BURBANK, CALIF.—At No Static Pro Audio, Inc., we bring live events to life through services, including installations, video projections, image mapping, switching, mobile broadcasting, streaming and content playback. From charity events for Will.i.am, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Fitz and the Tantrums, to the Petersen Museum Grand Re-opening party, to a Megadeth VR video experience, to various retail and hospitality permanent installations, we work to deliver outstanding images and services to our clients.
To ensure we can provide the quality of work our clients expect, we do everything in house. One of the ways we’re able to do this is by utilizing Blackmagic Design live production products, like ATEM switchers, Videohub routers, HyperDeck broadcast recorders and SmartView video monitors.
ON THE RED CARPET
SmartView monitors are lightweight and thin, allowing for easier transport for mobile productions. We use the Blackmagic Design Smart-View Duo monitors, which are dual 8-inch 3RU SDI/HD-SDI/3G-SDI monitors with central software control. One of the recent events where the SmartView monitors were an integral part of our workflow was the 2016 Critics Choice Awards. We were brought on board to run video for the pre-show red carpet and the postshow party at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica.
We used a camera truck with three cameras, ran HD-SDI feeds from the truck to an ATEM Production Studio 4K, and from there I fed the clips that would be sent to our live stream encoder. We recorded an ISO feed on a HyperDeck Shuttle as we ran the pre-show, and had SmartView Duo monitors running through the HyperDeck Shuttle to monitor the program feeds.
From the HyperDecks, I pulled the SSD drives and edited clips in the truck directly off of the SSDs. By the time the pre-show was over and the guests were coming in to the main event, I was able to have the best clips playing on the LED displays inside the theater and in the main tent, thanks to the SmartView monitors.
PORTABLE & VERSATILE
The Blackmagic Design products are so versatile. Sometimes we get asked to help with events with almost no advanced notice, so we have no time to plan ahead. A lot of people keep their equipment in one giant rolling rack, but I keep mine in several different 3U flight cases so I can mix and match, and build new each time. I can take everything to a last minute show, take it out and I know it’s going to work. It might sound cliché, but I cannot say the same thing about other brands.
It’s important that our equipment be portable so that we can be flexible in how we transport and set up the gear at each event we do. The SmartView monitors are lightweight and thin, so they work perfectly in our kits. They are also affordable, but offer high-quality filtering and scaling, so the images retain all of the details that help us make sure the feeds show exactly what we want them to show.
We wouldn’t be able to do events like this if it wasn’t for the SmartView monitors and other Blackmagic Design gear.
Brian Dickson is the director of video production at No Static Pro Audio. He can be contacted atbriandickson@nostaticav.com.
For more information, please visitwww.blackmagicdesign.comor call 408-954-0500
