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In brief Demonstrating 2D to 3D conversion At a time when increasing numbers of VFX and post facilities are being asked by clients about stereoscopic 3D, Autodesk is talking about its latest 3D finishing options in Flame Premium 2012 extension 1 and Smoke 2012 Subscription Advantage Pack. A number of demos are taking place throughout IBC. Approaches being showcased include a 2D-to-3D conversion process that uses Flame Premium and Flare 2012 Extension releases and the Maya 2012 Subscription Advantage Pack. This pipeline combines animated character rigs from Maya as FBX data with 2D foreground elements rotoscoped and projected onto 3D geometry in Flare. “Scenes aren’t baked. Set-ups and metadata from any previous step of the process can be accessed and adjusted,” said Marc Hamaker, Autodesk senior marketing manager, creative finishing. “This increasingly seamless pipeline workflow lets artists access and manipulate live metadata throughout the pipeline from creation to finish. And this workflow is what our customers have told us they need: efficiency and proven-creative tools.” 7.D25
10.09.2011 TV ‘spoilers’ on social media driving viewers back to linear TV
Audience apathy is the enemy Conference Analysis By Kate Bulkley “The worst enemy of TV is not piracy, but apathy,” declared Claire Tavernier, senior executive vice president at FremantleMedia, the format developer behind the X Factor and the Idol franchise. She championed social media like Twitter and Facebook as good ways to get viewers who might be watching less TV- particularly the young – to tune back in and engage with TV brands. “Eighty per cent of the under-24year-olds watch TV with another screen in their hands,” Tavernier told the audience of the panel called ‘Extending the Value of Content Through Social Media and Online Engagement’. She quoted a recent TV Guide survey that found that TV “spoilers” on social media are driving viewers back to watching linear
Claire Tavernier: “80% of the under-24-year-olds watch TV with another screen in their hands”
TV shows. “People are still watching TV because it gives them something to talk about beyond how many times a day they go down to Starbucks to get a coffee. So social media needs TV and TV needs social media.”
New cine lenses begin shipping Band Pro By David Fox
CrowdControl for networks The CrowdControl and DJ Wall interactive tools from Broadcast Electronics (BE) will provide a central point of control for social media interaction and listener sourcing, says the manufacturer. In using CrowdControl’s tools, broadcasters can set parameters on listener-sourced programming in a variety of contexts. According to the developer, it is also possible to aggregate listener feedback from various social networks and communicate with today’s texting, Tweeting and Facebooking listener through a DJ Wall. CrowdControl and DJ Wall make it simple to interact with listeners online or on mobile devices for contests and giveaways, says BE. In addition, listener-polled data can be turned into ‘programming now and research later’ for use by the automation system to fine-tune song rotations. 8.C91
Cel-Scope3D gets upgrade Version 1.4 of the Cel-Scope3D stereoscopic signal analyser is being introduced at IBC. Designed by Cel-Soft for use in 3D grading, quality control, post production and 3D camera set-up, Cel-Scope3D stereoscopic signal analysers provide operators with a choice of display configurations. The new version, 1.4, incorporates a depth spectrogram that plots depth activity and excursions against time. “Even better than a depth chart, the new depth spectrogram enables an operator to see if the 3D is approaching acceptable limits or is jumping around too much for comfort,” said Robin Palmer, managing director of Cel-Soft. Cel-Scope3D 1.4 also features an enhanced logging option that provides a complete reporting function. CelSoft’s products can be supplied as software-only or as complete turnkey systems running on PCs, or laptops for field use. 7.K01f
Jurian Van Der Meer, managing director of games for Endemol, told the session that adding social media to live game shows is creating a “new relationship with the audience”. The Million Pound Drop game show in the UK has 12% of the audience
playing along live on the web or on an app while the show is on TV. “We are intent on building communities and then cross-selling products,” he said. “Building these apps was not something we traditionally did but now – for example with Big Brother on Channel Five in the UK – it is part of the business.” Endemol plans to move voting for Big Brother in the UK to Facebook this week, away from mobile phones. “It gives us more opportunity for the audience to be engaged,” he said. Twitter and Facebook are also a big part of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s business, said Danny McCubbin, website editor for Jamie Oliver Ltd. The website has 3.5 million unique visitors and there are 13 businesses that “want Jamie to re-tweet” what they are doing to his 1.4 million Twitter followers, or mention it to his 700,000 Facebook followers. McCubbin’s job is to balance the commercial opportunities with Jamie’s campaigning on food issues. Social media and the website are used both for campaigning causes like improving school food programmes as well as promoting his TV shows.
