Visualising material world: studio set-up
Post categories: Radio,ÌýRadio 4,Ìývisualisation
| 18:15 UK time, Tuesday, 7 July 2009
(Editor's note - Mark Damazer has previously written about Material World and the visualising radio trial. Tony Ward explains some of the practicalities of making it happen below).
OK so here's the thing. We're a disparate bunch really.
Despite the hopefully seamless front end presented to radio listeners and the online community as 'Radio 4', in reality our content is generated all over the place: news from TV Centre, continuity from Broadcasting House, factual programmes from BH as well as Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester, OBs from all over etc etc.
And then there are the internal 91Èȱ¬ structures - the interactive team sits within Audio and Music (A&M) division (as do the radio networks) but our technology partner is Siemens and our technical support - including for this blog - is from our Future Media and Technology (FM&T) division.
My role as Operations Manager for A&M Factual is to manage the technical resources for our in-house factual radio production base. We are around 300 350 in number and our core teams provide programmes like Any Questions, 9am discussion programmes, Womans Hour, You and Yours, Food Programme, Front Row, Material World, Saturday Live, documentaries and many many more for Radio 4 in addition to factual output on R2, R3 and World Service.
I look after a team of fifteen studio managers (sound engineers) and dedicated recording facilities - studios, workshops and the bizarrely named 'woffices' - and endeavour to enable any project envisaged to make it to air by hook or by crook.
Radio is our world. Until relatively recently producing content for it was a pretty linear operation: for pre-recorded programmes: gather raw material, edit it, script around it, record script, mix together, give a final stir and voila....
and for live programmes: compile pre-recorded content, book live guests and facilities, build a running order, gather like minds together in a studio and broadcast at allotted time with a few tweaks to accommodate topical events or unforeseen problems.
Now though we have listen again multi platform interactive on demand podcast appetites to consider and things are getting pretty crazy. The beast needs feeding.
And then I hear they want to try putting us on telly. Well in radio we're quite an unkempt bunch by comparison with our glamorous TV counterparts and we imagine that we generate beautiful, intellectually challenging mind pictures which are far superior to anything a screen has to offer. And our presenters sometimes don't even comb their hair or wear trousers.
Radio 4 have chosen Material World as their guinea pig and since it's 'one of mine' I intend to do all I can to facilitate things here. I meet with Ilika Copeland (exec producer of the trial for A&M Interactive across all the networks) and Chris Price from DV Solutions who will be providing all the stuff we need but don't have: cameras, lights, action (actually we have plenty of the latter but draw the line at car chases as they distract the studio guests). On the radio side we are joined by Richard Courtice - all-round technical guru for Radio 4. All people I can definitely do business with - they undoubtedly know their onions.
We look at the studio that Material World transmits from each week. As luck would have it is a rather unique arrangement of a single large studio with a control room either end. This is fortunate since we conclude that fitting the personnel and equipment for visualisation into the control room being used by the radio production team is not really feasible. However we establish that as long as we can hear 'open talkback' from the Material World production team then no other direct communications are needed so the visualisation team can set up at the far end as below:
Picture left: An Anycast vision mixer and flash-encoding PC
Of course since Material world only transmits for 28 minutes each week I have to make sure that other users of the studio across the week are not inconvenienced by the cameras, lights and cables so we have a lengthy dialogue about tripods, light fixings, ceiling tiles and chairs. Also what colour microphone cables look best (answer: black) -but I know my team prefer them coloured so they can quickly see which is which so this is all highly controversial. You should have been there - it was a blast. But at least it'll all stay put once set up for the six weeks of the trail.
And then we hear it won't. The cameras and lights are needed back each week so we now have to find studio time and personnel to rig and de-rig each week and make arrangements to courier the kit to and from TV Centre every Thursday and Friday.
Next up the thorny matter of a date for the first live visualisation. After much to-ing and fro-ing we settle on June 25 so I have to find time to schedule a technical rehearsal. We choose the preceding Wednesday and mock up the programme using nearby 'stooges' in place of Quentin Cooper and guests.
