Super slow motion replay in high definition, introduced by EVS at this year's NAB convention in Las Vegas, is making its field debut in Portugal. The entire tournament is covered using HD cameras almost exclusively, all of which are being recorded into 9 networked EVS HD XT-servers for live slow motion replay and centralised compilation of highlights. No less than 4 of the new Thomson super slow motion cameras are used on each game, each supported by one of the HD LSM-XTs. The super slow motion replays out of the XTs are of a smoothness never seen before and take full advantage of the sharper images produced by the new cameras. Also these "bandwidth hungry" HD super motion clips are transferred swiftly across the SDTI SportNet to the HD XT machine set aside for highlights editing.
Capturing the action accurately
Super slow motion technology is based on capturing images at an increased frame rate and recording them into an (HD-) LSM-XT. Replay of these sequences may occur at normal speed, but the improved temporal resolution reveals superb detail when slowing down. The individual frames are also much sharper; they suffer less from motion blur, because of the shorter exposure time of the high-speed camera. SD super motion has already impressed television viewers, but the amount of detail now offered by HD super slow motion is absolutely stunning. The HD LSM-XT is compatible with cameras operating in 120 fps 720p as well as in double speed 1080i. The connection from the camera currently occupies 2 parallel HD-SDI input channels, but more channels can be ganged together in the future as camera performances improve.
The gear and moving it around
The host broadcaster RTP-EBS contracted Alfacam, the veteran mobile production company from Belgium, to provide the production facilities. The matches are taking place, as is common practice with sports events of this magnitude, in a number of stadiums spread around the country. Two games are taking place each day and two others are in preparation elsewhere for the next day. So four more or less identical production teams are touring around Portugal during the competition. Alfacam is present with 8 OB Trucks, teaming up in pairs to form the 4 sets. Alfacam uses no less than 28 HD LSM-XTs on this project, most of which are recording one of the new Thomson double frame rate cameras and a "normal" HD camera in parallel. From the quarterfinals onwards fewer games are being played simultaneously and they are taking place only near Lisbon. This is freeing up equipment to increase the number of cameras on each match, the number of super slow motion camera / HD LSM-XT combinations will then rise to six per game.
Live HDTV broadcasts
Alfacam is covering the all 31 matches in HDTV / SD-625 simulcasting. In Europe, the exclusive (SD-)television broadcast rights for EURO 2004(tm) were sold by UEFA to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), who are distributing only the down-converted SD signal. But Euro1080 is presenting most Euro 2004 matches live in HD in approximately 20 Digital Cinema theatres spread across Europe, feeding these sites via its "Event Channel". The HD programs are distributed through Astra via an EVS MPEG-2 / DVB server for intermediate storage and repeats.
"My firm belief in the future of HDTV in Europe should be obvious," said Gabriel Fehervari, Managing Director of Alfacam and founder of EURO1080. "As is the case with any new technology, it takes some effort to gain general acceptance. This year's Euro championship is definitely offering HDTV the exposure needed for it to break through. And I am happy to observe that the Thomson and EVS equipment is performing up to our expectations. Particularly, the Super SloMo images in HD are very impressive and allow us to prove to the audience that adopting HDTV makes a lot of sense."
The figures
In 2000, 110 million people in 21 European countries watched the Euro final, and the cumulative audience for the 31 matches was more than 1.5 billion viewers! The UEFA expects an even bigger audience this year. Reuters quotes an anonymous "television advertising source" saying that the 30-seconds spots during Euro 2004 were being sold for around E450,000. Spots during the final on July 4th could trade at even higher prices.
