Digital Production BuZZ, March 7, 2013

ATEME
We have been debating 4K here at the BuZZ and with our tech friends around the globe. Do you think it will resonate with audiences? Do you think content providers will be able to make a living producing with 4K in mind? Although there are some who would disagree, I believe we will have no choice. When new codecs are developed that support the bandwidth requirements and when large corporations like Sony declare publicly that they will be creating avenues for us to enter this marketplace, I can’t help but think that we will have no choice.

Larry Jordan just got back from BVE (Broadcast Video Expo) in London, where he gave a talk about H.265 and 4K. You can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fs1TnHjGljw&list=UUSvCR76uY0R8mjVETskWRvg&index=3

Benoit Fouchard of ATEME joins Larry for a lively discussion about H.265, 4K, bandwidth and all that we will need to move into that arena. I think you will find it enlightening. The discussion ranges from how production at high resolution needs to change from HD, a timeline for when we can distribute 4K images and why faster frame rates are almost inevitable with higher resolutions.

While we are on the topic of BVE, Larry also brought back three interesting interviews. If you know Larry, you know he just loves anything electronic that comes under the category of “toy” and some that are more sophisticated – sort of the big boy toys, right? So when he walked by the booth for a company called Build Your Own Drone, Ltd, he just couldn’t leave it alone. His talk with Martin Toovey, Director, about a portable flying platform for cameras that just might replace more traditional helicopter shots makes us want to go out and spend our allowance. Oh, and Larry says, it is a “really cool three-foot, spider-looking-thingy.” Put this one on your list for next Christmas.Build your own drone

Also at BVE, Larry spoke with Ales Panton, a London-based agent in the 4K arena who, apparently, is putting the fear of you know what into producers everywhere, because he represents below-the-line techs. We like that.

Finally, in the BVE segment of tonight’s broadcast, Chuck Silber, COO, of NewTek updates us on this company that has become the darling of anyone who broadcasts over the internet and for anyone left who works in old-fashioned television. Sorry, I couldn’t resist….

Sean Mullen is someone we’ve been watching for about a year now. He is a highly experienced special effects designer who has worked on literally hundreds of film, television and music video projects. His company, Rampant Design, is growing so fast we almost can’t keep up. The good news is he has numerous solutions for video producers who need drag and drop effects for their work. How hard is it to balance between the left and right side of the brain, run a business and still stay creative? I’ll bet we can all relate to that, right?

Lumberjack logo 300x300Philip Hodgetts and his partner, Gregory Clarke were invited to exhibit their app, Lumberjack, at the recent Hollywood Post Alliance (HPA). While there, they also noticed that there was some very interesting technology emerging from some of the other exhibitors. Philip is here to tell us about what he observed, what he learned and how Lumberjack was received.