The city skyline video wall set, designed by UVA's Matt Clark, offers multiple video surfaces to create compelling imagery throughout the show but the real technical magic is in the complex video system. Sanders and Findley take full advantage of the capabilities afforded them by combining the Control Freak Encore DMX Bridge system with the PRG Mbox EXtreme v3 media server. Production Resource Group (PRG) provided a five-server system for the tour which has played arenas and stadiums around the around the world.
Sanders, who manages all the live camera feeds from backstage, explained the flow of the video system. "I am responsible for the cameras and the line cut which in turn becomes a source that Drew uses for content. Drew then controls the output of the Control Freak system and the Mboxes," he said. "The Mboxes, the cameras and the director's line cut, are inputs into the Encore System. Encore's output is what goes to the screens. At front of house, Drew blends the content with the cameras to create the looks and effects."
Findley believes that this video system provides the maximum creative flexibility. "Every song is approached differently. From front-of-house, I can select what outputs are routed where. Our Encore system has 12 layers; I can take one layer and make it an Mbox and make another layer a camera. I can have multiple media servers on one surface. The power of multiple Mbox media servers is a big advantage, especially when it comes to doing effects with live cameras."
Findley has been pleased with PRG's support throughout the tour. "PRG has upgraded the Mbox computers and the graphics cards so I am able to do quite a bit more now with the same software. The Mbox is the most complete media server solution out there and PRG's support has been over the top throughout the tour."
(Jim Evans)
*Pic Jay-Z
