Cinevideo goes hyper slow-mo for Sky

With three headquarters in different Italian regions (Pescara, Ancona and Brescia) and a large fleet of OB vehicles, Cinevideo’s profile as a full broadcaster service provider continues to grow. Today, it employs ten full-time staff and a number of freelancers, and commands an inventory of five extensively-equipped mobile vehicles.

Outlining the vehicles in turn, Cinevideo owner Adriano Buonomo comments: “The main one features 10 HD cameras and is the flagship of the fleet. Then we have a second vehicle, OB-Van 2, which includes four camera in SD and is used for smaller events such as live broadcasts for RAI or news reports and sports news edits. OB3, completed last year, is a penta camera in HD, very lean and fast, so it can be used on sites where space is a factor. For example, it was recently used for Sky Italy’s coverage of some Europa League matches.”

Normally, it is used fot the integration of the Football League shot for Sky with two cameras shooting exclusive footage and interviews.

The OB-Van4 deals with SNG satellite uplink in HD, includes three cameras on board and is designed to work both in Italy and abroad on small budget productions. It carries a complete and modern technology set-up that allows it to handle projects typical of medium sized OB van.

This vehicle is also able to set-up satellite links in MPEG2 and MPEG4, features a full video and audio control room, and is capable of Dolby 5.1 surround broadcasts.

The remaining vehicle, OB-Van5, was delivered a few weeks ago. It is dedicated mainly to sports shooting, in ultra-slow motion, focusing solely on the replay in hyper-slow motion.

The on-board spec also includes an I-MOVIX UltraMotion SprintCam – the first to be purchased by an Italy-based company. I-MOVIX is a Belgian company that developed  technologies dedicated to the world of extreme slow motion shots from 75 to 5,000-plus frames per second. These integrate optimally in the broadcast production workflow and combine different functions, from a very high frame rate capability to instant replay, or continuous streaming with the new X10 system. These features make the camera especially complementary to shooting live sports.

With this highly sophisticated video system Cinevideo is delivering coverage for Sky Italy of key football fixtures. Buonomo remarks: “The market had already a product of a similar nature called ‘super slow motion’ but it stops at 150 frames per second, while this can get even up to 2600! Normally in football and in Italian stadiums that unfortunately do not have optimal lighting, we are forced to work up to 500 frames per second.

“In the afternoons, with events such as rugby, as it was played at the Stadio Olimpico (Italy against New Zealand) last November, we can get up to 1,000 frames per second and sometimes even more.

The real problem is that the higher the speed and the longer the replay so it becomes not useful for the current programme because it would take too long… We have seen that a good compromise can be reached with five hundred frames per second. This OB-Van was designed to accommodate four camera ‘hyper slow motion’ systems, although at the moment there are only two cameras of this type.”