Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1433345
42 PRODUCTION SOUND & VIDEO – Winter 2022 RF over Fiber is the conversion and transmission of standard radio frequency signals into pulses of light through fiber optic cables, which have none of the loss of traditional copper. Where RG8 & LMR cables top out at around one hundred feet before needing amplification (especially at 2.4ghz), fiber-optic cables are capable of sending these same signals for miles with negligible loss. Now, we can be at the cart anywhere at a location with our antennas mere feet from set, down one cable, including picture. This could mean filming on the roof of a 10-story building with no elevator from the parking lot or in the middle of a dense forest while comfortably back at basecamp, since cable length is a non- issue. Utilizing fiber can also mean shooting a quick scene three blocks away without having to leave your original location. Since we can simply place our antennas just out of frame, signal drop- outs are nearly a thing of the past. My favorite fact about fiber? It doesn't pass electricity, so it's waterproof. Theoretically, one could film a scene on a boat ... on a beach. What ties the whole system together are two sets of connectors, T-FOCA or Tactical Fiber Optic Cable Assembly. Designed for From top: Mixing from the back of a truck, 300' from set; 1000' spool of tactical fiber. Fiber system on the set of an AFI short film harsh environments, including oil and gas pipelines and military installations, these connectors can house 4-12 individual lines of fiber in a cable thinner than an XLR. Standard fiber-optic connec- tors are far too delicate for the realities of filmmaking. One of the most common reasons for the signal to not reach the other end is simply dirt. Having a fiber-optic cleaning tool is often the differ- ence between getting a signal and not, considering an individual fiber strand is thinner than a human hair. Being that far away from the set absolutely does come with chal- lenges. It's impossible to run in every time in between to give notes or to adjust a lav. There is no opportunity to give a visual cue that a take was no good or that we're OK to move on. It is imperative that at this distance, one has competent and qualified boom operators and utilities who can relay information quickly and clearly. It also helps when a director wears their IFB.