As 2020 comes to an end, Philip Stevens talks to ITV Sports Roger Pearce about a year of fewer events - and the hopes for 2021.
By Philip Stevens
Published: December 3, 2020
As 2020 comes to an end, Philip Stevens talks to ITV Sport's Roger Pearce about a year of fewer events - and the hopes for 2021.
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> As 2020 comes to an end, Philip Stevens talks to ITV Sport's Roger Pearce about a year of fewer events - and the hopes for 2021.
https://www.tvbeurope.com/live-production/sports-eventful-year title=Share via Email class=share-email>
To state the obvious, Covid-19 has meant huge changes for everyone in the country. And the knock-on effect has hit the broadcast industry with many variations in production practice. None more so than those involving sports coverage.
There has been a constant and persistent challenge across all our productions since lockdown, asserts Roger Pearce, technical director at ITV Sports Productions. What's more, this remains the case due to the rapidly changing pandemic situation. As a result, we have to remain alert and agile.
Pearce reports that ITV Sport's horse racing operation has been particularly challenging as it was one of the very early live sports to return to terrestrial TV. Our overriding concern for personnel safety, alongside the restrictions meant that the whole operation needed to be re-planned under very tight scrutiny. This is especially true when it comes to horse racing because of the wide variety of large venues and the complexity of the modern way of covering this as an outside broadcast.
Safety first With all of that in mind, how did Pearce and his team achieve social distancing for crew members?
We achieved this by carrying out a very careful assessment of the role of each person involved in the production. Then it was a case of liaising with the facility supplier to ensure everyone can work safely. Social distancing is an important element of ensuring the operation is safe, but it is part of a broad package of Covid-19 related requirements that have to be covered by our production management teams.
He continues, As one memorable occasion from our year's activities, I would put forward our live British Touring Cars (BTCC) coverage from Brands Hatch. This was a constantly moving target for our production team and OB supplier, Cloudbass. After the months of full lockdown, it was great to find a safe way to deliver our usual full day of live motorsport, but it evolved from the initial maximum home-working model to full presentation and production on-site as the Covid-19 restrictions eased towards this season opener. It meant new technical solutions had to constantly be created.
Pearce adds, Of course, there are still lessons to be learned. For example, there have been arguments back and forth about adding crowd noises where there are no spectators. We have taken great care to think about the virtual sound design and finding an appropriate virtual atmosphere for each particular sport. It takes great skill to get the live reaction audio timing right. It is fair to say that we are still learning.
Positives On the face of it, measures that have been a necessary part of the workflow during this past year could be seen as restricting OB operations to some degree, but Pearce believes there have been positives that have come out of the circumstances that have been created by the pandemic. It has certainly made us reassess every aspect of the way we work and challenge the norms' - and that is no bad thing. The rapid development of technology to enable remote and home-based production will give us all more flexibility to plan our work-life balance in the future. In turn, that will hopefully have mental health benefits longer term. That is a very positive development to come out of a very negative situation.
Of course, that would suggest that remote production techniques and technology might well become regular practice for a number of sports. Pearce agrees, Yes, elements of the techniques developed under the banner of remote production' will become the norm, but they would eventually have evolved that way in any case. The pandemic has just speeded up the process where remote working makes sense for some sports and broadcasters.
He says that it is important to differentiate between remote working and home working for sports production. Live home-working is not mature yet due to the general lack of reliable connectivity to the home. It remains a valid workflow where there are no other options - like during a pandemic, for example but has a way to go to become business as usual.
So, are there any special remote productions Pearce would care to highlight? It would be unfair to single out any one operation as far as remote is concerned. We are proud of all our remote productions this year as they have been conjured up at speed and under pressure. Our suppliers have been fantastic in devising new techniques and building new systems whilst working under severe Covid-19 restrictions. I would go so far as to say, we have seen some technical miracles happen this year. And that is no exaggeration.
But, having garnered more experience of remote production, are there any areas in which the practice might not be appropriate? Just like any other workflow, remote production will be suitable where there is a reason to use it. By that I mean, for instance, is it the most cost-effective way to operate, or is there a need to keep crew travel to a minimum? Remote working is less likely to be worthwhile or justifiable for a short, one-off ad hoc sports event where there is no fibre connectivity.
Happy new year? With all of that in mind, are there any specific challenges facing ITV Sport for 2021? We were very close to starting the rig for U
Most recent headlines
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
09/05/2025
Wooden Camera, a leading innovator in camera accessories, is proud to announce the launch of a new line of products for the Blackmagic URSA Cine Cameras. These ...
09/05/2025
LYNX Technik, provider of modular signal processing solutions is expanding its popular Series 5000 platform with three new 12G-SDI cards. The new cards provide ...
09/05/2025
Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has completed a project to migrate ON TV, the major independent broadcaste...
09/05/2025
NUGEN Audio launches its new speech intelligibility plug-in, DialogCheck. A mono, stereo and multichannel dialog clarity meter, the software provides an objecti...
09/05/2025
Disguise the technology platform and solutions provider that powered MDL Beast Soundstorm 2024, Dubai Expo's Al Wasl Dome and visual displays at the Burj ...
09/05/2025
CVP has announced it will demonstrate its cutting-edge broadcast, live production and studio solutions at MPTS 2025. Taking place at Olympia London from 14th - ...
09/05/2025
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitably connect the right content to the right audience, and White Peaks Solutions, the prominent e...
