ATV-HD Project Executive Summary & Project Overview Introduction & Statement of Need Since 2002, ATV has filmed nearly all of its shows in a small television studio attached to the station s offices in American University s Mary Graydon Center, room 256. ATV s studio is heavily used; ten shows regularly filmed in this studio during the 2012-13 academic year. ATV s studio and attached control room are outfitted with cameras and equipment that was generously donated to the station by AU alumni Norman and Mary Klotz ( 76, 79) in 2002. However, this studio equipment, which was used equipment at the time it was donated, is now well beyond its useful life. By and large the equipment is still functional and in regular use, but maintenance needs for the equipment have been increasing in recent years. In particular, ATV s production switcher has suffered a handful of technical glitches over the past two years that have required professional repairs, and it will likely fail completely in the near future. 1 The broadcast industry has changed dramatically since 2002. Modern television stations are all-digital, and high-definition broadcasting is now commonplace. Many roles in the television industry are now automated. And the costs of professional high-definition production have decreased substantially. Yet ATV s studio and control room equipment, which is completely analog-based and of low-quality standard-definition, lags far behind modern HD standards. We have been informed by professionals that our equipment is basically worthless on the market. One of ATV s core purposes is to provide AU students with hands-on learning experience working in a professional broadcast studio environment. But it is not reasonably possible for us to accomplish this goal when our equipment is generations behind the technology used by today s television studios. These days, the majority of ATV s in-studio shows actually bypass our studio equipment entirely, and instead set up out-of-studio cameras on tripods inside of the studio. This setup has been necessary to allow our most prominent productions to film with the HD quality necessary for good presentation, particularly when special guests are brought in-studio for interviews. The out-of-studio camera setup is also required when filming with a green-screen, as the quality of our standard-definition studio cameras is so poor, it is impractical to produce a quality green-screen edit without using the higher-quality out-of-studio cameras. A Production Switcher is the hardware that makes it possible for a Technical Director to switch between multiple 1 camera inputs on the fly when recording a show. If the production switcher fails, ATV s in-studio cameras would be completely unavailable to use. A replacement production switcher and board can cost up to $10,000.
Purpose of Studio Renovation At the most basic level, outfitting ATV s studio and control room with modern equipment will enable ATV to produce all of its content at a consistent HD quality level, without sacrificing the advantage of flexibility offered by an in-studio camera setup and a live production switcher. It will provide ATV members with the opportunity to learn how to operate modern broadcast equipment, and reduce the need for frequent equipment maintenance. The all-digital architecture of new studio and control room equipment will also improve ATV s operating efficiency by reducing the turnaround time needed to acquire footage for editing projects, and reducing the tendency for glitches and errors to delay production. New equipment will also open up many new production opportunities that ATV is not capable of today. A working graphics system and frame sync control 2 will make it feasible for ATV to produce live television and online streaming productions on a regular basis, complete with professional elements such as live graphics and chyrons. 3 Although ATV currently only has a standard-definition closed-circuit broadcast feed to campus televisions, 4 the majority of ATV s audience is online via podcasting and live-streaming, where HD quality is important. ATV also produces professional-quality videos for AU s Office of Campus Life and other student-organizations. A full-digital HD infrastructure will greatly improve the resources that ATV can dedicate towards these projects. Overview of Project Specifications In March 2013, ATV contracted with Chris Vazquez of Designsmith Ltd., based in Laurel, Md., to prepare a full technical design plan and budget for an HD renovation for ATV s studio and control room. Vazquez has worked with ATV for over 12 years, and has regularly been hired to perform maintenance and repairs to ATV s equipment over that time. ATV s television studio is relatively small at 324 square feet, and is attached to a 252 square-foot control room. As such, the proposed budget makes use of lower-end and lower-cost professional equipment that is optimized for small studios, which is often used for mobile productions. The comprehensive $230,000 budget covers all of the equipment, installation, and labor for this project. Studio Cameras Production Console Audio Systems Playout/Streaming Engineering/Rack Room Design/Installation/Provisional 10% 12% 0% 4% 10% 63% 2 Frame Sync Control allows preset video feeds to be used as an input source for a switcher when filming an instudio production. ATV s current Frame Sync Control relies on obsolete FireWire 400 technology via a mid-1990s BetaMax player, and is often unreliable. 3 ATV s current equipment makes live broadcasting capabilities severely limited, and requires multiple workarounds to be set up. It does not offer any ability to display live broadcast graphics, often referred to as chyrons. Due to these limitations, ATV currently only produces one special live broadcast production per year. Although a separate effort from this studio improvement project, ATV will be working with AU to eventually 4 upgrade ATV s campus cable feed to high-definition over the coming years.
