Multi-Camera Live Production for FIFA’s Executive Meeting in Auckland

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Encore brought us to Auckland to provide a six-camera live production for a FIFA executive meeting and World Cup trophy launch.
• The whole system flew as checked luggage, so our crew worked with kit they already knew.
• Four PTZs and two operated URSA Mini Pros were matched to one white balance reference and cut live on our ATEM.

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SUMMARY

A TRIP ACROSS THE TASMAN, SIX CAMERAS IN THE LUGGAGE

Our long-time collaborator Encore brought us to Auckland for a FIFA executive meeting and the launch of the World Cup trophy. Four of our crew made the trip with a six-camera live production in tow.

We joined as part of Encore’s team, supplying the cameras, the operators and the live switching. It’s the kind of job that has to work first time. The meeting happens once, the trophy comes out once, and our warehouse was on the other side of the Tasman.

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EVERYTHING HAD TO FLY WITH US

The whole system travelled as checked luggage, with every bag weighed before we left Brisbane. The PTZ kit came in just under 22 kilos, both tripods shared a golf bag, and the recording and monitoring gear went into a Pelican case with a space left for the vision switcher.

It took some careful packing, but it meant the crew landed with gear they already knew inside out, rather than getting to know someone else’s kit on the day.

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FOUR REMOTE CAMERAS. TWO OPERATED

Four PTZ cameras covered the room without putting crew in amongst the participants, with two controllers running all four from the control position.

Our two operated URSA Mini Pros, each on a Canon 20x zoom, handled the closer work, catching reactions as they happened and holding tight on the trophy when it had its moment.

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MAKING SIX CAMERAS LOOK LIKE ONE

Remote PTZs and operated cinema cameras don’t naturally match, so we brought a large white balance card and lined every camera up to the same reference. That way a cut from a remote angle to an operated one didn’t suddenly change the colour of the room.

All six fed back to our ATEM switcher, with multiview keeping every feed in front of the team, so the programme could follow the meeting naturally and still be ready for the trophy.

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THE RESULT

A full multi-camera production that flew across the Tasman, set up in Auckland and covered a high-profile FIFA event for a partner we’ve worked with for years.

The trophy got its close-up, and our kit got a slightly longer trip than usual.