09/05/2025
SportsEngine Play, the first-of-its-kind streaming service for youth sports, has agreed to a multi-year extension with AI-automated sports content leader, Pixel...
09/05/2025
Friend MTS, a leading global provider of content protection services, today announced that TOD, the premier sports and entertainment OTT subscription service fo...
09/05/2025
ZEISS announces that it is in development on a new virtual lens technology that will allow visual effects and compositing artists to apply an authentic lens loo...
09/05/2025
At the 2025 Media Production & Technology Show (MPTS), Cerberus Tech will showcase the latest major enhancement to its Livelink IP video delivery platform the...
09/05/2025
Capitol Broadcasting Company welcomed Warren Thomas as the new Vice President an...
09/05/2025
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Studio Technologies said the Harvard University athletics department has integrated Dante-enabled equipment from the vendor into its broadcast ...
09/05/2025
NEW YORK ITN, a provider of a local linear supply side platform, and Magnite, a independent sell-side advertising company, have announced that they working toge...
09/05/2025
LEEDS, U.K. Nugen Audio has launched a new speech intelligibility plug-in, DialogCheck and offered up quotes from technologists working at places like Netflix p...
09/05/2025
AJA I/O Gear: The Heart of Broadcast Solutions' VEGO Mobile Editing Solution
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
When working remotely on broadcas...
09/05/2025
What do they teach in an Advanced Adobe After Effects Course?
Roland Kahlenberg May 8, 2025
0 Comments
There aren't many advanced After Effects co...
09/05/2025
Larry Jordan Sits with Trevor Morgan of OpenDrives at NAB 2025
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
Trevor Morgan, COO of OpenDrives, shares how the co...
09/05/2025
Berklee Popular Music Institute Announces UK Festival Debut and Tour Dates For the first time, BPMI will bring Berklee-affiliated artists and students to the ...
09/05/2025
Here is your host, Patrick Kielty!
In the season finale of The Late Late Show, ...
09/05/2025
My Eurovision Party 2025 - join in on the fun with RT Kids!
Eurovision launche...
08/05/2025
A sinister fairy infiltrates a desperate family in Kenneth Dagatan's In My Mother's Skin, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo co...
08/05/2025
As expected, continued weak demand from key sales markets and declining economic...
08/05/2025
A new three-part series is coming to BBC iPlayer and BBC One
(Image: The Christie Archive Trust)
The BBC has announced Agatha Christie's Endless Night, a...
08/05/2025
For skyward-bound operators, training focuses on the unique aspects of flying ISR missions, including the management of onboard surveillance equipment and the e...
08/05/2025
The cable industry has told the Federal Communications Commission it supports the National Association of Broadcasters' proposal to allow broadcasters to us...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Consumer Technology Association has continued its opposition to mandates requiring that NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 tuners be included in new TV sets, sa...
08/05/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real time visualization, has named Paul Maroni as Vice Pres...
08/05/2025
This year's UK Pavilion in hall 5, once again managed by Tradefair, will provide visitors with the unique opportunity to discuss and be involved in cutting ...
08/05/2025
Rohde & Schwarz will showcase its latest energy-efficient transmitters and 5G Broadcast technologies, designed to support network operators and content provider...
08/05/2025
IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group has tapped Bill Nardi as vice president of station operations, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day broadcast operations ...
08/05/2025
SEATTLE LumaTouch is partnering with CNN Academy to improve mobile storytelling techniques and support training across all of CNN Academy's training simulat...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Society of Broadcast Engineers has filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission that support a proposal by the National Association ...
08/05/2025
Senior adviser to the United States Agency for Global Media Kari Lake has announced that One America News Network (OAN) will provide newsfeed services for fre...
08/05/2025
EdMon Expands as AI-Driven Post Production Workflows Gains Traction in Sweden an...
08/05/2025
Using Luma Mattes in Adobe Premiere Pro
Graham Quince May 7, 2025
0 Comments
This very quick tutorial shows you how to take an RGB clip and apply its ...
08/05/2025
OpenDrives Unveils Free Your Data' Initiative with New Astraeus Cloud-Nativ...
08/05/2025
Student Spotlight: Grigori Balasanyan The Armenian composer, who was named Boston Conservatory at Berklees 2025 student commencement speaker, talks about his ...
08/05/2025
08 May 2025
VEON Shareholders Re-elect Board at 2025 AGM, Founder Augie Fabela ...
08/05/2025
Comedy and entertainment channel U&Dave bring back their #1 ranked programme of ...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Unveils New Premieres Spanning Film and Music
Slick Rick's Victory with Idris Elba a...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Lineup for Inaugural Storytelling Summit
11-Day Industry Event Launches with Tal...
08/05/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Vizrt's Nicholas Jameson on AI in Workflows, Pushing Boundarie...
08/05/2025
Creating Alternative Brand Experiences: Live Sports in the Age of Fortnite, Meta...
08/05/2025
PGA TOUR's David Piccolo: Advanced Graphics and Virtual Production Tools are...
08/05/2025
Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Produ...
08/05/2025
Expect even more chaos this July with Harriet Webb leading the returning cast, p...
08/05/2025
Back to All News
Now in Production: Comedy Action Film Husbands in Action'...
As 2020 comes to an end, Philip Stevens talks to ITV Sports Roger Pearce about a year of fewer events - and the hopes for 2021.
