Audi Forum

Collaborating closely with video producers Second Sight, CPL supplied three large sections of 2mm Roe LED screen which were utilized as a spectacular backdrop for a recent national UK Audi Forum event, staged at and streamed from Kinetics Studios in Corby, UK.

The CPL team was led by Lee Gruszeckyj and the screen was configured in an infinity curve set up to add depth and dimension to the dynamic studio space which included an F1 display vehicle, other props and presentational set pieces as well as displaying crisp high quality video content accompanying a series of presentations.

The event – once presented live in classic venues like Excel and others – was a great example of how leading brands and the production industry have adapted and adjusted to smart new hybrid communications strategies during Covid which still reach and engage target audiences.

CPL’s technical package also included a disguise media server for playback, Brompton screen processing, fiber networking and other associated infrastructure, a Barco E2 for screen and signal management plus Riedel Bolero wireless comms.

Lee and the team built a bespoke brushed aluminum Audi branded worktop / lectern structure used for some of the speakers and presentations which were all completed from along one side of the three-way angled screen which was 28 meters wide in total, and was treated as one continuous wall for content.

The fully redundant fiber loop offered robust power and signal capabilities to broadcast standards.

A handful of LED battens from CPL were utilized for lighting ‘specials’, as the main lighting and audio packages are all included with studio rental.

Second Sight is a regular CPL client. “We love working with Guy Shayler and his crew,” commented Lee, “They are very precise and detailed about what they want, and the process is slick, efficient and well organized, so we can all maximize creativity.”

The schedule included a build day, a full day of technical rehearsals followed by a shoot day after which all the kit came out.

The 15-way comms system covered the multiple cameras and all stage management needs, the wireless functionality boosting the neat overall aesthetic and avoiding cables and mess traversing the floor!

Second Sight’s media content was all produced in house and programmed onto CPL’s disguise VX4 media server which was then time-lined and key-framed to synch with the assorted presentations. Their head of graphics, Scott Shelley, worked with a pixel map of the video wall to render exact size graphics, resulting in high impact, superior quality and a much more striking delivery than would have been possible using standard presentational software.

A Barco E2 processor distributed all the disguise inputs to the relevant screen processors, plus sent autocue and other DSM instructions to multi-view monitors dotted around the floor area, enabling everyone connected to the broadcast to see exactly what was happening at any time.