If fully implemented, the proposed project plan would provide the following improvements to ATV s studio/control room infrastructure: New HD Studio Cameras -- Three Sony HXC-D70 cameras would replace ATV s outdated Ikegami studio cameras. These high-performance cameras are ideal for small studios and support up to 1080i/720p HD video. They are also SD video-compatible, and could be phased in alongside existing SD control room equipment. The unit price for each camera is $20,670, but these would also be accompanied by additional camera control units and necessary accessories for studio use, along with studio tripods and new teleprompters for each camera. 5 A new color chart will also allow ATV to regularly calibrate the color on each camera, which is an important procedure in professional environments. All-Digital Production Switcher -- An all-digital Blackmagic ATEM Production Switcher will not only provide for greater reliability in ATV s control room, it will also help ATV save energy and reclaim space. ATV s control room currently utilizes ten CRT television screens to view and control its video feeds; these will be replaced by two 40 LED television monitors with a flexible multiviewer display. The new switcher will also allow for live graphics and live greenscreen keying, opening many new possibilities for live ATV productions. HD Router -- Along with the production switcher, the router is the most essential piece of hardware at ATV. It is responsible for linking every video input and output in the station. ATV s analog router failed and was replaced in 2009. An all-digital HD router will improve reliability for all of the technology that makes ATV s studio and broadcast run smoothly. The new router will be complemented with new video scopes and monitoring equipment, and will remove dozens of obsolete items from ATV s rack room, reclaiming space. Playout Server -- Currently, ATV s television broadcast is controlled on a Mac Pro through a free application called Cellulo, which is like a variation of itunes optimized for video playback. However, Cellulo is extremely buggy and has not been updated since 2007. We will replace the aging Mac Pro, and incorporate modern peripherals and a professional playback manager, for more reliable management of ATV s broadcast. Web Encoder -- Since ATV launched its online live stream in 2009, we have been seeking to improve its quality and reliability. New hardware will allow for a reliable HD stream, and the ability to easily switch from streaming pre-recorded content to streaming live content being filmed in-studio. Disk Recorders -- ATV currently uses an outdated hack setup involving a Sony MiniDV tape player to record shows filmed in-studio onto a Mac for later editing in Final Cut Pro. A dedicated disk recorder rack in ATV s rack room will allow a native HD video feed off of the Production Switcher to be recorded directly to a hard drive, which can then be taken to a computer in ATV s office or elsewhere on campus for editing. Graphics Station -- The Blackmagic ATEM Production Switcher includes built-in support for live graphics, transitions, and chyrons, which would be designed and cued live from a PC support system set up next to the teleprompter control in the control room. 5 Currently only two of ATV s studio cameras are outfitted with teleprompters, which has created an operational challenge for some ATV shows.
Most important, the $230,000 budget includes the expenses for installation and for design consultation for the project. As the new equipment is installed, full wiring diagrams and documentation will be produced for the facility to aid in future maintenance and repair needs. This total also includes an $11,000 provisional budget to allow for potential overhead costs. Need for Supplemental Funding ATV s regular operating expenses are funded by the AU Student Media Board, with money that originates from the Student Activity Fee. In 2013, ATV was approved to create an ATV Restricted Account for the purpose of long-term fundraising for capital projects such as this one. 6 However, the size and scope of this project far exceeds the capabilities of the Student Media Board to fund such a large expense. Due to the eccentricities of Student Activity Fee funding at AU, 7 ATV s budget allocation from the Student Media Board has been declining, currently averaging between $15,000 and $20,000 per year. ATV has begun setting aside a portion of its funds in its Restricted Account to support this project, but to rely on this funding source alone would be insufficient. Five of the eight student media organizations at American University produce print publications. Their ability to publish is tied to the direct cost of printing a physical product, which makes up the majority of their annual budget. ATV, on the other hand, does not have a major direct cost that affects its ability to produce and publish its content. Instead, ATV requires investments in technology and infrastructure that, in turn, make ATV s productions possible. Although ATV has long relied on incremental investments, most recently upgrading and expanding its out-of-studio equipment in small phases, this ATV-HD Project requires a substantial investment in ATV that is sorely needed and long overdue. Conclusion For nearly 35 years, ATV has been an established student media organization on campus, and the preeminent extracurricular organization at AU for students interested in film/video production and broadcast journalism. The ATV-HD Project is an essential need for ATV to remain relevant in this high-definition era of broadcasting, and to ensure that the aging equipment and infrastructure that supports ATV s day-to-day operations is replaced with modern equipment that will be viable well into the future. ATV is committed to working over the coming years to secure the funding for this project, and to identify appropriate phases of implementation to allow for us to work towards the goal of completing this renovation by the end of the decade. We welcome any donations of equipment or financial assistance to help us complete this effort. 6 A Restricted Account is a special account that is permitted to have its funds rollover between fiscal years, albeit with restrictions on how money can be allocated to the account and spent from it. These restrictions are detailed in ATV s Constitution. Since 2013, student media organizations are not allowed to roll over excess funds in their primary operating accounts between fiscal years. 7 For more info on concerns with the Student Activity Fee funding model, refer to the Student Activity Fee Study Committee (SAFSC) Report of April 17, 2013: http://tinyurl.com/safsc
Photo Gallery Left: ATV s control room is currently equipped with ten CRT television screens, a Grass Valley production switcher, a Mackie audio board, a prompter control, a Betamax-based frame sync control, and a MiniDV tape player-based capture system. An installed Chryon system is non-functional. Right: ATV s rack room in 2011 includes ATV s broadcast control, production switcher control unit, and an analog router. The Xserve RAID units and preview monitor seen in this picture have since failed and have been removed. Much of this equipment is not used on a regular basis. Left: ATV s studio is equipped with three standard-definition Ikegami cameras. Two of the cameras are outfitted with teleprompters. The tripod on Camera 1 (far left) is broken and requires a camera operator to hold it steady so that it doesn t fall fully forward or backward.