Blackmagic Design has announced that broadcast services specialist Timeline TV has implemented a bespoke remote production solution to produce coverage of the Football Association’s (FA) Women’s Super League (WSL), built around the Blackmagic 3G-SDI Shield for Arduino and URSA Broadcast.
In order to meet the WSL’s requirements for live match coverage in the 2018/2019 season, its first as a full time professional league, the Timeline team needed to rethink how they’d approach a four multicamera OB, that could be deployed at any ground in the country while still delivering the level of quality expected by production partner, Whisper Films.
Timeline’s managing director, Dan McDonnell, explains that the URSA Broadcast was the ideal camera choice. “We pride ourselves on delivering broadcast quality output for our creative partners, and the URSA Broadcast, when paired with our B4 lenses, delivers excellent images, both on and off the pitch.”
When it came to controlling the URSA Broadcast, Timeline’s IP engineering team had to get creative. “Remote camera racking was essential and required a new approach to data transmission all while keeping the on site operation as simple as possible,” said McDonnell. “There was nothing else on the market that would afford us the flexibility, quality or control unless we deployed a full OB.”
The IP transmission solution resides in a backpack. It integrates a transmitter and the camera control interface systems needed for acquisition and live transmission back to the companies Ealing Studios’ headquarters, where each weekend’s coverage is produced.
“Essentially, we’ve eliminated the requirement for a full, static router, which normally is in place for a camera control unit to feed through. As well as the high resolution camera signals, an additional low res feed is sent carrying all the necessary camera settings,” according to McDonnell. “Working over IP channels provides reliable and consistent remote signal feeds from wherever we are around the country, and this, combined with Blackmagic’s open protocol has given us the flexibility to devise a high quality remote production solution that meets broadcasters’ strict standards for live sports coverage.”
Timeline will continue to provide all Women’s Super League footage with the remote solution, but its efficiency and technical capabilities could be easily transferred to other sporting leagues, tournaments and touring events.
“The ability to control an entire multicamera system via IP means that we can produce comprehensive coverage of high profile events from anywhere in the world, without having to send a huge amount of staff or equipment out to the venues,” McDonnell concluded. ”Once the operators are on site, it’s simply a matter of switching on the receivers and the cameras, and we’re ready to go. That balance of speed, flexibility and quality has only been possible at this price point thanks to Blackmagic Design.”
