(08/05/2014) Live music awards ceremonies featuring international artists usually require a large scale video production team, with several operators managing multiple program outputs simultaneously, including feeds for broadcast, big screens in the arena and content for LED walls for performances.
However, as budgets tighten, production teams are always searching for innovative ways to achieve extremely high quality production values whilst remaining competitive. Alexander Muckenhirn, owner of MUCKiMEDIA has done just this, using Blackmagic Design's ATEM Production Switchers and his own automation software to successfully deliver the entire live production of Germany's Radio Regenbogen's annual awards event with a one man crew.
Alexander, owner of MUCKiMEDIA, has used the ATEM's SDK to develop software that automates multiple processes and outputs, essentially giving more hands' to a technician operating an ATEM switcher, combined with any number of Blackmagic Design HyperDeck SSD recorders, and any number of I/O interface modules with 16 to 64 inputs and outputs. His controlIT software has enabled his OB van, kitted out with an ATEM 2 M/E Production Switcher, four HyperDeck Studio Pro SSD recorders and a Universal Videohub for signal distribution, to increase the amount of outputs that can be managed by a single production technician.
MUCKiMEDIA's largest production is for the Radio Regenbogen's annual awards show, which takes place every April in front of more than 1,500 music fans in the Europa Park theme park in South West Germany. Alexander singlehandedly manages simultaneous content production for big screens, video walls during live performances by German and international pop artists, which included Anastacia and X Factor winner James Arthur, and program output for regional broadcast on Baden TV.
The controlIT software can be deployed and personalized in a number of ways to give more flexibility to a single operator through one interface. A good example of how the software functions in live events is managing outputs to LED walls, explains Alexander. A well-used simple workflow produces a single program output for TV broadcast and in the arena, but wide angle cameras can produce image feedback on large LED screens. The software defines specific camera sources as wide angle, so one technician can produce two very similar outputs, but can ensure no wide angle camera shots are included in the big screen output.
The Radio Regenbogen awards workflow uses more than 1500m of optical fiber cable connecting eight HD cameras, including wireless stage cameras, a crane and cameras in the middle and at the back of the stage to be able to capture the action on stage as well as the atmosphere throughout the arena, so the ability to preprogram the wide angle output gives the technician one less thing to worry about on such a hectic production.
The technician can also control backdrop video content needed during stage performances by managing clips stored on the HyperDeck Studio Pro in a programable playlist via the software or directly on the ATEM, and then automatically switching to a predetermined source after the end of the clip. At the 2013 awards show, we had artists such as Mike and The Mechanics, Floyd Reloaded and Caro Emerald performing, each with their own very different video requirements, so this function was vital as we moved from performance, to awards, back to performance, explains Alexander.
The software is also able to manage stinger effects in the ATEM. In live productions, this is common when cutting from a live image on slow motion. A normal crossfade is used to get from one slow motion channel to another, and a stinger effect switches back to the live signal. These transition effects can be automatically applied through the software, which also remembers the last switched source before the slow motion started and returns to it.
Live production is a highly pressured environment, so we designed the software to provide the flexibility and capacity for technicians to deliver excellent quality content, particularly when working in small teams, which are becoming increasingly common as budgets are restricted, concludes Alexander. The ATEM 2 M/E Production Switcher makes an extremely effective hub for any OB workflow, and when combined with the controlIT software, can mean that major events, such as the Radio Regenbogen awards, can be reliably handled to produce multiple outputs for the auditorium, online and broadcast audiences.
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
30/08/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has adopted its FY 2025 Regulatory Fees Order that establishes the regulatory fee rates for the broadcast stati...
29/08/2025
Australian Red Cross and SBS launch training to help workplaces in the fight aga...
29/08/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
29/08/2025
L3Harris Technologies has concentrated decades of expertise across the entire enterprise to develop affordable and reliable best-of-breed solutions to rapidly c...
29/08/2025
BURBANK, Calif. The CW Network and the Pac-12 Conference have announced a new media rights deal that will extend their broadcast partnership beginning with the ...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK Gracenote has released a new analysis of its global video dataset showing that the number of FAST channels grew nearly 14% from Q1 2025 and 76% since 2...
29/08/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Harmonic has announced a series of improvements to its live sports streaming solution that the company said will improve fan engagement, protec...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES Fox Corp. and YouTube TV last night announced a renewal of the full portfolio of Fox networks, including Fox News Channel, Fox Business...
29/08/2025
Budapest, Hungary, August 2025 - The integration of Microsoft Teams Rooms (MTR) with Lightware's Taurus universal matrix switchers delivers a new level of f...
29/08/2025
Frequency, the engine behind many of the world's best-known streaming television channels, today announced it will launch Studio Live, a next-generation uni...
29/08/2025
In an era when AI and cyber resilience are essential, Scality will mark the 10th anniversary of Scality Day on October 16, 2025 in Paris. This flagship global e...
29/08/2025
Disguise's In-House Creative and Technical Teams Pre-Visualised, Programmed and Delivered Content for the Experience, All Powered by EX 3+
Technology solu...
29/08/2025
Disguise will be demonstrating the latest workflows for TV, film and live events on a number of partner booths at the show
Disguise, the industry-leading tech...
