torchwood
XDCAM HDSee the benefits of high definition tapeless production
In the Night GardenRagdoll creates the successor to Teletubbies
hitting the mark
producerthe digital production magazine spring 2007 £5
CameraHDW-750P
AnalysisHome-grown drama
ProductionStrictly Come Dancing
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Sony United Kingdom offers an extensive range of communicationstechnology solutions, incorporating leading edge technology, serviceand support packages for broadcast, videoconferencing, surveillance,medical and digital imaging and presentation applications.
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WelcomeWelcome to the new look Producer magazine. We havemade several changes to the contents to reflect thechanging faces of the industry. We hope you find it useful.
Torchwood (page 8) is one of the success stories of BBCdrama. A ratings and critical success, it represents highquality drama production values supported by reliablehigh definition equipment. It is also home-grown, anincreasingly important commodity for UK broadcasters asthe costs for successful US dramas continue to gothrough the roof. As we report on page 7, all the UKbroadcasters are keen to produce series with long termpotential. HD production is a vital part of this.
It isn’t just drama that’s turning to HD. Ragdoll, thecompany behind Teletubbies, has created its newchildren’s series, In the Night Garden, in HDCAM andHDCAM SR (page 12), The new More4/Channel 4 musicseries, Live from Abbey Road is also shot on HDCAM (page 19). Both need the highest quality HD to maximiseworldwide sales. Live entertainment such as Strictly ComeDancing (page 14) and sports (pages 16 and 17) are nowalso being habitually produced in HD.
The other important technological productiondevelopment this year is with Professional Disc recordingand editing. XDCAM HD launched less than six monthsago but is already being used on a wide variety ofproductions. Read more in our special XDCAM HDsupplement.
Chris DickinsonEditor
for your free subscription to producer register atwww.sonybiz.net/producer
Spy highEarly in 2007 the new spy drama series MI Highcomes to CBBC. Danny John Jules (Spooks) is LennyBicknall, a high-ranking MI9 agent who must findsecure untraceable identities for his old school spies.His solution is to establish a group of undercoveragents in a high school where the enemy will neversuspect them. He and his group of highly trainedspies must save the world from the villainous GrandMaster and his mob of rogues.Not only does this new series feature spectacularstunts and visual imagery, but it brings high definition production to CBBC for the first time. Theseries is produced in HDCAM by Kudos Films.Jon East, head of Drama, CBBC, says: “Filmed in highdefinition, a first for CBBC, with jaw dropping stuntsand hi-tech wizadry, MI High brings the quality ofSpooks to a children's drama.”The CGI and visual effects production company RedVision were commissioned by Kudos to produce alarge number of visual effects for the series.JP Hersey, creative director of Red Vision, says he really enjoyed working in HD. “The level of detail isfour times better than that of normal TV, giving aslick and smooth image.”The actual shoot ran smoothly and points the wayforward, says Hersey. “High definition just adds somuch. It boosts production values and is a leapforward in television technology. More and moreproductions will follow us into HD.”
Football saved my lifeCommissioned for Bravo UK and produced by Granada Productions,Football Saved My Life is a sports reality show that aims to changemen’s lives through the power of thebeautiful game. Hosted by ex-Tottenham player and former alcoholic Neil ‘Razor’ Ruddock, the 10 x 47 minute series which began airing in November takes 14 menwhose lives have been blighted bybooze, bad diets, anger managementissues and depression, and attemptsto transform them by building theminto a crack first eleven.Mainly acquired in SD on two DSR-450WSPL DVCAM camcorders, DoPChristian Kehoe also selected an HVR-Z1E HDV camcorder, shooting inDVCAM mode. “There were lots of elements to the programme fromvideo diaries and training at a bootcamp to expert advice spots on nutrition and psychology whichrequired different shooting styles,” heexplains. Ninety per cent of the workwas handheld, covering 20 peoplemostly on weekend shoots and including a final 90-minute matchwhich pits the participants against ateam of former pros. “The sheerweight difference in using the HVR-Z1E makes it easier to runaround,” adds Kehoe. “People feel lessintimidated by smaller cameras. It waseasier to have something to grab andreact as a floating back-up camera.The picture quality is fine as long asthe subject is well lit and it handleswell in natural light.”Between 30 and 60 tapes weredelivered daily for editing andfinishing in-house at Granada. EdSayer was executive producer withTom Jackson as senior producer.
Hard act Rise of the Footsoldier, shot with an HDW-F900RHDCAM camcorder, follows the inexorable rise of
Carlton Leach from one of the most fearedgenerals of the football terraces to becoming amember of a notorious gang of criminals who
rampaged their way through London and Essexin the late 80s and early 90s.
The feature is directed by Julian Gilbey.Executive producer is Terry Stone.
Peop
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Assistant Editor Abi Pears
Contributors Louise Bishop,Maggie Brown, Pippa Considine,Ann-Marie Corvin, Douglas Kitson,Adrian Pennington, Andy Stout,Stephen Tate, Amy Tobias
Art Editor Karen Painter
Executive Editor Carl Pring
Circulation Development ManagerSteve Klapiscak
26 Carnarvon Road,Bristol BS6 7DUEditorial telephone 0117 942 6977Editorial fax 0117 907 0717Editorial email [email protected] email [email protected] fax01932 817014Subscriptions [email protected]
Published by Small World PublishingLimited for Sony United KingdomLimited.
Contents copyright 2007 SonyCorporation. Reproduction in whole orpart is strictly prohibited. Permissionmay be granted by application to SonyUnited Kingdom Limited, BroadcastDivision. No responsibility for lossoccasioned to any person acting orrefraining from action as a result of thematerial in this publication can beaccepted by the authors or publishers.Whilst information given is true at thetime of printing, small productionchanges in the course of our company’spolicy of improvement throughresearch and design might not beindicated in any specifications. Pleasecheck with Sony to ensure that currentspecification and features match yourrequirements.
Digital Betacam, DVCAM, XDCAM,HDCAM, HDCAM SR, CineAlta and Sonyare all trademarks of the SonyCorporation, Japan.
C4 server system Channel 4 has developed a new
server system for storing its programming,marking a major shift in the way material is
accessed and used.
The broadcaster has installed a new LTO-3PetaSite tape library to store a whole year’s
worth of programming. Each LTO tape stores400GB of material and has a transfer speed of
80Mbps, and the system holds 3000 tapes.
“We’ve gone for LTO-3 because it’s an openformat and the latest generation of LTO,” says
Channel 4 chief technology officer, KevinBurrows. “The primary advantage is that
multiple users can have access to the samecontent without having to put it on tapes,” he
continues. “Also with that volume of storage, thiswas the only practical way forward. It’s not costeffective to use disc storage for that amount of
capacity. Interchangeability is important too,and the fact that it is LTO-3 means that you cantake the tapes out and play them in drives that
don’t belong to any one manufacturer.”They also allow Channel 4 to convert to HD in
the future. “At the moment it’s all SD, but there’snothing in the future that would prevent us
from using it for HD,” he says.
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Working with dinosaursDinosapien is a new children’s high definition co-production from BBC
Worldwide and CCI Entertainment for the BBC and Discovery Kids in the US.
The 15x30 minute series, combining live footage with CGI, explores what wouldhave happened had some of the dinosaurs survived and evolved into
intelligent life. Much of the post work is being done in London by BBC PostProduction, sharing FTP and TIF files with the production team in Canada.
Nick Keene, lead editor, BBC Post Production, explains: “Around 10,000-15,000files travel back and forth per episode, needing around 30GBs of storage per
episode. It is benefiting the production enormously, enabling us to save days inthe schedule and deliver work within extremely tight deadlines.”
The workflow remains tape-based in part, as it is the most effective way tomove material in the early stages. Daily rushes, shot on HDCAM, are sent to BBCPost Production London and down-converted to SD. DVCAM copies are then sentback to Toronto for an offline edit. Once everything is compiled, it is sent back toLondon to be conformed and graded, resent to Canada to act as background for
the animation and back again to London for a final conform.