Logitek Euro debut: The Logitek ROC audio control console is being introduced to European audiences by distributor Preco, writes Paul Watson. Available in six to 24-fader configurations, in multiples of six, the ROC console is housed in a desktop or tabletop enclosure for easy integration into permanent or temporary studios. The console features 100mm long-throw Penny & Giles faders, OLED source indicators and meters, and a number of controls to maximise the power generated by Logitek’s JetStream audio-over-IP Platform. Its fader modules include user-definable 16-character source labels on wide-angle displays, which support Unicode characters including Chinese and Kanji. It has three aux sends per fader, and each fader has a change and cue button, along with a softkey button that can be used for talkback or intercom. The console also has an inbuilt cue speaker and front-rail headphone monitor jacks. ROC’s monitor control module has a central selector for accessing sources, compression settings and EQ. Three assignable knobs are available for use with the included vScreen PC application for VGA meter bridges.
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The new Leica Summilux-C lenses, distributed exclusively by Band Pro, are the first cine lenses produced by Leica Camera. They have identical external dimensions – with focus and iris rings in exactly the same place – for ease of swapping. The lenses also boast ultra high resolution and optimisation for new digital sensors, which reveal more lens imperfections than traditional film. The first lenses shipped recently from Leica’s new factory in Germany, with Otto Nemenz International in Hollywood taking several sets of the eight lenses initially available. “The lenses are already out working on productions,” said Nemenz. “Everyone that has used the lenses likes them and the demand for the Leicas is very high.”
Advanced Karrera replaces Kayak switcher Grass Valley By David Fox The new Karrera live production switcher from Grass Valley will be the long-term replacement for its popular Kayak, and includes highend features from its Kayenne switcher. Expected to ship by the end of the year, Karrera has already won two orders from DutchView for use in a pair of new OB trucks. The Karrera will come in 4RU or 8RU frames with 1M/E to 4.5M/Es. Either can be combined with a choice of 2- or 3M/E control panels as well as a 1M/E soft-panel GUI. The switcher’s Kayenne features
include source rules, RGB buttons, key chaining, bus linking, DoubleTake and FlexiKey. “We’re bringing high-end functionality to a mid-range price point,” said Scott Murray, Grass Valley senior VP, live production solutions. Multicolour buttons allow users to assign cameras, replay or VTR sources different colours for ease of use. Meanwhile, source rules permit a remote camera, for example, to be linked to a key signal, and both come up at once. “This idea of multiple events together in one button push has been only available on Kayenne so far,” said Murray. With pressure to reduce costs, especially in the mid-market,
Karrera will give companies greater operational eff iciency, Mur ray claimed. For example, with multilanguage production, the Karrera allows users to accomplish two versions with one truck, as DoubleTake allows the M/E channels to be split. Mid-market mixer: Grass Valley’s new Karrera switcher
The Leica look: The T1.4 Summilux-C lenses will range from 16mm to 100mm
Band Pro President and CEO Amnon Band summed up: “These are in every way the lenses that we’ve been waiting for. When Leica first approached us with this project they had some very high design and performance ambitions for these lenses. All I can say is they’ve delivered.” 11.F40 It can also be integrated with other Grass Valley equipment, be used to control aspects of its LDK cameras, or work with K2 servers for multiple Clip Store channels. Karrera applications include OB, studio and flyaway. “It’s for anybody who needs an excellent switcher at a great price,” concluded Murray. OE301/1.D11/1.E02