29/08/2025
STOCKHOLM, Sweden Accedo will showcase Accedo Compose, its AI agent-powered modular orchestration layer that assists streaming providers in transitioning client...
29/08/2025
LOS ANGELES Cineverse has announced that it is working with Xperi to bring four of its streaming channels to automobiles for the first time as part of the DTS A...
29/08/2025
DALLAS & ATLANTA Gray Media has announced an agreement with the sports streaming service Victory+ to simulcast 17 Dallas Stars NHL games in 15 television market...
29/08/2025
NEW YORK AND CULVER CITY Comcast NBCUniversal and Amazon have announced new and extended distribution agreements that will expand the content available on their...
29/08/2025
FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. RED Digital Cinema will feature its Cine-Broadcast Module supporting live broadcast workflows during IBC2025, Sept. 12-15, at the RAI Ams...
29/08/2025
29 Aug 2025
Kyivstar Rings Opening Bell at Nasdaq Marking Landmark Listing and ...
29/08/2025
More than half of all NFL games live on Sky for the first timeFriday 29 August 2025
Sky Sports has announced a new three-year deal with the NFL, extending its ...
29/08/2025
Back to All News
RIV4LRIES: The Trailer of the New Series With Samuele Carrino ...
29/08/2025
Get ready for an inspiring and emotional insight into the world of competitive Irish dancing with My Story: Tomi Champion of the World airing on RT 2 this monda...
29/08/2025
RT has today announced that David McCullagh is to be the new presenter of RT Radio 1's flagship Today programme, which airs every weekday at 10am, replaci...
28/08/2025
By Kristin Feeley, Director, Documentary Film & Artist Programs
If you want to tell untold stories, if you want to give voice to the voiceless, you've got ...
28/08/2025
Directed by Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert, Sundance Institute-supported Amer...
28/08/2025
Corridos have been a cornerstone of M sica Mexicana for generations, telling stories rooted in everyday life. Now, a new chapter is taking shape: motivational c...
28/08/2025
Los corridos han sido un pilar de la M sica Mexicana durante generaciones, contando historias enraizadas en la vida cotidiana. Ahora, un nuevo cap tulo est tom...
28/08/2025
Earlier this month, we promised our Verano Forever party would bring the heat, a...
28/08/2025
L3Harris will provide the Polish F-16V fleet with the Viper Shield electronic warfare system as part of an upgrade program....
28/08/2025
Bilbao, August 26, 2025 - AgileTV, an international television and video technol...
28/08/2025
Ken Wilkinson is an Emmy Awards nominated New York audio engineer who specialises in production sound mixing for film, commercial, episodic and documentary work...
28/08/2025
NEW YORK FuboTV today announced that it will launch Fubo Sports, a skinny bundle that focuses on sports with a subscription price of $56 monthly....
28/08/2025
NEVADA City, Calif. At IBC2025, Sept. 12-15 at the RAI Amsterdam, Telestream will debut its new Global Ingest strategy, introducing a next-generation ingest arc...
28/08/2025
Dr. Rhoda Bernard Releases Groundbreaking Debut Book on Accessible Arts Educatio...
28/08/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real-time visualization, has named Oliver Gappa as Sales Di...
28/08/2025
AI-based voice enhancement will be among a series of innovations making their IBC 2025 debut on the DHD stand B46 in Hall 8 at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Cent...
28/08/2025
Telef nica Servicios Audiovisuales (TSA), the leading system integrator and service provider in the media sector in Spain, with the support of Appear, the globa...
28/08/2025
To fully immerse sailing fans in the world's biggest offshore yacht race, production company, Optical Media turned to LiveU's On-site Production solutio...
28/08/2025
Working with Calrec on its most recent overhaul, radio and television broadcaster, WNED has migrated to a fully IP infrastructure with multiple Type R consoles,...
28/08/2025
Cleeng, the Subscriber Retention Management (SRM ) inventor, has unveiled Cleeng Pro, the first-ever direct-to-consumer (D2C) subscription management platform t...
28/08/2025
Zixi, the industry leader in live broadcast-quality video over IP, today announced that French media distribution platform OKAST has selected Zixi to enable rel...
28/08/2025
Solution offers a streamlined, speaker-free architecture to optimize integration with premium external loudspeakers and advanced loudness metering
Nixer Pro Au...
28/08/2025
Cinegy, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has announced a strategic partnership with Vision One Touch Film Production Services L.L...
28/08/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will debut its new Global Ingest strategy at IBC2025, introducing a next-generation ingest architect...
28/08/2025
Tier 1 operator selects Broadpeak to power high-performance, unified CDN solution across Norway, Sweden and Finland
Broadpeak, a leader in streaming and moneti...
28/08/2025
Leading video software provider, Synamedia, today announced that 24 Frames Digital, one of India's leading live event streaming service providers, has chose...
28/08/2025
Meet VisualOn at IBC2025: See What's Next in AI-Powered Video Streaming Join VisualOn at IBC2025 and discover how our AI-driven Optimizer and advanced media...
(08/05/2014) Live music awards ceremonies featuring international artists usually require a large scale video production team, with several operators managing multiple program outputs simultaneously, including feeds for broadcast, big screens in the arena and content for LED walls for performances.
