed to know what the setup on the field was going to look like; the producer, the band and their management, sponsors and so on. wysiwyg once again proved to be an effective tool to create a realistic render of what the set, lighting and on field LED video screens would look like so that everyone could sign off on the creative look.”
Read more ...
PRODUCTS
Cel-Soft Introduces Reel-Check Solo-QC Multi-Mode Broadcast Signal Analyser
“Reel-Check Solo-QC is the facility’s equivalent of a Swiss Army knife,” details Cel-Soft managing director Robin Palmer. “It allows a very wide range of video and audio checks to be performed both on live and file-based signals without the cost and space overheads of traditional test equipment.” Reel-Check Solo-QC can perform automatic checking of ingested or finished file content on local or networked drives. The operator can preset a table of test parameters and tolerances. Any excursions outside these defined limits are automatically logged with associated timecodes and details. A thumbnail image generated at the time of detected events can be inserted in an easy-to-read RTF log. This facility can also be used as a shot-logger. Alternatively or simultaneously the operator can view full waveform, vectorscope and image displays in any desired combination. Embedded audio, stereo or multi-channel surround-sound can be extracted and checked on a frame-by-frame basis alongside the video for audible or visible impairments. Audio, video and timecode can be displayed at any size on-screen.
Read more ...
DNF: New On-Set Playback Control App for Live Productions
The On-Set Playback Control Application is a specific combination of Flex Control equipment that allows a single technical director (TD) to operate simultaneous and timed events for on-set displays and transitions at the touch of a button, without the need for a back-up TD or complex custom programming. The new application was developed specifically for managing on-set displays during live productions — especially non-linear productions or breaking news — in which a second "TD assist" might be required and/or talent interacts with video and graphics. The On-Set Playback Control Application eliminates the need for a second operator and additional equipment, while at the same time increasing production value. The application provides simple, push-button random access to clips and graphics for non-scripted events while controlling up to 24 different machines and allowing talent to interact with sophisticated on-set transitions.
Read more ...
Grass Valley Introduces New Support Agreement Portfolio
The new Support Agreements are designed to enhance the standard Grass Valley warranty with cohesive global support processes to ensure a consistent experience when interacting with Grass Valley call centers or when issues are escalated. Grass Valley provides a global presence with global access to call centers, global technical phone support, advance parts exchange, and software updates. "Our new Support Agreement portfolio is now more balanced and in-tune with what our customers have been asking for—two distinct and easy to understand levels of service, with the ability to customize any Support Agreement for any situation," said Aengus Linehan, Senior Vice President of Global Services for Grass Valley. "While Grass Valley support has always been second to none, our new Support Agreement portfolio allows us to better serve both our existing customers and new customers looking to simplify their maintenance needs.”
Read more ...
3D ARISING
Canal+ Pulls Plug on 3D Channel - China Launches new 3D Channel
State-run China Central Television and a group of Chinese broadcasters launched a trial of 3D television January 1 in preparation for the official kick-off January 23 of the new free-to-air service during the upcoming Lunar New Year Festival. The broadcasting partners, which include Beijing Television, Tianjing Broadcasting TV, Jiangsu TV, Shenzhen TV and the Shanghai Media Group, will offer a 3D lineup of programming during the trial for 13.5 hours a day, which consists of 4.5-hour loops of 3D programming that will be repeated, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Programming will include live events, including the 2012 London Olympics and CCTV's coverage of the nation's Spring Festival, as well as sports, dramas, documentaries, animation and other entertainment. The 3D service initially will be offered to viewers for free.
Read more ...
SENSIO Announces Creation of Dedicated 3D Video on Demand Service: 3DGO!
3DGO! uses the SENSIO® Hi-Fi 3D award-winning technology, providing the highest image quality amongst frame compatible formats. After installing the application on a connected 3DTV, consumers will simply need to select the 3DGO! service to immediately start enjoying 3D content. The transactional model will offer consumers access to a wide 3D library, which SENSIO commits to continue to develop. Neither subscription nor additional equipment is required. "We committed ourselves to bringing added value to our SENSIO® Hi-Fi 3D clients and to keeping them one step ahead," said Nicholas Routhier, SENSIO President and CEO. "We know customers want more 3D content and easy/convenient access to it. This is exactly why we are launching 3DGO!. For the first time, consumers will get easy access to the largest on-demand 3D dedicated library directly from their 3DTVs. 3DGO! is the simplest way to make good use of any 3DTV."
Read more ...
Eyeheight to Launch World’s First Stereoscopic 3D Video Legaliser
Based on Eyeheight’s proven geNETics platform, the LE-3D has two independent HD-SDI inputs and outputs. Processing is to full 10-bit depth throughout. Multiple LE-3D modules can be accommodated in a 1 RU 19 inch chassis for operation under local control from an Eyeheight FP-9 generic control panel. All geNETics products are driven via a unified hardware or software menu system giving fast and easy access to all relevant parameters. Video legalisers are a simple way of helping edited programmes pass broadcasters' technical quality-assurance requirements. They automatically detect and correct any parts of a video signal that do not conform to industry-agreed component RGB, YUV or composite colour space levels. Eyeheight legalisers incorporate single-touch presets for all major standards, making them practically effortless to use in any country.
Read more ...