Uncertain times for Welsh indies

Broadcast

As the biggest commissioner of content from Welsh production companies, changes to the way S4C is funded are causing concern throughout the sector. http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/news/analysis/uncertain-times-for-welsh-indies/5023933.article

Welsh indies are intent on showing their resilience and acumen in this unsettled period, and pledge to maintain a strong voice in discussions about how the sector’s principal benefactor will be managed.

“We’ve got to see the remodelling of S4C as an opportunity,” says Rondo Media chief executive Gareth Williams. “Indies are a key stakeholder in S4C and part of the solution to its more effective operation.”

Indie trade body TAC (Teledwyr Annibynnol Cymru) has submitted reports to, and answered questions before, the Welsh Affairs Select Committee. It wants to ensure that S4C commissioning budgets continue to feed local producers, and that S4C retains editorial control. It has called for an independent review of the way the broadcaster works. “There’s a certain nervousness in the sector, which greater clarity would resolve,” says TAC chair Iestyn Garlick. “One is always dubious of internal reviews since they are never going to highlight all the problems.”

Telesgop managing director Elin Rhys echoes calls for TAC’s lobbying to be heard. “The financial and editorial independence of the channel is paramount. Nobody can understand the nature of S4C except those who speak the language.” A related concern is that the BBC’s pledge to double Wales’s share of the corporation’s network TV spend to 5% by 2016 could be threatened by S4C coming under licence fee control from 2013.

“Indies naturally want to know that there will be no reduction in BBC commissioning power because of new responsibilities at S4C,” says Green Bay creative director Phil George. “We are all trying to work out what will happen and play into it. We don’t, for example, know how S4C will sustain its tariffs, but it will impact on different indies in different ways.”

Despite the uncertainty, the sector is reassured by culture secretary Jeremy Hunt’s announcement that S4C’s commissioning budget for independent producers (outside of the BBC’s statutory commitments) will be ringfenced at £83m until 2014/15. In 2013/14 and 2014/15, the BBC will contribute £76.3m and £76m respectively, while the DCMS will fund £6.7m in 2013/14 and £7m in 2014/15.

“That’s a better deal than we have at the moment, where S4C can produce in-house and therefore doesn’t have to spend 100% on indies,” notes Boomerang chief executive Huw Eurig Davies. “Post 2015, though, the formula is likely to be linked to the fate of the licence fee.”

This is what worries indies most, according to TAC. “We are assured that the new funding deal isn’t going to affect S4C’s policy of commissioning from Welsh-language TV producers, but we’d like to see it in writing with something cast iron in place for the situation beyond 2015,” says Garlick.

In the absence of personnel in key executive roles at S4C, the broadcaster’s relationship with the indie sector post 2015 remains unclear.

“We are prepared for inevitable budgetary impacts but the degree of editorial control the BBC may have in a few years time also needs to be nailed down,” says Dinamo comanaging director Aron Evans.

Cloudy outlook

While TAC calls the future editorial integrity of S4C “cloudy”, Welsh indies in general do not share these insecurities, preferring to emphasise the positive. While the larger indies have diversifi ed to encompass network and international commissions, the importance of the Welsh broadcaster remains fundamental to their businesses.

Boomerang is in year two of a threeyear, £12m contract to produce children’s programming for the broadcaster, while Rondo Media increased turnover from £10.3m to £11.4m in 2010, largely as a result of winning an S4C children’s and youth tender worth £6m over three years.

Rondo is also mid-way through a four-year soccer contract, Sgorio, for S4C. It has a factual series covering regional events in co-production with Telesgop, and was recently recommissioned for two more series of youth drama Rownd A Rownd.

On the back of that, and on the region’s growing reputation for drama, it completed its fi rst network commission, the 5 x 45-minute The Indian Doctor, and is hopeful of a second run with BBC Daytime and BBC Wales.

The year is also looking strong at Green Bay thanks to a 6 x 60-minute Big History Of Wales for BBC Wales, and a 3 x 60-minute BBC4 examination of Shakespeare, Jacobean Genius, both for delivery in 2012.

“We don’t want to paint a picture of doom and gloom because indies are producing network-level work but we need 2011 to be a good year,” says George. “When you commit to grow the company’s resources, you need to see the investment deliver. We need to see a bigger breakthrough at network level from the BBC and Channel 4 so we can build business in a more solid way.”

Up to 80% of Telesgop’s output is for S4C, including weekly farming strand Ffermio and ultra-local community programming Bro, although it also produces network documentaries such as Heath Wilson for BBC4.