Carmen performs in HDAt the beginning of 2005 the Royal Opera House had a complete high definitionproduction system installed; five HDC-950s there permanently and the capacity forup to 12 if the occasion calls for it.Since then, the BBC has shot and broadcast various productions, the latest of whichis Carmen, which runs at the ROH from December to February, and is broadcast onBBC Two in 2007. For this production the BBC is using nine cameras in total, andwhile BBC Two transmits in standard definition, shooting in HD will allow thefootage to be archived for possible HD transmission in the future.“The HD system has settled in well and people are getting familiar with it. We arevery pleased,” says broadcast and sound manager, Peter Byram.
HD now.Be part of it Sony is showing its comprehensive high definition line-up and hostingworkshops each day.
Sony workshopsThe sessions are open to all visitors at no cost. Please cometo Seminar Registration on your arrival at the show andreserve your seat.The following programme runs for allthree days of the show.
10.40 Introducing digital wireless audioNew audio technology for TV & video producers Total Audio Solutions
11.30 Exploring HDVA guide to cost effective high definition video – The technology, the workflow, the formatSony Broadcast
12.20 Moving to tapeless productionTips on camera use in the field, managing data andworkflow through to the screen Sony Broadcast
13.20 HDTV: lens to lightHow HD is redefining the viewing experienceSony Broadcast
14.10 DVD authoring with DVD Architect 4 The editing to DVD workflow Sony Media Software
15.00 Advanced editing with Vegas 7HD & HDV editing Sony Media Software
16.00 XDCAM interoperability with Vegas 7Editing and XDCAM Sony Media Software*
(* 6 and 7 February only)
6-8 February n Earls Court 2 n Stand 320
Contents7 How to create a drama hit
Broadcasters are urgently tryingto produce their own home-grown returning drama series tocompete with US imports
8 Torchwood shoots on HDCAMRussell T Davies hit series turnedto the HDW-750P when theoriginal camera choice wasdeemed unsuitable
10 HDW-750P productions A look at some of the many highend dramas shooting with theHDCAM mainstay camcorder
12 Making In the Night Garden How Ragdoll has created thesuccessor to Teletubbies withHDCAM and HDCAM SR
14 Strictly Come Dancing in HDProducing live Saturday nightentertainment in high definition
15 Terry Pratchett’s HogfatherCreating the production values ofa feature film meant recording at4:4:4 on HDCAM SR
16 Arsenal’s HD studio facilitiesNew stadium networked for HD
17 OB operator Arqiva’s new trucksHD Sports is major driver of work
18 Southampton Solent UniversityNew studio build with DXC-D50s
19 Shooting Live from Abbey RoadHDCAM captures artists at work
20 UK indie feature Perfect WomanShooting with the HDW-F900R
27 Sony Specialist Dealers
News 5
s
than fulfilled our expectationstechnically, the trial has more
PS3 promos playon real life
Sony has commissioned a series of fivepromos in the build-up to the launch of
PlayStation 3. Each one focuses on real lifecharacters in real life situations, to
demonstrate the need for, or benefit of,the platform’s new technology.
James Rosen, editor at Final Cut London,says the structure and content of the
promos is very different from traditionalcommercials. The director is Colin O’Toole.
“The boxing sequence presented its owntechnical challenge in manipulating
high-speed HD footage to emphasise the decisions and reactions a boxer makes
during a fight,” Rosen says. “These speedramps had to be as smooth as possible to
go unnoticed and keep the action flowing.This always takes a lot of time and
patience, but the results are extremelyrewarding.”
Rosen says the promos were shot with anew Weisscam camera at 250 fps andrecorded onto HDCAM for the edit. “ It
take lots of time to get the picture right atthat speed,” he adds.
HD trial successThe terrestrial high definition TV trial being conducted bythe BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and five has been successful inproving the technology and popularity of HD picturesamongst viewers.“This is a landmark collaboration between the leading UKbroadcasters,” says Charles Constable, director of strategy,five. “All of us are exploring the possibilities for HD programming, and this trial set out to eliminate technicalconcerns about HD on Freeview and establish demand forservices. Both of these objectives were achieved.”The trial, which is continuing, started last year in theLondon region with a special licence from Ofcom, runningalongside the same broadcasts on cable and satellite.Simon Fell, director of technology, ITV Consumer, says thetrial has proved the feasibility of terrestrial HD transmissions. “Technically, the trial has more than fulfilled our expectations,” Fell says. “With the help and co-operation of our transmission partners and theconsumer electronics industry, we have conclusivelydemonstrated that HD services can run effectivelyalongside standard Freeview broadcasts.”Quantitative research amongst the panel homes indicated that HD ready viewers expect high definitionbroadcasts on Freeview in the future.Seetha Kumar, head of HDTV, BBC, says: “It’s clear evenfrom this small trial that audiences increasingly expect usand the other major broadcasters to offer high quality HDprogramming on Freeview in the future.”The BBC’s trial has included some of the BBC’s best sport,documentaries, drama and music, such as World Cup coverage, major Wimbledon matches, dramas Robin Hood,Torchwood and Bleak House, natural history series PlanetEarth and concerts from The Proms to Beyonce.
“Once a dramaproves successful,the move is on tomake more of the same”
Production analysis 7
When Channel 4 paid one mill ionpounds an episode last year to holdonto Desperate Housewives after a
fierce bidding war with BSkyB, it was a definingmoment in television drama.
Forced on cost grounds to chose between Lostand Desperate Housewives, Channel 4 plumpedfor the latter, handing the third series of Lost toSky One, which has subsequently reaped some ofits best one million plus audiences.
Since the launch of digital television eightyears ago, the competition, and hence prices, forthe most successful American dramas andcomedies have rocketed. Sky, five and mostrecently, ITV, are fishing hard in the pool that wasonce largely dominated by Channel 4.
In the case of five, its deal for top rating CSIwas also assisted by something C4 does not haveaccess to – the rights were negotiated withproducers CBS across the entire RTL group.
This is why in locations around the UK, youwill find there is so much investment, planning
and activity taking place on new fixed andclosed sets for television dramas – sets that canbe utilised to make long running series, swiftly,and even continuous production if required.
This is also compatible with the sharp focuswhich high definition requires, and everyone,from costume designers and make up artists todirectors, are having to deal with it. In a closedset, you have control.
The BBC, as ever, is ahead of the game, havingbeen largely priced out and unable to justifyexpensive US imports since C4 took TheSimpsons off it in 2001 in a costly raid.
Casualty was stepped up to a regular round-the-year series in 2002. Holby City, similarly, ismade on set in Elstree, while Doctors comes fromSelly Oak, a set on Birmingham University land.
The most clear cut example of the trend isShameless, the Paul Abbott created hit for C4.This is made by the Independent Company andreturned in 2007 for its fourth series.
Even now, the new set for the fifth series isbeing built in Wythenshawe, which also allowsfor the entire production to be restyled. Theintention is to double the number of episodes,first to sixteen, when production starts in April,and then to 22 for at least three years.
The production company says the price willthen come down, from around £700,000 anhour to around £600,000 an hour, a businesslikeproposition if not a bargain for C4. It also givesC4 its first long-running drama series, apartfrom soaps, of a length approaching a USacquisition, to play in the same 10pm slot.
A closed set allows for faster production. It willalso require much more organised team writing,overseen by Abbott.
The same process, a closed precinct drama,was filmed in Kent this autumn, again for C4.Cape Wrath, an eight part dark thriller fromEcosse Films, is set in part of a new housingdevelopment, where the New England style
weather boarded pristine houses become thesetting for Meadowlands, a 21st Centurysuburban “paradise”, free of drugs and crime.
The drama is centred on former secretagents who find themselves rehoused therewithout memories – it is almost a reprise ofThe Prisoner, the 1960s series which used theWelsh town of Port Meirion. Depending onaudience reaction, this is another potential C4returning series.
The trend is also evident in Aintree,Liverpool, where a former jam factorywarehouse with acres of underused land hasbeen transformed into a fixed external streetset for Lilies, the period 1920s BBC One drama.
With self-contained episodes, the setdesigner built a series of intersecting cobbledstreets and terraced housing; two up twodown, with back yards, allotments, a corner puband distressed drab paint work.
This was primarily because there wasnowhere untouched within Liverpool itself, butalso because if successful, it will certainly berushed back into production. The appeal is thatthe attached jam warehouse has the space tohold the internal room sets.
