Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/714540
30 have trouble associating the term with the involved skillset. Production has called me Tape Operator, Media Manager, Media Wrangler, Media Services and even settled on the name Recordist. I prefer the name Media Overlord, but we quickly realized that MO on a PL feed was too ambiguous. On this project, I realized the limitations of a single operator. Production required screener copies of the rehearsals and the show. Screeners are low-res files that a person can walk away with on a USB stick for immediate viewing. Standalone files with program audio, they can be viewed on any platform, without editing software. I was overseeing forty-eight streams of video and one hundred ninety-two streams of audio as it traveled onto three different storage platforms. In the eight years that I have been doing asset management and record- ing, this was my limit. Technology may streamline our lives, but sometimes the attention to all of those machines is too much for one operator to handle. Thankfully, Local 695 Video Engineer Tom Vanasse was available to step up and fill this highly visible role as the screener recordist. His expertise in file distribution pushed this position to a new level with new methods that I didn't have the time to think about. The lessons learned on The MTV Movie Awards are lessons I share with all new tech supervisors and production crewmem- bers. We can continue to iron out the kinks and improve our workflow with each new production. MAY: GABRIEL IGLESIAS NETFLIX SPECIAL 4K Alongside the Pronology mRes recording system on the Atlas truck is the new PWS-4500 recording and playback box from Sony. Atlas is home to the first ten boxes of this kind nationwide. Playback operators on Atlas use four boxes for package playback, melts and rehearsal recordings, while I configure the other six as recording devices. The Sony PWS-4500 is limited in the number of codecs it can record: DNxHD and XAVC in an Op1a wrapper. The advantage of this system is that it can record three, 4k chan- nels simultaneously—impressive for a single recording box. Though I often use the Sony boxes as a backup record to the mRes 1080 captures, for Netflix's comedy special star- ring Gabriel Iglesias, the Sony box was our main recording device. This production was Atlas's first 4k production. When Sony first unveiled the 4500s, they did not create a user interface for recording alone. Their playback GUI is similar to other professional playback systems, but their configuring interface is still a work in progress. I was able to control the hardware with a CenterPoint inter- face created by the Pronology development team. CenterPoint houses all of its workflow modules, including Live Logging, Search Functions, Storyboard application, Workflow Builder and Archival. This allows me to create a folder structure within the database, highlighting certain record channels. Its ability to seamlessly transition from one file to the next was a huge asset. The CenterPoint application indicates if the transfer work- flows I configured are kicked off and completed, giving me peace of mind during the record process. On this particular show, I configured the Sony boxes to record to its internal four Terabyte hard drive, where I took off the loop recording function, as well as a Small Tree Z5 shared storage. The first night, 5.5 TB of data was recorded for a three-hour show. The second night, we recorded over 6 TB of data. What's great about this workflow is that the transfer of footage happens in real-time, making it possible to walk away with all files min- utes after production concludes. I was excited to work on a show with a new 4k workflow. But I'll admit that the show went so smoothly following the hours of testing completed by Pronology's developers, it was almost a letdown. I love testing new workflows and configurations, but I found almost no anomalies in the process. CenterPoint's configuration was solid, and the transfer off the Sony boxes was better than expected. Failure in technology is always exciting to me. It means a new challenge, and room to start fresh with a new idea. Having said that, as a seasoned operator, stress-free productions are now obviously welcome, and my appreciation only grows for the behind-the-scenes developers. Seven months into our first year on Atlas, and I now call the truck, "my other ride." The recordist station is continuously being improved for two operators to comfortably work in a small galley environment. The sound of six mRes boxes, ten Sony PWS-4500 servers and a dozen other machines is now comforting. I know their sounds like a mother knows her child's sleeping patterns. Forty-eight streams of video are now commonplace, and productions are continuously push- ing the technology in ways that are exciting and adventurous. Recently, I set a truck, and personal record of one hundred and thirty-six terabytes recorded, with integrity, in forty hours of production. As I continue to push this position to new perimeters, I am reminded of the members of our Local that came before me. The technology I am using today was created by our mem- bers, for our members. The experience we have amassed in our careers becomes a means of development and innovation for the next generation of video engineers. I still turn on the two tape decks that sit in Atlas as I boot up the rest of the rack. To this Video Engineer, their presence is a romantic gesture to the past. 695 Video Engineer Tom Vanasse records screeners copies on Pronology's Screener interface