Newsletter from 02/02/2012
Riedel in Adelboden, Reckord in Osrblie, The Voice at Lendit Studios and Katy Perry Touring in Europe
MOBILE PRODUCTION
JAS Digital HD Mobile Unit
JAS Digital brings cutting edge HD production techniques to the mid-truck market. Based in Las Vegas, Nevada, the New Wave production truck is available throughout the southwest. Although the New Wave HD Mobile Unit employs the latest in file based production/post production techniques and equipment, the New Wave includes industry standard production equipment and workflows customers expect. Step into the New Wave and enjoy a comfortable environment with features not found on other production trucks. The custom designed consoles feature translucent blue lucite work surfaces and a contemporary design. Each console features electronic height adjustment. Vecta “Kart” nesting chairs, African mahogany, fabrics in cool greys and blues, and cool LED lighting throughout are just some of the features of our interior. The New Wave was designed as a “hybrid” production/post production truck. With file based ingest, customers can go from production to post production in a matter of seconds. Capture Apple ProResHQ on the fly and edit with Final Cut Pro. The Rorke Data Aurora Storage system is the hub of the New Wave. Providing 14 Terabytes of storage and 900 Megabytes a second throughput, the Aurora delivers the throughput necessary to capture and playback multiple streams of HD footage. Edit, composite, compress and deliver directly from the New Wave.
Get the full specs of New Wave here
TV SKYLINE with New Mobile Edit Suites
Mainz & Weimar: Two sites representing the Philosophy of the company. The firm's approach combines everyday business and technical developments in the broadcasting sector. A comfortably furnished and equipped fleet of OB vans, SNG's and production vehicles meet all requirements for each HD / SD production, in 5.1 or stereo. The Mainz department develops a large number of special camera systems, which are produced in-house. Continuous development of the resulting needs and experiences in practical use are the strengths of our own cameras and tracking systems. TV SKYLINE operates two professionally equipped studios in Mainz. With around 330m ², the Studio 1 has plenty of room also for major live broadcasts. The representative lobby and the cafeteria invite to relaxed relations during a strenuous shoot. In collaboration with Johann Lafer and Plazamedia, TV Skyline runs a beautifully decorated Cooking Club - the Studio Guldental.
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Clear-Com Global Rental Group (CGRG) Established
The CGRG comprises a hand-selected team of trained and experienced rental businesses worldwide. These partners support short-term and rapid installation needs with a full range of advanced wired and wireless production intercoms and technical support. As Director of CGRG, Estrin (who has extensive experience with events such as the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, Grammys and Academy Awards) provides rental partners with greater knowledge, skills and resources to supply the highest level of production communications. By connecting rental partners across the globe, the CGRG also gives customers local access to the most fitting communications equipment for their specific applications, whether for film and television, live performance, special events or theater.
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SPORTS
Olympic Games 2012: Diving
Olympic diving competitions (there are eight, four for each gender) are strictly airborne and are held at two heights – a ‘springboard’ dive set at 3m above the water and a ‘platform’ dive, set at 10m. Athletes compete individually and in pairs (synchronised diving, or ‘synchro’). Individual events consist of a preliminary round, semi-final and final, while the synchro competitions are straight finals. Styles of diving include front, back, reverse, inward, twist and armstand, with points awarded according to technique and grace. The more difficult the dive the higher the points it can score if executed well. Judges must also take into account starting positions, run-ups, take-offs, flight and entry into water (which should be perpendicular and cause as little splash as possible).
Read the case study here
Olympic Games 2012: Equestrian Dressage
At the London 2012 Olympic Games, the Dressage events will test the ability of horse and rider to display both athletic prowess and supreme elegance. Along with the other Equestrian events at London 2012, the Dressage competition takes place over four days in the temporary Arena. There will be 50 competitors in team and individual events. Greenwich Park is London’s oldest Royal Park, dating back to 1433. It has been a World Heritage Site since 1997. Within the Park is The Royal Observatory and the home of Greenwich Mean Time. Dressage tests take place in a 60 x 20-metre sand-based arena. In each round, horses have to perform a series of movements. For the first two rounds, the movements are set in compulsory order. For the final freestyle round, the rider chooses an individual programme, to be set to music. The team dressage consists of three riders per country, with their scores over a single round averaged.