The use of digital camera work allows foranother short cut. The photographs of milltowers, warehouses and cranes are blown upto appropriate scale, printed out, pasted onwood and erected at a suitable distance fromthe street set, to create such an authenticskyline it can fool even the casual viewer.
In the fickle world of television, very fewsenior executives, from C4 controllers to PeterSalmon, creative director of the BBC, willventure into hard numbers when trying todefine a hit programme any more. But once adrama proves successful, the move is on tomake more of the same.
How long before Robin Hood’s creators leasea wood off the Forestry Commission?
Shameless – a new closed set will give more control n
More than ever,broadcasters are looking forhome-grown drama series.
Maggie Brown reports
thefuture’s
bright
Following the successful reintroduction ofDoctor Who into the space timecontinuum, expectations surrounding
writer Russell T Davies’ adult-themed spin-offseries, Torchwood, were high. And while tonallythe story arcs may veer about rather erraticallybetween the sl ightly camp British sci-fi tradition that Who itself epitomises and asort of This Life with aliens, the 13x60 minuteseries certainly looks spectacular.
Torchwood is, of course, an anagram of DoctorWho. Unlike Who, though, whose first two series(or season 27 and 28 for the pedantic) have beenshot in standard definition, Torchwood wasplotted as an HD show from the beginning.
“There was pressure to go HD,” says producer,Richard Stokes. “It wasn’t terrible or stressfulpressure, there was just a downward pressurefrom the BBC saying that HD is the future,particularly for shows that are going to be soldon DVD and might be sold to America.”
Stokes was series producer on Holby Cityseveral years ago, one of the first BBC episodicsto pilot HD, so he knew what he was getting into.All the same, the production faced a steeplearning curve, chiefly due to the first choice of[non-Sony] cameras delivering unsuitableresults and having to be taken out early on.Stokes refuses to be drawn further on thematter, but pronounces himself more thanhappy with the eventual replacement: a SonyHDW-750P HDCAM camcorder shooting in 25p.
“It was fairly robust in fairly extreme weather,”he recalls. “We had storms, rain, cold andextreme heat, we had a very hot summer whenwe were filming and inside in the studio it got toabout 45 degrees plus. We thought the actorswere going to fall over in front of the cameras.”
Luckily no-one – actors, HDCAM camcorder orotherwise – fell over, and the result is anincredibly sumptuous looking programme. Itslook comes mainly as a direct result of using alot of backlighting on set to try and recreate thesheen that American series such as CSI have putto such good use in recent years. It was alsograded extensively at The Mill on Baselight –HDCAM and skillful DoPs ensuring there wasplenty of latitude to push the image exactly
where the production wanted it“The picture is extraordinary,” says Stokes. “I
would probably try and do any new show that Ido in HD now, because I think the richness ofcolour, the detail in the picture, what the DoPcan do with the lights and the mood and thefeel, what you can end up doing in the gradewhen you actually put the final polish on. It’s allso good that if you’re using the right equipment,and people who know how to use theequipment, you can get results that are headand shoulders above standard definition.”
One of the reasons that sci-fi in particular hasbeen leery of HD is the make-up (it’s no accidentthat most of the US sci-fi shows shooting in HDat the moment are light on aliens). The wayround it, according to Stokes, is to useairbrushing.
“It does give a more natural look, but it takes abit more time which is one of those hidden costsof HD that you never think about when you firststart shooting,” he says. “It takes probablyanother 50 – 75 per cent of time to do the make-up, and if you’ve got five regulars plus four
8 Cover story
“The picture is extraordinary,
I would probablytry and do any
new show that Ido in HD now”
Richard Stokes,producer
Torchwood turnedto the HDW-750P
to shoot in HD.Andy Stout reports
saving time
guests, suddenly that can end up eating intoyour day quite a lot. There were probably one ortwo moments where we’d look at rushes and go‘oh I think that looks a little bit shiny’, but theywere few and far between.”
The production eschewed HD monitors mostof the time, simply downgrading the rushes toSD and burning them onto DVD.“It was probablyabout the worst way of checking the quality ofthe image,” admits Stokes, “but it was the bestand the easiest way of checking theperformance, the shot size, the angle, the variety,you know, all the stuff you need look for to makesure the show works.”
So, having made one of the UK’s most high-profile sci-fi shows of recent years and, not onlythat, but having made it in HD, what has Stokeslearned from the experience?
“I’d start with the right camera!” he saysquickly, before remembering himself andchanging tack.
“I was given a brilliant piece of advice from
another producer, which was ‘Camera test,camera test, camera test!’ before you startfilming,” he says. “I allowed three days worth ofcamera testing before we started shooting,which is quite extravagant, but even that wasn’tenough. If I were to go back, I would haveanother day trying different techniques andgetting the results back quicker, so that we couldmake choices about lighting and camera earlier.”
He also talks about training and making surethat all crews have the time to familiarisethemselves with the equipment and the way itworks, especially the camera menus.
“But apart from that, not much else in termsin HD,” he concludes. “I’m a convert.”
Production creditsName of production: TorchwoodProduction company: BBCEquipment used: HDW-750P HDCAM camcorderSupplied by: Stylus
nnnwww.sonybiz.net/hd
dealer focusDIGIRENT
production:Across the Himalayasequipment supplied: HDW-750PWhat do you do when you are a programmemaker planning an eight week highdefinition shoot in Nepal and you haven’tgot an HD camera? Irish company Crossingthe Line can answer that question: theirHDW-730S camera went for a pre- shootcheck up and did not return, due to a mistake by the delivery company.“We couldn’t believe it wouldn’t come, andthen it didn’t,” says John Murray, MD ofCrossing the Line Films. It’s the nightmaresituation every producer dreads, flightsbooked and no kit.“It was the weekend and we had to dosomething. We could have rented a camerabut renting for nine weeks would have beenvery expensive,” comments Murray. So thecompany put a call into Sony SpecialistDealer DIGIRENT in Dublin on Saturdaymorning. The DIGIRENT office rang back afew hours later to say they could organisethe purchase of a new HDW-750P camcorder.One of the programme crew flew over toLondon late that afternoon to pick up thenew camcorder and the next day the crew ofthree headed for Nepal, complete with the HDW-750P and a back up HVR-Z1E.DIGIRENT was established in 1999 and is asubsidiary of the Visual Impact group.“This story makes the benefits of using aSony Specialist Dealer clear,” says RobNewton, group business manager of VisualImpact. “In our industry, you have to beready for anything; major events and incidents don’t wait for you. This alsoapplies to suppliers like ourselves. Our keystrength is the ability to react quickly toeach unique situation and supply a solutionthat adds value for the customer.”
Cover story 9
n Torchwood created its sumptuous look with the HDW-750P HDCAM camcorder
tech spec of HDW-750Pn Shoots 25P or 50in Film-like gamman Great lowlight and highlight detailn Worldwide production standardn 1080-line resolutionn Easy integration with SD and HD workflows
camerafocusThe HDW-750P HDCAM camcorder
provides the filmic quality thathigh-end drama production requires
n Thieves Like Us takes BBCThree viewers into a comedy
underworld wheredishonesty is the best policy
and petty crime pays – butonly just enough to cover
the rent and buy a pint.A BBC Production, Thieves
Like Us was shot with an HDW-750P supplied
by ARRI Media to DoP Rob Kitzman.
n ITV’s latest political drama
Confessions of aDiary Secretary, was
shot on two ARRIMedia supplied
HDW-750P camcorders by DoP
Sue Gibson. The70–minute docu-
drama was producedfor ITV by Mentorn
owned DaybreakPictures.
n The new drama series Skins produced by Company Pictures for Channel 4 follows thelives of a group of 16 and 17 year-old friends. The drama was shot on HDCAM using an
HDW-750P. Company Pictures felt the choice of camcorder was easy to make as theHDW-750P would hold up well over the 18–week shoot.
