Business
SDI Media Shortlisted for Two Broadcast Tech Innovation Awards
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SDI Media has been shortlisted for the two Broadcast Tech Innovation Awards for its remote recording solution that was developed during regional lockdowns for A+E Networks UK to deliver remote Hungarian remote voice over dubbing.
The project and resulting solution are being honoured in two separate categories at a virtual awards ceremony on November 25: ‘Best Innovation in Lockdown’ and ‘Excellence in Localization for Global TV Project’.
Covid-19 crisis restrictions and country lockdowns in mid-March resulted in immediate closure of all SDI Media’s recording studios. A+E Networks UK had a critical need to continue delivery of Hungarian voice over dubbing of their programming and on March 19th asked their supplier, SDI Media, to provide a solution.
By March 25th, SDI Media had established a remote recording workflow so that home-based actors could record studio-grade voiceovers. Rather than start from scratch, they worked with the team from SessionLinkPRO to adapt existing kit originally used for voice over or music recordings in advertising or documentaries, establishing a remote workflow mirroring a studio audio recording session, while managing to keep all key roles intact.
Using SessionLinkPRO avoided challenges of installing and training talent on unfamiliar kit – it is easy to use and browser-based via Google Chrome with no software required, so the actors could be up and running at home quickly and easily. Security is a huge challenge when working on new release titles. SDI Media could not risk talent downloading video – with SessionLinkPRO audio and video are encrypted and streamed securely. Setting up direct invitations to join a session meant that all key talent (artist, director and sound engineer) could be involved in every session, with the recording engineer taking the lead.
This mirrors the normal workflow used in SDI recording sessions in their state-of-the-art studios, which ensures continuity and consistency in quality levels and avoids training talent in new workflows.
Winners of the awards will be announced at the Virtual Broadcast Tech Innovation Awards show at 1700 GMT.