Read the case study here
Reckord Covers IBU Open European Championships in Osrblie
The IBU Open European Championships in Osrblie, Slovakia opened on 25 January with a big Ceremony in Brezno’s main square. Until Thursday 02 February, men, women and junior men and women will compete for European Championship medals. On 26 January, the junior athletes started with sprints, followed by the senior athletes on 27 January. On Sunday all age groups have fought for pursuit glory and all the action was covered by Reckords HD OBVan REC 5 HD in high definition. For transmission the Signal was down-converted to SD. The conditions were perfect: plenty of snow, cold with a slightly overcast sky and hardly any wind. Despite the very cold temperatures of -15 °C the 16 cameras provided by Reckord, including one SuperSloMo camera, worked perfectly. Sound was recorded in stereo with 35 microphones. REC 5 HD produced the international signal for the EBU but also the unilateral signal for STV, the public broadcaster in Slovakia.
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Riedel MediorNet and Artist at the Ski Worldcup in Adelboden
The World Cup race in the Bernese Oberland, a major event in the FIS skiing tour, is one of the most difficult giant slalom courses in the world. The demands of the event in Adelboden included establishing a reliable communications infrastructure as well providing a fail-safe distribution of the event's video and audio signals. To establish a communications infrastructure for the event two Artist 64 Digital Matrix Intercom mainframes were used; one Artist 64 was installed at the "Chuenisbärgli“ and the other at the town square where the award ceremony was held. Also Artist CCP-1116 commentary control panels were used at the finish. The Artist CCP-1116 combines Artist intercom functionality with two commentator units in a single module, providing commentator audio in broadcast quality plus direct integration into the Artist intercom infrastructure. Two Riedel RiFace universal radio interface integrated the radio network into the Artist intercom system.
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Euro 2012 Analysis Package from RT Software
RT Software’s Rapid Access Touchscreen Solution will dramatically reduce the resource, costs and time needed to deploy a touch based solution for the Euros. The result will be an anchor point of the studio show with comprehensive information and analysis at the heart of it, all led interactively on the giant studio touchscreen by the anchors. If you are planning a studio show around your Euro 2012 coverage, this is an easy to deploy and affordable package that promises to add significant value to your production! The solution is based on RT Software’s proven tOG-Sports telestration system, enhanced with a giant U-Touch screen and a set of graphics templates built specifically for the Euro 2012. There is plenty of flexibility in the graphics look & feel and included in the price is customisation of the templates into your style. Ease of use has been made a priority, with particular attention paid to the data required for a comprehensive analysis of the tournament. To this end RT has partnered with Opta to offer a “one stop shop” integrated package. The Opta data-feed will automatically populate all required data fields thus reducing the graphics operator workload significantly – in fact this is effectively an automated system.
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SHOWS
EMF the home of The Voice
Directed by Tristan Carné (Danse avec les Stars, Téléthon etc.) and presented by Nikos Aliagas, this new format show relies on a totally different selection and judging process than the usual music talent shows. The contestants audition in front of the mentors who can hear, but can’t see, the contestant singing. In this way the mentors must choose the singer purely based on their vocal talent and not on the physical appearance or charisma of the contestant. For a contestant to progress in the competition they must be “buzzed” by one of the mentors: in the case of a contestant being “buzzed” by more than one mentor, they have the privilege of choosing which mentor they want. This is a chance to see the judges come to blows as the tables are turned and they react to being the ones that are chosen.
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Katy Perry Relies on DPA’s Headset Mics for California Dreams Tour
“When selecting a microphone, I wanted something that would provide a well-balanced, open and airy sound for Katy,” says Keppler. “She's a strong singer with a great voice and I thought finding a good headset mic would be a challenge. From the moment we tried the DPA 4088, I knew the sound was no longer going to be a problem.” During Thinking of You, Perry stands atop a pink cloud that allows her to fly out over the audience playing an acoustic guitar. During this performance, Perry is in front of the main PA, which can be a potentially disastrous sonic scenario regarding feedback. “For Katy, the requirements were that the mic sounded great and was as small, lightweight and inconspicuous as possible,” says Keppler. “We selected the beige-colored DPA 4088 so it’s even less noticeable when she wears it.”
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Fantasia’s Magic Enchants Switzerland
The producer of this memorable event, Art Productions Luzern, did not only have magic on their side, but the great experience of Moodbox GmbH’s Martin Kuhn as well. Kuhn created a versatile setup based on coolux Pandoras Box technology that took care of the video playback, sound effects and additional optical click tracks for the 21st Century Symphony Orchestra’s chief conductor Ludwig Wicki. Using the Pandoras Box output synchronisation it was guaranteed that the conductor screen was always in perfect sync with the large audience screen. All the necessary equipment was provided by Auviso AG. The premiere itself proved a big success with the enchanted audience, highlighting the great emotional intensity created through combining live orchestral music with state-of-the-art media playback techniques.