10 HDW-750P
HDW-750P 11
nCold Earth is thefirst full lengthfeature to comeout of London-based productioncompany,Bridgeway. It wasshot on an HDW-750Pcamcorder and waswritten and directed by FrankFalco. Cold Earthstars Steve Elliottand Ben Shockleyas two detectiveson a desperatequest to rescue thekidnappeddaughter of highflying celebritycouple, Darryl andLori Van Dyke. Thefilm takes itsaudience deepinside theundergroundworld of celebritylife, and into theheart of a darkmystery.
nNight Junkies isa dark, urbanVampire thrillerwith an injectionof Tarantino cooland ballisticaction. Writtenand directed byLawrence Pearceand produced byDean Fisher ofScanner-RhodesProductions, NightJunkies was shotin high definitionon an Aimimagesupplied HDW-750P byaward winningDoP Sadik Ahmed.
HDW-750Pn Superb 1080-line
picturesn Cost effective HD
productionn Worldwide
acceptance as adelivery format
n Over 27,000HDCAM unitsworldwide
n Easy integrationwith SD world
n Similarergonomics toDigital Betacam
n Film–like imagemaking
n Reassurance ofhigh quality tapemedia
allowed the characters to then act freely withinthe shot and not having to stick to specific areas,which resulted in a more natural performance.”
Because of the need to future proof the series,Ragdoll chose to make everything in HD.“The useof new HD technology ensures the programmeis future-proof to meet new broadcast andhome entertainment standards of quality,” saysLiz Queenan, head of production operations.“Ragdoll always works at the cutting edge, andour visual effects team were aware of thechallenges they faced to bring to life on screenthe vision of Anne Wood and Andrew Davenport,and they were keen to work from the outset withthe highest quality images.
“In fact, the series couldn’t have been achievedusing Digital Betacam. Keying a blue characteron blue and green grass on green screen soundscrazy but HD just does it,” says Phillips.
Shepperton based facilities companyTransmission (TX), which had previously workedwith Ragdoll on Teletubbies and Boohbah,supplied HD equipment and expertise.
“We knew that they would rise to thechallenge with their usual enthusiasm andskill,” Queenan says. “We shot on HDCAM usingHDW-750P camcorders. We always shot with atwo-camera unit but sometimes needed asmany as five cameras on location.”
The series is shot at 1080i. “We carried outextensive tests on interlaced and progressive,but as our final output medium is interlaced,this was the obvious choice and looks morepleasing. HDCAM was the preferred formatbecause of Sony’s rock solid reputation. It alsoallows us to master HDCAM SR,” says Phillips.
The vastness of the set called for movingsequences and, with the help of foresters fromthe nearby estate, Ragdoll worked for severalweeks with cabled cameras across thewoodland, attaching the HDW-750P to a LibraHead mount. TX wired the whole set with fibreoptic, which meant as the crew moved aroundthe set they could just plug the cameras into thenearest box, allowing minimum downtime.
Post was entirely undertaken at Ragdoll’ssizeable in-house facility in Stratford-upon-
12 Production
“The use of newHD technology
ensures the programme isfuture-proof”
Liz Queenan,head of production
Abi Pears reports onRagdoll’s new BBC
children’s series,In the Night Garden,
shot withHDW-750Ps and
mastered onHDCAM SR
child’splayIn the Night Garden is the latest BBC children’s
series from Ragdoll Productions, theproduction team behind Teletubbies. The
series of 100 half-hour programmes aimed atthe under-fives, has been devised by Ragdollfounder and creative director, Anne Wood, andAndrew Davenport, the partnership that alsocreated Teletubbies for the BBC. It is expected tobegin airing in the first quarter of 2007.
Andrew Kerr, Ragdoll executive vice president,global licensing and marketing, says In the NightGarden is a magical place. “It is a moderninterpretation of a nursery rhyme picture bookand features a host of wonderful charactersbased loosely on toys,” Kerr says.
The Night Garden lies within a remote area ofancient woodland in the Midlands. “The mainelements of the set were constructed in thewood beside tall trees under a roof-like leafycanopy, which created natural dappled light,” hesays. “The interiors were constructed in Ragdoll’sstudios in Stratford-upon-Avon. In this respect itwas like shooting a film, with location andinteriors spread over several stages.”
In The Night Garden is essentially a live-actionseries. For many months, an expert team, led bycostume design consultant, Vin Burnham,worked with the producers and a group ofphysically strong and skilled performers tocreate costumes that on-screen become thecharacters they represent.
The technical challenge for the directors, DirkCampbell and Alex Kirby, and VFX supervisor, LeePhillips, was to create a world where characters,ranging in size from 30 ft to minuscule, andseveral scales in between, interacted together.This involved a lot of blue screen and greenscreen shooting. One particular sequence couldonly be achieved through motion control andVFX brought their Milo rig to Stratford.
“To make the effects look seamless, it wasessential to match the lighting of the gardenwith the blue screen,” Phillips says.“This involvedconstructing blue screen areas on set and beinglit naturally. The scaling was mostly done incamera and not in post, measuring out the exactdistances so that all the angles matched. This
Avon, with sound post at Pinewood Studios.Ragdoll invested in its own HD post equipment.
“It was a big decision to invest in high-end HDpost production equipment,” Queenan says.
“After a great deal of research, Lee Phillipsdecided that Autodesk could give us theworkflow solutions the production needed andwe installed three Smokes and two Flints. Weare proud of the entire team of off-line and on-line editors and compositors who are creatingwork of extraordinary quality.”
“The key to maintaining uncompressedquality of the images was to work with HDCAM SR tapes and we managed to secure twoSRW-5500 HDCAM SR decks,” says Phillips.“Thesewere essential in maintaining the quality of the
FX shots. HD ‘eats’ storage; Ragdoll has over 75terabytes and its pretty full! The ability tolayback dual link 4:4:4 allows us to archive andstore shots on tape with minimal compressioncompared to HDCAM. This frees up storage. Italso puts the shots on tape with timecode soeveryone knows where it lives and sequencescannot be accidentally deleted. These can thenbe edited into the show in the normal way.”
Production creditsName of production: In the Night GardenProduction company: Ragdoll ProductionsEquipment used: HDW-750P camcorders and SRW-5500 VTRsSupplied by: Transmission (TX)
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facility focusOUTPOST FACILITIESequipment supplied:SRW-5000
Outpost Facilities hasbought an SRW-5000HDCAM SR recorder as part of an upgrade of theservices it offers to clients.
Outpost, anindependent postproduction companybased at PinewoodStudios inBuckinghamshire,worked on RagdollProductions’ In the NightGarden, doing sound laybacks onto HDCAM SR.
Outpost’s managing director,Nigel Gourley, says the companyrecently invested in an HDCAM SRVTR from Sony Specialist Dealer,WTS, to be used as the masterformat for features and high end TVprogrammes.
“Pinewood is starting to shootfilms on HDCAM SR so we need ittoo,” Gourley says.
HDCAM SR offers 4:4:4 RGB 10-bitrecording, making it ideal for topend mastering and post, because ofits very light compression.
“With In the Night Garden,Ragdoll is putting the finishedpicture master on HDCAM SRbecause they want to keep thequality as high as possible for aslong as possible,” Gourley says.“HDCAM SR is 4:4:4, which is justabout the highest quality you could get. Our Avid HD:DS alsoworks in 4:4:4.”
Production 13
n In the Night Garden combines live action and CGI
tech spec of SRW-5500n High quality HDCAM SR recordingn Records 4:4:4 or 4:2:2 dual stream
(2 separate HD streams on one tape)n Multi-frame rate 1080 HD recording
and playbackn 12 channels of 24-bit audion Up to 155 minutes recording per tape
14 Studios
save thelast dance
Strictly ComeDancing was made
in BBC TV Centre’shigh definition
Studio One
“The BBC’s most glamourous Saturday
night entertainmentshow just got bigger
and even more exciting”
Jon Beazley, controllerof Entertainment
commissioning, BBC
show just got bigger and even more exciting.”The Strictly Come Dancing trial broadcasts
were the first time BBC Television Centre’s StudioOne had been used for a live HD show since itwas fully fitted out for HD by BBC Resources withHDC-1500 multi-format cameras.
Richard Philipps, BBC studios director says:“We’re really excited that our new HD and Dolby5.1 studio facilities are being used for a primetime BBC One entertainment show.”
