Fifty Frames Pushes the Boundaries of Live Event Production with Help from AJA Gear
Brie Clayton December 6, 2024
0 Comments
Trained to expect the unexpected, Fifty Frames (GmbH) Founder Christian Heinzel sees every live event production or installation as an opportunity to embrace emerging techniques and confront challenges head on. It's something he puts into practice nearly every day as owner of a boutique shop that's trailblazing 4K HDR and IP live event production and video streaming workflows for luxury car brands, bands, and major corporations across Europe. While his team is unafraid of a challenge, they've come to depend on AJA gear to provide a level of certainty in high pressure environments. It's one of many reasons, Heinzel says, they regularly employ technology like AJA Ki Pro Ultra 12G recorders, FS-HDR real-time HDR/WCG converters, and KUMO 3232-12G SDI routers across projects.
Capturing the unseen: A secret UltraHD HDR recording Fifty Frames recently covertly produced an UltraHD HDR concert for a German punk band, designed to prevent performance anxiety the band previously felt when made aware of concert recordings. The three-day event took place on a former airfield in Berlin and drew in an audience of more than 150,000 fans. Upon receiving the first stage and LED screen drawings, Heinzel realized the event's massive scale. Recognizing the nontraditional nature of the concept and use of UltraHD screens, he opted to produce in UltraHD and tap into HDR to ensure more striking visuals.
The lighting situation was quite complex, and we knew it would include changes from bright to dark and a lot of effects that you normally don't see. SDR wasn't an option because we'd need camera shaders all the time, whereas, with HDR, we knew that we'd get a bigger dynamic range so we could see all the light, but it wouldn't come across as overexposed, he explained.
Due to the clandestine nature of the recording, his team strategically placed the ten remote and broadcast grade cameras out of the band's sight lines. Over the course of the three-day production, the team collectively captured 75 terabytes of footage from the cameras using 14 AJA Ki Pro Ultra 12Gs. The Ki Pro Ultra 12G was an easy choice, Heinzel recalled. It's reliable, affordable, and flexible. I can record eight HD camera feeds with just two units, saving rack space. Plus, I don't need a specialist to operate it.
Heinzel's team then color matched the mix of remote and broadcast grade cameras using AJA FS-HDR. Heinzel noted, FS-HDR is an absolutely brilliant tool for color matching cameras; it's truly a Swiss Army knife for color conversion.
Finding unique solutions to unique challenges Heinzel and his team have tackled many other outside-the-box productions as well. While previously working on an HDR live event project for a major car brand in Frankfurt, they realized their media servers only had HDMI and display port outputs, so they couldn't transport the HDR signal. Together, Heinzel and his colleague Oliver Derynck came up with a solution: if they could convert the signals of the media server to 12G-SDI and run it through an FS-HDR, they could then tell the signal it was HDR and run it through the switcher. We tested it out, and it worked, so we were able to retain the HDR metadata, Heinzel explained. FS-HDR helped provide a simple solution to a really complex challenge.
For the occasional augmented reality (AR) project Heinzel's team encounters, he's built custom real-time rendering machines with integrated AJA Corvid 44 12G cards for I/O. We've done a few AR projects with Zero Density, and they're a lot of fun, even though the workflow is different, he explained. Our systems for these are presently baseband SDI, but the goal is to move them to SMPTE ST 2110.
Marching toward an IP future As Fifty Frames continues to innovate across client productions and studio installs, Heinzel is looking to SMPTE ST 2110 to simplify the transport of uncompressed media. He noted, SMPTE ST 2110 will enable us to work with high bandwidth media as we would with SDI, with no compression, while introducing many benefits, from a reduction in equipment to substantial power and performance gains. Less equipment means a lighter load for travel, and with the right IP router, I can easily get 400 UltraHD signals using a 1RU device, which is amazing. Next year, I think we're going to see a lot more SMPTE ST 2110 products surface.
For the time being, he plans to continue maximizing his KUMO 3232-12G SDI routers to support routing needs across projects. Heinzel concluded, KUMO 3232-12G provides an affordable way for us to get signals where they need to go, whether to the shaders or for monitoring needs; it does what it's supposed to do well, and it's reliable. The usability is also perfect. You don't have to study the manual in-depth to operate it. That's important because my team doesn't have time to fiddle around with equipment. We need our gear to work.
December 10, 2024Cromorama Simplifies Color Management and Quality Control for Live Productions with the ORION-CONVERT Pipeline and AJA ColorBoxWell-executed productions come off seamlessly to audiences, regardless of the delivery format,
November 11, 2024AJA Corvid Powers I/O for RT Software's Live Broadcast Graphics SolutionsCatamaran racing is an elite sport that uniquely happens in open water.
Enjoying the news? Sign up for the Creative COW Newsletter! Sign up for the Creative COW newsletter and get weekly updates on industry news, forum highlights, jobs, inspirational tutorials, tips, burning questions, and more! Receive bulletins from the largest, longest-running community dedicated to supporting professionals working in film, vid
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
When Canada qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026, OneSoccer knew this wasn'...