“The quality of work from Welsh producers for S4C based on tight production budgets should be held up as an exemplar to other broadcasters as a way to provide value for money,” argues Rhys. “The Welsh production community has built itself up through sheer determination, unique talent and a willingness to pool resources and collaborate that puts indies in other parts of the UK to shame. All of that will survive and ensure that the sector and Welsh-language provision wins in the end.”

S4C: CO-PRODUCTIONS

The change in funding structure is widely tipped to force S4C into more focused commissioning, particularly with regard to international coproductions. This may also provide a shot in the arm to local producers.

“The upside could be significant, with S4C and its suppliers working less in isolation and more in partnership with a global distribution arm in BBC Worldwide,” suggests Wil Stephens, chief executive of Cardiff-based Cube Interactive. “I suspect most indies will alter working practices and diversify more than they already have to offset budgetary pressures.”

Tim Morley, who runs distribution business Content West, agrees that changes at the broadcaster will stimulate the local industry. “There is deep expertise in programme-making here but the time is right to take that skillset wider, especially internationally,” he says.

Dinamo co-managing director Aron Evans spies opportunities for companies that already operate in the international market. The animation house is the recipient of S4C’s first partnership with CBeebies (and RTE), for 52 x 10-minute The Abadas, currently in production.

“If S4C embraces the international market and shift to a more co-production-based model, it can make its funding go further,” Evans says.

In its document presented to the DCMS last October, S4C announced plans to launch a co-pro fund from its commercial budget. The intention is to invest on a commercial basis, including international co-pros, or to co-fund productions with commercial
potential.

Ahead of a full announcement, S4C’s commercial group has already invested in copros including Ynysoedd (Islands), a six-part series from Green Bay with France 5 and Wales Creative IP Fund support, and Patagonia, a feature film released in 2010 that was co-produced by Boomerang, Boom Films and Rainy Day Films.

“S4C is crucial to the viability of international co-productions,” asserts Green Bay creative director Phil George. “Its commitment to sustaining international co-pros will also help S4C secure high points in its schedule and make sure the S4C brand is seen worldwide.”

3D focus: Caution - convert with care

Broadcast 

Converting 2D programming to 3D offers a cost-effective way of supplying broadcasters with the content they need. But it’s a contentious issue, as Adrian Pennington finds out.

http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/techfacils/tech-focus/3d-focus-caution-convert-with-care/5023204.article

As the initial wave of promotion fades away, the financial reality of 3D TV is coming under scrutiny. Broadcasters, particularly those with commitments to full channels rather than one-off events, are under pressure to bring costs into line with 2D, and to make available a steady stream of content.

“There’s not enough content for channels to survive,” warns Pierre Routhier, Technicolor’s vice-president of 3D product strategy and business development. “There are not enough blockbusters to fi ll the schedules, while live events and new TV productions are a challenge because there is a premium on the cost of production.”

That cost is 20-30% in excess of HD production and is exacerbated for live sport, as separate production and transmission chains are required for simultaneous 2D and 3D broadcasts.

There are now more than 30 3D channels worldwide, most of which offer occasional live sport and ondemand schedules based on Hollywood movies. Hollywood has produced about 60 digital 3D movies since 2008, with 30 more set for release in 2011 and 2012.

Even with the addition of independent releases, it’s clear that a library of around 100 titles is a sparse one on which to base a business. Yet few operators have the pockets to fund a portfolio of original 3D production. This limited selection of content is likely to stall further consumer willingness to pay for expensive 3D TV sets, let alone 3D-specific subscriptions.

Industry analyst Screen Digest says that by 2014, just 10% of all TV sets installed in the UK will be 3D-capable. “The lack of true 3D content has created a sellers’ environment and on occasion resulted in broadcasters being expected to pay unrealistic premiums, particularly when they themselves are currently unable to charge customers a premium,” says Futuresource research consultant David Watkins.

One solution to bulking out the content gap is converting 2D material to 3D. This can be done in automated fashion on the fl y, or by rigorous post-production. But it’s a contentious issue, with proponents arguing that conversion is a necessary and creative option, while critics say that poorquality work risks damaging the 3D brand by giving viewers an uncomfortable experience.

In the latter camp are BSkyB and Discovery, which have taken strict stances against the use of converted material. SBS Broadcasting, which launched a Dutch 3D channel in November last year, is automatically converting the bulk of its 12-hour-a-day schedule from 2D.

