Back on Canadian soil and today thinking a little about my third Olympic Experience.
The athletes are not the only ones who put in the effort at these events. The opening ceremony was one of the most ambitious live television broadcasts that most of us who work in television have ever been a part of. It is ambitious to build an arena for a major event such as the Super Bowl, NHL Playoffs or an Olympic event, but to place hundreds of cameras along an 8 km stretch of the Seine and let content run down the river, dancers on landmarks and Celine There is more than just technical ambition at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Olympic broadcast services (OBS) and their team have accomplished something that has never been attempted before. As technical personnel, we all know what happens when something we have never accomplished before goes on the air, don’t we? Next time, something even bigger and more ambitious will happen because we now know what is possible – basically anything you can dream of today. Partly because the technology is there to do it. Camera technology, network fiber optic technology and wireless systems have enabled greater reach outside the mobile truck that we have never been able to achieve before. But don’t think this was possible without wires and power; I’m sure a SVG The article mentions the length of the fiber optic cable along the Seine, which was simply breathtaking.
My personal takeaways from these Olympics are two. First, IP technology for video is here and ready. Learning it, educating myself on it and finding ways to work with it will be the challenge of the next five years of my career. It’s not perfect, it’s not easier and it absolutely requires knowledge of video and audio and why we have certain workflows in media. If you leave it to network engineers who only think about traffic flow and not quality control, the transition will be noticeable to viewers.
A deep understanding of business practices in the media and broadcasting sectors is essential for anyone who wants to develop and present an exceptional product to the audience. This knowledge should not be neglected. Even if I may not have all the skills required today to create a SMPTE2110 For example, if I want to develop a system or fully configure a Network Device Interface (NDI) network or create an IP distribution method with all the security knowledge of a network architect, I definitely think about how I can learn, listen and build on those skills on the first projects I’m given.
The obvious connection for HONEYCOMBis how important our educational programs and the presentation of speakers and ideas at our conference are. New standards, new workflows and new technologies, when presented and discussed together, help the entire industry to initiate a migration that affects our workforce and our audience. I mentioned Table of contents to a few colleagues I worked with in the summer who had never heard of it, and this kind of presentation of Sébastien Testeauwhich leads CBCs Acceptance of the Coalition for origin and authenticity of content (C2PA) is the kind of insight we have always provided into the technology integrations and standards that are in the pipeline. We have always tried to introduce new ideas and technologies to conference attendees. Check out our Conference schedule for presentations and panels that get you talking.
My second insight eases my concern that our industry is losing jobs to AI. While AI and other tools are being adopted for technical success, AI doesn’t run cables along the Seine, coordinate the delivery and setup of cameras and lenses 2km away, fix light level issues on fiber optic transmitters, or connect cables. People create content, and other people make content delivery possible. AI is a tool, but any technical project requires a team to succeed, and much of what we do behind the scenes in media and entertainment is physically integrating hardware to allow software to do its job. The particular connections, integrations, and configurations in each production environment are so unique that I doubt robots or drones could manage them efficiently or cost-effectively without extensive and complex programming, at least not for the next 15 years.
If you’re responsible for managing a technical team in media, broadcast, radio, film, AV, stage, live production, post production, marketing, venues – basically anywhere you want to deliver video or audio – you need a multi-skilled, hands-on, positively motivated team that believes in what you’re doing and works together towards your end goal. The days of a one size fits all technical team member are over. By combining these hard and soft skills, someone who understands your business, comes to work every day, handles all sorts of little tasks that change daily, and brings a smile and new ideas is just as valuable as the smartest, most introverted genius on your team. When you bring a few of these people together and let them learn from each other, it can be technical magic.
An event like the Olympics requires hard work, long hours and extreme physical exertion for the athletes and for everyone working behind the scenes to ensure that the venue and on-site experience is meaningful to everyone, from advertisers to the audience. I do it because I get to learn, expand my skills and meet new and amazing people, which NBC has a real knack for recruiting and is the reason I agreed to work for them in Paris. WABE volunteers and members have always known that there are good people in our industry who are mentors, leaders and team members. That’s why we still hold this conference after 74 years. It brings us together, no matter where our careers take us or what company or role we have in the media and entertainment technology industry, because we know that together, as a team, we can do anything.
This kind of recognition of careers, teams and people is also what we do at WABE. Please consider nominating someone you know for an award before August 27. We are open and ready to accept nominationswhether it’s a broadcast engineer, a contributor, or someone who has gone above and beyond, demonstrated their skills, and advanced technology in our industry.
We are also looking for volunteers for next year’s conference in Calgary and a member of our executive committee to serve as treasurer next fall. Who are we looking for? Doers and idea generators who want to make this organization a place where everyone is welcome to come, learn, network and lead our organization into the future.
Just like athletes, technical teams push themselves to the limit with fewer resources. Ambitious plans that you don’t know will outperform the competition lead to an experience like no other. If you had asked me after a 20-hour workday for the opening ceremony at 4am if I would do it again, I probably would never have answered. But thinking about it, in my backyard with the many memories of my experience, I could imagine saying yes if the call came again.
Register for WABE, September 23-25 in Edmontonis still open, and with new faces already on the list, I look forward to meeting the next industry changers this fall. Nothing is more accessible than our Free exhibition hall to take a look behind the scenes. Together we will find answers to how we can move forward in the new media landscape.
Subscribe now for free!
Broadcast Dialog has been required reading for Canada’s broadcast media for 30 years. When you sign up, you become part of a community of connected professionals from the media and broadcast industries across the country.
The weekly briefing from Broadcast Dialogue is delivered exclusively to subscribers via email every Thursday. It’s your link to important industry news, the latest personnel changes and outstanding career opportunities.
Let’s get started right away.
