(Note: No students were blinded in the making of this science, but it was the best title I could come up with … The only other option was trying to find something that rhymed with “Bill Nye the Science Guy”)
So what’s this about Science? We had the opportunity to take our production on the road and head down to the Telus World of Science to do a live production of their Centre Stage science education show.
This was our first live event production using the new Broadcast Pix production flypack that we’ve been introducing the students to this semester (check the blog history for info on our practise events back at the school).
We are actively looking for projects that students can produce with our equipment to get additional production experience. If you have a project you’d like to submit, please feel free to contact us.
Details:
- 4 camera shoot (2 x Sony DSR 370, 1 x Sony DSR 400, 1 x Panasonic AG-DVX100BP)
- Broadcast Pix Slate 100 Flypack
- Crew (15 students, 3 Instructors)
- Load-in 10:30, Full Facs 12:45, Showtime 15:20, Wrap 16:00
I have linked a copy of our SW Technical Production Manual that includes some project planning details for aspiring production staff out there (some contact information has been removed for privacy reasons).
We expect students to provide this type of documentation (and more!) when planning their projects.
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Our last two productions for this term took place this week – it would have been nice to have a bit more warm weather in the forecast (considering both productions had exterior components), however rain or shine, we got it done!
First off on Tuesday was a spot for helping asthma sufferers using the “Buteyko Breathing Method“, where a couple spending a nice warm summer day in the park deals with an asthma attack using a special breathing technique.
On Thursday we made our way to Tsawwassen and onto the Boundary Bay beach to shoot a commercial for Kayotics Skimboards. Our actor made a fairly quick transition from his day-to-day work in a cubicle to a more exciting work locale.
Our two HD commercial shoots this week kicked-off with a spot for Neptoon Records, which caters to all musical tastes. Check out the image gallery for a couple of the more unusual examples you can find in the store.
Also this week was a commercial spot for ZipCar, a short-term car rental service available in the metro-Vancouver area. In this case, it’s particularly useful for short shopping trips, especially when your hands are full!
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What a night!
First off was a going-away party for both our Associate Dean, Brian Antonson and his administrative assistant Janet Wadsworth. Plenty of good stories, good friends and good food. Thanks to everyone who was involved both planning and holding this event. I’m sure it left everyone with fond memories.
Also tonight (as if the party wasn’t work enough), we had our Big Info Session, where all of BCIT’s programs show up and show off to the general public. The broadcast department had some great displays up (would it be too much to say we stole the show?).
Part of the Television Booth at the BCIT Big Info Session
This was the first public performance of our Broadcast Pix production system in combination with our iMac edit stations and Panasonic HPX-300 P2-HD cameras.
This was also the first time that we had an end-to-end digital workflow.
- Footage was shot on the Panasonic HPX-300 P2-HD cameras
- After aquisition, the footage gets loaded onto the iMac Final Cut Pro edit station via P2-reader and a USB interface
- The finished edits are pushed via ethernet to the clipstore on the Broadcast Pix system and into our live show.
For the most part, it worked flawlessly – just a few hiccups when the power went out (note to student editors: “save often”). Looking forward to our next live event in the second week of April when we take our class out on location to do a live show for a client!
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CTV Vancouver Station Tour
Our first-year students had a chance to get downtown today to visit CTV Vancouver’s station on Burrard street (apologies for not getting photos behind the scenes of our Global BC tour last week, I’ll get some ASAP!)
Looks like some of the beautiful CTV Olympic setpieces got saved and are now being put to good use in their studio, including a gorgeous 150″ Panasonic plasma set that was being used for the Olympic studio.
One of the really enjoyable experiences about visiting stations around town is meeting all of our grads – they’re working everywhere! It’s one of those unique aspects of the Television and Video Production program that really allows us to get students industry placements to get their “foot in the door”.
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More HD production this week!
First up was a commercial for Gold’s Gym – the “under glass” part comes from the location – in the racquetball courts at BCIT (the gym was busy). Inner (and outer) strength can show itself in many ways, and a bench full of cheerleaders (who are eyeing the athletic hero) feel the earth move from an unlikely source.
Shooting on-location offers some unique learning experiences. Shooting on location in poor weather offers additional learning experiences… While we didn’t get much in the way of snow for our Olympic experience, mother nature is making up for lost time with rain. And a lot of it…
Today we ventured forth with a production for “The Running Room”, which illustrates a strong motivational factor for a lonely athlete to encourage him to do more running. Extra points if you can guess the concept!
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