Vodafone Studios Boosts Audiovisual Production Capabilities with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton September 29, 2023
0 Comments
A keystone of the 400m2 creative production environment designed and built by Vodafone Germany and systems integrator Sigma-AV is a 15m curved LED wall for virtual production.
Conceived as an idea in 2020, work to implement this ambitious project began in mid 2022, with the space coming online recently. There was a clear will internally to become masters of our own content creation, states Lukas Loss, digital content producer at Vodafone Germany.
Previously, we have delivered a vast amount of video, event delivery and TVC production using external studios and partners. That production was expensive and lacked flexibility, according to Loss. With the building of our own studios, we could lower production costs and preparation time while simultaneously raising the scope of what our trained production team could deliver internally.
Through the pandemic and beyond, we soon realized that virtual meetups and hybrid event delivery would offer a more flexible model for conferences in the future. As a tech company, we wanted to build a state of the art, future proof studio with extended reality (XR) that would allow that.
Extending reality But beyond that, creating an XR studio with an LED wall and green screen space unlocks new creative possibilities internally, states Loss. The social content team can level up the quality of its output, for example, and that is unmatched by most other brands to date.
Divided into three different spaces, Vodafone Germany's communications team can now support XR productions, live streamed webinars, conferences and even executive interviews.
A 15m curved LED wall for XR live production and events is at the heart of the main space. It also features a lounge area for talking heads or interviews, a master control room (MCR) for eight operators and a server room. The second studio area is a smaller green screen space with a pack shot area and an audiovisual podcast studio designed for up to four people.
But where do you start on a project of this magnitude? While the initiative would expand Vodafone Germany's communication capabilities, doing so would require additional audiovisual hardware and display tech.
We had to build the studios within the existing company campus, Loss explains. So, space was limited. We rebuilt one section of our existing conference zone, transforming it into a multifunctional studio.
The biggest constraint during construction was the ceiling height, notes Loss. That's why our LED wall is only three meters high and the lighting truss is positioned directly above the wall. Likewise, all that tech produces a lot of heat, so we had to remove the old air conditioning unit, with the replacement deployed in another building due to the noise it generates.
With those issues resolved, it was time to build and set up the MCR, with Blackmagic Design chosen as one of the preferred hardware partners for video.
We chose Blackmagic's hardware based on our previous experience with the brand and its products at other locations. Likewise, the single link 12G-SDI delivers on our requirement for a 2160p50 production workflow while keeping cabling requirements to a minimum, explains Loss.
October 2, 2023Content House KTRL Media Uses ATEM Television Studio HD8 ISO and Blackmagic Studio Camera 6K ProBlackmagic Design today announced that creative streaming production company KTRL Media uses
September 27, 2023Midwest Film Co. Provides Still Photography and Motion Picture Scanning with Cintel ScannerBlackmagic Design today announced that Midwest Film Co. relies on Cintel Scanner
A versatile solution for acquisition Vodafone elected to deploy the URSA Broadcast G2 camera for its versatility. We get the best of both worlds; 4K broadcast style live production for streaming or 6K cinematic production with shallow depth of field.
Combined with Blackmagic Fiber Converters, each camera channel requires just two cables: one for the camera and another for the tracking system. The remaining challenge for Loss was ensuring production didn't run into moir issues.
We conducted testing to determine which type of cameras and LED resolutions would fit our budget, avoid any moir and still give us the best image quality possible. In Blackmagic and Samsung, we have found the ideal combination to balance those requirements.
Supplementing those is a Blackmagic Studio Camera 4K Pro paired with the Blackmagic Studio Converter and a 21 teleprompter screen. It is a great camera for smaller setups that we can run on one cat6a cable, which we can put anywhere, providing there is an Ethernet port in the floor, explains Loss.
Finding the right mix In the control room, an ATEM Constellation 8K live production switcher and ATEM 2 M/E Advanced Panel run the show, with a Smart Videohub 12G 40 40 for routing video and remote camera control via an ATEM Camera Control Panel.
The decision to implement ATEM was easy; we needed support for 4K 50p and the ability to handle 30 sources and 22 outputs during a typical production. Another great feature is the four multiview outputs; we use three for the video engineers and another as a preview for the talent on stage or in the back office.
Vodafone Germany's virtual set workflow relies on a series of PCs each equipped with a DeckLink 8K Pro capture and playback card, for ingesting live camera feeds into Unreal Engine and Ventuz.
Both systems are fed camera tracking data from a dedicated tracking solution, with three PCs used to render out the built virtual sets; one for the virtual background on the LED wall, another for virtual objects/foreground and a third for compositing.
When a virtual floor is required, Vodafone relies on its green screen ar
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...
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...
07/05/2026
Ease Live, an Evertz company, today announced that it has been granted a US Patent for its proprietary graphical overlay technology, the foundation for interact...
07/05/2026
Test & measurement innovator Leader Electronics of Europe will present an extensive range of Leader, PHABRIX and LeaderPhabrix test and measurement solutions at...
Vodafone Studios Boosts Audiovisual Production Capabilities with Blackmagic Design 
