community
Dec 17, 2018
Throughout every year, the team at GoPro gets to work with our friends over at Videomaker Magazine - ensuring they have a chance to put our products through the paces so they can share their impressions with their readers. We see them in-person at tradeshows and when we do big launch events. We correspond regularly on email. We are big fans of the work they do to empower their audience with encouragement, inspiration and information about the tools that enable them to go out and make videos.
Videomaker's HQ is in Chico, California, placing them at the doorstep of one of the worst wildfires in history, affecting the entire team and leaving a significant portion of displaced. We invited Videomaker to share their story with us, with words, with footage they were able to capture from fire zone, and with information on how we can all support their recovery.
Words By Sean Berry of Videomaker
This extra-long fire season has left Northern California devastated. The Camp Fire burned through Butte County and destroyed the entire town of Paradise. Evacuees have been displaced and the road to recovery will be long and hard.
The Camp Fire is officially the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California's history. It ignited November 8th, 2018, and wasn't fully contained until November 25th. In its nearly three week lifespan, the fire killed 85 people and destroyed almost 14,000 homes, leaving the entire community of Paradise displaced all across Butte County, California, and - for some - the country.
Paradise was a peaceful and beautiful town before the fire; there was no better name for such a place. After the fire, the tranquil town is almost unrecognizable. Videomaker, a magazine media company which focuses on video technology and technique, is located only 15 minutes from Paradise. They went to Paradise before the evacuations were lifted with a few GoPros to document the destruction:
The footage is hard to watch knowing what the town used to be. During the time of our shoot, many Paradise residents had not yet confirmed whether their homes had survived the fire. The evacuation orders are now being lifted in phases, but many are still unable to return. Unfortunately, even after all evacuation orders are lifted, much of the community will still be left homeless with nowhere to go.
360 video offers a unique perspective
It's no surprise that the Camp Fire has attracted the attention of both local and national media outlets. Professional and amateur journalists alike have done their best to record the devastation of the fire using everything from cell phones to camcorders to drones and even law enforcement body cams. All over the web, photos and videos document the destruction and recovery efforts and animated graphics give context to statistics about the fire.
But despite this extensive documentation, nothing can convey the emotional impact of this historic fire quite as well as immersive 360-degree video. 360 video gives viewers the ability to look around the scene and focus on specific areas of interest, making it especially well-suited communicating the deep and lasting impact the Camp Fire has had on the town of Paradise. We hope this perspective will emphasize the community's urgent and on-going need for assistance.
The fire may be out, but the crisis has just begun
The Camp Fire has left a huge housing crisis for Butte County and surrounding areas in its wake. 14,000 homes were destroyed in the fire, leaving tens of thousands homeless. Officials have declared a state of emergency in their homeless shelters, and federal funding is needed to help temporarily house the evacuees.
Butte County already had a homeless problem before the fire with about a homeless population of around 2,000 prior to the fire, with half of them not using the emergency shelters and transitional housing. That's according to a report by the Butte Countywide Homeless Continuum of Care. Now, the number of homeless has skyrocketed.
Jennifer Griggs, the Continuum of Care coordinator, said that after the fire not only did all of that vacancy rate get swooped up right away but now it's even more of a challenge to find any type of housing for anybody, regardless of their housing status prior.
Simply put, there's just not enough housing in Butte County to house the Paradise evacuees. The number of people seeking housing in the county has greatly increased since the fire and it seems nearly impossible to find options. Many have had to camp in make-shift campsites around the county, one of those places being a Walmart parking lot in the nearby town of Chico. FEMA is helping put evacuees into hotels and giving out money out for rental housing, but there's simply nothing out there to rent.
Its a heartbreaking situation that currently has no clear answer.
A long road to recovery
There are efforts to rebuild the town of Paradise, but it will undoubtedly take years. But many of the residents can't imagine living anywhere else, but there are some that are wary to return because of the high fire danger of the area. The question on many people's minds is whether or not it's safe to rebuild in Paradise - not to mention the trauma and healing process that prevents many residents from wanting to rebuild.
California has been stricken by severe drought for years. More frequent and more powerful wildfires have become the norm in the state. Nevertheless, there are ways to rebuild Paradise will make the town much safer and resistant to fire. More escape routes can be built, fuel breaks can be made and buildings can be created with more fire-resistant materials and design features.
A quarter of Videomaker's staff was displaced by the fire, and many lost their homes. They've set up a fundraising effort to support their staff and former staf
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
08/05/2026
Liberty University on why broadcast technology isn't just a technical invest...
08/05/2026
COW Jobs: UGC, On-Camera Video Content
Brie Clayton May 7, 2026
0 Comments
UGC, On-Camera Video Content
April 17, 2026Documentary Editor - US,......
07/05/2026
Journalists reporting on Sudan are working in one of the most complex and fast-m...
07/05/2026
Multi-year partnership positions Victory+ as a free home for Dallas Cowboys orig...
