tvbe january 2014 digital edition

www.tvbeurope.com

JJanuary 2014Europe’s Television Technology Business Magazine

VFX for TV small screen, big spectacle

Getting set for Sochi

Freelancers under fire:The Rory Peck Awards

By Dick Hobbs

HARRIS BROADCASTwill acquire digital broadcast andTV Everywhere solutions companyImagine Communications. Imagineprovides solutions for digitalbroadcast markets as well as TV Everywhere, network DVR,internet/mobile video and IPTVapplications. The deal will expandHarris’ ability to offer OTT andTV Everywhere solutions.

Imagine Communicationsuses software running in avirtualised blade serverenvironment for TV Everywhereencoding, in keeping withHarris’s push for production

development focused onsoftware and commercial off-the-shelf hardware. Harrishopes that Imagine’scombination of videoprocessing, adaptive bitratetranscoding and statisticalmultiplexing technology willimprove the bandwidth efficiencyand density needed for improvedTV Everywhere services.

Harris Broadcast CEO,Charlie Vogt made theannouncement at the IABMConference in London. “Manyof our content originatorcustomers have been addingservices for OTT and TVEverywhere, but have had to do

so with bifurcated systems forlinear and non-linear services,”said Vogt. “This acquisitionenables Harris Broadcast to takea leadership position in the OTTand TV Everywhere market,while laying the foundation forthe first true software definedintegration of sales, scheduling,automation, playout and deliveryacross both linear and non-linearcontent distribution networks.Additionally, through thisacquisition, we will expand ourR&D and innovation initiatives,strengthen our encoding,transcoding and ABR marketposition, and increase our totalglobal addressable market.”

“Harris Broadcast’s newleadership team, end-to-endtechnology and industry leadingplatforms ideally complementand significantly expand thepossibilities for our cutting edgeTV Everywhere capabilities,” saidImagine Communications CEORichard Stanfield. “Bycombining Imagine technologywith Harris Broadcast’sintellectual property, whichalready powers most of theworld’s top content producers,this acquisition will transform themarketplace by leveraging HarrisBroadcast’s strength andtransferring it through smartintegration to the non-linear,OTT, TV Everywhere world.”www.harrisbroadcast.comwww.imaginecommunications.com

News & ContentsTVBEurope 3January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

Harris Broadcast goes OTT with Imagine

By Holly Ashford

APPLE HASannounced that thenew Mac Pro is nowavailable to order.The Mac Pro featuresthe latest Intel Xeonprocessors, dualworkstation-classGPUs, PCIe-basedflash storage andECC memory. Thecompany has alsoreleased version 10.1of its Final Cut Proediting software. The FCPupdate features optimisedplayback and rendering withthe dual GPUs in the new MacPro, video monitoring up to 4Kvia Thunderbolt 2 and HDMI,and 4K content including titles,transitions, and generators.

The Mac Pro features 4-core,6-core, 8-core or 12-core IntelXeon processors running atTurbo Boost speeds up to3.9GHz and two workstation-class AMD FirePro GPUs.

It boasts PCIe-basedflash storage and ECCDDR, which gives itup to 60Gbps ofmemory bandwidthfor editing full-resolution 4K videowhile simultaneouslyrendering effects inthe background. The company’s latestMac Pro has sixThunderbolt 2 ports,each with up to20Gbps of bandwidthper device. It offers

support for up to 36 high-performance peripherals,including the latest 4K displays.

Updates to Final Cut Proinclude the option to importmedia to locations inside oroutside a library, custom projectframe sizes, Project Snapshotsallowing quick capture of aproject state for fast versioning,4K sharing to YouTube and anAPI for custom share operationsusing third party software.www.apple.com

Apple’s new Mac pro is now available for order

Contents1-16 News & AnalysisOpinion: The Year Ahead

Guest opinion from industry

experts, looking ahead to 2014 4

The Rory Peck Awards

George Jarrett reviews the annual

Rory Peck Awards night, and talks

to winners and Trust members 16

20 The Business CaseThe Fixer: Blackmagic’s Grant Petty

remakes an industry in his own image

The Blackmagic Design CEO gives a

characteristically candid interview

to Adrian Pennington 20x

23-35 The WorkflowSensor requirements loom

large for lenses

David Fox looks at how larger

camera sensors are driving the

most recent advance in lenses 23

The downhill run to Sochi

Winter Olympic Games’ OB provider

Panorama is preparing the way for

the world’s biggest winter sports

event, by Philip Stevens 29

36-42 Channel in a Box ForumPhilip Stevens moderates this

month’s Forum, which returns to

the popular topic of CiaB and

gathers together a number of

those involved in the industry 36

43-48 The WorkflowThink global, broadcast local:

British local TV takes off

UK local television is about to

move forward in a big way,

reports Philip Stevens 43

50 News ReviewA round-up of this month’s most

interesting stories from the

broadcast technology industry 50

Double launchfor Apple

By Neal Romanek

TVBEUROPE PARENT company,NewBay Media, has acquired selectassets of TV industry news andinformation source, BroadcastEngineering — both US and Worldeditions — from Penton Media. The magazine will join NewBay’sextensive portfolio of TV andbroadcast information resources,including TVBEurope, TVTechnology, Next TV, MultichannelNews, and the Creative PlanetNetwork. The acquisition includesBroadcast Engineering’s trademark,web assets, and subscriber lists.

In the coming months,broadcastengineering.com andtvtechnology.com will be integrated into a single web-based resource. Whenintegrated, Broadcast Engineeringwill add over 75,000 unduplicatedprofessionals to NewBay’s existingbroadcast/video database, extendingNewBay’s reach to over 500,000professionals within Europe, theUnited States, and around the world.

“We are excited to welcomeBroadcast Engineering readers and

advertisers to the NewBay family,”said Steve Connolly, publisher ofTVBEurope and TV TechnologyEurope. “This is a great opportunityto introduce a new audience to ourmarket-leading brands, and tocontinue to build upon our goal to bethe broadcast industry’s primaryresource for business news andtechnical information.”

Broadcast Engineering’s currentprint subscribers will have theopportunity to subscribe toTVBEurope, TV Technology, and TVTechnology Europe in print, digital, ortablet formats. Subscribers willreceive information on how to starttheir new subscriptions shortly.

“NewBay Media’s goal is to be theleading information and marketingresource for the industries we serve,”said NewBay CEO Steve Palm. “Weare excited to have the opportunity tobring Broadcast Engineering and itsdedicated readership to our deepstable of television industry brands.In doing so, we have strengthenedour commitment to — and our ability to serve — this dynamic andfast-moving market.”

NewBay Media acquiresBroadcast Engineering assets

2013 HAS certainly been a yearwhere broadcasters andproviders alike have not beenable to take a step back andadmire their work. Instead theyhave taken a deep breath toprepare themselves for what the future holds. With newtechnologies come newchallenges, and as audiencesexpect greater quality andgreater customisation ofservices, broadcasters, contentproviders and solution providersare preparing themselves for abusy 2014.

The top industry trends that we see for the next 12months are:

4K will finally take offLast year saw the discussion andthe theory behind 4K. Whatcould it do? How can we do it?What benefits will we see? Thisyear it won’t just be theoryanymore; it will start to be usedin practice. The uptake won’t behuge, with only a few channelstesting the water, but this willspark the kick-off for realtransmissions and productions of 4K content. The trigger for 4K content, as with many newand innovative broadcastingtechnologies, is sports andentertainment content such asmovies. With the Brazil WorldCup taking place, I would expectto see this type of content hittingsome screens next summer,particularly in the European andAsian markets, which are alreadyopen to this kind of technology.One of the challenges still facing4K is that there are no standardsyet and much of this discussion isstill ongoing within the industry.Yet it doesn’t have the samerestrictions as 3D did, whichmeans that it stands a real chanceof taking off and becoming apart of the way we consume TVcontent. The uptake won’t be fast— for some emerging countriesHD has still not been introduced— and it won’t reach full

potential until SD is removedfrom the picture, but 4K isaccessible and meets the growingneed from audiences for higherquality content on bigger screens.

OTT — No longer just a buzzwordAdmittedly everyone has beentalking about OTT for a while.What was once seen as a far-away idea has become a very realreality as the technology is nowavailable and broadcasters andcontent providers are having to adapt and change the waythey provide content to theiraudiences. One of the biggestchallenges so far with the OTTmodel is that businesses have notbeen seen to be making anymoney from it, particularly ifyou take into account issuessuch as distribution and rightsmanagement. However, as moreand more players enter themarket, particularly the contentmanagement area, then nextyear will be the commercial kick-off for the technology as

increasing focus is placed on it. Additional consideration will also need to be given to how to monetise this contentthrough advertisements, etc,within the technology.

The rise of OTT has alsoopened up the market for smaller, sometimes more nichebroadcasters. There is a growingtrend amongst these smallerbroadcasters to make use ofcloud-based managed servicesand offerings from specialistproviders. This technology iseffectively lowering the financialentry barriers to smaller andstart-up broadcast and contentproviders as well as levelling theplaying field in terms of givingsmaller players access to leadingedge technology that wouldpreviously have been availableonly to large multinationalbroadcasters. The OTT customerbase will be large and varied. We don’t envisage it competingwith the 4K market, but instead it predominately will be used toreach out to ethnic communitiesacross the globe and thoseseeking more interactive content.With the US market leading the way, the African region isactually more than ready forOTT as they are able to skipprevious technologicalincarnations and jump right intothe next generation solutions that are available.

It is also likely that, due to therise of Smart TV and apps, wewill start to see the demise of theSet Top Box (STB). This meansthat providers will need to workalongside TV manufacturers sothat technology is incorporatedinto the standalone TV set.

Less linear consumptionof TV contentIn a busy society, the way TV isconsumed has been changing asaudiences play ‘catch-up’ withtheir favourite TV programmes ontheir mobile devices, laptops andTVs. With on-demand TV andassociated apps making it easier towatch TV whenever and whereveryou want to, VoD platforms arecompeting with the traditionalconcept of linear TV. Whilst linearTV may remain the habit of choicefor some audiences, ultimately2014 will see the increasing rise ofmobile consumption of content,and even the development ofcontent specifically designed to be watched on a mobile ortablet device.

Watching TV in mid-airIn a completely connected world,users want to be able to accesscontent whenever they want.And when could be a perfecttime to take a break and watchyour favourite TV channel?Having provided broadcastingservices for 20 years, and to awide ranging selection of outlets,including live broadcasting toships in the middle of the ocean,I think the next step could be liveviewing up in the air, travellingon an airplane. Whilst this may sound crazy, it is alreadycommonplace in the mobiletelecoms market for users toexpect no drop in coverage orservice, even if they are mid-air.On most major US airlines it ispossible to have the same servicethat you would expect when you have two feet on the ground.So what about taking this to thenext level and being able towatch live TV content, or streamTV content, to mobile and tablet devices or even the on-airtelevision systems? This would be a completely new media forbroadcasters and contentproviders to adapt to, and I thinkthat as the connected vision takesflight, the development ofsolutions that are available mid-air will be one to watch. Whilstmany broadcasters are gettingbandwidth savvy and selectingsolutions that make efficient use of what is available, thesetechnologies may be truly testedin 2014, and it will be interestingto see how this develops.www.satlink.tv

Opinionwww.tvbeurope.com January 20144 TVBEurope

The Year Ahead

4K, OTT and TV in the air

2013 saw the discussion and the theory behind 4K. This year itwon’t just be theory anymore; it will start to be used in practice

“The OTTcustomerbase will belarge andvaried”

Hochner: “The next step could be live viewingup in the air, travelling on an airplane”

EDITORIALActing Editor Neal [email protected]

Staff WriterHolly [email protected]

Managing Editor Joanne [email protected]

Intent Media London, 1st Floor, Suncourt House, 18-26 Essex Road,London N1 8LN, England +44 207 354 6002

Editorial Consultant Adrian PenningtonAssociate Editor David FoxUSA Correspondent Carolyn GiardinaContributors Mike Clark, David Davies,Richard Dean, Chris Forrester, Mark Hill, Dick Hobbs, John Ive, George Jarrett, Heather McLean, Bob Pank, Nick Radlo, Philip Stevens,Reinhard E Wagner

Digital Content Manager Tim Frost

Office Manager Lianne Davey

Head of Design & Production Adam ButlerEditorial Production Manager Dawn BoultwoodSenior Production ExecutiveAlistair Taylor

PublisherSteve [email protected]+44 207 354 6000

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Sales ExecutiveRichard [email protected]+44 207 354 6000

Managing Director Stuart Dinsey

US SALESMichael MitchellBroadcast Media International, PO Box 44, Greenlawn, New York, NY [email protected]+1 (631) 673 0072

JAPAN AND KOREA SALESSho HariharaSales & Project, Yukari Media [email protected]+81 6 4790 2222 Fax: +81 6 4793 0800

CIRCULATIONIntent Media, Sovereign Park, Lathkill Street, Market Harborough LE16 9EF, UK

FREE [email protected] Tel +44 1580 883848

TVBEurope is published 12 times a year by Intent Media London, 1st Floor, SuncourtHouse, 18-26 Essex Road, London,N1 8LN, England

Intent Media is a member of the PeriodicalPublishers Association

© Intent Media 2014. No part of thispublication may be reproduced in any form orby any means without the prior permission ofthe copyright owners. TVB Europe is mailedto qualified persons residing on the Europeancontinent. Subscription rates£64/€96/$120.

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Last year saw the rise of connected devices, OTT and Smart TVsbecoming commonplace in the home and the emergence of Ultra HD.David Hochner, CEO of Satlink Communications, takes a look atwhat’s ahead in 2014

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PREDICTING THE futureisn’t what you’d call an exactscience, but at EVS we’re prettyconfident about a few of the keytrends for 2014.

Year after year we’re seeing a great deal more live eventcoverage and 2014 is sure tobreak all records. Advancementsin broadcast technology andinfrastructure mean liveproduction of events is closer to live than ever before —

particularly in sport andentertainment.

The significant increase inconsuming live and near-livesporting action brings with itincreased demand for multi-screen access. We’ve watched theappetite for second screen andconnected devices skyrocket andthat will surely continue well into2014. FIFA’s recentannouncement to introducemultimedia distribution through

the web will further boost secondscreen demands and expectations.There will be an increasingdemand from content owners andsports federations to gain accessto live recorded content for use innumerous ways. They’ll be

starting to think bigger thansolely broadcast organisationsand will push their enriched livecontent further afield to press andsports clubs in the coming years.Connectivity is no longer simplyabout multimedia fulfilment. It’sabout cost-effectively andefficiently delivering unique,enriched and engaging contentservices — and, ultimately, aboutcreating new revenue streams.

Another area that will seesignificant growth in the comingyear is IP-based workflows. Thishas enjoyed a steady rise andwill be further accelerated by thegrowing need for remoteproduction capabilities. Forbroadcasters it’s all aboutkeeping content delivery costsdown and quality high. Andremote production will be key todelivering on this vision.

During 2014, 4K will reallybegin to find its feet asbroadcasters look to provideconsumers with ever better

quality. It will certainly beknocking at the door of theworld’s major broadcastingnetworks, and they should bevery eager to hear what it has tosay. Even the smaller networkswill want to know what 4K has tooffer – in particular 4K zoomingsolutions that bring an improvedviewing experience.

If we were to pick out trends thatwill be a top priority for manyIT/tech departments in our industry— media interoperability and filemastering are at the top of the list.Both of these are vital and need tobe seamless across all productionprocesses from creation to deliveryand archive. So this simply has toremain a key focus for 2014 andbeyond. Because of the growingnumber and variety of videosources, formats and associatedmetadata in the broadcast arena,solutions to handle this will be abig focus to enable speedy andefficient content delivery.www.evs.com

Technology will drive storytellingTHE ART of storytelling willbecome more complex and moreinformative. Audiences aregrowing more diverse and gettheir information from a myriadof sources. If a broadcaster isgoing to survive they must be ableto adapt to new technologies thatwill help them get content intoand out of the studio quickly,while also remaining reactive tochanges as a story happens.

Broadcaster shift tomobile and online firstThe numbers of viewers thatconsume content online and onmobile devices first, instead ofon-air, will only continue togrow. Broadcasters must nowapproach production as not juston-air first, but also mobile and online first. Whenbroadcasters accept this reality,a ripple effect occurs for the restof their storytelling.

A shift to social storytellingNews content is available onlinemuch more rapidly from

various sources than fromtraditional on-air newscasts, so the broadcaster must be able to shift gears quickly and adapt the moment the storychanges. Social mediamanagement must be

considered as the audiencereacts to unfolding events.

The evolution of thecontrol roomPresenters are given tools thatallow them to control the flowof a broadcast. Multi-touchscreens and tablets addflexibility, but they, combinedwith the growing number ofscreens in a studio, also add to

the complexity of theproduction. At the same time,broadcasters are reducing thenumber of bodies in the controlroom running the newscast.

Control room automationsystems are allowing the

broadcaster to have a smallerstaff while expanding theircapabilities, opening the door to handle a large amount ofscreens and rapidly changingcontent. What could not bedone in the past with adirector/technical director teamand a massive vision mixer, can now be accomplished with a simple software interface and keyboard.

Changing internal contentdistribution modelsAnother struggle broadcastersdeal with is the internal sharingof content between parts of anews organisation. There is stillthe division of on-air newsproduction and managingcontent on the broadcaster’swebsite. When broadcasters shiftto the online and mobile firstmodel, these lines will become

blurred. Using intelligent mediamanagement systems will allowthe broadcaster to immediatelymake the same content availableto all parts of a newsorganisation in the format theyneed – at any desktop. Editing ofgraphics and video takes placequickly and easily on the desktop.On the distribution side, the livebroadcast and graphics are allcomposited live for the screen sizeand resolution needed for anyplatform. This not only saves thebroadcaster time to air but alsoopens opportunities to haveindividual branding and sponsorsacross platforms without anyextra render time needed.

We will definitely see someinteresting changes happen for the broadcaster over thenext year.www.vizrt.com

Jakobsen: “The broadcaster must be able to shift gears quickly and adapt the moment the story changes”

www.tvbeurope.com January 20146 TVBEurope

The numbers of viewers that consume content online and onmobile devices first, instead of on-air, will only continue to grow

Adapting the art of news storytelling:Predictions for 2014

2014 live

Janssen: “There will be an increasingdemand from content owners andsports federations to gain access tolive recorded content for use innumerous ways”

“If a broadcaster is going to survive theymust be able to adapt to new technologiesthat will help them get content into and out of the studio quickly, while alsoremaining reactive to changes as a story happens” Petter Ole Jakobsen, Vizrt

Vizrt’s CTO, Petter Ole Jakobsen, gives his thoughts about hownews will change in the coming year. For him, it’s online and mobile first

If there was a live event broadcast last year, chances are EVS appeared in theworkflow. Joop Janssen, CEO of EVS,looks ahead to 2014 and sees multi-screen,IP and connectivity

OpinionThe Year Ahead

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2014: a 4K future?

