In 2020 we were approached by the team at London Marathon to assist with helping their event run virtually for the 2020 race.
2020 was the first year the marathon would not be able to go ahead in its usual capacity and it was decided that only the elite athletes would be able to race. To enable the race to go ahead it was decided that all elite athletes would be bought into a “Bubble” before the event with strict covid testing to ensure everyone was COVID-19 safe.
One of the issues with the athletes being inside a bubble is that the usual media obligations in regards to press conferences with the athletes would not be able to go ahead as the press would not be able to enter the “Bubble”.
Over Exposed were contracted to take the usual press conference and make it virtual for the first time in London Marathons history. Throughout the pandemic we have seen how press conferences with football clubs e.t.c. have been held via zoom but this method of course has its limitations. This method relies on a laptop webcam and microphone and the video is limited to 640 x 360 pixels which isn’t the standard 1920 x 1080 suitable for live broadcast. You also don’t have the clean audio from the athletes.
To take the virtual press conference to the next level Over Exposed had two crew inside the “Bubble” and fully Covid tested. In the hotel a full press conference backdrop, desks, microphones, lighting and two broadcast spec cameras were set up and the feeds fed into our remote production system.
The athletes would enter the press conference as they usually would in a normal year and sit down in their seat. In front of the athletes we had a 60″ display with a zoom full of the worlds media awaiting to ask questions. Below this monitor was a speaker so that the athletes could hear all the incoming questions and answer as if the media were there in real life.
The feeds of the media, camera angles and all associated audio were then fully vision mix
ed LIVE and fed to Youtube, Twitter, Facebook & BT Tower in broadcast spec 1920 x 1080.