The day of TX arrives and I try to show moral support to the vis team by being around as they set up and for any last-minute trouble-shooting. I have to say my contribution was minimal since they all appear to very much know what they're doing. Fascinating to me though as it's all new.
I leave them to it for the programme, as extra 'bodies' are unhelpful and return to my desk in anticipation of the ultimate visual experience.
It starts. And good lord isn't that Quentin in all his glory ..looking remarkably smart - and some stills - and some errant monkey footage - and some listener blogs - and some 'coming ups'.
A discussion about dinosaurs ensues and Quentin performs his master stroke. He places a rubber model of T-Rex on the table beside him. Looks glorious in shot. Though now I think about it it's quite funny that T-Rex's gaping jaws are just big enough to span Quentin's head.
Yes the beast needs feeding. I shall have to say something.
Dare I 'contact the studio'? Pause. Yes - 'tony from london' - that'll do it.
'I can see that T-Rex finds Quentin's head quite a tasty proposition'.
Oh I do amuse myself.
Then... nothing.
Other comments far less witty than mine appear. Then the audience correspondence is taken off the screen. Quentin's thanking his guests and trailing next week's programme. Fifteen seconds to go. All in vain. Then suddenly 'tony from london' bursts into view in all its glory.
I'm published. I've always wanted to say that.
It's quite good this visualisation lark. Yes I think I'm a convert. Feed the beast.
Tony Ward is Operations Manager, 91Èȱ¬ Audio & Music, Factual
Comment number 1.
At 7th Jul 2009, Keith wrote:With the 91Èȱ¬ having talked about there going to be more repeats (particularly on 91Èȱ¬3 & 91Èȱ¬4) this may offer a possible solution. I dare say certain radio programmes may be suitable for transmission on channels such as 91Èȱ¬4. Though even if televised it's important the programme remains essentially a radio programme in it's presentation.
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Comment number 2.
At 8th Jul 2009, TV Licence fee payer against 91Èȱ¬ censorship wrote:#1. At 8:25pm on 07 Jul 2009, TheBroll wrote:
"Though even if televised it's important the programme remains essentially a radio programme in it's presentation."
Which, once it's televised, is impossible - it will be "television" by definition - not only that but many of the trates of being radio will, perhaps not immediately, inevitably vanish.
Not at all in favour of this visualisation on the web stuff, even less the idea that it can be used to make TV on the cheap...
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Comment number 3.
At 8th Jul 2009, paulmorriss wrote:I welcome this visualisation experiment, though I've only seen the Radio 1 experiment. On radio for a while now people have been referred to the website and increasingly it seems to me, on Radio 1, they are expected to do it during or soon after the show. I don't think this means that people who don't or can't see the website are having a lesser experience of the show. The same could be said of the visualisation, but I think it needs to be watched carefully (as it were) to make sure that the presenters aren't relying heavily on something that only some of the audience can appreciate.
But back to the topic - thanks for this behind the scenes stuff. It's interesting to see how this is much more than a studio webcam.
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Comment number 4.
At 12th Jul 2009, Briantist wrote:If these interactive sessions could be carried as MHEG5 for Freeview/Freesat (and OpenTV for Sky), I am sure that they would attract more listeners to the programmes that have them. A large number of listeners use Freeview/Freesat/Sky/Virgin to listen to the radio, so it would make sense.
Obviously there are plenty of programmes where you won't do this (Drama, for example) but I would have thought that all the news and discussion output (on R4 and R5Live) would be enhanced by this system.
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Comment number 5.
At 30th Mar 2010, U14402580 wrote:This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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Comment number 6.
At 12th May 2010, U14460911 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 7.
At 20th May 2010, magic1001981 wrote:On radio for a while now people have been referred to the website and increasingly it seems to me, on Radio 1, they are expected to do it during or soon after the show. I don't think this means that people who don't or can't see the website are having a lesser experience of the show.
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