Production Sound & Video

10 PRODUCTION SOUND & VIDEO – Spring 2021 For more than fi ve decades, radio transmissions have played an increasingly large part in the infrastructure of motion picture and television production, worldwide. In the greater Los Angeles production environment, the operation, management, and maintenance of radio transmitters has always been the explicit responsibility of IATSE Local 695. As clearly stated in the "AGREEMENT OF AUGUST 1, 2018, BETWEEN PRODUCER AND I.A.T.S.E. & M.P.T.A.A.C. AND LOCAL #695 THEREOF," Article 1 Scope of Agreement, Paragraph 5: "It is recognized that the IATSE Constitution grants the following jurisdiction to the IATSE Local #695: Work of any nature in or incidental to the transmission of sound and carrier frequencies…" The vast majority of bands in the spectrum are only to be used for specifi c types of transmissions, and require a license, granted by the FCC in order to legally operate a transmitter. There are also bands that allow "Intentional Radiators" (i.e.,—low-power transmitters), devices that do not require a license to operate. Examples of Intentional Radiators include but are not limited to cordless telephones; remote-controlled cars, planes, and drones; Wi-Fi, video links, and remote focus systems used by camera departments; and the broad range of DMX control signals used by special effects, media servers, and set lighting. Many of these devices operate in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency bands. The federal regulations regarding the use of Intentional Radiators are contained in Title 47, Chapter 1, Subchapter A, Part 15, Subpart C, which can be found within the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations website (https://www.ecfr.gov). Frequency coordination occurs on a massive scale every single day in motion picture and television production, be it on a studio lot or on location. Every single walkie- talkie, radio microphone, wireless camera hop, etc., is coordinated, enabling the devices to work together without interfering with one another. On a studio lot, this is usually handled by a Local 695 Coordinator, usually a Y-3A (Supervising Sound Engineer). On a scripted show, more than two dozen transmitters may need to be coordinated every day. Talks shows and reality programs might use upward of fi fty. Coordinating a sporting event or an awards show becomes an Olympian task as more than a hundred different transmitters might be used at any given time. It is signifi cant to note that devices that are designed to operate in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands do not require a license to operate. In fact, there is no license available for the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz spectrum, which is a portion of the National Wi-Fi Infrastructure Backbone established by the FCC. Due to considerations of range, penetration, and workable antenna lengths, the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands are extremely popular bands for Intentional Radiator manufacturers. In the last several years, there has been a dramatic rise in the use of remotely-controlled everything in motion picture and television production. Generally speaking, devices that approach 'real time' operation in these bands rely upon 'frequency hopping,' where a device's carrier is constantly changing. Different devices will use various 'groups' of frequencies to hop around on, thus enabling multiple devices to use the same range of available frequencies depending on their moment to moment needs. Anecdotally, this technology was co-invented by the actress Heddy Lamar. Several years ago, there were signifi cant confl icts in production in the use of 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz devices, primarily between the wireless network-controlled DMX dimming systems and the wireless transmitters used by the camera departments to stream images from the cameras. This was a very real problem and an ad-hoc committee of users by Jay Patterson CAS A Few Notes on the Radio Spectrum and a Brand-New Licensing Guide!

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