AS THE industry looks aheadto 2014, it is clear that thereadiness of 4K to serve as an HD replacement dependsprimarily on the application.Consider home cinemaapplications, in which the 4Kscreens already on the marketare proving to be a solid matchfor the demands of cinemacontent. With respect to factorssuch as resolution and framerate, it seems clear that cinemareleases can be successfullyrepurposed as 4K content forhome theatre viewing. In fact, it has been for this particularapplication that most early 4Kscreen sales have been made.

As far as content fromproviders such as Netflix andYouTube is concerned, it appearsthat 4K content will becomeavailable in the form of 4Kdownloads. Advances in Blu-raytechnology do accommodate film-length 4K content. A new triple-layer disc capable of storing100GB does provide an

alternative to the bandwidth-intensive delivery of 4K files, butconsumers’ increasing interest in investing in streaming media or downloads rather than physicalmedia tends to favour the formeras the distribution mechanism of choice.

In either case, whether the 4K screen source is a disc or adownload, most of the contentwill not be provided in a true 4Kformat; even content identified as having been mastered in 4K is often 1080p that has been up-converted. When HD content isstreamed at a high enough data rate that subsequentupconversion is viable, thisapproach offers a much needed

means of moving content fromsource to 4K screen. Offering anattractive solution for near-termdelivery of 4K movies, thisapproach is helping to fuel initialmarket traction for 4K screens,despite the scarcity of native 4Kcontent. As time passes, however,

and display manufacturerscontinue to refine their screens(and drive further consumerinvestment), 4K must gain livingroom acceptance as Ultra HD.

4K for linear TV?Whereas 4K differs from HDprimarily in providing muchgreater resolution, Ultra HDaims to be a complete standardthat enhances resolution, frame

rate, dynamic range, bitrate, andaudio scheme. Movie contentalready features a frame rate andresolution displayable on theearly 4K/Ultra HD screens, andwork is progressing to bring bitdepth, chroma sub-sampling,and dynamic range up to a

standard that would allow UltraHD screens to offer the vividcolour portrayal offered bycinema. While 4K is on solidground and moving forward inthis application, the transitionfrom 4K for the home cinema to the delivery and display ofscheduled linear televisioncontent presents a much greaterchallenge, especially for livesports coverage.

For higher-resolution livesports television, a frame rate of50/60fps is the minimumrequirement if 4K/Ultra HDbroadcasts are to match thecurrent HD format and gainequal footing. Ideally, the industrywould adopt 100/120fps, but thebandwidth requirements impliedby such an increase in frame ratepresent a daunting proposition for broadcasters. Even takingadvantage of the HEVC/H.265format, this approach wouldrequire significantly morebandwidth than what is now usedfor HD services.

Considering this issue, a morefeasible solution would be tobroadcast 50/60fps and usetemporal up-conversion at thescreen to provide the viewer withthe enhanced 4K or Ultra HDoutput. For this approach towork, the 4K/Ultra HD screenitself must boast a significantlyadvanced up-conversionalgorithm, as well as thenecessary processing power toimplement that algorithm. Whilescreen manufacturers are eager toprovide consumers with screensthat optimise visual quality, theymay be less excited about theinvestment in the preprocessingnecessary to achieve this qualityfor live 4K/Ultra HD broadcastservices. With respect to viewers’screens, both bit depth anddynamic range need to beimproved to give the new formatthe ‘wow’ factor to succeed.

Looking forward, a keyquestion for the industry iswhether ITU-R RecommendationBT.2020, which defines variousaspects of Ultra HD includingdisplay resolution, frame rate,chroma subsampling, bit depth,and colour space, can displaceITU-R Recommendation BT.709, which has been used tostandardise HD television sincethe early 1990s. This shift wouldoffer tremendous qualityimprovements for both moviesand television, thus providingviewers with the full benefit oftheir move beyond HD.www.harmonicinc.com

Ian Trow, Harmonic senior director,emerging technology and strategy

Ideally, the industry would adopt 100/120fps, but thebandwidth requirements implied by such an increase in

frame rate present a daunting proposition for broadcasters

With all the buzz surrounding 4K throughout 2013, the logical question is if and whenthese formats will be widely adopted as a replacement for HD. As the industry looks aheadto 2014, Ian Trow, Harmonic senior director, emerging technology and strategy, offershis opinion on what to expect

“As time passes and displaymanufacturers continue to refine theirscreens 4K must gain living roomacceptance as Ultra HD” Ian Trow, Harmonic


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Time to retire the“primary” storageWITH THE continued growthof data and increased strategicvalue of connecting historicaldata with new data, primarystorage is no longer the maingame in town. Getting data offexpensive primary storage, whilekeeping it readily accessible, willtake on greater importance. As a result, there will be increasedfocus on tiered storage, with new technologies such as nextgeneration object storage andlinear tape file system (LTFS)being widely adopted.

Virtual machine data:“Just let me be me”Look for a greater emphasis onsimplifying backup and archivefor virtual machines, particularlykeeping the data in its nativeformat. With virtual environmentscontinuing to proliferate, there will be even greater need forvirtual deduplication appliances— which eliminate duplicatecopies of repeating data — aswell as backup software toprotect data in native format asIT managers demand faster,easier restores and portabilityacross private and public clouds.

Managed ServiceProviders and ValueAdded Resellers cloud the pictureExpect more MSPs and VARs toadd cloud Backup-as-a-Service andDisaster Recovery-as-a-Service totheir lineup of offerings as a wayto bring more value to theircustomers. Major storagecompanies will play a key

supporting role in providing theunderlying technologies as part ofa broader effort to compete withcloud leaders such as Amazon.

I’m not getting“Nirvanixed”Following the initialenthusiasm surrounding publiccloud’s potential, it wasperhaps inevitable that issuessuch as security and availabilitywould attract more scrutiny.The collapse of Nirvanix, aUS-based cloud storageprovider, is giving some ofthose issues greater urgency.Companies will be more careful about weighing the cost savings benefits of publiccloud backup against theslower recovery speeds, as well as concerns for their data’s security in multi-tenantclouds. Hybrid approaches that offer the best aspects ofpublic and private clouds willhave increasing appeal —particularly the benefitsinherent in keeping a local copyon premise for quick recoveryand assured availability.

The National SecurityAgency (NSA) is right: It’s all about metadataWhile recent revelations aboutNSA spying are troubling from a privacy standpoint, theagency certainly isn’t alone inrecognising the increasing valueof metadata. When it comes tostorage, system metadata haslong been important. This is the information about a datafile/object that gets storedautomatically such as author,

size, date created, date modified,etc. In the next year, there will begrowing demand to automatethe collection of applicationmetadata — information about adata file/object that relates to itscontent — connecting the datato its business value and usage.

Data migration is so “old school” Larger disk drives and petaByte-scale archives will alsoforce the need for an alternativeto traditional data migration.Migrating content withtraditional RAID storage everythree to five years is alreadypainful, and waiting months oryears to complete a migration isnot an option for most users, to say nothing of the demandsthis places on IT staff to keep performance levels high. As a result, RAID willincreasingly become ineffectiveand unmanageable, and next-generation object storage — withits self-healing and self-protectingarchitecture — will be adoptedmore broadly as a way toeliminate the need for migration.

Goodbye Nielsens, hello storageAs TV viewing continues tomove online, broadcasters willincreasingly be able to do theirown analytics and get muchmore useful data. However,bringing this capability in-housewill not only increase the amount of data that must bestored and protected but alsorequire a new approach tomanaging data in many cases,including developing a morerobust policy-based tieredarchive system. At the same time,broadcasters will be looking forsolutions that integrate analyticsand storage. www.quantum.comLaurent Fanichet, product marketing , EMEA, Quantum


“Broadcasters will increasingly be able to do theirown analytics and get much more useful data”

Storing the futureLast year, Quantum helped London post house The Ark revolutionise its approach to dataand storage. Quantum’s head of product marketing EMEA, Laurent Fanichet, takes a look at what’s in store for storage in 2014


CTV, WHICH is in the processof building a 4K-compliantflagship vehicle for this May, hasyet to make a final decision onthe camera technology it willoutfit it with.

Realistically, since it is theonly game in town, outsidebroadcast facilities companieswill place their 4K bets withSony, but say they are reluctantto commit before clients likeBSkyB are satisfied. There areconcerns, for example, aboutframe rate compatibility withhigh definition and also theruggedness of a cameradesigned for studios ratherthan outside broadcasts.

“We’re putting everything into the truck that will enable us to do 4K alongside HD, but we’ve not concluded adecision on cameras,” said CTV international director and COO Euro Media Group,Barry Johnstone.

“We’re waiting formanufacturers to stabilise theequipment. Most of what is out there is in beta. We couldput a 4K camera in our truckstomorrow and it will workregardless of the transmissionpath and it will give us better HD pictures, but we’rewaiting for Sony to refine their package.”

The ‘beta’ workflowto which Johnstonerefers was trialled byCTV in its first 4K liveproduction, lastOctober, of a PeterGabriel concert fromthe O2 Arena.

This paired multipleSony F55 cameras recordingRAW to F5 Recorders andHD onto SxS cards. Thecameras, reconfigured from their original cinematographydesign to support liveproduction, streamed Raw 4Kinto BPU-4000 Base BandProcessor Units, which in turnoutput four HD-SDI streams

and a separate down-convertedHD output.

A CA-4000 camera adaptorattached to the F55 providedfamiliar CCU operation such asviewfinder return, tally and

talkback to the operator.“All of this works, but we

need it in a single package, notlots of bolt-ons,” saidJohnstone. “Everything is there,but it needs rehousing. We areworking with Sony and it’s morea matter of fine tuning.”

Also weighing 4K investmentsis fellow OB supplier NEPVisions, where cameras are again

the main stumbling block.“If we take the plunge on

one type of camera, will itsuffice for 1080p 60p as wellas Ultra HD?” asked BrianClark, its commercial andtechnical projects director.“We have to be careful asan industry that if we

launch 4K we are giving theconsumer a true 4K shoot

rather than cut outs from 4K cameras or up-conversions.

The closest we can get to 4K liveacquisition is with the F55adapted camera. It’s a workingsystem, but to be blunt, where Istruggle is having an integrated4K system in which you can beconfident of the future.”www.ctvob.co.ukwww.nepinc.com/welcome/visions

News & Analysiswww.tvbeurope.com JJanuary 201412 TVBEurope

Outside broadcast companies making the move to 4K must treadvery cautiously. Adrian Pennington investigates “We’re

waiting formanufacturers to stabilise the

equipment. Mostof what is out

there is in beta” Barry Johnstone,

CTV

OBs await Sony beforepicking 4K cameras

The DTG, the industry association for digital television in the UK, hasannounced the appointment ofKeith Hayler as chair of the TechnicalOversight Group (TOG). Hayler will leadthe TOG as an independent chair, and willreport the progress of each work streamto the DTG Council. He has 40 years’experience in the broadcast industry, with

an engineering career that spans DTT,satellite and radio technologies.

The technical services department atHHB Communications has appointedMike Rigby to the role of technical salessupport engineer. Rigby was previouslytechnical manager at Technical Earth,where he managed the sales, installationand upgrades of recording facilities and

venues andspecialised in AvidPro Toolssystems.

InternationalDatacastingCorporation (IDC)has announced anumber of newexecutives, as well

as a restructuring of its sales team tosupport emerging market growthopportunities. Steven Archambault has served as IDC’s director of financeand treasury since 2012 and is now the new CFO. Steeve Huin, IDC’s newvice president of products, joins thecorporation from Irdeto where heworked as senior product director.

Walter Capitani, previously IDC’s VP ofproduct management, has been namedvice president of marketing. IDC has alsoreorganised its global sales force,structuring teams on a regional basis.Executives responsible for each regioninclude Berry Eskes, EMEA North andBerend Blokzijl, EMEA South.

Net Insight has announced thatAnders Persson, executive vicepresident and director of productdevelopment, has decided to leave thecompany. Persson will depart on 28 February after 13 years with NetInsight. “During his time as vicepresident and director of R&D, NetInsight technology and products havebeen sold to more than 175 customers inmore than 60 markets worldwide. I wish

him good luck in his new assignments”,said Lars Berg, chairman of the board.

Liam Connors has been appointedsenior sales executive, EMEA, forWohler’s RadiantGrid business line.Based in Wohler’s London offices, hewill be responsible for raising theprofile of file-based solutions, as well as managing sales of products toboth new and existing customers in thebroadcast, media, and entertainmentmarkets. Michael Wright has alsojoined RadiantGrid as senior salesexecutive, North America. Wright joins Wohler from AmberFin, where he was director of key accounts. He earlier served as the director of US sales, enterprise accounts, for Avid Technology.

BEVERLEY HORNE has been appointed tothe newly created role of head of TV post.Horne joins LipSync Post from ITV where shehas post supervised dramas over the last sevenyears’ including Agatha Christie: Poirot, fourseries of Inspector Lewis, and The Prisoner. Inher new role she will be responsible foroverseeing all post production work ontelevision dramas. Lisa Jordan, facilitydirector, said: “Beverley’s experience ofworking on high-quality dramas furtherstrengthens our highly talented post team, andwith the addition of our various financialofferings to TV producers, we are well placedto welcome more quality dramas.”

TRILOGYCOMMUNICATIONS hashired Keith Norton as chiefoperating officer. Norton hasmore than 30 years’ experience atstrategic, programme andoperational levels across telecomsand government programmesand was most recently CEO of Paradigm SecureCommunications, a subsidiary of EADS Astrium. Trilogy CEO Mike Knight commented,“Keith has a wealth of experiencewith commercial and defencebusinesses in the UK, Europeand the US. He is therefore a

perfect fit for Trilogy as we seekout further opportunities for ourclass-leading communicationsproduct portfolio.”

Trilogy names new chief operating officer

Keith Norton, Trilogy Communications

Keith Hayler,DTG

Mike Rigby,HHB

Michael Wright,RadiantGrid, Wohler

Anders Persson,Net Insight

Liam Connors,RadiantGrid, Wohler

Beverley HorneLipsync Post

People on the moveTVBEurope 13January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

By Holly Ashford

Lipsync Post appointshead of TV Post

By Holly Ashford

THE INTERNATIONALASSOCIATION OFBROADCASTMANUFACTURERS (IABM)held its 9th Annual InternationalBusiness Conference last month, with the theme ‘DrivingTowards Change — NavigatingThrough the Changing MediaLandscape’. The programmefeatured a range of speakersfrom industry-leadingcompanies, as well as key figuresof the IABM’s nominated boardof members. On day one of thetwo-day event, the recurring and optimistic theme whichemerged was ‘collaboration andopportunities,’ which was backedup by initial findings from thealways much-anticipated IABMDC Market Study.

Opening the event was PeterWhite, director general, IABM,who provided an overview ofthe changes in business trendsbased on the organisation’smarket intelligence. The CEOperspective was provided byCharlie Vogt, president andCEO of Harris Broadcast, whocompared the transitions inbroadcast with those intelecoms, describing how the

walls between linear TV and TV everywhere and multiscreenwere “breaking down,” offering “lots of opportunity to collaborate”.

The timing of his deliverycould not have been more apt,as Harris Broadcast last monthannounced its intention toacquire Imagine Communications,a specialist in online video andOTT. The company hopes thatImagine’s combination of videoprocessing, adaptive bit ratetranscoding and statisticalmultiplexing technology willimprove the bandwidth

efficiency and density needed for improved TV Everywhereservices. Vogt explained how thecurrent landscape was“fractured” and that the need tocreate a new landscape amongstvendors was imperative.“Telecoms are coming,” hestated, and rather than backingaway, broadcast companies needto be “prepared to participate”.“There is a new verticalopportunity for us all”, withsuccess based on collaboration.

The theme of partnershipswas continued in the paneldiscussion which followed,

featuring Vogt alongside LarryKaplan, president and CEO ofSDVI and IABM honorarymember; Lesley Marr, CEO,Deluxe and Mike Crimp, CEO,IBC. Chaired by Kate Bulkley,the participants explored theimplications of the new era inbroadcast and media, and whatresonated from the debate was— again — collaboration. Theindustry needs to open up,claimed Marr, and “offeringservices and employing geeks isthe way forward”. Alliancesbetween different sectors of theindustry need to be fostered,

stressed Vogt, with collaborationkey to creating the “rightecosystem” for broadcast andmedia companies to succeed.

Exactly what needs to be donefor these companies to thrive wasaddressed by keynote speakerMartin Guillaume, head ofbusiness development digitalmedia at Ericsson. In his role atthe company, Guillaume acts to expand both the marketsEricsson Broadcast Servicesaddresses and broaden the natureof services it delivers. It isundeniable that there has been adramatic increase in competitionfor viewer time: On-demandinternet streaming service Netflixcontrols 66% of the market, saidGuillaume, and 80% of viewerrentals are of television shows.As such, broadcasters need todifferentiate themselves: “Theyneed a unique experience.” One element broadcasters candeliver is “live experiences”, inwhich all viewers witness andparticipate in the same thing at the same time. The broadcastinfrastructure is ideal fordelivering live events, he believes,as long as quality of service is maintained.

One of the AnnualConference’s most anticipatedmoments was when White cameto the stage for the second time,accompanied by Joe ZallerIABM DC. Zaller is the founderof Devoncroft Partners,provider of market research andstrategic consulting services to arange of digital media clients.Zaller is engaged on behalf ofIABM as its North Americanmarket development officer, andappeared at the Conference tooffer a sneak preview of some ofthe headline figures from theIABM DC Market Study.

The traditional “four-yearcycle” in the industry has notgone away completely, saidZaller, with simultaneous shiftsto IT, file-based and IPoccurring throughout theindustry. The broadcast marketis now larger than previouslyreported, with the “newecosystem” which has emergedrecently being driven by aswathe of new productcategories and overall marketgrowth. There is a need forchange as the market is “in themidst of a major cultural shift”,said Zaller and the traditionalcost model no longer works inthis “new paradigm”.www.theiabm.org

News & Analysiswww.tvbeurope.com January 201414 TVBEurope

IABM sees a new paradigm

Charlie Vogt, Lesley Marr, Larry Kaplan and Mike Crimp stressed collaboration as the way forward

News & AnalysisTVBEurope 15JJanuary 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

By Adrian Pennington andHolly Ashford

A DANISH technology start-up is introducing an imageprocessing system that it claimssignificantly enhances live TVpictures, including Ultra HD.Michael Jonsson co-foundedPION with Kenneth Tang Learkeand in 2009 the decision wasmade to set up a new project,which resulted in PION’sLiveScene technology.

LiveScene addresses the imagequality limitations such as lack of highlight and shadow detail,noise and poor contrast of livetelevision broadcasts. In ademonstration of LiveScene at anevent last month, a live feed wasdisplayed of Chelsea football pitchat Stamford Bridge. The lowwinter lighting was manipulatedand white balance adjusted todefine pitch lines, as well asimprove the clarity of advertisinglogos on the stands. In terms of anaddition to a company’s workflow,the SD/HDI feed can easily beplugged in anywhere in the chain, PION explained. Whereasany similar technology to beavailable only in post, LiveSceneallows for image enhancement in a live environment.

“We are optimising thedynamic range by bringing downthe highlights and extractingdetail from the shadows,”

explained Kenneth Tang Laerke,PION’s CEO.