07/05/2026
From sideline reporting to directing and producing, the talented sophomore is building a well-rounded foundation for a career in live sports production
In the ...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital has received two Future Best of Show awards at NAB Show 2026. The COBALT blueCORE platform was recognized by TV Tech, and the COBALT PACIFIC ULL-...
07/05/2026
ESPN analyst Mina Kimes will host the televised semifinals and finals of the 202...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI, the global film streaming platform, has selected Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner. Bitmovin's encoding infrastru...
07/05/2026
NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises and the U.S. Soccer Federation have announced...
07/05/2026
Angel City Football Club (ACFC) and Victory have announced a regional broadcast partnership bringing live match coverage to fans across the greater Los Angeles...
07/05/2026
Spiideo has announced the launch of AI Highlights inside Spiideo Play, its automated sports production platform. AI Highlights combines video, event data, audio...
07/05/2026
Leostream Corporation has announced a unified remote access ecosystem for high-p...
07/05/2026
The Atlanta Dream has partnered with Victory to stream all locally broadcast Dream games for free, expanding the team's digital distribution strategy and g...
07/05/2026
Riedel Communications has announced the appointment of Marc Engroff as Chief Fin...
07/05/2026
SES and ARD, Germany's largest public broadcasting network, have announced a long-term extension of their satellite distribution partnership through 2039. U...
07/05/2026
UpLight Technologies delivers a flexible video and lighting system for a new televised sportLaunching the Pro Cheer League required more than creating a compell...
07/05/2026
Full Day Productions and GSE Worldwide have announced Spikes Under the Lights, a...
07/05/2026
Seit dem Start im Jahr 2023 hat DJ (Beta) das personalisierte H rerlebnis von 94...
07/05/2026
Da quando stata presentata nel 2023, DJ (beta) ha aiutato a definire un'esperienza d'ascolto pi personalizzata per 94 milioni di utenti Spotify Premi...
07/05/2026
Since launching in 2023, DJ (beta) has helped shape a more personalized listenin...
07/05/2026
Desde o lan amento em 2023, o DJ (beta) j ajudou a deixar a experi ncia de ouvi...
07/05/2026
From our earliest days, Spotify has been built on a simple principle: Great audio should be easy to reach. It's what's driven us to expand from music to...
07/05/2026
Asian and Pacific Islander artists continue to shape the global soundscape, pushing creative boundaries and connecting with fans worldwide. This Asian & Pacific...
07/05/2026
Company announce long-requested choir instrument
In the latest expansion of their Symphonic Elements series, UJAM have introduced an all-new vocal instrumen...
07/05/2026
Modular-inspired sound generation with digital control
Buchla have introduced Ziggy, a new compact synthesizer built around the company's complex oscill...
07/05/2026
Combines analogue voices with digital synthesis and sequencing
Polyend have announced Drums, a new hybrid analogue and digital drum machine that combines sy...
07/05/2026
Control surface now officially supports four DAWs
When Nektar launched the Panorama CS12 control surface, it worked exclusively with Apple's Logic Pro, ...
07/05/2026
In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of 184.5 million, which was 49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: ...
07/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Greenerwave achieve precise and fast ESA antenna characteriz...
07/05/2026
Two multi-role L3Harris products - the Red Wolf launched effects vehicle and SK...
07/05/2026
L3Harris will be developing key features of a secure and resilient digital infra...
07/05/2026
Alysa Liu and Shohei Ohtani Help Drive Viewership as 91 of the Top 100 Broadcast...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital Wins Two Future Best of Show Awards at 2026 NAB Show
Manufacturer Recognized by TV Tech and TVBEurope for Innovation in signal processing
Cobal...
07/05/2026
Software and hardware platforms, AI power and user-friendliness on show...
07/05/2026
Intinor will demonstrate its latest technical enhancements for the Direkt series at BroadcastAsia 2026. With a continued focus on reliable contribution and remo...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI has chosen Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner, replacing MUBI's legacy on premises encoding setup to improve scalab...
07/05/2026
Meet Graduates from Berklees Class of 2026 Members of this years graduating class reflect on their proudest moments at Berklee and look ahead to whats next.
...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
At BroadcastAsia 2026, Interra Systems will demonstrate its latest innovations in automated quality control (QC), real-time monitoring, and captioning. The comp...
07/05/2026
At this year's Broadcast Asia, PlayBox Neo is set to unveil recent innovations across its PlayBox Neo Suite and integrated range of broadcast media solution...
07/05/2026
Strategic three-year partnership marks delivery phase of BFBS' next-generation media vision
Media organisation and military charity BFBS (British Forces Br...
07/05/2026
Amagi, the agentic industry cloud platform for unified broadcast, streaming, and monetization, today announced the availability of its In-Content Ads offering v...
07/05/2026
Lightware Visual Engineering has developed Rack Taurus for rack-based environments such as education and corporate training spaces. It enables clean and simple ...
07/05/2026
Jigsaw24, the UK's leading media equipment supplier and systems integrator, will showcase its expanded end-to-end workflow capabilities at MPTS 2026, signal...
community 
