The display - measuring 7.16m wide by 2.24m - was run in 16:5 format, receiving 16:9 aspect ratio feeds, to create a letterbox effect. The content mostly comprised of Totaliser-specific graphics. But the more challenging aspect of the set was the creation of an underlit dancefloor, reminiscent of the Saturday Night Fever dancefloor matrix popularised in the late 1970s. "Rather than use standard lighting effects we suggested placing some bright LED screens under the floor," says Holden. The idea was agreed and 96 Barco i10 modules were immersed beneath the 1" thick perspex surface in a matrix display consisting of 24 blocks of 2 x 2 tiles.
BBC Resources said: "This is the first time we have been able to use this effect in television and it enabled the Lighting and Vision team to create hugely varied and exciting floor treatments. Everything between simple colour washes, live or still shots, and rich live graphic and recorded video images, became possible. "The effect worked best from above, and the provision of overhead cranes provided the aerial shots that showed off the floor to its optimum effect."
Outside London, CT’s sister company Screenco were also in action, providing OBs for various Children in Need events around the country. They fielded two 3 x 3 15mm big screen LED displays at Ipswich Town FC’s Portman Road stadium, Middlesborough’s Riverside Stadium and Blackpool’s Central Car Park, stacked on mobile Steeldeck platform stages.
The OB’s sent a mix of broadcast and live feeds out to local television as well as the national TV network. The BBC’s Richard Greaves, responsible for selecting the venues and for contracting Screenco, explained that this resulted in around 30 minutes’ worth of material being sent out to the network from each venue - and a similar amount for transmission to the local TV stations.
(Lee Baldock)