“For example, when a stadiumduring a football match is halfdrenched in sunlight and half inshade, it is extremely hard to pullout highlights with currenttechnology. We’re able to bringthat into a quality, usingsophisticated image processing,that is frankly unseen before.”

Triple impactThe company aims to impactthree main areas with the product:broadcasters, advertisers andconsumers. There is a pressure on broadcasters to attract andretain viewers, and as the numberof content providers increases, so does the competition.Broadcasters are also competingfor “fewer advertising dollars”, sokeeping advertisers happy is keyto success: this means creatinghigh-quality lighting and pictureconditions onscreen so that adlogos etc, are visible. Finally,despite the growing controlconsumers have over content,high-quality video and audio are still of huge value to viewers.

Aimed at OB and studioproduction environments, theLiveScene product takes the liveuncompressed feed frombroadcast cameras, or an inboundcompressed stream from live ENGor event coverage, and enhances itin realtime.

The single rack unit, pluscontrol panel, fits into an existingOB or studio-based infrastructure,and is said to “drasticallyenhance” the work and profile ofthe camera control unit operatoror studio technician.

Although claimed to be arealtime process, Tang Laerkeadmits to a fixed latency of two frames.

“In traditional High DynamicRange imaging you have to shootmultiple exposures or use morethan one camera,” he said.“PION is similar technology-wiseto HDR, but we are able to do itwith one camera or a number ofcameras. We have no specialrequirements in terms of whatcamera you are using, so we couldachieve better image quality fromeven fairly low-end cameras.”

Although PION wouldn’tdisclose names, it said it was

testing the technology with OBcompanies and broadcasters. It also said the UK was its mainfocus given the attractiveness ofthe UK’s OB market. Primarilyfocused on the sports market forthe moment, the company alsorevealed its interest in newsproduction, entertainment andlarge-scale events such as festivals.

Addressing the issues of 4KRichard Yeowart, MD of ArenaDigital, who has not seen theproduct, observed: “The picturesalways look great in the OB truck— most of the loss/compressionis down to the onwards signaltransmission. You end up with afraction of the data at home thatwe start with, good compressionand codecs are the key.”

Tang Laerke asserted that lackof detail in highlights andshadows is a major issue for

broadcasters. “One of the thingsconsumers most appreciate isimproved dynamic range, overresolution and smoothness andframe rate,” he said.

“This becomes even more of anissue as the resolution gets higher.Viewers move closer to the screenand the pixel count rises so yousee more of these issues.”

Michael Jonsson, PION CTO,added: “With the advent of UltraHD acquisition we believe ourLive Camera Enhancement isperfectly placed to address thequality issues that capturing andprocessing live 4K and beyondwill bring to a production.”

Planned future enhancementsinclude a product tuned toimprove colour correction. Thereis also the possibility that theprocess could become moreautomated in the future. The costof a single unit is around £20,000and PION has hinted at furthertrials lined up, and lots of interestfrom customers beyond the arenaof live sports production.

“Commodity technology is theenabler for us,” said Tang Laerke.“We are using off-the-shelf GPU technology that onlyrecently became powerful enoughto process 30fps at 1080p, or 60 interlaced in realtime.”

Tang Laerke and Jonssonfounded PION this year, backed byDanish venture fund Seed Capital.The entrepreneurs previouslyformed Danish digital imagingphoto software company Pixmantecand created the RawShootersoftware application.www.pion.tv

Live dynamic range enhancement

LiveScene takes live uncompressed feed and enhances it in realtime

THE DELIVERY of outstandingeditorial coverage often from highlydangerous locations has alwaysbeen the identifier behind the Sonysponsored Rory Peck Awards, but the 2013 finalists took thejournalistic values of freelancingto astonishing new heights.

Boosted by a record entry of73 titles the nine finalists acrossthree categories focused on threeSyrian stories, two stories fromBangladesh, plus single reportsfrom Mali, Somalia, Afghanistan

and Kashmir.Setting the context and mood

for the event, Rory Peck Trustchairman Michael Jeremy said:“It is good that freelancers arerecognised, but they are notrecognised enough. It is goodthat they have more access to

safety and protection, but theyare still not safe enough.”

“Often at great personal risk they produce remarkablework that plays a crucial role in shining a light into darkplaces. Those of us that believe in transparency and

well-informed democracyshould be grateful thatcommitted freelancers exist.”

The Trust is a safety net, butsometimes it has to say no. Howbig should it become to achieveeverything that director TinaCarr thinks it must cover?

“I think we are too small toreally fulfill our remit,” said Carr.“We do not want to become anenormous organisation becausewe would lose our very personaltouch. We just want to be bigenough to be able to help maybedouble the number of cases weare able to support now fully. Weare mainly getting to peoplethrough social media, and thathas opened up the whole thing.”

Talking about the competitionCarr said: “The quality wasastounding. The people who weregetting the stuff in just said it was the best they have seen in the17 years of the event.”

It was kill or be killedIn the news section, ArisRoussinos triumphed with hisonline video, Ground Zero Mali:The Battle of Gao, the product

News & Analysiswww.tvbeurope.com January 201416 TVBEurope

George Jarrettreviews the RoryPeck Awards, givento freelancersshooting on thefront lines

Aris Roussinos’s Ground Zero Mali: The Battle of Gao won in the news category

“What difference could me and my littlecamera ever make?”: The Rory Peck Awards

Roussinos: “War is inherently ludicrous”

of four weeks of self-fundedeffort that saw him embed withMalian troops as they battledwith Mujao Islamists. This wasa tale of poorly trained andundisciplined troops fightingmuch younger and better-trained jihadists. The full filmwas hosted by VICE.

What led Roussinos to self-fund such a dangerousassignment? “Mali was a bigstory at the time, but wasrelatively uncovered,” he said.“When I arrived all the otherjournalists were French, andwhile there were no formalreporting restrictions, they choseto self censor.”

Roussinos has vast experienceof embedding with rebel groups(in Sudan, Libya and Syria), andsays freelancers have developeda very specific reporting tactic.

“Particularly post the ArabSpring, your only choice is toembed with different rebelgroups, primarily for monetarypurposes,” he said. “Theybasically feed you and look after you for free as long as youexpose their viewpoints to the world.”

Roussinos used the CanonXF105, which he had seen Al-Qaida use by preference inSyria. Was the fact that thejihadists when eventually killedproved to be children, a shock?

“It was pretty bleak. I waswith the French and this kid ofabout 15 jumps out and pointedhis AK at us. A French soldiershot him and he died right infront of us,” he said. “Obviously

it was kill or be killed, but it waspretty dark realising that thepeople I was with were fightingchildren, who were bettertrained and were better soldiersthan the troops I was withbefore the French stepped in.

“Those soldiers they wereloving it though. Clearly they all saw themselves as heroes, and they were all videoing eachother to put on Facebook. War is inherently ludicrous”.

Unpleasant and complex experiences The feature section winner wasOlly Lambert for the five weekshe put into Syria Across TheLines, during which he split histime between Sunni Muslimfighters and regime-supportingsoldiers a single village away.

His comments started withsome hard truths. “Awardceremonies are good fun, but they always strike me asuncomfortable because they area world away from the processthat one goes through in orderto get there,” he said.

“I have done 10 films in areasof conflict that involved livingfor quite a long time in differentplaces and I am very aware of ahabit I have, and I think manyothers have, which is when youget back you convert what wasquite an unpleasant and complexexperience into a simple andrather adventurous narrative,and there is a dishonesty aboutthat,” he added. “So when I was in Syria I kept a verydetailed diary. I was trying to

send a message to myself in the future, not to forget thereality of the experience, whichis that it is not only dangerous,but it is miserable, lonely,isolating and difficult.”

Lambert questioned whetherhe had it in himself to do justiceto this enormous tragedy. “Whatdifference could me and my littlecamera ever make?”

Upfront he spent monthslooking for the right Syrianfixer. He eventually spoke toAbdul via Skype, and then methim in Istanbul. “We spentmonths preparing for the shoot,and looking for the right fixerwas one of the key tasks,” hesaid. “He taught me so muchabout the world I was in. Hewould translate not just whatpeople were saying, but themeaning of our situation.”

At one point a sniper shot atLambert when he was with afarmer, but he lived to pull offan interview with the guy whotried to kill him.

“I had lived with the rebel sidefirst and it was four weeks laterthat I ended up on the other sideof the valley,” he said. “I cannotbe certain he was the exactperson who shot at me, but Isuggested that I interview thecommander in the sniperposition, and while we were thereI zoomed the camera in down theroad and could see the very ditchI hid in a few weeks earlier.

“There was an awkwardmoment when I asked him doeshe ever fire on farmers, and hesaid no. Obviously I knew that

he does fire on farmers,” headded. “I could not haveplanned for that moment, but by being able to show both sidesof that event tells the world that war is depriving a wholecommunity of farmers oflivelihood and work. They caneither stay at home to protecttheir families or risk their livesto look after their crops.”

Life expectancy of 50The Sony Impact Award went to Soumen Guha and DipakChandra Sutradhar, forHazaribagh: Toxic Leather, aneye opener on a tannery wherelife expectancy is 50 due tovariable cancers.

A French crew went after thesame story, but was arrested.How did Soumen and Dipaksucceed? “We are well known in our country and we said: ‘We are filming for your

personal interests, and airing itwill represent everybody who isinvolved with this industry’.Bangladesh is a third worldcountry and just like everywhereelse there are politics, buteverybody has to do their best tohelp their industry become bigand professional,” he said.

He shot for 15 days and hadmoved onto another job whenthe production house wantedsomething extra and Sutradharjoined him and added four daysof story rushes.

“When I shot my footage the environment was so dirty I went home and vomited,” said Sutradhar.

The most telling shot in theirfilm is when fishermen cast theirnets in a river, and catch not oneminnow. “The river is totallydying because of chemicalpollution,” he added.

Could have engaged betterOlivier Bovis, head ofmarketing, Sony ProfessionalSolutions, said: “Reflecting onbeing a judge for the impactcategory for six years, I haveseen an increased quality interms of editorial content.”

Sony backs the Trust forethical reasons, but Bovisadmitted: “From a kit point ofview what we’ve learnt is not as much as we should have. We could have engaged betterwith freelancers to help usdesign the camcorders for the next generation and the one following.”www.rorypeckawards.com

News & AnalysisTVBEurope 17January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

“The quality was astounding. The people who were gettingthe stuff in just said it was the best they have seen in the17 years of the event” — Tina Carr, Rory Peck Trust

Lambert: “Award ceremonies aregood fun, but...they are a world awayfrom the process that one goesthrough in order to get there”

EDUCATION

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TO UNDERSTAND whatmakes Blackmagic Design tick,it’s important to understand thatits driving force, Grant Petty,was a post production engineerand to large extent still seeshimself as one.

“I could be kicking back inthe Bahamas, but I just want toinvent things,” he says. “When Iwas at facility houses my job wasto help the creative guys makingTV and commercials do the bestpossible job, to make the suitesprofitable and to make the wholething work. Blackmagic is anextension of that.”

After spending his highschool years assisting livetheatre productions, he workedin his native Australia — then inSingapore — systems integrating,trouble shooting and shootingthe breeze with colourists andfellow techies, working throughthe night fixing problems andbecoming increasingly frustratedwith tech suppliers.

“What really annoyed me wasthe quality of the equipment,” herecalls. “It was often not very good. Cintel machines, forexample — which I can talkabout now that we own it — hadterrible quality of construction.Few suppliers were doing whatwe wanted, instead tying facilitiesup in long-term contracts. It gotto a point where I felt I just hadto fix the broken supply side.”

This took the form of Petty’sfirst invention, a capture card forgetting high-quality video in andout of computers. BlackmagicDesign expanded its portfolio of DeckLink, Intensity andThunderbolt I/O devices beforechanging tack and acquiring loss-making Da Vinci Systems in 2009.

“It was amazing how criticalthe big Hollywood studios wereof us at the time,” says Petty. “We said ‘You’ve got to trust us’,and we trebled the number ofengineers on it. DaVinci’scustomers had been asked to sign

up to support plans and werepromised these amazing featureswhich were not delivered. Thecompany was in such a bad way.”

Acquisition trailBlackmagic re-designed Resolve,launching a software-onlyversion, number 10 of which canbe downloaded by existingcustomers for free. After fixingDaVinci, Blackmagic acquiredEcholab, maker of the Atem

vision mixers, video processingfirm Teranex, and then theintellectual property of ailingUK TK developer Cintel,though Petty admits he has yetto find a use for the patents.

“We’ve got some prettyradical ideas for it but I alsowonder why we are playing withthis since the future for filmitself is pretty uncertain.”

What was needed to be fixedabout the digital camerasmarket, TVBEurope wonders? “I wanted more colourists in theworld,” says Petty. “Most people

involved in professional videohad the picture and the soundbut the emotional track, which agreat colourist can deliver, wasmissing. I thought it a tragedythat only the biggest post housescould afford grading kit. We gotDa Vinci out and then it hit usthat some of the most creativepeople were using DLSRs butthat these cameras had next tono dynamic range. The Alexawas awesome, but expensive, so

the thinking was, why notintroduce the emotional trackfor everyone?”

Petty says he made initialapproaches with the idea tocamera manufacturers, but wasbeaten back, “They wanted todo their own thing.”

In 2012 it unveiled a digital HDcinema camera with 13 f-stops forjust £1500 and followed that upwith the BM4K super35mmcamera, just shipping, costing£2500 and a digital super16mmvariant dubbed the PocketCinema Camera.

“The entire world will buyUltra HD at some point,” predictsPetty. “The increasing pixeldensity of screens make it logical.In Europe, Ultra HD is importantbecause broadcasters have beenhobbled by electing 1080i ratherthan 1080p HD, so the jump inresolution to 4K will be felt.

“However, the computerindustry will send 4K to thehome before broadcast does.Broadcasters have to figure out

how to get UHD 60p down aconventional channel. UHD atlow frame rates is doable buteven so it will emerge prettyrough on transmission. Theproblem is that 4K is beingdriven by organisationspretending that low frame rateUHD is good enough. That’s apress release, not a workflow.”

Expressing admiration forARRI and Chyron, Petty hasharsh words for most othermanufacturers. “Most vendorsare stupid, not smart. Theydon’t care about the product.Their only goal is to extract asmuch from the business as theycan. It’s incredibly short termist,and greedy.”

Healthy work ethic“I’m stunned at what is wrongwith companies when we acquirethem and we can examine theminternally. There are so manypressures on businesses just to be bland, never to take a risk.We’ve never taken any outsideinvestment at Blackmagic and we have no debt. As soon ascompanies do that they arebeholden to a new master.”

Instead, Petty describes his350-employee company ashaving a “healthy work ethic”and claims not to be interestedin building market share.

“What’s healthy is workinghard and feeling you didsomething rather than just sat inmeetings all day,” he says. “We arenot psychotic about making moneyat all costs and hardcore sales. Weare unashamedly geeky. We wantto be friendly and be of service.Call that nerdy if you like.”

Until recently, Petty wasinvolved in every aspect of everysingle product, including writingall marketing copy. “My job isto bind it all together and set theculture,” he says. “I wish I coulddo more. I don’t have any grandvision and I’m surprised anddelighted when it works.

“When we announcesomething that surprises themarket at a trade show, it’s oftenbecause we ourselves have onlymade the decision to go for it acouple days earlier. You getreally nervous when you dosomething creative because youcan get it utterly wrong.Sometimes I’ll have an idea and Ican’t sleep for weeks, wonderingif it will work and if we can getit out the door before someoneelse does. I constantly feel we arenot good enough, that there areso many things to fix, and notenough time. But I amoverwhelmed and grateful thatpeople like what we do.”www.blackmagicdesign.com

Blackmagic Design CEO Grant Petty gives a characteristically candid interview to Adrian Pennington about being in business to change companies and fix broken products

“Most vendors don’t care about theproduct. Their only goal is to extract asmuch from the business as they can. It’sincredibly short termist, and greedy”

Grant Petty, Blackmagic Design

The Fixer: Blackmagic’s Grant Pettyremakes an industry in his own image

Until recently, Petty was involved in every aspect ofevery single product, including writing all marketing copy

The Business Casewww.tvbeurope.com JJanuary 201420 TVBEurope

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The WorkflowTVBEurope 23JJanuary 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

“THE BIG change in lensrequirements in recent years isdue to the move from 2/3-inch 3-CCD cameras to large format,single sensor cameras,” saysStefan Czich, general manager,Broadcast and CCTV Products,Pyser-SGI (Fujinon’s UK andIreland distributor).

“The growth in demand for35mm PL glass has beenpredominantly driven by thecamera manufacturers,” agreesSebastian Kanabar, salesmanager, Prokit, UK distributorfor Schneider-Kreuznach’s Cine-Xenar III PL- or EF-mountprime lenses (available in 18, 25,35, 50, 75 and 95mm focallengths). “Six years ago therewere a mere handful of cameraswith a Super 35mm sensor. The Red One was the mostaffordable option, but even thatinvolved an investment of tens ofthousands of pounds. Alongsidethat were the ARRI D21 and theSony F35, which required agreater investment.”

Today more than a dozendifferent video cameras have a‘large sensor’. “For the lowervalue cameras, the Sony EA50,Canon C100, BlackmagicCinema Camera, clients often optto go for stills lenses, usually dueto their budget. For the highervalue systems clients appreciatethe need for better glass. Aroundthe launch of the Red One andARRI Alexa, we saw a hugesurge in demand for high-qualitycine glass. And in the last 24months, with the launch of theCanon C300 and C500, and theSony F5 and F55, this has justcontinued. Next year the launchof the Amira should maintain thedemand,” adds Kanabar.

“The biggest change in lenstechnology is the resolution of thesensor,” agrees cameraman Steffan

Hewitt, founder/director, Polecam,which supplies miniature lenses tofit the small cameras often usedwith its system.

But “it’s not always aboutpure resolution. Look at CookeOptics. It’s not necessarily the best image, but it is the right image,” he adds. At 4K,cameras are starting to push theboundaries of traditional lenssystems, although “you do finda lot of people going back to16mm and other older lenses,because they actually werefantastic quality”.

Lens technology changesslowly, because (except for somelow-end plastic lenses) it usesglass, which takes time. “Tophysically make a lens still takesjust as long as it did 20 yearsago,” says Hewitt. “If I orderlenses today from ResolveOptics [which makes the world’ssmallest zoom for miniaturecameras, the Z10], it still takes12 weeks, because it takes thatlong to grind glass.”

Just like the rest of the industry,the small cameras he often workswith are moving to larger sensors— from 1/3-inch to 2/3-inch chips,“which means we can access arange of HD prime lenses that

compliment the sensor”, he says.The tiny C-mount camera can be used with Kowa’s small new 10 megapixel prime lenses.

“I’ve just come back fromDubai shooting the LadiesEuropean Tour Golf Finals with alovely wide-angle prime that reallycomplements the Antelope Picohigh-speed minicam.” He used aPolecam and Pico with the new

Kowa 5mm wide-angle (85º fieldof view) lens, which gave him“massive depth of field” at 280fps(which turned a two second shotof teeing off into 15 seconds ofanalysis — “the commentatorsloved it”). Single 2/3-inch sensorsare now fitted to many smallcameras (Indiecam, IO Industries,LMC and LMP), and the 5mm gave negligible distortion,

compared to the “huge distortion”of the equivalent 2.5mm lens on athree-chip 1/3-inch camera. It alsoopens to F1.6, compared to F2.2on the 2.5mm.