Most of the Strictly Come Dancing shows andresults were included in the trial, which isavailable to satellite and cable viewers with allthe necessary HD equipment.
The new Studio One is cabled to support up to16 cameras, with four HD fibre optic feeds fromthe gallery to the studio floor. It is also equippedwith a fully digital sound desk, 5.1 soundmonitoring and Dolby E encoding and decoding.Incoming standard definition sources will beup-converted to HD and output can beconverted to SD if required. HD investment inBBC Studios began in 2005 and has alsoincluded upgrades to the studio infrastructure,audio, talkback and comms.Production creditsName of production: Strictly Come DancingProduction company: BBCEquipment used: HDC-1500 camerasSupplied by: BBC Resources
nnnwww.sonybiz.net/live
BBC Saturday night hit show, Strictly ComeDancing was made in high definition andshown as part of the BBC HD trial – the
first live studio entertainment show ever to bebroadcast in HD by the BBC.
Jon Beazley, controller of Entertainmentcommissioning, says: “Strictly Come Dancing istaking a fantastic lead by launching live HDentertainment in the UK. It’s exactly the kind ofspectacular show we know audiences wouldlove to see in high definition. For the small butgrowing HD audience, the BBC’s mostglamourous Saturday night entertainment
Strictly Come Dancing n
“A quasi-medieval,Dickensian societydrifting throughspace perched on topof four elephantsstanding on the shellof a giant turtle”Terry Pratchett
Production 15
It must have become clear to The Mob FilmCompany’s writer/director Vadim Jean andproducers Ian Sharples and Rod Brown that
adapting Terry Pratchett’s 20th Discworld novel,Hogfather, for the screen was going to involve afair smattering of visual effects.
Discworld is described by its author as “aquasi-medieval, Dickensian society driftingthrough space perched on top of four elephantsstanding on the shell of a giant turtle. A 10,000mile diameter flat disc planet. A fantasy worldwhere reality is stretched to its limit.”
One of the highlights in BSkyB’s Christmascalendar, the 2x2 hour HD comedy dramainvolves the disappearance of Discworld’s FatherChristmas (the Hogfather.) This leads to Death(voiced by Ian Richardson ) and his assistantAlbert (David Jason) hopping on a sleigh andtrying to fill some very large boots.
If saving Christmas seems like a challenge,setting up a coherent workflow on a TV projectwhich aspired to have the production values of afeature film, was no mean feat either.
After doing a series of tests with hire companyARRI Media, the drama’s DoP Gavin Finney andvisual effects house MPC, The Mob decided toshoot and record in 4:4:4 using an HDCAM SRdigital recorder acquired from ARRI’s ARRIFLEXground-breaking D-20 camera.
“We are happy to advise people on the mostappropriate technology to use and don’t have aparticular axe to grind,” says ARRI ‘s Bill Lovell. “Ifit is digital, we have the HDW-F900R now, as wellas the HDW-750P and the D-20.”
While HDCAM SR can record at both 4:2:2 and4:4:4, the team opted for the latter due to theamount of blue screen involved. ProducerSharples explains: “4:4:4 picked up cleanbackgrounds and well-defined edges and wasable to pull matte paintings out.”
MPC VFX producer Oliver Money adds; : “It’s aperfect workflow for effects because it has thebest compression rate in the market, which givesyou a much more dynamic range.”
The HDCAM SR workflow also became thelynchpin of the production process on the nine-
week shoot as the HDCAM SR tapes from theday’s shoot were treated like film rushes.
“We decided early on that what we should dois treat any tape of rushes as if it was a can offilm,” Sharples says. “Even if we had recorded 30seconds on a tape, we would take that awayfrom the set and down to the editor’s room. Wewould then clone those rushes so we had amatching set to give ourselves back-up ifsomething terrible did happen.”
The rushes viewing and edit were carried outon site at Three Mills Studio in East Londonwhere five stages were being used for keyinterior sets on the drama, including the ToothFairy’s Castle, Crumley’s department store andthe Castle of Bones.
The HDCAM SR fed directly into an AvidAdrenaline system at SD for the offline edit, andHD clones were made. In post, Money and theteam at MPC were tasked with adding their owncomputer wizardry with 3D creature work on theproduction. This ranged from the openingsequence featuring the giant turtle to a creaturewith a trunk that sucks the socks from people’sfeet. There was also the challenge of making thehair on the CG hogs look realistic and gettingDeath’s horse Binky, to fly. The latter wasachieved by recording a horse on an Astroturf
hockey pitch in Hackney – which acted as agiant green screen, from which the movinghorse was cut out.
At MPC, the HDCAM SR material was fed intoa Clipster hard drive, which is able to store 10terabytes of data and allows FX artists toimport and export material in real time.
“This meant that we could share work –which is handy on a digital project thatcontained over 320 special FX shots,” explainsMoney. A final grade was carried out at OnePost in its newly built DI suite.
The drama was delivered to Sky in HD andthe distribution company RHI, which ishandling the international sales. Sharples saysthat RHI may include a conversion to print anda theatrical release in some countries, “whichwill be another good test for HDCAM SR!”Production creditsName of production: Terry Pratchett’s HogfatherProduction company: The Mob Film CompanyEquipment used: Two D-20 cameras with SRW-1 recordersSupplied by: ARRI Media
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n Hogfather
hogging the limelightTerry Pratchett’s Hogfather was shot with two ARRI D-20cameras recording on HDCAM SR. Ann-Marie Corvin reports
16 Sport
eye on the ball
Arsenal’s newstadium has its ownHD facilities, reports
Adrian Pennington
n Arsenal TV has access to SkySport’s HD pictures
Production is managed from a studio controlroom that includes an MFS-2000 vision mixerwith live sound desk, an HD EVS XT2 for replaysand a set of HDCAM VTRs for playback andrecord. An adjacent studio for pre and postmatch analysis houses two HDCAM VTRs.
At the heart of the system is a Ziris contentcreation and management software systemwhich manages playout from a Ziris server.Content is encoded into MPEG-4 using Tandbergencoders and decoded by specially designed HDstreaming cards installed in each of the 450 HDprofessional LCD screens spread across the site.
Each bespoke card enables Arsenal’s AV teamto remotely monitor and tailor the distributionof content, switching content to target differentaudiences. Input Media also produces a separatelive feed for two pitch-side screens.
“The biggest challenge has been to make allthe elements add up to the match day time, andplan the multiple feeds,” says managing directorDavid Wood. “Our business is broadcast and theoperation we produce here as complex as anylive outside broadcast.”
Arsenal FC aspires not just to be the bestteam in Europe but to be the pre-eminentclub brand off the pitch too. The flagship
of this ambition is the new 60,000 seat £271million Emirates stadium located a free-kickaway from Highbury.
As befits a stadium built for generations tocome, the AV communications system breaksnew ground. Designed and built by the SonyProfessional Services Team in partnership withthe club, the Emirates is home to the world’s firststadium installation of streamed HD content.
“Arsenal had the vision to want leading edgepicture quality inside the venue,” says MarkGrinyer, manager professional services. “It’s allabout improving fan experience. HD providessuperior on-screen graphics and it’s a driver tosupport Sky Sports broadcasts.”
Independent sports broadcast specialistsInput Media (which already produces 40 hours aweek for Chelsea TV) won the contract toproduce Arsenal TV’s weekly programming forinternational distribution following the club’sleague and Champions League campaigns. Italso produces pre-season matches, club features,exclusive interviews and highlights packagesfrom the club’s archive.
A portion of this content is pre-edited anddelivered to Arsenal for every home match whereit is mixed into a match day programme startingtwo hours before kick-off. The centrepiece of theprogramme is a live broadcast.
Typically, Input Media will take the host feedfrom the outside broadcaster covering the game.If it is Sky Sports, the HD feed is straightforward.If it is an ITV or BBC host, then the signal will beupconverted to maintain a uniform 1080i 16:9output. Input Media also operates its own set ofcameras, including an SD radio unit for shots ofthe ground and crowd, and its own HD camerahigh on the gantry for game coverage.