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PRODUCTS
Two SSL C10 HD Compact Broadcast Consoles for Dogus Media Group
Serving the 24/7 news, sport and entertainment programming needs for NTV, primarily a 24-hour news station, and CNBC-e, a financial news and popular programming station, Dogus Media Group chose the C10 HD to help meet the broadcaster’s expanded media capabilities through its exceptional features and flexibility. “For the past year, Dogus Media Group has been moving its production facilities which serve seven TV channels and eight radio stations, into one location,” says Ms. Aysin Yilmaz, deputy technical manager for Dogus Media Group. “The NTV News Cube and CNBC-e 360 studios were the final projects and this is where the C10 consoles were installed. When we looked at the market for a broadcast console, SSL’s C10 stood out from the rest because of its sound quality, self-contained compact design, low power draw and high-level operating flexibility. SSL has been my dream console since I began in this business and now I am very happy to have two. This is definitely a dream come true.”
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Wireless with Ease: The SKP 300 G3 Plug-on Transmitter
“With the new SKP 300 G3, we are further expanding the application possibilities for the evolution wireless series,” explained Dela Bahlke, Microphone Product Manager at Sennheiser. “The plug-on transmitter comes with its own phantom power supply, enabling it to be combined with any microphone with an XLR-3 output.” For applications in the Installed Sound sector, the plug-on transmitter can be combined with an EM 300 G3 rack-mount receiver, thus making it possible, for example, to have a speaker’s podium without the visual interference of cables or to implement mobile lecterns. For video journalists, the SKP 300 G3 is an ideal partner for the EK 100 G3 camera receiver. The SKP 300 is powered by two AA batteries or the optional BA 2015 accupack. The plug-on transmitter is available in eight frequency ranges, and is quickly and easily synchronised with its receiver using an infrared link.
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Litepanels Lights Slick Videos for YouTube Channel
Wong and team were drawn to Litepanels lights because their shooting schedule and style requires them to move extremely fast in order to make their days. “The 1x1s and Sola 6 Fresnel were ideal for allowing us to light in the cramped spaces of classrooms and hallways, as well as to move as quickly as we needed to,” Wong explains. “In many cases, despite having other lights on the set, our DP Jon Salmon elected to go with Litepanels boomed out on C-stands because they gave a significantly faster set-up time. Often the last step before we shot was to grab a Litepanels fixture for a bit of fill or an eyelight.” On the last day of their recent shoot, the trio was out in the desert and ran out of sunlight. Not a problem, “We simply took a battery operated MicroPro, bounced it into a bounce board and used that as a keylight. That combined with the low light sensitivity of the Sony F3 camera allowed us to get the last few shots we needed.”
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3D ARISING
Panasonic and NBC Sports Partner to Distribute the London 2012 Olympic Games in 3D in the U.S.
Last year, Panasonic Corporation, a long time Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment category, announced they would partner with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) to make the London 2012 Olympic Games the first ever 3D Olympic Games. The 3D broadcasts, which will be produced by OBS and shown on next-day delay, will span multiple competitions throughout the London 2012 Olympic Games, including the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, gymnastics, diving and swimming. OBS will produce more than 200 hours of 3D coverage during the London 2012 Olympic Games by utilizing Panasonic's state-of-art 3D production technologies including the AG-3DP1, a P2HD professional fully-integrated twin-lens Full HD 3D camera recorder. Cable, satellite, and telco providers who receive the Olympics package may distribute the 3D broadcast via the Comcast Media Center.
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BSkyB Commissions ONSIGHT to Manage & Build its First Stereoscopic 3D Flypack System
ONSIGHT’s CTO Richard Mills designed the System in conjunction with Chris Johns, BSkyB Chief Engineer, supported by Sony’s Professional Services division. This is the first commissioned 3D Flyaway constructed by Sony. Richard Mills explains: “Sony P1 cameras, mounted on 3ality Technica Pulsar 3D rigs, will provide a flexible solution for both standalone documentary and multi-camera live event coverage. Up to 4 rigs can be fed back via a fibre-optic cable to a Broadcast Production Gallery with full 3D vision mixing, monitoring and communications.” Chris Johns, Chief Engineer, BSkyB, comments: “We’re deeply committed to leading the way in the production of original 3D content so we can provide our customers with the best and most diverse range of 3D programming around. The modular nature of the 3D Flypack system allows for a simpler and more coherent use of what is sometimes seen as a complex acquisition toolset. Thanks to this new partnership we’re able to be even more ambitious, and we’re looking forward to seeing the impact it will have onscreen.”
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