Prime directiveKanabar believes that “thesingle biggest determiner forlens design in the next few yearswill be the advances in sensor

The biggest advancein lenses recentlyhas been driven notby some new type ofglass, but by largercamera sensors.David Fox reports

Prime time: The new Canon CN-E35mm T1.5 L F lens

In for a long stretch: The 40mm is oneof Cooke’s new Anamorphic/i rangePollitt: “The super-wide angle 35mm Stadium Lens is ideal for a Red or Alexa”

Open wider: ARRI’s new UWZ 9.5-18 Ultra Wide Zoom

Lens technology changes slowly, because (except for somelow-end plastic lenses) it uses glass, which takes time

Sensor requirementsloom large for lenses

METADATA HAS been anapproaching technology in lenses forseveral years, but even when thelenses can deliver it, it is either notbeing captured or nothing is beingdone with it in post. Cooke Optics isnow working with other companies tomake lens data, such as its /i2

Technology, more relevant to whatusers do in post and to make itsimpler to capture.

“/i2 Technology is the nextgeneration of our intelligentmetadata system, augmentingnormal lens metadata (iris, focus)with the inertial movement of thelens. So, if you are tracking a shot andsomeone walks in front of the marker,the inertial data software willautomatically find that track,” says

Les Zellan, chairman and owner,Cooke Optics.

Cooke has worked with Pixel Farm,with its PF Track, “to assist them ineither making a solvable track moreaccurate or, if it loses the track,making the two ends meet,” heexplains. “This is a big issue. Trackingsoftware is very accurate on 97% of shots, but on the 2-3% it can be expensive.”

Cooke is also working with CodexDigital on recording the metadata.“Although there are several /i2

cameras (ARRI, Sony and Red), theyall treat the data differently. They all can record our lenses, but whatthey do with it is out of our control.”To avoid this data going astray,Codex is also making a small

stand-alone metadata recorder thatwill plug into the lenses and alsorecord timecode. It will also be usablewith non /i2 cameras.

Lenses square up to inertia

Zellan: /i2 Technology should ensureyou don’t lose track of tracking data

technology. A higher resolutionsensor will either require ahigher lens resolution, or a lensable to cover a larger area.We’ve already seen 8K capturetechnologies tested, and if thesecome into the mainstream, lensresolution will have to increaseexponentially. The Red Dragonsensor captures 6K, but over an image circle of 33.5mm,larger than the image circle ofSuper35, which is 31.5mm.There are a limited range of cinelenses that cover that sort ofimage size, and the ones that do,don’t have the ability to resolve6K. If the Red trend continues,we’ll see lenses that have tocover an increasingly larger andmore demanding sensor.”

The Cine-Xenar III lenseshave a 31.5mm image circlesuitable for sensors of up toabout 5.5K, but Kanabar claimsthey “bear comparison toARRI/Zeiss Ultra Primes orCooke S4s. They have a similarbuild, size, weight, and imagequality, but they are less thanhalf the price. They also havethat certain ‘look’ to them thatis so cherished by many.”

Before being appointeddistributors Prokit tested therange. “We knew from ourexperience with Red, just how demanding the lensrequirements for 4K sensors canbe. Glass that looks great onfilm, or a 2/3-inch sensor, gaveunpredictable results on a digital chip. With the Cine-Xenars we were looking forglass that would resolve around200lp/mm in the centre, be freeof chromatic aberrations, andnot breathe while focussing.Most of all, we were after glassthat gave consistent, repeatableresults on a digital sensor. Wehad calls from clients who, afterupgrading their camera, weredissatisfied with the results theywere getting from their 35mmstills glass. The Cine Xenarsseemed to be a good option,” he says.

Schneider-Kreuznach has alsodeveloped a new range of full-frame primes, both for DSLRcameras with full-frame sensors

and cine cameras. The XenonT2.1 colour-matched lensesinclude seven fixed focal lengths:25, 35, 50, 75 and 100mm, witha macro lens and further focallengths to follow. They can befitted with F, EF or PL mounts,and have: identical externaldimensions and controlpositions; circular aperture with 14 blades; manual focussettings with a 300° angle ofrotation; larger focus anddistance scales for easierfocussing even with greaterdistances, readable on bothsides; and a M95 filter thread.

Canon’s new CN-E35mm T1.5L F prime lens takes its range ofEF Cinema primes to a total ofsix lenses. The CN-E35mm hasbeen developed in response tostrong demand from Cinema EOSusers, and has a compact designthat promises fast performance,which Canon believes makes itideal for shooting in challenginglow-light conditions.

The 35mm lens is designed for4K production, with full framecoverage, and is colour matchedto others in the range, as well asfeaturing the same form factorand uniform markings, makingit easy to switch between lenseswhen on a shoot.

Cooke has extended itsminiS4/i range of primes to

include 40mm, 65mm and135mm focal lengths, with a21mm also in development. Thiswill grow the range to 10 lenses(the S4/i range has 18 lensesfrom 12mm to 300mm).

The miniS4/i lenses are allT2.8 (compared to the T2 of the S4/i and T1.4 of the 5/irange), which makes themconsiderably less expensive.“The real thing you are payingfor is speed. The faster the lens,the higher the price, and withthe increasing speed of cameras,T2.8 is often fast enough,” saysLes Zellan, chairman andowner, Cooke Optics.

A new entry to the videomarket is Samyang Optics,which is known in thephotography market for goodquality lenses at reasonableprices. It now hopes to do thesame for video with its V-DSLRcine lenses. The new 16mm T2.2 is €420, but should rivallenses costing at least doublethat from higher-endmanufacturers for quality,claims its product manager,Piotr Madura.

The V-DSLR lenses are rackcompatible with Follow Focussystems, and promise smooth,noiseless rotation of theaperture ring. They are availablefor Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony A

The Workflowwww.tvbeurope.com January 201424 TVBEurope

NEW ENG adapters from cmotionallow operators to use familiarbroadcast controllers for focus andzoom when using external motorsmounted on cine-style lenses. Theadapters create an interface betweenCanon and Fujinon broadcast stylecontrollers and components fromcmotion’s new and existing lenscontrol system.

When used with some broadcastcameras and cmotion’s camin, the irismotor can be controlled automaticallyby the camera’s internal sensor. It isalso possible to synchronise this for3D broadcast.

It’s new cforce motors can alsobe daisy chained and then connected

to an ENG adapter through a single cable.

When using systems such asTelecast Fibre, the iris scale can alsobe controlled from an OB truck orstudio using a cvolution knob solo.

Also new is the Compact LCS,cmotion’s first budget lens controlsystem, which can offer precisioncontrol for up to three motors,whether wireless or hardwired,through an ergonomic, easy to usehand unit.

It uses new cforce motorsdeveloped with ARRI that are claimedto provide outstanding performancewhile being virtually silent (less than 20dB).

Broadcast control for cine lenses

Force fed: cmotion’s cforce motors are controlled via a single cable from the ENG adapter

Perfect for the JJ Abrams look: Shenk with the ARRI/Zeiss MA100

An 18mm Schneider-Kreuznach Cine-Xenar III on a Blackmagic Production Camera 4K

Fujinon’s 85-300m, 19-90 and new14-35mm Cabrio lenses withdetachable ENG-style servo control

Tee shot: Hewitt used a Polecam and high-speed Antelope Pico with

the new Kowa 5mm wide-angle lens

and Sony E mounts. The Fish-eye (180°diagonal) 8mm T3.8 and the 16mm T2.2both cover an APS-C/Super 35mm-sizesensor, whereas the 14mm T3.1, and24mm, 35mm T1.5 and 85mm (all T1.5)are full frame. Prices range from €379 forthe 8mm to €650 for the 24mm. Futuremodels will include a 50mm and a135mm T1.8.

Super wideThe new Abakus 35mm Stadium Lenscan bring an all-encompassing 202º viewto Super35 sensor cameras. The £11,5009mm T2.8 PL-mount lens is verycompact, and weighs just 1.6kg.

Although called a stadium lens, it isalso useful in confined spaces, such as ona car dashboard, where it can show theview from both side windows, which hasthe effect of making the car look as if it isgoing faster.

“We’ve put in an internal filter holder,because you can’t put one on the curvedlens at the front, however, there is a frontprotector you can fit, for use onhelicopters or exposed locations, thatuses a plastic that is really good opticallyand doesn’t attract dust,” says Abakusfounder, Dr Ken Pollitt.

Also new for Super35 or full-frame35mm sensors is the Abakus XLborescope/periscope, which will comewith five lenses (10, 14, 20, 28 and 40mm)for about €48,000. The lenses incorporatecontrollable LED lighting for especiallyclose-up subjects, with rear controls anda filter holder for accessibility.

Zoom with a viewARRI’s new UWZ 9.5-18 Ultra WideZoom is claimed to be “the first superwide-angle zoom lens for the professionalcine market.” The UWZ 9.5-18/T2.9, hasan image circle of 33.7mm and uses

patented technologies to overcomeproblems with previous wide-angle zooms.

Its optical performance is claimed tobe comparable to, or even exceed, some

high-end wide-angle prime lenses, and itis optimised for the requirements of VFXapplications. Distortion is less than 1% at9.5mm and less than 0.1% at 18mm, so

that straight lines stay straight, even atclose focus. A new multilayer, anti-reflective coating, means that flare andveiling glare are minimised, whileexchangeable matte box interfaces ensureadequate sun protection whether filtersare in use or not.

The telecentric optical design of theUWZ should give it highly uniform fieldillumination, while ARRI Lens DataSystem functionality outputs lens metadatafor zoom, focus and aperture settings.


Steady state: Fujinon’s new XA55x9.5BESM HD lens with built-in stabilisation

Focus on value: Madura with the new 16mm T2.2 V-DSLR lens

“The single biggest determiner forlens design in the next few yearswill be the advances in sensortechnology” Sebastian Kanabar, Prokit

Fujinon has a range of 4KHK Premier cine lenses aimed athigh-end cameras that covers14.5mm to 400mm using fourlenses with overlapping focallengths, but of most interest tobroadcast users is its new Cabriorange. This combines 4K PL-mount optics in a compacthousing “with a zoom and focusservo unit that is familiar toENG camera operators, a large

rotational angle for zoom andfocus, and T-stop markings thatthose from a film backgroundexpect,” says Czich.

“The servo is easy to detachand refit so the lenses may beused cine or video style. We havefound that one of the keybenefits is that using the servopackage the lens can be used in

OB or studio configuration,including remote control of irissettings. Fujinon and Pyser-SGIhave been involved with tests ofboth 4K sports programmes and4K high frame rate recordings.Both of these will be key tosuccessfully rolling out 4Kproduction for broadcast.”

The new Cabrio ZK2.5x14 14-35mm/T2.9 wide angle is thelatest addition to the range, which

now covers 14-300mm with threelenses. Without the servo driveunit, the lens can be used in thetraditional cinema manner, withor without external cine motorsfor zooming and focussing. Thelens includes a Macro Functionfor shooting as close as 33cm.

Zeiss will release the third andwidest of its Compact Zoom lens

family, the CZ.2 15-30/T2.9, byNAB. It will join the lightweightCZ.2 70-200/T2.9 and CZ.228-80/T2.9 lenses, which provedso popular that Zeiss had todouble its production capacity in order to reduce the lead timefrom six or seven months to three to four months.

“Our Compact Zoom familyis the only cine-style zoom withfull frame coverage [24x36mm],

and we are the only ones withthe interchangeable mountsystem [for PL, EF, F, MFT andE mounts],” claims HelmutLenhof, Zeiss product managerfor Digital Cinema. Despite thefact that lenses get bigger astheir image area increases “this is still light [2.5kg] andcompact,” he adds. Full frame

The Workflowwww.tvbeurope.com JJanuary 201426 TVBEurope

Full-frame zoom: Lenhof with the new CZ.2 15-30/T2.9

“There’s a huge demand for anamorphics.Digital makes anamorphic use a lot easier than film did, but digital can alsolook boring, while anamorphic addstexture and feeling” Les Zellan, Cooke Optics

coverage means they can also be used onDSLRs, and they can create a sweet spoteffect and a uniformity of illuminationwhen used on Super35 sensors.

Price for the CZ.2 15-30 should besimilar to the other Compact Zooms(about €14,900) and they will be exactlycolour matched (as they are with theARRI/Zeiss Master Prime andARRI/Zeiss Ultra Prime lenses). TheCZ.2 15-30 will replace the discontinuedLightweight Zoom LWZ.2.

The new Angénieux Optimo 25-250DP T3.5 zoom lens may be moreaffordable than the 28-340mm and 24-290mm Optimo DP zooms, but it iscomparable in quality, significantlylighter (at 7kg instead of 11kg) and morecompact. “Optically it is really highperformance, and mechanically it is verystrong,” claims Jean-Yves Le Poulain,Thales Angénieux product manager forcinema/TV lenses.

There is 32mm sensor coverage with“close to 6K” resolution. It meets theDCI specification for 4K projection, so isvery flat. Minimum focus is 1.2m. Itcomes with a PL mount as standard, butcan be fitted with Panavision, Canon EFor Nikon F mounts.

It boasts good flare correction, so it canwork without a shade, while filters, evengels, fit at the back of the lens at a pointwhere dirt on the filter won’t be critical.There is also a Cooke /i technologyinterface for metadata. The lens will cost€39,000 when it ships next month.

Mount upSchneider Optics’ new 1.4x CenturyExtender for PL-mount cameras canincrease the range of a lens by 40% withjust a single F-stop loss in light.

The Century 1.4x MK II PL to PLExtender mounts between a PL-mount

camera and lens, and allows zoomingwhile maintaining focus. It also allowsmount clearance of up to 14mm from thePL mount flange.

Schneider Optics has also introduced anew In-Camera Filter System developedby Clairmont Camera for the ARRIAlexa. It uses custom assemblies thathold interchangeable Schneider filters infront of the Alexa’s sensor.

Denny Clairmont, CEO of the rentalhouse, says the camera’s high lightsensitivity (600 ISO and beyond), makesuse of neutral density filters particularlyimportant. “One of the thingscinematographers appreciate most aboutthe ARRI Alexa is the excellent lightsensitivity. Working at higher ISO ratingscan lead to lots of ND if you want toshoot wide open.”

The kit includes a magnetic filter holder that replaces the Alexa’slight baffle. It also comes with shims (to precisely compensate for the focuschange resulting from the behind thelens filter), a filter installation tool, and seven mounted Schneider ultraprecision multi-coated in-camera filters: Clear, IRND .3, .6, .9, 1.2, 1.5 and 1.8. When no filtering is needed, a clear filter is used to maintainfocus, and filters can be changed in minutes.

The kit can be used with most PLlenses but is not compatible with ZeissT2.1 16mm, 24mm, 32mm, ARRI Macro16mm, 24mm, or 32mm, or the CookeSeries II and III 18mm, 25mm and 32mmlenses. Lens extenders may also interferewith the filters.

Anamorphics give digital personalityAnamorphic lenses have seen a surge inpopularity recently, with theintroductions of new lenses fromARRI/Zeiss, Cooke and Angénieux.

Cooke Optics is introducing sevenAnamorphic/i lenses: 25mm, 32mm,40mm, 50mm, 75mm, 100mm and135mm, all T2.3. “There’s a hugedemand for anamorphics. We haveorders stretching long into the future,”says Zellan.

“Digital makes anamorphic use a loteasier than film did,” but digital canalso look boring, while anamorphicadds texture and feeling, he argues.“One reason Cooke lenses remainpopular is that they have a personalitythat people like.”


LMC’s NEW LensView App uses an iPhone tosimulate a camera’s field of view so you can seewhat all Fujinon and Canon broadcast lenseswill look like for any 2/3-inch or 1/3-inchbroadcast camera.

“When you use LensView during your site survey, you will not have any headacheswhen you arrive on site at your actualproduction, because you already know whatyour cameras are going to see,” explains TVdirector, Felix Marggraff, CEO of LMC(LiveMotionConcept).

He promises that the app, which costs€8.99/£6.99/$9.99, will be updated withnew lenses as they emerge and that data forlenses from Angénieux, as well as ARRI,GoPro, Phantom, Red and other cameras “willfollow soon”.

Other updates promised include: comparisonscreen shots within the app (currently you can

take a screenshot that is saved to the cameraroll); and forwarding of screenshots straightfrom the app — by email, mms, etc. “We want to

keep the app simple though, as we all know thatduring a site survey you want quick results andeasy operations,” he adds.

Field of view: There’s an App for that

Field research: The view from LMC’s new LensView iPhone app

Beauty is in the eye of the filter holder: Le Poulain demonstrates the Optimo

It is working with ThalesAngénieux to ensure that boththeir ranges of anamorphiclenses are compatible. “Cookeprimes and Angénieux zoomshave always complemented eachother in terms of look andcolour. They are frequently usedtogether on feature films,” says Zellan.

The Angénieux anamorphiczooms, starting with a 56-152mm T4, will have aunique optical design combiningspherical and cylindricalelements in the same group todeliver exceptional sharpnessand low distortion. “The entireline will perfectly match with thenew Cooke primes and will befriendly, usable, compact andlightweight,” says PierreAndurand, CEO and president,Thales Angénieux. Both rangeswill be available this year.

There will soon be sevenARRI/Zeiss Master Anamorphiclenses available. Four havealready started shipping (theMA35, 50, 75 and 100mm), with the MA40 and 60 due inFebruary, and the MA135 inApril. They were designed and

built by Carl Zeiss to meetARRI’s specifications.

The low-distortion lenseshave a fast T-stop of T1.9,for shallow depth-of-fieldwork, which can be used“with any focal length, atany distance, withoutsacrificing image quality;gone are the days whenanamorphic lenses had to be stopped down to T4 toget an acceptable result,”says Stephan Shenk,ARRI’s general manager,camera division.

Skin tone rendition ispromised to be “pleasing andfilm-like, while colours are crispand natural”. Image qualityshould be consistently highthroughout the frame, with nodrop-off towards the corners.The lenses also have 15 irisblades, to give a pleasing look toout-of-focus highlights.

Measure for measureCooke has also introduced anew Metrology line of testingequipment “to raise industrystandards.” Its first model is anew lens test projector that is

designed for today’s fast lensesand is so bright that it can bedemonstrated in daylight(although it is dimmable),making it much easier to discernflaws and artefacts in fast lenses. Many current projectorscannot pass a beam correctly

through lenses that are fasterthan T2.

It has an interchangeablelens mount to work with anylens and can be used tocheck lens performance,match lenses, and set thelens up correctly before itgoes out on a job.

There will also be a T-StopMachine, “for measuring how

accurate the T-stops on a lensare, to make sure it’s really a T2 and not a T2.4,” says Zellan.It too will work with any brandof lens.

On the boxFujinon’s new XA55x9.5BESMHD telephoto box lens is “thefirst in its class to include anoptical image stabiliser. This willallow for rock steady images tobe produced even when thecamera is moving due to wind oran unsteady base, this featurehas only been found in longer,more expensive lenses untilnow,” says Czich.