“The operationwe produce
here is as complex as any
live outsidebroadcast”David Wood,Input Media
super motionSony Specialist Dealer Mitcorp is
one of the first companies to makethe HDC-3300 HD SuperMotion
camera available to clients.“SuperMotion allows the viewer to
see live action slowed down tothree times its normal speed by
way of a replay,” says StephenRatcliff, rental director of MitcorpUK. “It is fairly standard in many
ways. Operators are using thecamera in the same way that they
use any HD camera.”The HDC-3300 HD SuperMotion
camera shoots in HD full-resolution1920 x 1080 at three times normal
speed and gives clear HD imagesover runs of up to 2.5 km of fibre.
The camera also provides real-time,normal-speed images.
Sport 17
The outside broadcast truck is a familiar siteat live events, but since the advent of HDprogramming, what’s inside the truck is
changing. One company which is at thevanguard of this change is UK OB outfit Arqiva,which has a 25-year track record in OBs.
The current Arqiva OB division has majorexperience in transmitting live sports and musicand entertainment shows. Its current biggestcontract is with Sky Sports to transmit footballand speedway. Other programmes they havebeen involved with include The Priory, Tricia anda series of Sky pay-per-view music events.
Before the start of the 2006 football season,Arqiva ran their OBs in standard definition.However Sky and Arqiva decided to make thechange and upgrade the facilities to the latest inhigh definition kit.
“We decided to build from new rather thanupgrade existing trucks. It was a multimillion-pound deal. Two identical trucks were built,”explains MD Mick Bass. “A lot of people wantedto provide equipment but we had a goodrelationship with Sony and Sony had a goodrelationship with Sky – we felt that this mutualexperience would be invaluable, so wecommissioned Sony to build the trucks.”
According to Bass, the most complex issuewasn’t the HD pictures, but the introduction ofthe technology for the use of 5.1 Dolby surroundsound. “Up until the building of these newfacilities there had been a problem to do withhow you successfully route the signal aroundthe OB truck – but we have solved it,” he says.Thereason for the change was Sky’s HD broadcastplatform, which drove the high specification ofthe trucks in both sound and vision.
“It was an expensive business, but worth it,”says Bass.“This was an opportunity to take a leadover some existing HD trucks in the UK with onlyfirst generation technology. We came late intothe market but this has been an advantage insome ways, allowing us to build something thatis state of the art. Our equipment is rock solid –very reliable and has been very well received bythe client.”
The trucks centre round an MVS–8000A visionmixer with a production monitor stack with allflat screen panels, augmented with three largeCRT monitors for preview, a Calrec Alpha audio
desk with a Bluefin upgrade and a large Telexcommunications matrix. On a large liveproduction there might be 29 people inside: thesound and vision crew, producers and graphicsoperators. There are also 11 EVS (slow motion)positions and the ability to use the HDC-3300HD SuperMotion cameras. Everyone inside thetruck is networked so they can swap clips. Thisfits inside a two-sided, pull-out articulated lorry.
As Arqiva has been contracted to supply OB forSky’s football coverage for some time, the team,along with Sony and Sky themselves, knew whatwas needed inside the perfect HD truck. Theproject took a year to complete from handshaketo delivery. The coachwork was done in the UK,then an equipment list was finalised whichincluded 22 HDC-1500 cameras, two HDC-3300cameras and hundreds of thousands of poundsworth of fibre optic cable. There are also fourHDCAM HDW-D2000/20 VTRs, one HDCAM SRSRW-5500 VTR, one MVS-8000A multi-formatswitcher and LMD and BVM A-series displays.
“It is virtually a new company on its own,” saysBass. “As the incumbent, we wanted a smoothtransition and this was delivered at the start ofthe new season without a hitch. Sony have beenbrilliant throughout the whole thing, theydelivered on spec, on budget and with gooddialogue the whole way through.”
“The trucks look stunning and the HD picturesare marvellous,” he adds. “The main issues for ushave been operating 5.1 in a real setting and we
have adopted a few new procedures and it allworks successfully.”
So far, the Arqiva trucks have covered 40football matches and The Race (a celebritymotor racing show on Sky One). The trucks arealso available for hire by other broadcasters.
How has HD changed the nature of OB? “Youhave to have deeper pockets now. Before youcould go into OB on a small scale – now it is aserious commitment,” says Bass. “It will takesome time to consolidate the move into HD inthe OB industry. It is so expensive that anymore new technology at this stage may not besustainable. At the moment, HD is still highend for outside broadcast. There will be astandard definition market for a good fewyears to come: there will always be budgetaryissues or programmes where there is no drivertowards HD, for example where there is nochance of a worldwide sale. But if we arereinvesting in technology, we wouldn’t buy SD.”
Despite all the new kit, Bass feels real successin OB lies in other areas too.“Outside broadcastis an art, not a science,” he explains. “We haveto react to an ever-changing environment andthis means it all comes down to people. Anyonecan buy a truck – the difference is the guys whomake it work under pressure. It’s the people notthe kit and our people have designed a truckthat takes account of that.”nnnwww.sonybiz.net/live
this sporting lifeThe outside broadcast arm of Arqiva has been boosted bytwo new HD trucks, reports Louise Bishop
“Our equipment isrock solid – veryreliable and hasbeen very wellreceived by theclient”Mick Bass,Arqiva
18 Education
studentunion
“Talking to variouscontacts around the
industry, all roadsseemed to lead toSony cameras and
viewfinders”Tony Wade,
Solent University
Southampton TV, but needed a big rethink. “Theflavour of the studio set-up was dictated by thesmall floor area and low ceiling,” says Wade. “Itbore a heavy resemblance to the smaller studiosat Sky, and it seemed ideal for similar treatmentto the new ITV Meridian studios, which werebeing finished at the same time.”
Quadrant Visual Solutions worked with Solentto design and kit-out the studio. Quadrant hasalso recently installed a new studio at StaffordUniversity. According to Quadrant businessdevelopment executive, Les Bell, it took installerGlynn Harcombe between four and five weeks tocomplete. Although Solent had a good idea ofwhat they were after, Wade explains that,“Quadrant helped us choose the equipment thatbest emulated broadcast systems we wished totrain on and keep within our budget”.
“Talking to various contacts around theindustry, all roads seemed to lead to Sonycameras and viewfinders,” he says. He also wentfor Vinten light-weight peds, a Ross vision mixer,Yamaha sound desk, two DSR-1500AP DVCAMdecks and a huge, flat-screen multi-display inplace of a conventional rack full of monitors.
“The studio really needed fluorescent lightingdue to limited air volume, but I wanted theflexibility of a hybrid tungsten/florry rig, withdimable floor sockets,” continues Wade, whoknew that he would be teaching fundamentalssuch as BBC three-point portrait lighting, as wellas lighting for chroma-key and special effectlighting in this space. Bristol Paints provided atwo-pack green wall painting system, which wastime-consuming to apply, but has givenexcellent results on-screen right from the start.
One innovation is the inclusion of the RCP-D50camera remote panels, the first time thatQuadrant has supplied these in the UK.“Becauseof my background in vision control,” says Wade,“Ireally wanted a full facilities camera controlpanel with a joystick for iris control and memorystorage and recall. Again, the RCP-D50 cameraremote panels are very similar indeed to theirbroadcast counterparts.”
The new studio has already been used for arange of productions over the past months. Sofar, it has seen training sessions with localschools, a pilot for a webcast magazine and amagazine programme for internationalwholesaler, City Electrical Factors.
The studio has also been used for a pilot showby a local musician and has been approached bya local politician to produce chat-show packagesfor his website. Meanwhile, it could always haveanother use; local broadcasters have noted thatthe broadcast quality set-up makes it a potentialdisaster recovery studio, if their own facilitiesever crashed.
Sponsored by Meridian/ ITV, the new studioat Southampton Solent University is one ofa growing number of college media
facilities that are being built to professionalbroadcast standards.
The digital studio, which uses three DXC-D50cameras, takes its inspiration from some of thelatest studio set-ups in the UK and has alreadybeen used to run courses for ITV engineers, aswell as providing a facility for theundergraduates and local community.
Launched in 2006, the studio wascommissioned by the university’s Faculty ofMedia, Art and Society. John Barlow, theuniversity’s director for the Centre ofProfessional Development in Broadcasting andMultimedia Production, explains:“One of the keythings was the flexibility to service the threeprinciple users: our own higher educationstudents in doing project work; corporate users;and community groups, to strengthen links andto offer skills training.”
