The BBC Four broadcast of Nigel Kneale’s cult sci-fi classic “The Quatermass Experiment” was staged live at a disused Ministry of Defence/QinetiQ site in Chobham, Surrey, with the aid of a 40ft mobile truck from broadcast audio specialists Sound Moves. The mobile unit’s Soundtracs DPC-II console handled the demands of several hundred inputs via its MADI fiber optic connections.
The shooting was performed in an old tank testing area, which was divided into a number of studio-sized cubicles. The facility’s main hangar area was used to replicate the Tate Modern Gallery for the program’s closing scenes. Fiber optic MADI links were run throughout the facility.
The mobile unit also hosted a number of Foley personnel, as well as a musician creating live cues and incidental bumpers. The Soundtracs console also fed a 96-track recording, which was sent to a post-production facility for 5.1-surround optimization without dialog, to allow for alternative language dubbing for international distribution of the production.
For more information, visit www.soundtracs.com and www.bbc.co.uk.