The 2/3-inch format 55x zoomis fitted with an integralcamera/lens support, a costsaving compared to buying a

separate cradle. “This integralcradle also reduces camera-rigging times. With quickrigging and competitive pricingthis lens is aimed at areas suchas religious broadcasts, concerts,party conferences and sportsevents,” he adds.

The lens has a 16-bit encoder tooutput precise zoom, focus andother lens data, and can be usedwith virtual systems that combineCG images with live pictures. Itsfocal length is 9.5mm to 525mm(plus 2x extender). Maximumrelative aperture is F1.7 up to308mm and F2.9 at 525mm,minimum object distance is 3m,and the lens weighs 24.8kg.www.abakus.co.uk www.angenieux.comwww.arri.comwww.canon-europe.comwww.cmotion.euwww.cookeoptics.com www.fujinon.de www.livemotionconcept.de www.polecam.com www.prokit.co.ukwww.pyser-sgi.comwww.samyang-europe.comwww.schneideroptics.comwww.zeiss.com/cine


Full on: The new Xenon 75mm/T2.1full-frame prime

SEVEN YEARS ago, the Black Searesort of Sochi in the Russian Federationwas chosen as the venue for the 2014Winter Olympics and Paralympics.Although this is the first occasion alocation in Russia has been selected tohost these games, the name of Sochi is setto become quite familiar. As well as theforthcoming Olympics, the city will be thesite of the Russian Formula 1 Grand Prixfrom 2014 until at least 2020, and it is oneof the host cities for the 2018 FIFAWorld Cup.

To prepare for the extensive televisioncoverage demanded by these events,ANO Sports Broadcasting (now betterknown as Panorama) was established in2009 as an autonomous non-profitorganisation by Russia’s Channel One,VGTRK, NTV-PLUS and the RIANovosti news agency. It will provide thenational signal for the Olympics (OBSprovides the international feed) andinternational signal for the Paralympics.

One of Panorama’s first moves was toorder 12 outside broadcast units fromSony. Complementing these OB units wasa mobile master control room to integratethe output from the vans and othersources, and combine them into oneproduction unit.

Test runsUsing that impressive inventory ofvehicles, the company has been involvedin numerous projects in preparation forthe upcoming games. It acted as hostbroadcaster for 17 Olympic test events inthe 2011-2013 winter seasons that took

place in Sochi. These included the FigureSkating Grand Prix at the Iceberg WinterSports Palace and the Ski Jumping WorldCup. Both events were transmitted to aworldwide audience.

“The Iceberg Palace of Winter Sportswas the first commissioned Olympic


The downhill run to Sochi

Many of the personnel manning the production unitshave come from the extensive training programmethat Panorama HD established three years ago

A Robycam system was installed to enhance ice skating coverage during the run up to the Games

The 22nd Winter OlympicGames commence nextmonth in Sochi, Russia.Philip Stevensinvestigates how OBprovider Panoramaprepared the way for theworld’s biggest wintersports event

Panorama will also cover the Paralympics from Sochi starting in March


WHILE PANORAMA HD is providingthe bulk of the broadcast facilities forthe Sochi Olympics, Moscow-basedsystems integrator OKNO-TV hasalso been heavily involved in the run-up to the games.

“We were included in the Sochi2014 Organizing Committee expertgroup a few years ago and participatedin the consultations involving thevarious stadia, and we developed theconcept of a temporary infrastructureat the Competition Venues andInternational Broadcast Centre,”explains Andrei Kretov, OKNO-TV’shead of Sport Broadcasting andInfrastructure Department. “Sincethen, my colleague Oleg Anakovskiy,OKNO-TV’s head of special projects

department, who hadpreviously worked for over twoyears in the Sochi OrganizingCommittee as head of broadcastsystem division, and I have beeninvolved with Panorama in its MediaOffice project and its virtual graphicsdevelopment plans.”

Part of that preparation centred ontechnical software test events in 2012that took place in the KrasnayaPolyana and Imiritinskaya Dolinaareas. These locations are designatedto host all Olympic and ParalympicCompetitions, and include the FishtArena – the venue for the Opening andClosing ceremonies. In effect, the setup provided a useful dress rehearsalfor the real thing in February.

“We provided a temporary deploymentof infrastructure for sports productionservices,” states Kretov. “LED screensand sound systems were installed, allthe connections to the televisioncompound were provided, and theintercom system and base stationsconfigured. In addition, a cabletelevision network serving more than30 locations around the area wasinstalled at the ski jump venue, RusskieGorki. Also, we were providingintercom and sound system at theAizberg Ice Arena.”

Adverse weatherHe continues: “These

tests helped to identifypotential problem areas— especially whereextremes of weather areconcerned. There wereparticularly heavy rain

storms during the tests,and although that affected

the progress of some work,the technology stood up and

there were no disruptions to thetest broadcasts.”

Since those trials, OKNO-TV hasbeen working with Russian RightsHolder Broadcaster, VGTRK, to provideequipment for its use at IBC in Sochi.

“We were responsible formodernising equipment for VGTRK inreadiness for the events. Much of thisequipment will be placed in thetechnology office of the broadcasterwithin the IBC. In addition to thisupdating project, we have beenworking to deliver communicationsequipment based on Net Insight on itsNimbra platform for networking toform a unilateral indemnity programmefor broadcasts from Sochi.”

A number of broadcasters utilisedthe Nimbra platform at the 2012London Olympics for transportsolutions that deliver the requiredrealtime, low latency content with100% QoS.

“Three network CommunicationNodes are planned, two of them are at the facilities in the IBC inSochi, one at the broadcaster’sheadquarters in Moscow. Indemnityscheme provides 100% redundancy.The configuration provides eight HD-SDI feeds from the IBC to the studio centre and three return feeds, with compression atjpeg2000.”

In addition, a new intercom systembased on Riedel Artist 128 MTX isbeing supplied by OKNO-TV especiallyfor the Games.

Kretov explains that another ofOKNO-TV’s clients, Russia’sChannel One, has been charged withthe responsibility of televising theopening ceremony and plans to offerthe coverage in 4K. There are noplans for 3D transmissions from theWinter Olympics.www.ru.okno-tv.ru

OKNO-TV’s Olympic infrastructure

The trial events provided a chance for afull dress rehearsal for the cameras

The run up to the Gamesprovided an opportunity to check

locations for parking OB vans

“Tests helped to identify

potential problemareas — especiallywhere extremes

of weather areconcerned”

Andrei Kretov, OKNO-TV

The configuration provides eight HD-SDI feeds fromthe IBC to the studio centre and three return feeds

facility,” explains Sergey Revin,Panorama’s CTO. “The camerawork here was also something newfor the creative and productionteam of Panorama. Alongside theconventional cameras, we utiliseda Robycam system to enhance the coverage for the rightsholding broadcasters.”

Robycam, which was developedin Moscow by Movicom, is one of the few aerial cable systemswhich provides the ability to movethe Sony HDC-P1 camera fittedwith a Fujinon HA14x4.5BERDwide angle lens in almost anydirection in 3D. The technologyinvolves using a speciallydeveloped mathematical modelthat serves as a base for realtimecontrol of four automatedwinches. The system incorporatesadvanced gyro-stabilisation andmotion control techniques.

“This equipment allowed us toshow some unusual, andextremely spectacular, angles ofthe skaters on the ice,” adds Revinwith some enthusiasm. He goeson: “For the Ski Jumping WorldCup we used both a 10-cameraand a 16-camera HD OB toensure the most comprehensivecoverage of this important event.”

Training the staffMany of the personnel manningthe production units have comefrom the extensive trainingprogramme that Panorama HDestablished about three years ago.“We selected and trained over 1200people from all over Russia in ourown multi-stage programme. Thiswas unprecedented in scale formodern Russia — for bothresident training and e-learning in27 specialties. The residential coursetook place in Moscow, partly at theSkolkovo School of Management.”

Revin reports that the bestRussian and foreign TVproduction professionals sharedtheir experience with the students.During the breaks between the twofull-time courses the programmeparticipants underwent e-learning.Having successfully completed the course, the participantsreceived state-recognised advancedtraining certificates.

As part of that trainingprogramme, the companydeveloped a mobile applicationfeaturing an English-Russian/Russian-English broadcastingglossary comprising 16,000word combinations.

Learning the lessonsAnother part of the preparationfor Sochi involved a team fromPanorama visiting Ruhpolding,Germany to view how the hostbroadcaster, Bayerischer Rundfunk,covered the Biathlon World Cup.

“Our colleagues from Germanywere helpful by allowing us towatch the entire set-up process rightfrom unreeling the cables to viewingthe production from the OB vans.”

The lessons learned were putinto practice in March 2013 when


“The intensive preparation work that wehave undergone at Panorama will enableus to set a new standard in the coverage ofsuch high profile events” Sergey Revin, Panorama

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the following Biathlon WorldCup took place at the LauraCross-country Ski and BiathlonCentre to the north-east of Sochi.Panorama again was working asthe host broadcaster, providingthe international HD signal ofthe event. However, noteverything ran according to planfor the overall coverage.

Due to the ongoing road worksin the area, the OB units could notget to the Centre and had to beparked about 8km away from thecompetition tracks. To enable TVproduction to go ahead, the signalsfrom all camera positions locatedalong the 10km race tracks weretransferred via dark fibre lines tothe Technical Operations Centre atthe broadcast compound in Laura– and then on to the OB truck.From here the cameras on thetrack were operated remotelythrough Telecast systems. ThePanorama team was using thefibre lines already installed for thecross country events in February.“The whole operation was atremendous success, despite theproblems surrounding the site,”reports Revin.

Software solutionOne significant solution thatPanorama has installed at Sochiis its Media Office system. Thisis a versatile platform thatallows ingesting, editing,logging, storing, searching, and

delivering digital content tomultiple users in realtime.

Feeds coming from any source— OB or DSNG vans, or ENGcrews — are captured and storedin a single archive. Utilising EVS’sIP Web-browser technology, theOffice enables fast search andretrieval of relevant video contentfrom anywhere in the world.

“This is an innovative tool thatallows up to 100 users working onnews bulletins or feature stories tosimultaneously search for andwork with video. It is based on theOctopus6 Newsroom System, andallows users to piece togethervideos, images and text into arundown. It also allows fast editsof video content, such ashighlights, summaries, interviews,packages and so on, and deliveryupon user request, including toOB vans operating at live events.This will be invaluable at Sochi.”

He concludes: “We anticipatethat the Winter Olympic Gameswill attract somewhere in theregion of 3.5 billion viewersworldwide. The intensivepreparation work that we haveundergone at Panorama willenable us to set a new standardin the coverage of such high-profile events.”www.panoramahd.ruwww.robycam.ruwww.octopus-news.comwww.sony.co.ukwww.egripment.com


TYPICALLY, PLANNING for a majorundertaking such as the WinterOlympics would begin about three yearsbefore the event. However, broadcastingrights for the UK audience were notgranted to the BBC until August 2012 –which gave the organisation just 17months to plan its coverage.

“We had already undertaken someprior planning in anticipation ofacquiring the rights, nevertheless thetime frame was still quite tight toprepare for the operation, seekbudget approval and hit Hostbooking deadlines,” explainsJonny Bramley, the BBC’sexecutive producer ofMajor Events.

Fortunately, there wasconsiderable experiencefrom which to draw, basedon covering previous WinterGames. “The operationalmodel we are using in Sochi issimilar to that employed forTurin 2006 and Vancouver2010, with on-site presentation. Butthere is one major difference — thegallery, post production and majority ofthe team will be based in the UK,”reveals Bramley.

A first for SalfordHe goes on to say that this event willbe the first major multi-sportoperation to originate from the BBCSport’s broadcast centre in MediaCityUK at Salford. “There will be dailycoverage on BBC2 from approximately07:00 to 20:00, plus a Red Buttonoperation delivering all events live onup to six separate web streams.”

Although most of the productionwill come from Salford, the BBC willoperate a small switching, editing andmultiplatform facility in the IBC. Inaddition, there will be an operation atthe MBC (Mountain Broadcast Centre)in Krasnaya Polyana. The production

team in Salford across all platforms willnumber around 200, with a further100 personnel travelling to Sochi.

The BBC on-site studio at theOlympic Park will utilise threecameras, two of which will bemanned. A For-A vision mixer andYamaha DM2000 audio console willbe used within the IBC. “We will have

one dedicated ISO camera at theSliding Centre for bobsleigh, luge, andskeleton tracks. This is where we feelwe would get the best value from ourunilateral coverage. These are eventswhere Team GB has a strong medalpotential. We also have AnnouncePositions at a number of othervenues, where the presentationcameras can act as ISOs.”

“Within the IBC and MBCoperations, a total of eight editstations will create features frommaterial shot on site. In addition, asmall news team has an edit facility inthe IBC. Although journalists willundertake some editing of their ownpackages, craft editors will also be onsite to produce the high quality, high

production value edits which reallystand out and give the BBC’sproduction class and polish.”

While Avid is the preferred editingsystem on location, Final Cut Pro willbe in use at the Salford facility. Tohandle the asset management of thecontent, the BBC will be installing aRohde & Schwarz DVS Venice systemwith 96TB of storage at IBC and MBCwith four Avid edit clients on each.

RelationshipsAlongside material produced

by its teams, the BBC willmake use of the recently

introduced ONC(Olympic NewsChannel). Operated by Host BroadcasterOBS, this facilitymakes ENG footage

available to RightsHolder Broadcasters

(RHBs) via its server.However, the BBC has

previously formed relationshipswith other RHBs - notably the

English speaking broadcasters fromthe USA, Canada and Australia — andregularly exchanges archive in orderto provide the most comprehensivecoverage possible.

Beyond the conventional televisedcoverage, the BBC team will becreating some web-specific content inSochi, while their counterparts inSalford will be re-versioning the TVmaterial for streaming.

Bramley concludes, “It isanticipated that these will be alandmark Winter Games for TeamGB, with a record medal haul beingpredicted. To reflect that, we have agreater live presence at venues thanany previous Winter Olympics. Ourgoal is to capture the atmosphere andlive reaction at every event whereTeam GB wins a medal.”

From Salford to Sochi: the BBC at the Winter OlympicsBroadcasters from all over the world will be converging on Sochi.Philip Stevens talks to the BBC about its plans.

“Our goal is to capture

the atmosphere and live reaction atevery event where

Team GB wins a medal”Jonny Bramley,

BBC’s Major Events

Sergey Revin,Panorama’s CTO

AS A mark of how far movie-style VFX for TV have come,consider that the average DoctorWho episode in the last seriescontained up to 100 shots — thesame amount produced by MillFilm for its Oscar-winning workon Gladiator in 2000.

“In 2004 when the BBCtendered Who’s visual effectswork there was virtually noreference material available,”recalls Will Cohen, CEO at MilkVisual Effects. “The only VFXfor TV were graphics sequencesin documentaries orreconstructions in drama docs.”

A decade ago VFX for TVformed a cottage industry inrelation to feature film effect, butnow TV commissioners can baseentire shows around CGIcharacters and environments.Doctor Who, along with HBO’ssprawling fantasy series, Game ofThrones, has helped spawn a newTV genre of sci-fi/fantasy inwhich CGI is embedded in thestorytelling. BlueBolt was thelead vendor on the first season of GoT, completing around 300shots with photo-real CGenvironments and CG dragons.

The ambition with TVThe international success of theseshows have helped ignite a widercreative renaissance in TV drama.A-list directors like StevenSoderburgh, Ridley Scott andDavid Fincher find the freedom totell expansive stories outside theconfines of Hollywood, whilecable and internet giants like HBO,Showtime, Starz and Netflix —which has just signed four seriesfrom Disney’s Marvel — have theappetite and deep pockets forsubscriber-netting episodics.

The UK’s VFX for TVindustry remains tiny incomparison to the US which builta sizeable one on the back of

shows like Smallville, but growthis promising in light of therecently introduced TV tax regimewhich gives producers a greaterincentive to locate work here.

Dneg, a beneficiary of Starz,made the decision to shoot the16-hour sci-fi series Outlander in Glasgow, bagging the series’potential 2000 VFX shots. Thefacility also hopes to enticemore work currently shot andposted in the US, to its Londonor Singapore studios.

“We are interested in showsthat shoot in the States but puttheir VFX into the UK,” saysJonathan Privett, who headsDneg TV. “That would be a realdevelopment for the sector.”

The budget differentials remainvast. Privett estimates that for amajor US TV series the VFXbudget could be $2-3 millionspread over 16 hours, whereas fora tentpole 90 minute feature thefigure is more like $50-100 million.

On the other hand, TV VFX work tends to be morepredictable than the fickle natureof film projects which requiremassive scaling up one day and

possible famine the next. Thecollapse of LA’s VFX stalwartRhythm & Hues on completionof Life of Pi is testimony to that.

According to Cohen, a filmVFX house may ramp up its staffand pipelines to create hundredsof shots only to have the show’seditorial slash its requirements.In TV though, the facility facesmultiple but regular transmissiondeadlines ensuring a core spineof work to sustain the business.

“The ambition with TV willalways match that of a feature butthe challenges are time andbudget,” says Cohen, who formedMilk last April with fellowmembers of The Mill’s defunct TVdivision. “The time between seriesdeadlines are very condensed andyou have to stick with what youcome up with first time. On film,you might have the luxury ofcreating a hundred iterations of anobject. In contrast, on TV youhave to go with version seven.”

This demands an economy ofstorytelling he says, where afacility must find a way tocommunicate multiple plot pointsin short sequences. “TV is aslightly more forgiving medium,”he adds. “There is lots of stuffyou can get away with on a TVscreen that you couldn’t if theshot were blown up to a 90ftscreen. That is a huge difference.”

Privett, who left Rushes withVFX producer Louise Hussey tohelp set up Dneg TV also inApril, agrees: “If you’re doing agreen screen shot for example,then the gold standard is 100%perfection but if a tiny bit ofdetail is lost somewhere then on

TV you probably wouldn’t worryabout it, whereas on film youwould go the extra mile. That isthe compromise you make whenyour budget is a hundredth ofwhat it would be for a feature.”

Adds Hussey: “In TV, youdon’t have six months ofcreatures work, you might havefour weeks. Instead of severalmonths of heavy effects design,you might only have time for aquick, simple effect.”

A collaborative approachArtists, however, enjoy a moredirect relationship with the leadcreatives on a TV job. Instead ofdealing with layers of VFXsupervisors and decision bycommittee, by working hands onwith the TV director, facilities canobtain approvals faster and thewhole experience feels morecollaborative. “There’s not asmuch prep time, not as much timeto complete the shot and you haveto think about your approachesmuch more carefully,” says VFXsupervisor Hayden Jones. “Notonly do you need to create theeffect to deadline but when a clientwants an alteration you need tomake those changes quickly.”

Since 2000, the quality gapbetween television and featurefilm effects has shortened and the techniques and technologypipelines to produce them havebecome virtually indistinguishable.“We needed to develop tools tocreate 30 creatures a year forPrimeval [at The Mill] in orderto hit the TV schedule whichmeant devising really light rigs, but that technology andexperience is transposable backto features,” says Cohen.“Deconstruction tools for TVare another element that easilycrosses over.”