Solent already has two smaller studiosequipped with the DXC-D50 cameras, whichmade it easier to decide which would go into thenew facility. “We went for widescreen capableSony cameras so we were able to offer what weconsider a top of the range camera suitable forprofessional use,” says Barlow. “We had alreadytested them and found them very, very useful.”
Tony Wade is the technical team leader at thefaculty. A former senior engineer at ITV, heworked with project manager Jan Beale, formergeneral manager at Meridian, on theinstallation, “The DXC-D50 cameras were asimple choice,” he says, “because they are verysimilar indeed to the E-30 range widely used bybroadcasters.”
The small studio area, measuring five metresby just over seven, provided plenty of challenges.It had already been a studio, once used by
Southampton SolentUniversity is the
latest campus tobuild state-of-the-art
digital facilities.Pippa Considine
reports
New facilities for Solent University n
“It doesn’t looklike Jools Holland,it’s definitely notTop of The Pops,it’s a much morefilmic approach”Kelvin Richard,Director ofPhotography
Music 19
Live From Abbey Road is a major new musicTV series on More4 and Channel 4 shot inhigh definition by director of photography
Kelvin Richard. The director is Annabel Jankel,co-creator of Max Headroom, and the producersare Peter Van Hooke and Michael Gleason.
Inspired by the 75th anniversary of the worldfamous Abbey Road studios, Live From AbbeyRoad is a 12x60 minute music TV seriesindependently produced for a worldwideaudience. It showcases artists from Paul Simon,and David Gilmour to The Kooks, Snow Patrol,Razorlight and The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Each show has three artists, there is no studioaudience and no host, but, as well asperforming, the musicians speak about theirwork and there’s footage of their rehearsals.
“From the start, we have aimed to make eachshow have the look, feel and atmosphere of amusic movie made for TV,” Jankel says.“We shootwith 35mm lenses and have different lightingset-ups for each artist – the performancedictates the production.”
Live From Abbey Road, which is producedunder license from EMI, the owner of AbbeyRoad Studios, will be broadcast internationallyacross the Americas, Japan, Europe and Asia.
The series has been shot with HDW-750PHDCAM camcorders supplied by SheppertonStudios based Axis Films, lighting from AFM, plustechnical infrastructure supplied by PresteigneBroadcast Hire. Sony Specialist Dealer, Top-Teks,in turn, supplied Axis.
Richard says the support given has beenexceptional: “Because of the complexity of theshoots, they had to have the knowledge of back-up and service to carry us through.”
The series has a unified feel thanks to thesettings Richard devised for the HDW-750Ps, buteach programme also has a unique look styled tothe individual acts.
“The whole ethos is that this has got to bedifferent from anything else. It doesn’t look likeJools Holland, it’s definitely not Top of The Pops,it’s a much more filmic approach. We’re usingfive or six Sony HD cameras, using 35mm filmlenses and Canon high definition lenses.
“We were trying to have something differentgoing on in each performance, somethingsubliminal. Every shoot has been treated as aseparate shoot. We started filming in May andit’s been a long and creatively challenging seriesto work on. There’s such a variety of acts, eachrequiring a different look – up to 40 artists andperformances, each looks different in its ownway. We wanted to allow the musicians to bemost comfortable, so we work around them.”
Richard employed primarily film cameramento shoot ENG style, rather than with feeds going
to a central racking system.“I needed operatorswho had the experience to see their owncorrect exposure around my given shootingstop, as there were no racks engineers”. Thecamera assistants he described as “brilliant”,were up to the challenge of staying on top ofthe constant changing of cameraconfigurations and settings during any shootday throughout the series.
“We were going for certain looks and we hadto be mindful of the limitations of what wecould do. There were technical challenges aswell, for example, lighting for an edgy hi-keyvibe with Primal Scream where there is severeshuttering on the hi def but still making surewe had a suitable shooting stop for all thedifferent lenses we were using.”
“I had my own brief about what I wanted tosee in this series and you will not see anymoving lights. It was about setting the visualmood and letting the artists work in the spacethat’s been created. We had to remember we’rein Abbey Road studios.”
HDCAM was also chosen because of itsacceptance worldwide as a delivery format.“HD is the only way to go,” Richard says. “Cost-wise, I don’t see how this could be shot on film,and my background is film. The reality is thatHD is a worldwide platform; it’s reallyestablished itself now. We’re going worldwidewith this series and, as a delivery format, theonly choice is HD.”
Van Hooke has high hopes for the series. “It’sthe right time for a TV show made by peoplewho understand music,” he says.
Production creditsName of production: Live from Abbey RoadProduction company: Live from Abbey RoadEquipment used: HDW-750P camcordersSupplied by: Axis Films and Top-Teks
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n The Kooks, Live from Abbey Road
The new music seriesLive from Abbey Roadhas created somedistinctive and uniquelooks styled for theindividual bands.Chris Dickinson reports
abbey road
20 Production
chop andchange
Douglas Kitson reports onthe making of new feature,
Perfect Woman
It starts out like any other reality TV show, agathering of gorgeous girls desperate to bepicked as Danny the Millionaire’s perfect
partner. But the feature film Perfect Womanisn’t reality TV, as legendary TV producer JamesGarwood is taking the girls who win thechallenges down to the secret operatingtheatre where evil scientist Luigi and hishenchman Stanley are cloning them,chopping up the bodies and reassemblingthem to make the perfect woman.
Perfect Woman is a British horror film, shotat Thornbury Castle in South Gloucestershire,and it has set forums across the internetbuzzing about the return of British horror.“Weoriginally shot it all with a £1.2 million budget,but after all the online interest, we havegained additional support and investment,letting us go back with more money to doreshoots and film a more spectacular ending,”says executive producer, Matthew John.
For the initial shoot, it was important to geteverything done quickly to keep costs down.“We used six HDW-F900Rs shooting on threeunits simultaneously, each with two of thecameras,” explains John. “These units shot thescenes from different viewpoints within thecastle, one for the main shot but also from theviewpoints of the people watching in thereality TV control room and those watching inthe surgery. It was a real challenge to organise,but shooting all in one go was a lot quicker.”
The look of the film was very important toJohn.“We wanted to achieve the sort of qualityyou would expect from a Hollywood picture,which meant spending a lot of money on thelighting to make sure the contrast was goodenough. The shots look brilliant and when ittransfers to the silver screen I think people willreally love how rich and bold everything is.”
n Caprice is the Perfect Woman
bristol film studiosBristol Film Studios, the largestsoundstage, all-digital studio facility inthe south west, has established itself as acentre for high definition production.As well as supplying the HDW-F900RHDCAM camcorders for The PerfectWoman, Bristol Film Studios has beenworking on a number of high end HDcorporate productions, television dramasand commercials.The company, part of the Visual Impactgroup, recently supplied HD kit for shootsfor Hewlett Packard, Royal Mail, SonyEricsson and Cathay Pacific, a commercialfor Chelsea Building Society, as well as onwildlife productions such as The ReallyWild Show and The Perfect Shark, for theBBC, and forthcoming BBC Scotlandseries, Strikers.Managing director Phil Barry says HD isnow ubiquitous. “HD is definitely whereit’s at. The leap in quality is obvious andclients are now asking for HD. Even whenthe client doesn’t ask, we shoot in HD. Itmeans it’s future proofed. Once you getthe kit, there isn’t really any reason notto shoot on HD.”Bristol Film Studios has invested in itsown HDW-750Ps and can call on othersfrom the Visual Impact hire stock.“The HDW-750P is fabulous. The goodthing about it is you can pick it up anduse it straight away, with no problemwhatsoever.“The other pro HD camera I rate is theHVR-Z1E, which is really fantastic. You canproduce a high end product using a lowbudget camera. If you put a gradedpicture side by side with something shotusing a more expensive camera, mostnormal people can’t tell the difference.For what they are, they’re fab.”
