KitPlus | Articles

Modern movie finishing

by Alexa Maza Issue 85 - January 2014 Written and directed by Neill Blomkamp, Elysium is a new science fiction movie starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster. Set in the year 2154, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy, who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined planet. Digit...

Submitted by Alexa Maza

Published 01 February 2014

Ask the experts: What is MAM?

by Rino Petricola Issue 85 - January 2014 Media asset management: what exactly is it?While the precise definition varies from person to person, a common description tends to emerge. Media asset management (MAM) is a solution that allows media content including audio, video, and graphics to be ingested, annotated, cataloged, managed, protected, sear...

Submitted by Rino Petricola

Published 01 February 2014

Archive eXchange format (AXF) explained

by S Merrill Weiss Issue 85 - January 2014 The proprietary nature of archive storage long has made it challenging for content producers and owners to exchange archive files and media between systems. Thus, when faced with the need either to migrate archives to new generations of storage technology or to consolidate archives, media companies have be...

Submitted by S. Merrill Weiss

Published 01 February 2014

Near-live production with Softrons multicam logger

by Alastair Owen Issue 85 - January 2014 Berlin-based edelbytes works with German broadcasters for channels such as ZDFkultur, tape.tv and 3sat to deliver coverage of live events music concerts, arts shows with a live audience, comedy and cabaret. But its coverage with a twist. Side-stepping the big-budget satellite van template for live event broa...

Submitted by Alastair Owen

Published 01 February 2014

The impact on media workflows for multi site and cloud op...

by Peter Gallen Issue 85 - January 2014 Many broadcasters are considering multi-site operating or even using the cloud to make their content more widely available. In fact, the trend in broadcast operations is towards distributed operations and cloud will be used increasingly to support workflows over multiple locations in order to maximise efficie...

Submitted by Peter Gallen

Published 01 February 2014

Will Strauss looks at post production in 2014

by Will Strauss Issue 85 - January 2014 Despite being named in Americas Top 10 Dying Industries in 2011, post-production still very much has its place in the UK. But it is changing. And fast. With increasingly commoditized and affordable technology allowing pretty much anyone (within reason) to do post-production, the lines between production and p...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 February 2014

Three big questions on OTT

by Simen FrostadIssue 84 - December 2013 Every media operator wants to deliver OTT services, or is already doing so. Growth over the past 18 months has been phenomenal, and a media operation without OTT is almost inconceivable now. But for many coming from a broadcast background, the technical side of OTT is terra incognita, and a mixture of fear a...

Submitted by Simen Frostad

Published 01 January 2014

OTT: Back to basics

by Lorna GarrettIssue 84 - December 2013 Going over the top opens up boundless opportunities. Just make sure you work with someone who can help you over the potential pitfalls. Not that long ago, if asked to envisage a family watching television, you probably would have pictured Mum and Dad seated on the sofa, while a couple of children lay sprawle...

Submitted by Lorna Garrett

Published 01 January 2014

Get the lowdown on HEVC compression

by Keith WymbsIssue 84 - December 2013 The high-efficiency video coding (HEVC/H.265) compression codec, which was standardized earlier this year, brings broadcasters and other content distributors multiple opportunities, including:- Decreased bandwidth enabling the addition of more channels and increased quality while lowering bitrates. - Improved...

Submitted by Keith Wymbs

Published 01 January 2014

Driving customer loyalty with OTT

by Jakub KabourekIssue 84 - December 2013 The multi-screen revolution is being driven by the consumer and is developing quickly. It offers huge potential and a bright future for operators adopting OTT across multiple devices. By delivering quality television services operators are expanding their market potential and thereby significantly increasin...

Submitted by Jakub Kabourek

Published 01 January 2014

Service providers should see OTT as a revenue opportunity

by Haggai BarelIssue 84 - December 2013 Todays content service providers can use over-the-top (OTT) content to enhance the viewing experience for their subscribers and generate revenue for their service offerings. To accomplish this, however, service providers must overcome the initial - and justified - belief that OTT is a threat that must be bloc...

Submitted by Haggai Barel

Published 01 January 2014

Ooh ahh.. just a little DIT with Will Strauss

by Will Strauss Issue 84 - December 2013 Issue 84 - December 2013 Like the Offshore Windfarm Engineer or the Waste Management Consultant, the Digital Imaging Technician (DIT) is very much a 21st Century profession and one that didnt exist 10 years ago. Generally recruited for a digitally-shot feature film, commercial or TV drama, the role was initi...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 January 2014

BroadcastShow Tour - a visitors view

by Connor PearceIssue 83 - November 2013 Suitably set on the backdrop of Britains birthplace for iconic television, the last leg of the BroadcastShow Tour saw Philip Bloom host a day of seminars at Pinewood Studios. Alongside this, internationally leading companies in film and television technology flocked to share their latest and greatest broadca...

Submitted by Connor Pearce

Published 01 December 2013

Remote control and monitoring

by Alan WheableIssue 83 - November 2013 Remote Control and MonitoringYou might wonder what remote control has to do with test and measurement. And you might be pleasantly surprised when you find out. For a number of years now, manufacturers of broadcast equipment have used remote controlled test installations to allow them to test systems and modul...

Submitted by Alan Wheable

Published 01 December 2013

Will Strauss looks at automatic QC for the people

by Will StraussIssue 83 - November 2013 The method in which television producers should deliver their programmes to UK broadcasters is changing. From 1 October 2014 it will be digital files, rather than HDCam SR tapes, that are the preference. It is a fundamental and fairly disruptive change that is the cause of much debate right now. The parameter...

Submitted by Will Strauss#

Published 01 December 2013