Dneg piggybacks its TV armon the pipeline and rigs of itsmammoth feature film businessand found its TV wing useful inestablishing a relationship withmajor directors. Ridley Scott, forexample, placed the VFX forExodus at Dneg after the facilityworked on the pilot for Scott’sTV project for Sony Television,The Vatican. Other projectsinclude the BBC’s By Any Meansand Death in Paradise.

“For TV, we run a slightlystripped down version of thepipelines but it’s not really toodisimilar,” explains Privett. “Thefact that we have a fantasticpipeline in place will help us todo TV VFX faster and betterthan our competitors.”

Dneg, which employs 900people in Fitzrovia, 50 on TV andthe rest on features includingJupiter Ascending, Godzilla, WallyPfister’s Transcendence and AlexGarland’s Ex Machina, has theluxury of exchanging artistsbetween TV and film jobs.

“If we need an effects artist for aweek we can pull one away fromfeatures,” says Hussey. “We havethe ability to cherry pick specificsets of skills, which is harder in a


Small screen, big effects

Will Cohen formed Milk Visual Effectslast April with fellow members of The Mill’s defunct TV division

Doctor Who has helped spawn a new TV genrein which CGI is embedded in the storytelling

Milk’s creations for Doctor Whoincluded a framed painting that isrevealed to be a full 3D environment

The gap in quality between TV and film visual effects has narrowed and the technological resources are interchangeable,yet budgets remain worlds apart. Adrian Pennington reports on the UK’s burgeoning TV VFX sector

boutique company because you’dhave to hire that person from themarket and they might already beworking for companies like us.”

Doctor Who’s high-profile 50thMilk has completed shots forthe third series of Sherlock;creature animation for DavidAttenborough’s Natural HistoryMuseum Alive in 4K 3D for Sky Atlantic; and is in pre-production on BBC/Space’sJonathan Strange and Mr Norrell.It is also working on the featureHercules. The facility issynonymous though withDoctor Who, having worked onall seven series since 2004 andjust landed series eight with apossible two more to follow.

The 129 shots in 3D for the 75-minute special Doctor Who 50thanniversary episode: The Day ofthe Doctor was the team’s first

chance to stereo treat a TV drama.“Because we are dealing with fourtimes the amount of data, the timespent compositing and rendering islonger and the cost was probablydouble the normal spend,” explainsCohen. “We updated CG modelsor created new assets of theTARDIS, Daleks and spacecraftand matte-painted plates werereworked with a stereo depth.”

Milk’s creations included a CGfly-through of the besiegedGallifreyan city Arcadia and aframed painting that appears to bea two dimensional object butwhich, when the camera movesaround it, is revealed to be a full 3Denvironment with depth. Milk alsocreated flying fighter machinesDalek Pods, following initial designby the BBC’s art department. Milkrefined and animated the model inMaya, textured in Mari andrendered it with Arnold beforemarrying it in the CG environment,itself a mix of traditional mattepainting and 3D geometry.

“A lot of the tricks you can get away with in 2D you can no

longer do in 3D,” says Cohen.“Instead of 2D matte paintingyou are exploring the geometry ofthe scene and lighting it in 3Dwhich is more complicated,technically demanding and moretime consuming in terms of set

up and rendering, and it requiresmore crew.”

“You rescale elements in 2D soyou can tell how large an object is.In 3D, though, extreme rescalingdoesn’t work so that is one exampleof a technique that is removed from

your box of tricks. 2D elements willoften not work in stereo as theyhave no depth.”

Murray Barber, VFX supervisor,was tasked with developing atornado effect which could becontrolled easily shot to shot. “The

hardest thing to create is somethingthat’s not been seen before,” hesays. “It’s a process of trial anderror until we come up with a lookthat the director likes and it fits intothe storyboard.”www.milk-vfx.com


A decade ago VFX for TV formed a cottage industry in relationto feature film effects, but now TV commissioners can baseentire shows around CGI characters and environments

“The ambition with TV will alwaysmatch that of a feature,” Will Cohen,CEO of Milk VFX


Getting even moreout of the box

Ash: Business wise, reachingmore Tier 1 broadcasters thanever before. Most didn’t evenacknowledge that CiaB existedone to two years ago.

Calverley: The issue now ishow much further can we pushthe resources of a single box?Oasys has found a way to notonly enhance channel countwithout increasing the hardwareneeded, but also to provideadditional services such assimulcast, delayed andalternative content outlets.Managing this ever increasingcomplexity has been a challenge,

both technically andcommercially. We believe thatChameleon, the integratedsolution we launched at IBC, isa big step forward in addressingthis challenge.

Gittins: Virtualisation is a hottopic and several vendors,including Pebble Beach Systems,are engaged in developingsolutions in this space. However,one interesting advance is the pre-rendering of complex graphics.Our new Marlin automated pre-render workflow addresses this,acting as a plug-in to AdobeAfter Effects and taking the

‘heavy lifting’ of graphics out ofthe CiaB box. By managing thegeneration of 3D graphics inadvance and then reinsertingthem into the playlist as a clip,Marlin avoids the potential for

integrated channel devices to beoverloaded during playout.

Mehring: New innovationshave provided manyopportunities to include an everincreasing level of functionality

into software solutions,including features such asDolby, loudness correction,viewer measurement, to name afew. Increased performance inIT equipment and connectivityoffer greater power for theseplatforms, as well as theopportunity to stream usingH.264 or AVC Intra for use inmore advanced systems.

Rose: Although the bestsystems have already addedgraphics, multi-formatplayback, advanced audiohandling and other features,the last 12 months have seen anew focus to bring those keymissing components of thechannel chain into solutions.Miranda identified thatsubtitling and captioning arecritical components for asignificant segment of themarket. We acquired Softel andintroduced its technology intoour portfolio. What is now theMiranda Softel Swift TXsubtitle/caption managementand delivery solution is aperfect fit with our iTXintegrated playout platform.

Shell: The innovation forCiaB products over the last 18 months has been in twoareas. First, the evolution toenterprise-quality automationand workflow tools. Secondly,the maturation of graphicsfeatures, plus integration withgraphics presentation toolsets.Moving forward the CiaB I/Osolution of choice is going to beIP with baseband over IP. Thesolutions will tend to besoftware only and positioned forvirtualisation and the cloud.

ForumChannel in a Box

Channel in a Box technology isever evolving. What has beenthe most innovative advanceover the past 12 to 18 months?

LAST YEAR’S Channel in a Box (CiaB) Forumproduced diverse and interesting observations.Unsurprisingly, the subject continues to generateinterest within the industry. So we gathered togethersome of those involved with the technology to seewhat difference a year has made. They are (inalphabetical order) Don Ash, managing partner anddirector, sales at Playbox Technology; Ed Calverley,VP product engineering, Oasys Automated Playout;Tom Gittins, director of sales, Pebble Beach Systems;Ofer Lugasi, Blend product manager, Orad Hi Tec

Systems; Karl Mehring, Snell’s senior productmanager; Scott Rose, director of productmanagement, Miranda Technologies; Mat Shell,product marketing manager at Harris; Bruce Straight,director sales and marketing at ToolsOnAir; Sanderten Dam, senior director media playout solutions,Grass Valley; Andy Warman, senior productmarketing manager for Harmonic; Jan Weigner, CTOand managing director, Cinegy GmbH; Nick Wright,CTO and co-founder of Pixel Power, and GoceZdravkoski, managing director, Stryme.

Don Ash, Playbox: “Most (broadcasters) didn’t even acknowledge CiaB existed one or two years ago”

Philip Stevens moderates this month’s Forum that looks at Channel in a Box, a topic that continues to exercise broadcaster’s minds

Straight: Originally CiaBsolutions were dedicatedproprietary hardware. The keytrend in the last 18 months isacceleration in the use ofstandard components and areduction in their footprint and power consumption.Additionally, ToolsOnAir isdeveloping its own peripheryproducts like our Flow:ragevideo optimised storagesolution.

Ten Dam: The enhancementof live control is the mostsignificant advancement inCiaB. The platform has alwayshad live capabilities from aplayout perspective, but hasbeen targeted to structuredplayout with high-level ofautomated processes — manualoperator controls were lessimportant. Live control is nowpart of CiaB, in fact it is goinginto a second phase.

Warman: For Harmonic, thebiggest advance has been therelease of the SpectrumChannelPort integrated channelplayout system with newChannel in a Box capabilitiessuch as dual DVE functionality,dual live inputs, independentbranding of simulcast channels,and support for external key/fill to enable the use ofgraphics systems at the sametime as ChannelPort’s on-boardgraphic branding.

Weigner: The arrival of4K/UHD. Even if you do notcare about the increase inresolution, finally interlace isdead! And, of course, while weare at it — everyone is going IP,so SDI must die.

Wright: Obviously for us, thegraphics, clip-playing and audiohandling are very well roundedcapabilities — you’d expectnothing less. Where we havebeen working hard is partneringwith other manufacturingexperts to integrate otherleading technologies — ourwork with Screen on subtitling isa prime example.

Ash: It is not only practical, it isa reality. PlayBox Technologyhas around 2000 playoutsystems around the world. Theseare scheduled, operated andmonitored remotely. PlayBoxTechnology has a workflow

Ed Calverley, Oasys

How practical is it to install a CiaB in a remotebroadcast facility and monitor it from a central point?

January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com TVBEurope 37


www.tvbeurope.com JJanuary 201438 TVBEurope

product called EdgeBox,designed to achieve this for Tier1 broadcasters. We also offerMulti Playout Manager whichallows single and multiplechannels to be remotelymanaged, controlled andmonitored with different levelsof rights managementassignment. For commercialsinsertion, we have a productcalled AdBox for the remoteinsertion of adverts — orprogrammes, interstitials — at aremote location. These can be

controlled and monitoredcentrally via the internet.Insertion is triggered by cuesthat run a preloaded playlist.

Calverley: Very practical. Aslong as there is no time-criticalmessaging between the remoteand central sites, there is noreason why the actual playoutdevice cannot be locatedanywhere in the world.

Gittins: The Pebble BeachSystems solution deploys adistributed architecture withMarina automation controlling the

Dolphin integrated channeldevice(s). Unlike more basicsolutions, it does not simply offer aconfidence feed which is returnedto the central site, but alsoincorporates the ability foroperations to know in advance thatall primary and secondary contentis loaded. In fact, exactly the samestatus and media validationupdates are given as if the Dolphinwere being controlled locally.

Ten Dam: One should considerthe impact of operating remotechannel(s). Usually remoteplayout is chosen because of costreduction and thus low speedconnections. Content is oftendrip-fed into the playout facilityover that cost-efficient connection.This means it’s probably slowerthan realtime, which has animpact on channel content refreshrates. Caching content on theplayout nodes is the best way tosolve this problem. Variousscenarios can have content loopswith minimal refresh to use as adefault and/or emergencyscenario. It’s not uncommon thatsimilar solutions are actually usedfor disaster recovery playout.

Weigner: Very. That’s whybeing IP-capable — to receive or

emit streams via IP – includingthe confidence, preview, multi-viewer – is a must. Somethingwe do from day one. If thesolution was not architectedwith IP-based remote operationsin mind, then it’s too late now.

Wright: From Pixel Power’spoint of view, the entire waythat ChannelMaster wasarchitected from day one is thatit’s an enterprise-grade,client/server architecture. Thatallows the technology to be sitedwhere it’s most convenient forthe customer’s business. Before asingle line of code existed this

was a decision we’d taken. So interms of how robust andscalable ChannelMaster is, theanswer is very in both cases.

Zdravkoski: Our recentproject for Telecom Italia is agood example. The VideoServeris located in Milan, yet theoperators are in Rome.Nowadays, the actual locationof a VideoServer and its place ofoperation are quite irrelevant. Inother projects, we have installedthe VideoServer in Vienna, butthe studio and the channeloperator are located inKulmbach, Germany.


Tom Gittins, Pebble Beach

Ofer Lugasi, OradBruce Straight, ToolsOnAir

Calverley: That all depends onyour definition of a channel.Some incorrectly assume CiaBsystems are simply acombination of video server andgraphics keyer, when in realitymost channels require a wholelot more features - such assubtitle and ancillary dataprocessing and support for avariety of input and outputtriggers and protocols. Forsimple SD requirements,channel counts can becomfortably pushed up to eight,with potential for more.

Lugasi: The amount ofplayable channels from a singlebox depends on the box’sperformance, CPU, memory,graphics performance, and PCIlane speed. Technically, a fewchannels can run from a singlebox. The question is, does thebroadcaster want to risk havingchannels come from a single boxor would it prefer a dedicatedbox for the channels?

Mehring: How many channelscan run from one box dependson the box, or even if there is a box. For a box solution, thatdepends on how much and what type of signals are beingoutput. For a completelysoftware, virtualised or cloudbased solution there is no box so the number of channelscomes down to how muchflexible computing power youhave access to which in thecloud theoretically is just about limitless.

Rose: How many channelscould — or should — be run is akey question. Some believe thatrunning as many as possiblefrom a single device is a goodidea, based solely on costconsiderations. However, youneed to ask if committing that

many channels to one device isreally what you want to do.Sure, you can back up thatdevice, but managing multiplechannels to fall over in anemergency or plannedmaintenance is a headache most large broadcasters coulddo without. Plus, there is atrade-off between pure channelcount and functionality. Mostbroadcasters demand the fullchannel chain inside a box,including key requirements such as Dolby E/D, Nielsenwatermarking, captions andadvanced graphics, not just lots of simple playback in one device.

Shell: With the continued andrapid improvements in CPU andGPU technology the amount offunctionality available on CiaBincreases all the time and withthat the possibility of runningmore than one channel in a box.The move towards software-onlysolutions and IP I/O will allow

CiaB systems to be virtualised,running on blade chassis locatedin private or public clouds. Inthis way it is going to be possibleto run many channels on asingle server.

Straight: It all depends onyour definition of a box. If youlook at our Broadcast Suite, wecan run two channels ingest SDon one MacMini and a singlechannel playout on oneMacMini. So there you have twoboxes. The MacMini box can beinstalled in a SonnetRackMount and you can put asmany of these as you want inyour rack. Need eight channelsingest and four channels

playout? Not a problem - you’rejust going to need a big box. Thebeauty of it is, that with ourdistributed software module youcan control as many of thesechannels as you want from anunlimited number of clients.

Ten Dam: There is no simpleanswer here. It is up to thevendor to define a clear offeringof what a CiaB really is.Obviously, this can only be doneafter understanding customerneeds and expectations. In asoftware-based solution, thequestion is actually how muchperformance is available on yourplayout node — then you decidehow to use that in a particularsituation. This means you canhave a flexible, non-standardplatform, which must havedefined boundaries to offsetscalability challenges. So a singleCiaB playout node cantechnically house, for instance,several SD channels withminimal graphical performanceor a single HD channel with alot of graphics and PIPs, andanything in between. Since theplatforms are more and morebased on standard IT hardwarethis technical challenge will beless and less of an issue asperformance capacity continuesto grow.

Warman: The ChannelPortsystem can run in either one oftwo ways: integrated into a 1RUMediaDeck 7000 chassis tofunction as a stand-alonesolution server includingstorage, or integrated in aMediaPort chassis to addchannels to Spectrum’s sharedstorage system. Both offerchannel in a box playoutcapabilities. Both approaches tostorage support four

ChannelPort channels and foursimulcast channels for a total ofeight channels per rack unit.Each playout channel and theassociated simulcast channel arecontrolled by a single playlist.An added advantage is thatevery one of the eight channelscan have unique graphicbranding. The playlistcontrolling the channel +simulcast pair doesn’t have totake care of driving two sets ofgraphic template — this task ishandled internally to keepoperations simple.

Weigner: Sixteen SD channelsor up to eight HD channelsusing the currently fastest dual Xeon server (which fits in1RU). Or when using blades wecan deliver 32 HD channelsfrom a 3RU box or 448 HDchannels from a 42RU rack. If SDI is not required and wecan run the CiaBs as virtualmachines, then the density canmassively increase.

Wright: It depends on whatyou mean by a channel! Again,it’s certainly as much down tothe overall broadcastarchitecture as it is in-boxtechnical capabilities. A singlephysical enclosure sooner orlater has single points of failureand how much this is pushed is

down to the user’s appetite forrisk. If a customer wants eightchannels from one box and acatastrophic failure happens tothat box — the unthinkablehappens and the dual-redundantpower supply completely fails —then you are going to put allthose channels off-air. So youwant a reasonable density, butyou want to manage singlepoints of failure from a businessresiliency point of view. As the

JJanuary 2014 www.tvbeurope.com TVBEurope 39


Karl Mehring,Snell

It has been suggested that the systems could bedubbed Channels in a Box. Just how many channelscould be run from one box?

“The move towards software-only solutionsand IP I/O will allow CiaB systems to bevirtualised, running on blade chassis locatedin private or public clouds” Mat Shell, Harris

technologies progress andcapacity within units grows, thiswill be a business decision morethan a technical one.

Zdravkoski: Using ourGenesix VideoServer, customerscan run four entirely separatechannels — each with one inputand one output, includinggraphics, support for all codecsand H.264 streaming. Operatingmore channels means one gets afar more favourable price perchannel.

Lugasi: Orad’s Blend should beconsidered like any other file-based video server and graphicstemplate. Media files should QCsimilar to a standalone videoserver, graphics template shouldbe uploaded to the engine andupdated with relevant data.Putting both the video server andgraphics engine in the same boxdoes not change how the QCworks. One of the safety featuresimplemented in Orad’s Blend isthe ability to validate all playlistevents, and check mediaavailability in the Blend storagewhen the clip is introduced to theplaylist or the list updated, givingthe operator time to prepare andlocate missing media files.

Mehring: Many systems don’tinclude QC because it is seen as

an upstream process. Theapproach we take is that materialneeds to be checked to ensure itdoes not cause a decoder failurewhen it comes to playout. For thisreason we use a validation serviceto play in faster than realtime assoon as material arrives into thesystem. This allows roguematerial to be quarantined andoperational staff alerted to thisexception. We also check theloaded schedule and alarm onmedia errors for problems such as

incorrect material start points,missing captions, subtitles, audiofiles and so on.

Shell: The processing powerrequired for file-based QC ishigh and will impact theperformance of CiaB, for whichthe primary function is realtimechannel playout. Broadcastersshould consider verifying andchecking the technicalcompliance of content aroundits channels rather than fromindividual playout devices,

during, for example, the ingestprocess or directly on archive orNAS. Most CiaB systems dohave a baseband review portthat can be used for the manualQC of content. This can beespecially useful in smallersystems where separated ingestcapability does not exist. Toolsthat enable content to bereviewed over IP as opposed tobaseband video will becomeimportant with the transition toall IP I/IO.

www.tvbeurope.com JJanuary 201440 TVBEurope


What QCcapabilitiesare offeredwithin CiaBsystems?

Mat Shell, Harris

Scott Rose, Miranda

Sander ten Dam, Grass Valley

Ash: Very easy and very simple.The automation in PlayBoxTechnology allows for manualoverride of automated playout.So for live productions, anychanges to the playlist duringon-air session are possible.There are no queued or lockedclips. Every clip in the playlist,except the one which is currentlyplaying, can be trimmed, editedor repositioned. Moreover,playlist order can be changedon-the-fly with commands likeskip-to-next or jump.

