American Cinematographer - March 2021 - 44

ACCELERATED EVOLUTION

TRP Worldwide bluescreen rigged at a convention center.

XD Motion's Robotics Aid Adherence

By Rubis Allouet, Marketing Assistant, XD Motion, France
The use of robots to shoot television shows is an excellent response to
the constraints caused by Covid-19. Our most popular solution right now
is the Arcam robotic camera system and its software, IO.BOT. Recently,
we " teleported " a TV presenter from a Paris studio to a set in Toulouse to
co-present a demo program while using 3D objects. To accomplish this,
we used two Arcam robotic cameras, one in Paris and one in Toulouse,
and both were remote-controlled from Toulouse. The solution includes
several camera-tracking technologies, each feeding into a real-time 3D
graphics engine to generate the augmented-reality effect.
In short, the Arcam captures the journalist against a greenscreen, keys
the image, and sends it to the destination studio in real time, where the
3D elements are added. A second camera synchronizes the images and
elements together to create a realistic virtual environment. The data is
transmitted over 4G and 5G networks. This is one of our great strengths:
we have contracts with all existing telecom operators.
The six axes of Arcam robotic-arm technology make it extremely stable and maneuverable. We can repeat identical movements with perfect
regularity and can quickly and easily program new ones at will.
The teleportation effect can be applied to many different kinds of
programs (whether interviews or investigations) by allowing the subject to be filmed despite prohibitions on gathering or moving around, in
working conditions that respect the law.

TRP Worldwide on the Benefits
of Blue- and Greenscreens

By Pat Caputo, ASC associate and founder of TRP Worldwide
Prior to the pandemic, demand was astronomical. January and February
2020 were our best months ever, and at that point we were expecting a
banner year - until the industry hit a brick wall. By the end of the year,
things turned around, with loads of blue- and greenscreen being used.
Due to Covid, we found that large live events are putting their subjects in
front of blue- or greenscreen so they don't have to be in the same room
with an audience. There's just a small crew and some lighting specialists.
With the uptick in Covid cases right now, many people are not traveling and locations may be limited, so they're filming more on stages
in a controlled environment. A lot of it will be done against blue- and
greenscreen. LED walls are sometimes used, but that's an expensive way
of doing things. Keying fabrics are more cost-effective.
We're used to doing intricate, custom projects. With the inquiries
we receive, there's no telling what shape or size the customer will need.
Whatever it is, we can do it - that's the norm for us. We specialize not
only in keying fabrics, but also in light-manipulating materials: diffusers, bounces, controllers, color correctors and accessories for LED fixtures like our Snapbags and Snapgrids. Ultimately, we try to understand
the needs of our customers and develop the right tools to help them.
We hope our friends, colleagues and customers stay healthy during
these unusual times.
For an extended version of this feature, visit ascmag.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TRP WORLDWIDE.

shoot, and it impacts their performances. "

44 / MARCH 2021

p.30-45 Methods and Technologies v4 DONE.indd 44

2/4/21 11:10 PM

http://www.ascmag.com

American Cinematographer - March 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - March 2021