SMPTE®, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, and IABM, the international association for broadcast and media technology suppliers, have entered into a new collaborative agreement to share knowledge and expertise across their memberships. In the first stage of the agreement, members of each organization are now able to take advantage of the other’s training courses at discounted rates.
“A knowledge exchange with IABM makes a great deal of sense for both of our organizations,” said SMPTE executive director Barbara Lange. “IABM’s strength is in business knowledge and research, while SMPTE brings expertise in standards-based technologies–a synergy that will add great value for our respective communities.”
The collaboration will also give certain SMPTE members privileged access to executive-level IABM Business Intelligence via an exclusive portal and webinars, and IABM members will be able to access SMPTE webcasts. As part of the agreement, SMPTE and IABM will continue to explore further areas of collaboration to benefit their members.
IABM’s training offering includes a wide range of on-site standard and bespoke courses as well as a number of e-learning courses covering the latest technologies.
SMPTE’s comprehensive training offering includes both instructor-supported and self-learning virtual courses as well as webcasts and podcasts through its well-established online platform.
“I’m delighted to be working with SMPTE to enable relevant sharing of knowledge and expertise across our combined membership,” said Peter White, IABM CEO. “Collaboration is not just the latest buzzword–it underpins the future success of both the supply and buying sides of the broadcast and media industries. We see media companies increasingly coming together to form alliances in the search for digital speed, scale, and geographical reach, and the same thing is happening on the supply side.”
White continued, “With the pace of transformation in our industry only continuing to accelerate, it makes great sense for two of the industry’s top organizations to work together in a partnership to deliver a richer experience for SMPTE and IABM members and help them stay at the leading edge of our rapidly changing business. This agreement is something of a milestone–it marks the beginning of an ongoing collaboration across a number of activities and the start of what we envision to be a long-term partnership.”
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More