However, Sky has softened its stance slightly, altering its original criteria for converted content destined for Sky 3D. Any programme destined for Sky 3D can have up to 25% converted content, up from an earlier limit of 10%.

According to Sky, this brings it into alignment with HD guidelines, which also dictate 75% should be in true HD, and to “take a pragmatic approach to supporting the growth of 3D production in the UK”. It remains adamant that no automated conversions are allowed, although exceptions are made for live events.

For shots where it is impractical to place a bulky, heavyweight rig - such as on an aerial wire, Steadicam or in restricted stadia positions - short bursts of realtime 3D processing taken from a 2D camera are widely used. Certain scenes or camera shots can work when converted and may be acceptable when converted using a live conversion tool, but such shots “need to be set with care”, Sky states.

It is far cheaper to use automated conversion than twin cameras and 3D rigs, with processors from JVC or Sony costing between £17,000 and £25,000, but shooting whole shows with them is not advised - even by the manufacturers.

“There’s a misconception that these products were designed to replace true acquisition,” says Kris Hill, 3D product specialist at JVC. “It’s a tool to complement 3D production.” Indeed, there’s a stigma attached to the use of conversions.

“It’s like the early days of HD, where a lot of content was upconverted from SD and broadcasters were reluctant to talk about it even though the picture difference was negligible,” suggests Mike Poirier, general manager at Teranex, which manufactures an automated conversion system.

Perhaps the lowestgrade conversions come from cheap chipsets now built as standard into an increasing number of 3D TVs and Blu-ray players. With a fl ick of the remote, consumers can turn any programme into pseudostereo vision outside of the control of broadcasters or fi lm-makers. The software reads each frame and sends, for example, faster-moving and background objects, or objects at the sides of the frame, to the back of the picture. Samsung’s 3D sets even enable the viewer to alter the 3D effect on a scale of 1-10. The effect is crude and has its opponents. “As a movie studio, we made it very clear to the consumer electronics companies that we don’t support conversion at all,” declares Fox Home Entertainment president Mike Dunn. “It distorts what everyone is trying to do. We don’t even want a football game converted like that.”

However, studios will be reluctantto force consumer electronics firms to discontinue the option in the greater interest of selling more 3D TVs, provided the consumer is aware of the difference that true 3D makes.

True 3D is said to be the hallmark of 3net, a channel launching later this year in the US in a joint venture from Discovery, Sony and Imax. It expects to have about 200 hours of 3D programming, the majority of it original documentaries commissioned by the channel, and is destined to supply a forthcoming launch on Sky’s platform in the UK.

“We looked at conversion, but the technology is shaky,” says Discovery’s executive vice-president and head of international business operations John Honeycutt. “Conversion is a concern because some consumers may have an adverse physical reaction when viewing it. The effect is like that of reading a book in a moving car.”

Discovery, like Sky, will accept sequences of post-produced converted content provided the work meets the required quality. Indeed, post conversion is the best route for CG-intensive scenes or for certain shots where stereo capture is tricky, such as filming inside a moving car or from the air.

Even James Cameron’s Avatar contained postconverted sequences, suggesting that hybrid productions, mixing converted and native 3D content, will be routine. Provided sequences are devised with a view to being converted, and are therefore framed and edited with 3D in mind, the argument is that conversion can deliver an experience as high quality as native capture.

The process requires manual frame-by-frame rotoscoping with a 3D editing system, and doing it well requires attention to every frame. “This isn’t a ‘press the button’ solution but a creative process that requires a lot of time and careful decision- making,” says Cinesite managing director Antony Hunt.

For this reason, post-conversions are not a cheaper alternative to native stereo. Prices range from £16,000 to £80,000 a minute of converted footage, even if work is farmed out to places like India with lower wage bills. This won’t break the bank for a £100m feature, but adding £1-2m per episode for a documentary pushes the technique beyond most TV budgets.

“Post conversion is a high-end VFX process that involves stereography and huge amounts of manpower, so it’s generally only applicable to feature fi lm budgets,” explains Matt Bristowe, senior producer at Prime Focus, one of several facilities that have conducted conversion tests for UK broadcasters.

“There is huge demand for it so we are researching ways to create a faster, cheaper conversion pipeline for broadcast,” says Bristowe. “If it takes a week to convert a shot for a feature fi lm, we aim to bring that down to two or three days by introducing automation to some elements of the process while maintaining quality.”