“We wanted toachieve the sort of
quality youwould expect
from a Hollywoodpicture”
Matthew John,executive producer
Caprice, British household name and star of anumber of successful theatrical productionsand independent movies plays the perfectwoman, taking over the role from VictoriaSilvstedt who had to fly to New York the daybefore the start of filming. Holly Davidson, playsKara, the heroine. Holly is best know for herrecurring roles in The Bill and Casualty, as well asfilms like Van Wilder 2 and Essex Boys. Thelegendary Dave Prowse, the man behind DarthVader’s mask in Star Wars, is Stanley thegardener. “There was no doubt that David wouldbe the best actor to portray Stanley,” says John,“As soon as he steps in front of the camera hebecomes one of the most intimidatingcharacters I’ve ever seen.” The film also featuresa list of beautiful models from agencies all overthe UK, playing the girls taking part in the realityshow, in what is described as a mix of classichorror, celebrity obsession and indie truth.
Production creditsName of production:Perfect WomanProduction company: Olympus FilmsEquipment used: HDW-F900RsSupplied by: Bristol Film Studios and Visual Impact
nnnwww.sonybiz.net/hd
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AIMIMAGE celebrates twenty-one years inthe business, providing camera equipmentand support to productions worldwide.With formats from 16mm and 35mm,through to digital systems – HighDefinition, Digibeta and DVCAM – we offer acomplete service, including studio, sound,lights and grip equipment
AERIAL CAMERA SYSTEMSInnovation House,Douglas Drive,Godalming, Surrey GU7 1JXT +44(0)1483 426 767F +44(0)1482 413 900www.aerialcamerasystems.comContact: Phil Beckett or Matt [email protected]
AERIAL CAMERA SYSTEMS is one of theWorld’s Leading Specialist CameraCompanies, providing a range of facilitiesto an extensive global client base withinthe TV and Film Industries. We can nowprovide HD solutions across our entireproduct range from Remote Heads, to theunique Tethered Blimp System to ourcomprehensive Railcam. Please contact usfor further information.
Awfully Nice Video CompanyThe Old Estate Office30 Long LaneIckenhamGreater London UB10 8TATel: 07000 345678Fax: 07000 345679Mobile: 07831 515678E [email protected]
Let Awfully Nice provide you with one oftheir Award Winning Crews (5 InternationalEMMY's to date) and the latest HighDefinition (HDCAM & HDV) or CineAltacameras to make your production one toremember.We also rent out equipment onlypackages from DV to full 'film style' HighDefinition kits. 24/7 we're Awfully Nice &here to help
AxisLondon, Glasgow, [email protected]@[email protected]:Angela, Mark or Amar
• HD,HDV, Digi Beta& DV packages• 35mm and 16mm • wet or dry hire• grip, lighting and sound• full complement of accessories• competitive, flexible and friendly service “your local”
ElectraWharf HouseBrentwaters Business ParkThe Ham, Brentford, Middx TW8 8HQT 020 8232 8899F 020 8232 8877www.electra-tv.comContact: Crispin or Doug [email protected]
• All formats from HD to DV• Drama and commercial packages• Wet or dry hire• Large selection of specialist equipment• Friendly and personal service• Full set of Zeiss DigiPrimes available
VMI VMI Broadcast Hire T +44 (0) 870 850 1444F 020 8922 1114E [email protected]
VMI Crews T +44 (0) 870 850 1444F +44 (0) 870 850 1445E [email protected]
VMI HQUnit 1 Granville Ind Est,146 – 148 Granville Road,Golders Green,London NW2 2LD
VMI SOHO19 D’arblay Street,London W1F 8ED
VMI SOUTHMill Street, Benenden,Kent TN17 4HH
Presteigne Broadcast HireUnit 4, Manor Royal,Manor Park, Crawley RH10 9SXT +44 (0)1293 651 300F +44 (0)1293 651 301E [email protected]:Andrew Murray
Whether it’s providing a single digitalcamcorder or a fully commissioned fly-away system, Presteigne enjoys anunrivalled reputation for helpingbroadcasters and production companiescapture and transmit the excitement ofprogrammes, spectacles and events acrossthe world.Our equipment range and our technicalexpertise give broadcasters the confidenceto know that we can always deliver; 24hours a day, 365 days a year.
HOTCAM Crewing and EquipmentT 020 8742 1888F 020 8742 8833E [email protected]: Abigail or Vicky
Camera Equipment: High Def, 790 DigitalBetacam Beta, Beta SX, DSR 570’s, MiniCams, Award Winning CrewsRecent Productions include: The X Factor,The Apprentice, Bad Lad’s Army, Queer Eyefor the Straight Guy, South Bank Show
Sony Specialist Dealers 27
Creativevideo.co.ukPriory MillCastle RoadStudley, WarwickshireB80 7AAT 01527 854222F 01527 857666E [email protected]
EurotekUnit E61 Heather Road,Sandyford Industrial Estate,Dublin 18T +353 1 295 7811 F +353 1 295 7885 E [email protected]
Gearhouse Broadcast LtdUnit 12 Imperial ParkImperial WayWatford, Hertfordshire WD24 4PPT 020 8795 1866F 01923 691 499E [email protected]
Jigsaw Systems LtdThe Old MillHigh Church StreetNottingham NG7 7JAT 0870 730 6969 F 0870 730 6850 E [email protected]
Proactive UK Ltd1 Eastman WayHemel HempsteadHerts HP2 7DUT 01442 292929F 01442 260913E [email protected]
PEC Video Ltd,65-66 Dean Street,London W1D 4PLT 020 7437 4633 F 020 7025 1320E [email protected]
WTSWell Trade Services Ltd Media Park 40b River Road, Barking London IG11 0DW UKT 0208 594 3336 F 0208 594 3338E [email protected]
GV Multi-mediaHead OfficeUnit 1, Inwood Business Park,Whitton Road, Hounslow TW3 2EBT 020 8814 5950F 020 8569 6616E [email protected]
South West OfficeBrooklands Mill,Nadderwater, Exeter EX4 2JGT 01392 499399F 01392 493108E [email protected]
Midlands OfficeGround Floor, 1 Cavendish,Lichfield Rd Industrial Estate,Tamworth B79 7XHT 01827 311040F 01827 311048 E [email protected]
North West OfficeUnit 4, Bag Lane Enterprise Center,Bag Lane, Atherton,Manchester M46 0JXT 01942 884433F 01942 888520 E [email protected]
North East and Scotland OfficeUnit BT145/2B & C,High Force Rd, Riverside ParkEstate,Middlesbrough TS2 1RHT 01642 240770 F 01642 248690E [email protected]
Mitcorp UK Ltd.London Headquarters23 Shield DriveWest Cross Industrial EstateBrentfordTW8 9EXT 44 (0) 20 8380 7400F + 44 (0) 20 8380 7410E [email protected]
Leeds OfficeUnit 4, Victoria CourtBank Square, MorleyLeeds LS27 9SET + (0) 113 220 3380F + (0) 113 220 3381E [email protected]
Glasgow OfficeUnit 1 Millennium CourtBurns StreetGlasgow G4 9SAT +44 (0) 141 564 2710F +44 (0) 141 564 2719E [email protected]
Sony Specialist Dealers n n n n n n n n n n n
Only buy Sony where you see theSony Specialist Dealer logo
Top-TeksBridge House,Royal Quay, Park Lane,Harefield, Middlesex UB9 6JAT 01895 825619F 01895 822232E [email protected] www.top-teks.co.uk
Visual ImpactLondon OfficeUnits 3&4, Teddington BusinessPark,Station Road, Teddington,Middlesex, TW11 9BQT +44 (0)20 8977 1222F + 44 (0)20 8943 5307
South West4 Charnwood House,Marsh Road, Ashton,Bristol, BS3 2NA.T +44 (0)117 939 3333F +44 (0)117 939 3339
North7&8 Dalby Court, Gadbrook Park,Northwich, Cheshire,CW9 7TN.T +44 (0)1606 42225F +44 (0)1606 49161E [email protected]
Total Audio Solutions LtdSmiths Way, Saxon Business ParkHanbury Road, BromsgroveWorcestershire B60 4ADT 01527 880051 (24 hours)F 01527 880052E [email protected]
Prestons103 Worcester Road,Malvern, Worcestershire WR14 1EP T 01684 575486F 01684 575594 E [email protected]