Calverley: If designed right, aCiaB system can provide farmore flexibility for manualoperation as the time between auser selecting a new video or

graphic event and it being takento air is now a matter of framesrather than seconds. With thecorrect templates pre-defined,even very complex manualpresentations including multiplelive sources, DVE effects anddynamic graphics can all becontrolled via the click of amouse or the press of a button.Yes – CiaB systems can workwith external hard panels, too.

Lugasi: Orad’s Blend canhandle two additional HD SDIinputs to be used for any livefeed. Operators can schedule‘live’ events with an estimatedduration and then schedule‘manual’ events that can beplayed when required. Similarly,operators can override the

playlist and switch to a livesource without the need toschedule it in the playlist. Thisgives greater flexibility to choosethe scheduled method: manualevent, auto-advance, fix clockevent, or a mix between the three.

Mehring: It is true to say thatnot all CiaB systems weredesigned with manual control inmind. However, with Snell’s ICEproduct responsiveness and easeof intervention this wasincluded from day one. Manualcontrol can be taken at any timeusing software or hardwarepanels with standard, as well ashighly configurable, functions.We include commercial hotlist,hot start and news flashfunctionality in the standardpackage to allow for any stylefrom fully automated to highlylive and manual.

Rose: Managing live TV is notsomething that technologymagically solves. The key tomanaging live events is to ensurethat operators have the toolsthey need - when they need them- in a way that feels natural andintuitive. Some systems haveremoved physical control panels,or replaced them with a simple

button panel. Many operatorswho use iTX to run highlydemanding channels fornational broadcasters choose itbecause it offers the choice of

full panel control or the samecapabilities via the desktop.

Straight: With TOA’sjust:play and just:live it couldn’tbe easier. Using the DSK

January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com TVBEurope 41


Jan Weigner, Cinegy: “Hardware-centric CiaB vendors are doomed”

One major concern among somebroadcasters is the ability totake over manual control if, say,a sporting event overruns. Howeasy is it to handle suchsituations?

“The future is definitely in IP streaming” — Bruce Straight, ToolsOnAir



capabilities that our hardwarepartners offer, we can switchautomatically between videoand any live signal.

Warman: The ChannelPortsystem makes it easy to takeover manual control in threeways. The system supportshardware control panels frommultiple vendors, so users cancontrol switching, clip playout,and graphics manually.Harmonic also offers its OPC(On-board Playout Control)application, which allows usersto break away from the schedule,override the playlist, and staywith a live event for as long asnecessary. And finally, operatorscan use their choice ofautomation system to takedirect control over the system.

Zdravkoski: This can behandled quite simply andcomfortably with our PlayoutAutomation Module. It allowsthe user to interrupt the currentprogramme at any time, switchto the so-called JustInLive modeand later return to the scheduledprogramme. Besides that,Cueton and/or GPI frameenable precise switching betweena currently scheduledprogramme and the live mode.

Gittins: In many cases clip-basedcontent which is to be delivered inadvance is handled as part of theupstream workflow before arrivingat the CiaB for linear playout. ButCiaB solutions which can providea suitable IP stream do have a roleto play in providing the livestreaming of content or fastturnaround VOD workflows thatrelate to live events.

Rose: CiaB doesn’t in itselfhelp distribution to otherplatforms, unless there is aframework around the CiaBdevices to provide comprehensivemedia management. This is afundamental principle of a well-architected solution. Media is thecentre of a broadcaster’s worldand being able to view, manageand control it is something thatsystems that only have a ‘box’struggle to do. A system that canoutput channels in baseband andIP, and help master media fordistribution to online and VODplatforms is a compellingdifferentiator when choosingbetween vendors.

Straight: The future isdefinitely in IP streaming. Weoffer an RTMP streamingoption, which allows us to senda H264 compressed stream toany CDN for final distribution.

ten Dam: For a software-based solution it’s not a big stepto deliver in different formats.Today it’s primarily streaming inbaseband domain, but IP out atvarious bitrates is quicklybecoming the standard and assuch is file-based delivery foron-demand systems.

Warman: CiaB solutions werenot conceived with this objectivein mind. However, one benefit ofthe simulcast output on theChannelPort is that it can drivedownstream devices, withgraphics already tailored forWeb or mobile distribution.

Ash: I am not so sure this willever become a reality becauseevery leap forward intechnology that can allow thisto happen sees a leap forwardin requirements fromconsumers. Or more to thepoint, manufacturers ofconsumer products promotinghigher quality and definition,such as 3D and 4K. Whentechnology does allow for‘channel on a chip’, I am sure

the PSU to drive the chip andthe fans to cool it down willstill equate to a 1U box that isthe same as today.

Gittins: Whilst it mayultimately be feasible, we are farmore likely to see a channelhosted purely in software, andultimately in the cloud.

Lugasi: Aired channels arestill relying on SDI equipmentand feeds, so CiaB cannot getmuch smaller if equipped withgraphics and I/O board. OnceSDI becomes obsolete, newsolutions will come powered bychips producing Channel onEthernet stream.

Shell: There is no reason tobelieve that a chip could not

host all the elements required,but today we see the drive forchannel playout as being in anIP infrastructure, software onlyand running in a generic ITdata centre. Some of theadvantages to this approach arethat software codecs providegreater flexibility, commodityplatforms are economical andvirtualisation can providebetter resilience.

Weigner: Never. It’s not abouthardware but software. Atraditional linear or on-demandchannel is a software servicerunning on a commodity ITcompute platform – eitherlocally in a ‘box’, or remote, orremote hosted in a datacentrewhich we can then also call‘cloud’ if we want. Hardware-centric CiaB vendors aredoomed just like traditionalplayout vendors.

Wright: This comes backdown essentially to risk. Even ifyou can have a channel on a chipit doesn’t ultimately help youwith the other costs. It’s not anenabler for the industry and inmany regards plays against the

drive to Ultra HD and higherframe rates. Yes, if we stuck astake in the ground and said,‘no, we’re never as an industrygoing to go beyond 1080 50iHD’ then maybe. But thelandscape is changing so quicklythat whether it’s a chip or a cardor a box or a piece of softwareisn’t really the question. Thequestions are what you want to

do, how you want to operate andhow you get cost-effective, day-to-day operations, now andgoing forwards?

Zdravkoski: I cannot yetimagine ‘channel on a chip’.But I am convinced that we willsee multi-channel in a bladeserver as a new standard inthree to five years from now.We are already working on sucha solution. It is our aim toequip the multi-channel in ablade server with capabilitiesfor 32 or 64 completelyindependent channels,including ingest, graphics,playout and streaming, usingjust a single 4HE machine. www.cinegy.comwww.grassvalley.comwww.harmonicinc.comwww.harrisbroadcast.comwww.miranda.comwww.oasys.comwww.orad.tvwww.pebble.tvwww.pixelpower.comwww.playbox.tvwww.snellgroup.comwww.stryme.comwww.toolsonair.com

Nick Wright, Pixel Power

Goce Zdravkoski, Stryme Andy Warman, Harmonic

Someone hassuggestedthat Channelin a Box willbe replaced byChannel on aChip. Is thatfeasible — and,if so, whenwill we see it?

How easily canCiaB handledistribution toother mediaplatforms —tablets,smartphonesetc?

“CiaB doesn’t in itself help distribution to otherplatforms, unless there is a framework aroundthe CiaB devices to provide comprehensivemedia management” Scott Rose, Miranda

OVER THE years, severalattempts have been made atoperating television channels inthe UK on a purely local basis –with a city- or town-wide focus,catering to the viewing needs ofa closely defined area. Few havebeen successful. Twoexplanations might be offered asreasons for failure – limiteddistribution through the use ofcable and high individualoperating costs.

In 2011, the government’sthen culture secretary, JeremyHunt, proposed a network ofstations to serve communitiesand provide an alternative to theexisting services, plans whichmake the current outlook forlocal TV more favourable. Onthe distribution front, the DDTFreeview channel 8 (45 in Walesand Scotland) has been madeavailable for these local stations– enabling an audience ofaround 12 million homes.

On the operational side, oneinnovation has been theappointment of Comux UK, acommunity-owned organisationof local TV licence holders as thelocal TV multiplex operator.Comux is responsible for buildingand operating the technicalplatform for all local broadcastingservices. To date there are 23licensed areas that will be servedin this way – with a second batchof around 30 licensees comingonline over the next few years. Allmonies generated are ploughedback into the TV service – andlocal community projects.

New concept“As far as I know, this centralfacility for the multiplexoperation is unique throughoutEurope,” states Ed Hall, chiefexecutive of Comux. “From ourcentre in Birmingham, we offera whole range of services for thelocal operators – right from

scheduling, through playout todelivery to the Freeviewtransmitters.”

Hall explains that thisarrangement is far more cost-effective than each licenseehaving to carry out theseprocedures locally – and thenuse lines to the transmitters.

“We have a 100MB bearerbetween us and each localstation. Under normalcircumstances, 50MB is used forthe services on a day-by-daybasis. The funding for buildingthe infrastructure comes fromthe BBC, which has allocated£25 million for the local TVventure. The other 50MB isthere for use by the localoperator or commercial interestson a payment basis.”

So, with nomodel fromelsewhere tocall upon, whatwere thechallenges thatfaced the Comuxteam – and howwere thosesituations faced?

Time trial“I guess our biggest challengewas time,” reveals Hall. “Ofcomawarded the multiplex operator’slicence at the end of January2013— much later than expected.Comux built this network in 18weeks and one day — everythinghad to be carefully scheduled.That tight time frame meant thatwe had to take out the breathing

spacesthat we had

inserted into the original buildplan. Among other targets, thatplan called for us to install over18km of video cable and morethan 6000m of network cablecapable of sending 385,000 datapackets per second out of theNetwork Operations Centre inBirmingham, within a window ofjust five weeks.”

One project that helpedovercome the truncated schedulewas the creation of a virtualchannel at the operations centre.“We built a fictional schedule,imported files and did manydummy runs. This enabled us toanticipate problems and to workout best practice when it cameto the real thing.”

That ‘real thing’ happened inNovember when the first of thelocal operators went on air.Estuary TV, which is based atthe Grimsby Institute and is awholly owned subsidiary of thefurther and higher educationcolleges, will reach around370,000 homes in parts of

Ed Hall, chief executive of Comux

Nevion SIM: Nevion equipment has been selected for Comux Operations Centre Comux MCR: The nerve centre of the UK local television network

Think global, broadcast local:British local TV takes off


Local and regional interests are demanding their owntailored TV content. Until now, limited distribution andhigh operating costs have stood in the way

UK local television is about to move forwardin a big way. Philip Stevens visits theNetwork Operations Centre to find out more

“As far asI know, this

central facility forthe multiplex

operation isunique

throughoutEurope” Ed Hall, Comux

Lincolnshire and east Yorkshire.The station will use somestudents in production roles, butthey are guided and mentoredthroughout by experienced staff.

In the studio, Sony EX3cameras are employed, while amix of EX1s and Z1s/Z7s areused on location. For visionmixing, Estuary TV utilises aNewtek Tricaster XD850, while aMackie 1604-VLZ3 is the choicefor audio control. Editing iscarried out using Final Cut Pro.

Back in Birmingham, Sharpmultiviewers are in place in theMaster Control Room (MCR),for checking input from licensees,output from the SIMS (located in

a nearby equipment room) and areturn feed from the licensees.Evertz Mediator plus Overtureplayout servers — one for eachlocal outlet — have been installedin the racks room. With futureexpansion in mind, space hasbeen left to accommodate up to40 local channels. Evertz has alsoprovided a graphic system forinserting any content that isrequested by the local operators.

After extensive testing, severalNevion products were selectedfor the operations centre. Theseinclude the TVG450 JPEG 2000encoders/decoders for videocontribution, the TVG425 IP-to-ASI converter for video

distribution and the TNS544 forseamless Single FrequencyNetwork (SFN) switching at thetransmitter sites. The wholesystem is controlled andmonitored by Nevion’s ConnectManagement System.

“The Gateway allows eachLocal TV studio to costeffectively contribute video overIP, while ensuring thetransmission remains of thehighest quality,” states Hall.

When it comes to compliancerecording, an Actus system hasbeen installed.

The transmission andnetwork access for Comux isprovided by Arqiva.

Now on airThe service for London —London Live — will start in earlyMarch. Earlier, it was announcedthat Ericsson would provide keybroadcasting services for thechannel. These include mediaasset management, scheduling,graphics hosting, EPG delivery,playout and transcoding. LondonLive will be supported in its firststep towards IP-based deliverywith a dedicated ‘cloud’ hostedby Ericsson. Comux will take arealtime feed from Ericsson and deliver it over the network to the National OperationsCentre where it is compressedready for transmission.

Ed Hall sums up the launchof local TV: “As well as acommercially sustainable and robust solution, we havealso now created the potentialto provide an attractive return to the licence holders and to the local TV industry asa whole.www.apple.comwww.comux.co.ukwww.estuary.tvwww.evertz.comwww.mackie.comwww.nevion.comwww.newtek.comwww.sharp.co.ukwww.sony.co.ukwww.standard.co.uk/londonlive


OMROEP FLEVOLAND is a regionalradio and television station forFlevoland, the smallest of 12provinces in the Netherlands. Withstudios located in the province’scapital, Lelystad, the broadcaster’sprimary focus is news and weather,but it also offers variousprogrammes covering culture,human interest and sports closelylinked to the province. Its 24/7programmes are broadcast via digitalterrestrial, cable and the web. Planscall for a switch to fully HDtransmissions in April 2014.

During 2013 Omroep Flevolandinitiated a project to streamline itsproduction workflows to meet itsviewers’ growing demands formultiscreen, multiplatform viewing.More than that, because it deliversbreaking news across many forms ofmedia, it wanted a solution thatwould enable the publishing of

content across radio, TV and theInternet without creating andduplicating content.

“After some careful research, wedecided to purchase GV STRATUSfrom Grass Valley,” explains BramLiplijn, the broadcaster’s CTO. “Wewere already familiar with GV, usingits cameras and vision mixer in thestudio. But, just as important, GVSTRATUS connected best to ourexisting workflow.”

The packagecomprised the latestversion of the GVSTRATUS nonlinearmedia production tools,a K2 Storage AreaNetwork (SAN), K2Summit and K2 Soloservers, EDIUSmultiformat nonlinearediting software, and GVEdge integrated playoutsystem.

Nineteen video sizes“One big advantage ofthis update is that thejournalists can edit from their ownworkplace. They can also put their edits

on the internet by themselves,”states Liplijn.

Journalists ingest the raw cameramaterial from the CF card into EDIUSand then cut the package for use onthe internet. When this item iscompleted, it is sent to the ‘internetmap’. The file is then automaticallyuploaded to the CarbonFarm whichtransfers it to the web server. Next,the audio edit is carried out for thebroadcaster’s radio outlets. This

audio file is exported to the GML map.Lastly, the video edit is made for thetelevision broadcast. After editing,this file is sent to the K2. And becausethe audio and video edit are put in thesame system, it provides reliablecontrol of all platforms.

“We use GV STRATUS to directour CarbonFarm. This is animprovement over our previoussituation. Nineteen video sizes aremade out of the current SD/HDmaterial in the CarbonFarm. We makethe material applicable for differentplatforms, such as iPhone, iPad,Android phone, Android tablet, SmartTV, web, Nerocasting and archive,”explains Liplijn.

One future development will seeOmroep Flevoland place items on itswebsite much faster. “We are going towork with proxyfiles, transmitted

from the camera on location. Later,when the crew is back in the studio,the HD material will be prepared for television.”

One stop shopEd Casaccia, senior director of news product line, Grass Valley,picks up the story. “GV STRATUSallows Omroep to produce a ‘create once, publish everywhere’consolidated workflow. This meansit can be the first broadcaster tocover breaking news from Flevolandon every screen. The objectivebehind the GV STRATUS approachis to offer a complete, versatile, and software-centric platform for nonlinear media production that adapts to rapidly changingbusiness, operational, andtechnology needs.”

GV Edge combines playout nodes,playlist management, media assetmanagement, and graphicsmanagement in a single cohesiveimplementation. It integrates with GVSTRATUS to extend the streamlinedworkflow with dedicated assetmanagement capabilities acrosschannels.

“The whole system at OmroepFlevoland allows for the creation ofautomated transcode and outputworkflows based on metadata rules,”reports Casaccia. “These rules run inthe background at the system level atall times. This means that newsroomworkers don’t have to concernthemselves with the technical detailsof compression types, raster size,closed captioning presentation, and soon, when creating content for multipledistribution platforms. They simplycheck a pre-configured metadata fieldthat launches the automatedtranscode workflow, including deliveryof descriptive metadata and closedcaptioning information to the ContentManagement System and/or ContentDelivery Network. It’s ideal for allmultiplatform outlets – but especiallyfor local broadcasters with limitedbudgets and manpower.”www.omroepflevoland.nlwww.grassvalley.com

Streamlining a Dutch workflow

The studio centre of Omroep Flevoland

“Nineteen video sizes are made out of thecurrent SD/HD material in the CarbonFarm.We make the material applicable for differentplatforms, such as iPhone, iPad, Androidphone, Android tablet, Smart TV, web,Nerocasting and archive” Bram Liplijn, Omroep Flevoland

Philip Stevens discovers how an upgrade has helped deliveryto multi-platforms for a regional broadcaster

Dutch regional broadcaster Omroep Flevoland wanted a solution that would enable easy

publishing of content across radio, TV and the internet

Stratus: GV STRATUS forms the core of thebroadcaster’s multi-platform delivery

By Andrew Ioannou, Marquis Media Partners

WITH ANY post productionfacility there are numerousprojects in progress at any onetime. However, the materialassociated with a project israrely stored in a single locationor post produced where it wasrecorded, and this makesarchiving completed projects ormoving temporarily delayedprojects a challenge.

In addition, the move fromtape to file-based capture hascontributed to a significantincrease in shooting ratios — inmany cases in excess of 500:1and sometimes much higher.While this is unlikely to change,it does present a problem whenit comes to consumption of

expensive online storage. Thisis particularly so if the edit isnot going to happen for some

time. Therefore, a simple andeffective solution to enabletransfer of material to a less

expensive offline storage isrequired, without losing contentinto the ‘ether’.

Inevitably media does getmissed or lost, particularly if itwas mistakenly put in the wronglocation initially, and this isdifficult to manage later on if aproject does need to beretrieved. Collecting media thathas ended up in several differentplaces and putting it back in onearchive, knowing editors cancome back to it at a later date, isa time-consuming task.

Simon Brett, director ofoperations, Fox InternationalChannels UK, explains: “Likemost facilities, up until now ourshort-form promo content hastended to be stored in variousformats and locations includingback-ups on tape. This becomes

an issue if one of our territorieswould like to re-use a promofor example, as the sourcematerial and everything neededto re-visit the content to edit itfor a different geographicalaudience, is not stored in thesame place. It is therefore, atime-consuming task to locateand supply the content.”

