Wagner had previously teamed with High Resolution providing display control on live telecasts of the Emmy and ESPY Awards. For the 2011 MTV Movie Awards, Wagner and High Resolution teamed up to provide a display control solution featuring the Vista Spyder X20 and High Resolution’s UDC (Universal Device Controller) software.
“For the last several years people have been trying to figure out the right formula for feeding screens at major broadcast events,” said Wagner. “In the past shows like the Movie Awards had to utilize cumbersome and expensive methods. Hardware and control surfaces were too big to fit inside any video truck. Most shows had whole separate trailers or front of house set ups for screens. These external set ups required time, labor, expense and in most cases duplicated existing truck resources.”
By comparison, the new X20P workflow crafted by Wagner and High Resolution has a small footprint. “X20P can fit within almost any truck environment – our controller is no bigger than an iPad,” Wagner added. “It’s easy to have redundancy because the system is small, easy to handle and easy to transport. We can finally put multi-screen control in the truck when productions want it.”
Wagner used High Resolution’s UDC software to preprogram the entire awards show. “Our screen’s technical director (TD) was able to have full functionality on the Spyder without having to learn how to program it,” he said. “We made the Screns TD position more powerful: He had the full functionality of the truck on his left hand and the simple, user-friendly control of the Spyder X20 on his right hand. It enabled the production to take full advantage of the video truck and its resources, which they were already paying for.”
Wagner said the most interesting aspect of this new approach to screen feeds for the MTV Movie Awards was “how easily it all came together. We had the UDC pre-programmed before we arrived on-site. On set-up day we came in at 8 am and by 10:30 we were ready to rehearse the show.”
The MTV Movie Awards show served as a suitable proving ground for the new display control solution. “Having done this project, we have full confidence in the workflow as we take the same team and system to the live ESPY Awards,” Wagner said. “We combined the skills and knowledge of Stimulated and High Resolution with a great system to create a really viable solution. Many productions can benefit from it.”
For more information, please visit www.hrscontrol.com.