04/07/2026
Celebrates company's 80th anniversary
Rhodes have recently revealed that they will be producing a limited run of electric pianos in celebration of their...
04/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Empower Youth Broadcasting Program
Brie Clayton July 3, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagi...
04/07/2026
iZotope Joins Boris FX
Boris Yamnitsky July 3, 2026
0 Comments
iZotope, the team behind RX and Ozone, is joining Boris FX. A letter from founder Boris...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
03/07/2026
New bundle & three Single Packs
Continuing to expand their already sizeable orchestral collection, VSL's latest release introduces three new Single Pack...
03/07/2026
Venue installs new ATC-equipped control room
LSO St Luke's, a unique music venue that also serves as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra, have rec...
03/07/2026
Caden Pearson appointed new Commissioning Editor for NITV
3 July, 2026
Media releases
National Indigenous Television (NITV) has strengthened its commitment...
03/07/2026
1 February 2023
SHARE Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
Munich, Germany, 1st February 2023: Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software technology for digit...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Death Star
Andy Marken July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Look, I can't get involved. I've got work to do. It's not that I like the Empire; I hate i...
03/07/2026
Berklee's New Visual Identity: Honoring Our History, Building for What's...
03/07/2026
Scripps Research scientists awarded $2M to advance global disease surveillance Two Gates Foundation grants will expand wastewater surveillance and AI-driven dis...
03/07/2026
Joan Pulupa joins Scripps Research faculty to study the organization of DNA in brain cells and its links to neurodegeneration Using smell-sensing neurons and ad...
02/07/2026
Entering her senior year, this hometown girl is paving a career in live sports production gaining experience in replay and audio and as a TD
In the live-sports...
02/07/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
02/07/2026
BLAST, a competitive entertainment company focused on esports, has announced more than $133 million in revenue for 2025, representing more than 40% year-over-ye...
02/07/2026
Riedel Communications has announced official SKAARHOJ panel support for SimplyLive production workflows, enabled through the SimplyLive 2.1 release. The integra...
02/07/2026
The Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic has deployed LiveU video-over-bond...
02/07/2026
Gravity Media USA has announced the appointment of Brittney Boston as Head of Business Development, effective July 1, 2026. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Bosto...
02/07/2026
TwelveLabs, a video intelligence company, has announced $100 million in Series B funding co-led by NEA and NAVER Ventures, with participation from Amazon, Radic...
02/07/2026
The Pro Padel League (PPL) has announced a broadcast partnership with USA Sports that will air five PPL championship matches on CNBC during the 2026 season, the...
02/07/2026
LiveLike, a digital fan engagement platform, has announced eight confirmed FIFA ...
02/07/2026
Cobalt Digital has received Future's Best of Show Award, presented by AV Technology at InfoComm 2026, for its blueCORE family of standalone signal processor...
02/07/2026
Synamedia has announced the appointment of Dr. Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transition...
02/07/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) and Sony Group Corporation have announced an expanded collaboration for the Esports World Cup 2026 (EWC), taking place in Paris, Fra...
02/07/2026
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. ( Z') has announced exclusive broadcast and digital rights for the Bundesliga in India for five years, beginning with the...
02/07/2026
An effort uniting News, Sports, Local, and Telemundo, the 50+-camera live produc...
02/07/2026
Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ken Marino, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, and Ben Wang appe...
02/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
02/07/2026
A new era in unmixing and spectral editing
The latest version of Steinberg's spectral audio-editing software has just arrived, building on the strength...
02/07/2026
Aims to simplify additive synthesis
Sine Machine is the debut launch from Melatonin, a Vienna-based developer who have spent the past six years creating wha...
02/07/2026
Products to remain fully active & supported
Following the news of Native Instruments joining the inMusic brand line-up, Academy and Emmy Award-winning visua...
02/07/2026
What you missed!
Last weekend, Saturday 27 June 2026, saw the debut of Sound On Sounds new GearExpo UK event, the largest dedicated pro-audio event to take ...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Following the successful launch of its inaugural APAC Mentoring Programme last month, the Rise AV APAC Regional Council will bring the conversation around mento...
02/07/2026
Blackmagic PYXIS 6K Used to Shoot Director Takahisa Zeze's Cry Out
Brie Clayton July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Highly mobile camera supports tense and de...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions acquires BFE, expanding its lead in European broadcast, medi...
02/07/2026
Berklee Alum and Faculty Perform at Boston Public Library's 250th Anniversar...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions GmbH, a leading systems integrator and provider of innovative solutions for the broadcast media industry, is acquiring BFE Studio und Medien...
02/07/2026
Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has extended the ingest facility at leading Brazilian sports company LiveMode, work...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Standalone processors acknowledged for the innovation and value they bring to Pro AV
Cobalt Digital, a leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing ...
02/07/2026
Synamedia announced today the appointment of Dr Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transitio...
Fifty Frames Pushes the Boundaries of Live Event Production with Help from AJA Gear 