Even if facilities don’t need to supply completed projects to third parties or clients, theneed to free up valuable editstorage is always pressing.Crews can return from less than a week of shooting with500GB of media, this inaddition to edit storagebecoming jammed-up withstalled projects, finishedprojects, left over render files,duplicate files and media files no longer used by anyonline project.

“Fox were looking for acomplete storage and projectanalysis tool which would helpus delete the clutter and archiveprojects and all their mediaelsewhere. In addition, weneeded to be able to retrievethem at the drop of a hat, when

The WorkflowTVBEurope 45January 2014 www.tvbeurope.com

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Next in the series of Beyond HDMasters events for TVBEurope

If high definition is the new standard definition, then what’s beyond HD?Is 4K the next target for high-end TV production, broadcast and display - or 8K?

What is going to drive the European television technology industry into the future?

WHO SHOULD ATTENDDirectors of Technology, Heads of Production at independentproduction companies, Directors of equipment rental or hire, Headsof Outside Broadcasts, Production Managers, Senior Directors, Headsof Cameras, Chief Engineers, Programme Operations Managers,Stereographers, Producers, Directors of Broadcasting, StudioDirectors, Technical Consultants, Research Engineers

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By Adrian Penningtonand Holly Ashford

DAVID ATTENBOROUGH’sNatural History Museum Alive3D marks the latest 4K and 3Ddocumentary project producedfor Sky by Colossus Productions,a joint venture between AtlanticProductions and Sky 3D.

It also marks the presenter’ssixth 3D project for Sky/Atlantic/Colossus, with previous filmsincluding Flying Monsters 3D,The Penguin King, Kingdom ofPlants, Galapagos 3D and MicroMonsters 3D.

While the first in the series,Flying Monsters, was shot on Red One cameras, NaturalHistory Museum was shot usingEpics at 5K mounted on a 3AlityAtom rig. The larger frameprovided wriggle room forgeometry changes and horizontalimage translation in post.Timelapse photography was byDP Rob Hollingworth usingNikon D800 stills cameras.

Each one of the pair of Redcameras generated 400GB of dataan hour, making nearly 1TB perhour combined. “So on locationyou can very easily rack up in theregion of 40+ TB of storage, whichbecomes a major data managementand cost issue,” explains RichardMills, CTO, Onsight.

“We always try to have some kindof on-set or near-set quality control,and production generally demandsnear-set editorial as well, so it’s aconsiderable challenge to get all thatdata backed up in two or threecopies on set plus edit deliverables.”

TV, cinema and IMAXAs with previous Colossus shows,Natural History Museum Live 3Dwas designed to cover for a TVdeliverable, a cinema feature and a giant 16x9 screen release,which required that a number ofversions of each shot were takenwith different framings.

The show was heavily CGIreliant, with creatures supplied byMilk, Prime Focus, Framestoreand Zoo. All the animation wasdelivered at 4K, rather than theusual 2K resolution, to ensure thequality of the image whenprojected on an IMAX screen.

In post, Onsight set aside 40TBof online storage using acombination of Dot Hill andStorNext SANs. With the addedCGI conforms, the project wouldhave racked up about 60TB.

Offline was on Avid in DNxHD36 and in stereo 3D, online was inMistika. Monitoring was by wayof Sony Trimaster PVM-X300and a domestic 4K TV forreference. A theatrical 4K DCPtest was also made.

Behind the scenes atthe MuseumDavid Attenborough andAnthony Geffen revealed moreabout the production at a preview screening last month.Attenborough explained howtalks with Sky began lastFebruary, with the programmeready for output just 10 monthslater — an “astonishing” speed.Despite having worked togetheron a number of occasions, thepair admitted the shooting timeswere a challenge, beginning at7pm and not finishing until 6am the following morning, with one filming period lasting 15 consecutive nights. “Ipersonally found it quite tough,”admitted Attenborough.

The CGI itself also provedchallenging. Having been used toworking with animals in his earliertelevision work, the upcomingproduction required Attenboroughto interact with specimens addedin post production. However, hecommented on how impressed he was with the CGI creations —the “quirks” such as eyelid blinks and small unexpectedmovements “which make theminto real personalities”.

The duo also revealed that an app will be available to

accompany Natural HistoryMuseum Alive 3D, so that“anyone with a mobile phone ortablet will be able to go into theMuseum on 1 January and go toany one of these creatures…andon a screen will see that thingsuddenly flop off the wall andswim around it, just as I woulddo if I was sitting there. Andwe’ll do that with every one ofthose creatures,” explainsAttenborough. The aim of theapp, added Geffen, was to provide“an extension [to the TV show],having built all these amazingcreatures, for people to go onlearning about them afterwards”.

2014: Looking aheadThe 65-minute show wasbroadcast on Sky 3D and in 2Don Sky 1 HD on New Year’s Day.Geffen and Attenboroughconcluded the preview screeningby showing a clip of anothercollaboration between thenaturalist and Colossus, Conquestof the Skies 3D, a two-part seriesset to premiere in 2014. Theability to get close to birds was amajor factor in the decision forthis next 3D production. AsAttenborough explained: “It isnot possible to use long lenses in3D. You are stuck with a lens ofabout 50-60mm focal length. Lotsof subjects are unavailable to you.I thought that flight would be awonderful subject,” saidAttenborough, “and the evolutionof flight is a thrilling one.” www.onsight.co.ukwww.milk-vfx.com

Attenborough and Colossusteam up again for a 3D Museum

David Attenborough in London’s Natural History Museum mammals hall

required,” says Brett. “We werefirst introduced to Marquis’Project Parking about a yearago and this sparked my interestthat there could be a realsolution to managing our editstorage and projects moreefficiently. During that timeMarquis developed ProjectParking further and whenversion 3 became availableearlier this year, we felt it reallycould match our needs.”

Project Parking version 3analyses all the projects andmedia on the edit storage bysize, project, location, age,duplicated or orphaned files,and then archives files to secondtier storage, or deletes unusedmedia at the touch of a button,takes snapshots of versions ofprojects, or moves files from onelocation to another, while stillmaintaining a usable and easilyaccessible format for future use.

“It has enabled us to improvethe efficient use of our high-value edit storage and bycopying Avid projects to near-

line, offline efficient IT storageor removable storage,”continues Brett. “The solutionhas improved the reliability andspeed of archiving by allowingthe movement of complete Avidprojects easily from one site toanother, so users have thecertain knowledge that projectswill be in exactly the same stateas when archived. This hasenabled our editors to manageprojects more efficiently. Work can also be protected bycreating snapshots of projectsbefore major edit changes,interruptions to production, orfor simply handing over toother editors.”

Project Parking works byanalysing all projects and mediaacross all workspaces and allowsthem to be viewed in a user-friendly way. This enables theuser to rank projectsappropriately. This may be inorder of total file size, numberof files associated with aproject, which workspaces the media is on, and whethermedia is offline. The solutionalso identifies the location ofany duplicate files and any

orphaned media not associatedwith a project. The bin archivefunctionality in Project Parkingthen allows individual bins orfolders of bins to be included orexcluded in order to move mediato second tier storage. Stalledprojects can then be takenoffline to free up space.

Archived projects can bemoved through the cloud andaround the world. A project istransferred with all its media toany storage so that it can berestored to a new facility,workstation or laptop andedited immediately. Retrieval isalso straight forward and can beeasily achieved by restoringwhole projects or just therequired bins of an archivedproject for re-editing.

“Project Parking can now beused to archive promos, plusNational Geographic long formcontent, in the OperationsDepartment which handlesevery UK transmission for Fox and National Geographic,”confirms Brett. “We will also be

using the solution for managinglong form content too. In theUK, we re-version NationalGeographic content, often from the US, to make it suitablefor a British audience. This may mean re-voicing or addingor taking out material.Similarly our operationsdepartment processes everytransmission of Fox andNational Geographic to get itto a UK specification.

“Project Parking will nowallow us to archive off completeAvid projects rather than needto re-build them from differentsources. In the future, ifanother region would like to re-use an edit we have created, it will be no problem,” continuesBrett. “We can simply hand over all the elements of theproject that they need, ready togo straight into Avid. Weanticipate this improvedarchiving of content, moreefficient management oforphaned files and generallybetter housekeeping will all save our team a significantamount of time.”www.marquismediapartners.com

Collecting media that has ended up in several different placesand putting it back in one archive, knowing editors can comeback to it at a later date, is a time-consuming task

“We were looking for acomplete storage and projectanalysis tool which wouldhelp us delete the clutter andarchive projects and all theirmedia elsewhere Simon Brett, Fox

How did BVE start? Can youtalk us through the genesis ofwhat has become one of thebroadcast industry’s biggesttradeshows?BVE has evolved through itssmaller guises to become anabsolutely giant event — muchloved by its visitors, exhibitorsand sponsors BVE is thesecond-biggest event of its kindin Europe now. Of course BVEbenefits from being in London,which is the leading market inEurope for content productionand broadcasting.

The show profile now expands across productionservices, acquisition, post,storage, broadcast andconnected multiplatformdelivery. We create high-levelseminar content to complementthe excellent exhibition side ofthe show. As a visitor, it’s threedays of insight, networking and exciting hands-ondemonstrations of the hottestnew kit.

What is the future of BVENorth? Is there a place for twoUK tradeshows?BVE North was set up to reflect the changing broadcastemployment demographic. Thiswas in place before I arrived, but I’m proud that BVE hascontinued to support thegrowing broadcasting industryin the North, and ourcommitment to this region willevolve in line with that growth.

To what do you contribute thesuccess of tradeshows? Internetconnectivity seemed set to doaway with them, but they justkeep on proliferatingIt’s impossible to compare alarge-scale industry event, which brings together end usersand suppliers in one place forthree days, with the internet —although clearly they are both essential parts of themarketing mix.

Nothing beats a manufactureror dealer demonstrating new kit live, in the flesh. You can’tget the same sense of occasionreading second hand whatindustry leaders are presenting

right in front of your eyes in theseminar theatres.

But perhaps most saliently,the industry is very much apeople business. Our job is toput the right people together in the right context. Thenetworking is essential.

What does BVE offer that othershows don’t?First it’s location. London is aninspirational place to do business.BVE always attracts the industryleading vendors who exhibit onthe show floor, but where we offersomething different is our free-to-attend high level seminars, whichtake place over three days, andeach is themed in line with ourshow profile. For 2014, we willhave producers, production,cinematography, post production,broadcast IT and connected

theatres, as wellas a fully kittedout 4K cinema.We deliverindustry leadinginsight that otherevents charge for.

In addition wealways create outstandingnetworking spaces aroundthe show for industryprofessionals to get together in a relevant context.

Will BVE be expanding intoareas beyond broadcast?Any expansion into furthersectors will always be led byfeedback from visitors,exhibitors and sponsors and I’m well aware of the need toconstantly innovate — and putpotential new buyers in front ofour exhibitors.

‘Beyond broadcast’ is arelatively new focus for BVE. For 2014 we will be pushinginto the ‘connected’ arena,which is multiplatform deliveryof content over IP. We can seecrossover in the future withsome aspects of A/V, and I’mkeen to enhance the showprofile to best accommodatenew demographics to the show,such as commercial, retail andentertainment brands.

Of course at the heart of BVE is the broadcasting andproduction sectors — this formsthe nucleus of the show, and weare not moving away from that.

The conferences and seminars atBVE always seem to be verysuccessful. How do you manageand produce them? We are fortunate to have alegacy of very high qualityspeakers at BVE, often leadersin their sectors. Sitting in theaudience are often experiencedend-users and vendors.

Naturally we start our researchthere – by interviewing keypeople. Further to that, ourmedia partners, industry bodypartners and our internalresearchers, who have access to publically available andprivately commissionedresearch, shape the basis for the seminar structure. Fromhere, we look to seek out thebest speakers for each topic or panel.

How has industry feedbackfigured into the design of BVEand BVE North?One thing I’ve been pleasedwith, from myself and the widerBVE team, is that we alwayslook to include feedback fromour exhibitors in any changes or improvements.

These companies are the keystakeholders in BVE. Of coursewith 350 brands on the showfloor, we can’t take on everysuggestion, but where there are clear signs of agreementbetween BVE stakeholders, wewill look to make decisionswhich positively affect as manyexhibitors as possible.

For BVE North, I’m in theprocess now of reviewing keyvisitor and exhibitor feedback— this will factor into our plansfor next year.

What has your personal journeybeen in the development of BVE?I joined BVE in October 2013when it was in the middle ofmoving to ExCeL, and a fewweeks just before BVE North2012. My first role was to planthe sector expansion into theconnected sphere. Previously Ihad been very active as a part ofthe Creative Coalition and theUK Industry Trust in futuredigital policy and digital piracy— because this massively effectsthe revenue development forOTT models. I’m actually abeliever in IP delivery modelsand I still find it odd when Ihear conference speakers saythey don’t understand why OTTdoesn’t work for anyone other

than Netflix and Lovefilm. It works perfectly, just that

the platforms which are‘succeeding’ areunlicensed, takingeyeballs away from thelicensed ones.

My career spans 18 years and started,funnily enough at

EMAP, (former BVEparent before i2i).

Having owned anadvertising agency in the

past, I know my way arounda camera and editing gear — sofor me, I love this job. I’m acreative tech nerd at heart whohas spent quite a lot of hiscareer thinking about the futureof television.

What TV show are you watching now?I’m actually in the middle ofrewatching Arrested Development— (arguably) the finest comedyof all time. When that’s finished Iwant to catch up on Fresh Meat— loved the first episodes. www.bvexpo.com

Interviewwww.tvbeurope.com January 201448 TVBEurope

Building BVEJames Rowley-Ashwood is event director of the Broadcast Video Expo, the second-largestindustry tradeshow in Europe, which runs in London next month. He talks to Neal Romanekabout trade shows, collaboration with the industry and the future of BVE’s Manchester-based cousin, BVE North

“BVE is three days of insight, networking and excitinghands-on demonstrations of the hottest new kit”

Rowley-Ashwood: “Our job is to put the rightpeople together in the right context”

“At the heart of BVE is thebroadcasting and

production sectors –this forms the

nucleus of the show,and we are notmoving away

from that”

A joint venture partnership of

Find out more. www.iseurope.org

Learn new ways to communicate and collaborate. Benefit from the best in business networking and professional development. Be part of the best-attended systems integration tradeshow ever held.

MOTIVATING.

Angénieux lensesdeliver BNP ParibasTennis in 4KEuro Media Group’s liverecording of the BNP ParibasTennis Masters in Paris wasdelivered using two PL mountAngénieux lenses. The Optimo28-340 and the Optimo 15-40were used on four Sony F55cameras. “We used the lenses oncamera five which was in thestand in ‘beauty’ position,”commented Ronald Meyvisch,new technology officer at EuroMedia Group. “We first put the15-40 to have a ‘beauty’ shot ofBercy. Then we replaced it withthe 28-340 to have betterrendering from the camera atthis spot.” Angénieux lenses hadalready been used in 4Krecordings last year. Workingwith Euro Media Group United,a Muse concert was captured in4K and released in cinemasacross the world.www.angenieux.com

deltatre and Vizrtexpand partnership forWorld CupSports and media technologycompany deltatre and 3Dgraphics provider Vizrt havebroadened their partnership withMagma Pro powered by VizLibero for the upcoming WorldCup. Magma Pro extendsdeltatre’s Magma productoffering with the virtual graphiccapabilities and 3D cameraflights offered by Viz Libero.deltatre has been using Vizrtbroadcast graphics productssince 2004 and last year addedseveral new Vizrt products to itsproduction setup. Viz Libero willbe unveiled for the first time inRio de Janeiro.www.deltatre.comwww.vizrt.com

Event Managementinvests in Kinesys techfor Io CantoLive show, event and broadcastvideo company EventManagement, based in Milan,Italy, has expanded itsinvestment in Kinesysautomation equipment for thelatest series of the TV show IoCanto. The show is based on asearch for the best singing talentamong young people aged five to16. The set design featured sixlarge columns of moving LEDvideo screens, each measuring8mx3m and weighing 800kg. Six rear LED columns weremoved by Kinesys beam trolleysat their bases, fitted to 40m ofcustom-built curved track, whichEvent Management designed and

had specially made. Otherequipment included KinesysLibraCELL, Liftket motors andElevation drive units.www.kinesys.co.uk

Nitrate and re:finereveal Sex Pistolsfootage for BBC4 docContent processing business re:finehas collaborated with productioncompany Nitrate Films to unlockunseen footage of the last ever UK Sex Pistol’s gig. The material,from the 1977 Huddersfield gig,formed part of the documentaryChristmas with the Pistols,produced by Nitrate Films, shownon Boxing Day on BBC4. re:fineencoded and restored the unseencontent from D2 and Betacam SPtape to the highest quality filepossible, ready for use in the edit.Auteur director Julien Templepresented a look at the traditionsand transgressions of Christmas,including footage of the Sex Pistolscelebrating Christmas at their lastgig in England on Christmas Day1977. Archive footage revealed howthe UK experienced Christmas inthe seventies, while interviewswith each band member recalledthe zeitgeist and the concert itself.Chris Parry, sales director atre:fine, said: “We have enjoyed agreat relationship with NitrateFilms over the years and workedwith them on many stand outtitles. It was a real privilege to bethe first to see and preserve thisunseen Sex Pistols footage andhelp Julien to deliver anotherfascinating documentary.”

News Reviewwww.tvbeurope.com January 201450 TVBEurope

By Holly Ashford

Gremmelspacher choosesPetrol Bags for ask-TV: MartinGremmelspacher specialises inmaking adventure, sport-action andlandscape films and has workedwith production company ask-TV tofilm a number of travelprogrammes. While filming, thecinematographer works with theDeca Campack camera backpack byPetrol Bags, part of Vitec Videocom.The Campack features removableand padded dividers to protect theequipment, which also serve ascompartments to stow accessories.There is also a separate area withspace for a laptop with a 17-inchscreen. Soft straps and anergonomic design aim to provideideal weight distribution andcomfort for the carrier. www.petrolbags.com

Shift 4 equipped live Antarctic broadcastwith NewTek: Broadcast facilities and hirecompany Shift 4 supplied a NewTek TriCaster860 multi-camera production system for apurpose-built studio and control roomstreaming live footage from the Antarctic.Nineteen-year-old Parker Liautaud aimed toset a new world speed record for a journeyfrom the Antarctic coast to the South Pole.Captive Minds contracted Shift 4 to provideMCR facilities in the studio built in the foyer ofinsurance company Willis Group’s London HQ.Willis Resilience Expedition TV used theTriCaster to produce a live 60-minute showeach day for 16 days during the expedition.Each live show was mixed in the TriCaster andstreamed to Willis’ YouTube channel, anduploaded each day to www.willisresilience.comfor viewing on demand.www.willisresilience.com

LiveU reveals busy 2014sports line-up: LiveU hasannounced its 2014 live videosupport for sporting eventsaround the world. Withtechnologies tailored to thesports market, includingacquisition, transmission, rentalpackages and workflows, thecompany aims to accommodatethe requirements of mediaoutlets and professional and UScollegiate sports organisations.LiveU’s involvement ininternational sport in 2014includes providing support forthe Winter Olympics in Sochi,Russia and the FIFA World Cupin Brazil.www.liveu.tv

tvbe january 2014 digital edition

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