Atlantic Productions chief executive Anthony Geffen has even called for 3D TV productions to be badged according to the degree of converted 2D-3D content they contain. “I would like to see a brand called Real 3D credited to any programme that contains 10% or less of converted content,” he says. “My concern is that a lot of converted 2D-3D material, whether automatically processed or done in post production, is so inferior in quality that it will damage the impression that viewers have of natively captured 3D, which at its best is a remarkable, immersive experience.”

Atlantic’s Flying Monsters 3D (left) for Sky featured 20 shots (out of 340) of conversion, mainly of aerial and archive footage. “Sky has adopted a strict policy with 3D because it thinks it has one or two chances to capture people’s imaginations and entice them to buy 3D TVs,” says Geffen.

“It did that with HD. Viewers were wowed by Sky HD because it was of superior quality.” “Other broadcasters are upconverting considerable amounts of content and may think that the audience won’t know the difference. I think people are more literate now than a year ago and would appreciate the choice of watching something that is simulated or real 3D.”

Maintaining quality Sky says it continues to monitor the development of 2D-3D tools but maintains, as a general rule, that conversion is not acceptable for delivered programmes being categorised as ‘original 3D content’.

It adds that producers are encouraged to talk with Sky about 3D modelling and conversion techniques to ensure that “the vision of stereoscopic 3D is seen in the same perspective and the proposed techniques that best suit the content in question understood”. Converted 3D content is here to stay, but producers need to apply it correctly and judiciously.

THE PRINCE’S ROCK GALA - LIVE CONVERSION

3DD Productions and Nineteen Fifteen recorded the Prince’s Trust Rock Gala at the Royal Albert Hall for Sky just before Christmas.

Six stereo rigs, combinations of 3ality and Steadicams, plus seven Sony HDC1500 2D positions were used. Sony’s MPE200 processor was deployed live to convert some 2D shots to 3D, while JVC’s IF-2D3D1 image processor was used to post-convert additional 2D shots.

Nineteen Fifteen co-founder Vicki Betihavas says 90% of the show was captured in native 3D.

“Conversion has its place on certain shots where a 3D rig is impossible to place,” she says. “Integrating converted shots within 3D-originated programming is normal and unavoidable for good editorial cases.”

The production delivered a 2D and a 3D version of the event simultaneously from the same OB unit.

THE VIEW FROM JAPAN

Televised 3D programmes without the need to don 3D glasses are now a reality in Japan, and to celebrate Fuji TV has commissioned the first series to be shot entirely in 3D (writes Michael Fitzpatrick) .

Broadcast on the cable channel SkyPerfecTV, the fi rst episode of Tokyo Control, a drama about air-traffi control, was well received in Japan after airing last week.

Which is, perhaps, just what the Japanese TV manufacturing industry wanted to hear, particularly as despite high hopes, 3D TV sales in Japan have disappointed so far. According to the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association, 131,000 3D TV sets were sold in Japan in the six months from April last year - just one in 25 of all big-screen set sales.

Toshiba’s Naked Eye TV, technically known as autostereoscopic 3D displays - the fi rst commercially available in the world, according to its makers - comes with a high price tag of ¥119,800 (£913) for the 12-inch model. The first Naked Eye TV, the 3D Regza GL1, also sells as a 20-inch model.

Both have been marketed in Japan for nearly three months but sales have not been as impressive as Toshiba hoped. There are no plans as yet to sell the sets abroad. Analysts believe the high price tag and dearth of content has put off many buyers. They say that larger Naked Eye TVs are essential to the success of 3D TV, while in reality 3D TV is now only in the development phase and the glasses-free technology still has a way to go.

Another drawback to Toshiba’s 3D TV is that viewers need to occupy a sweet spot to enjoy it - within a 40-degree zone. Japan’s fi rst 3D drama has enjoyed a better reception so far. Tokyo Control’s 3D effect can be enjoyed with glasses or no glasses, and as Sony was behind the 3D technical help, the show was optimised for its glasses-only 3D TVs.

Like other electronic fi rms in Japan, Sony is working on a glasses-free TV of its own. Tokyo Control director Gaku Narita visited Avatar director James Cameron in Hollywood for tips on directingin 3D and says the new drama should go some way towards filling the demand for 3D TV in Japan. But he doesn’t see the country’s TV companies throwing themselves into more ambitious 3D projects.

“We have our 3D documentaries, sports programmes, but this is the fi rst drama. Naturally shooting in 3D is expensive, and given the conservative nature of Japan’s TV networks, I don’t see them rushing into these type of things,” he says.