In Broadcast - November 2013 - 34

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

WWW.INBROADCAST.COM | ISSUE 25 - NOVEMBER 2013

N E W S

InFOCUS

Spidercam - Flying Versatility
Capturing the action close-in is the spidercam way...
By
Georg Peters
spidercam

T

34

he viewers at home already
know spidercam as a reliable
partner in football and tennis
broadcasts, and while those events
gave spidercam its great reputation,
they only represent a small portion
of the system's ability.
Broadcast events, concerts as
well as feature ﬁlm and commercial
shootings: If angles and movements
are required, which exceed the
possibilities of cranes or point-topoint systems, spidercam takes over.
The system's unique ability to
move in three dimensions while
producing a stable picture has
opened a new level of involvement
for viewers at home. At any given
time the system can go as low as
the ground, follow the players or
performers on eyelevel, or remain
high in the air and show an overview
of the entire scene.
The actively gyro stabilised Dolly
ensures a perfect picture at any
given time. Originally developed to
be a multi-purpose payload carrier,
the broadcast sectors interest in the
system has resulted in today's well
known specialisation, the spidercam.
In the beginning spidercam's
astonishing angles were discovered
to be a great addition to football
games: Giving a moving top-down
view of plays, providing a cross view
during
corners
a
n
d
showing
fouls from
a different
position
than other
cameras.
Quickly
t
h
e
directors
a n d
audience
became
fans of the new
experience,
and nowadays
spidercam
is an integral
part of football
encounters
a c r o s s
the World,
including the

The spidercam system

prestigious FIFA World Cups.
Other sports broadcasts were
soon to follow: Tennis events,
Boxing or Rugby greatly beneﬁted
from the involvement of a spidercam.
The Cricket venues across India
and Australia also experienced the
possibilities of the ﬂying system
first hand, and the coverage of
swimming events such as the
World Championships in Budapest,
Hungary, gained an extraordinary
new dimension with a camera
staying right in front of the athletes
- only a few centimetres above
the water line.
But also less common sports
recognised the system's versatility,
and asked for a system for their
broadcast solutions. This led to
spidercam being present at ﬁeld
and track events, gymnastics or
Australian Rules football.
As the spidercam can operate
in colder climates as well, several
winter sport events were also
covered with the ﬂying system: ice
and ﬁgure skating proved to be a
great playground for spidercam's
involvement, allowing a camera to
follow the skaters across the ice at
low level, or showing an overview of
their performance from afar.
Another interesting sport for a
ﬂying camera system was biathlon:
The slope and target range were
perfectly suited for a spidercam,
allowing it to present new views to
the spectators at home.
A harsh contrast to the winter
involvements were the Camel Races,
that took place in the desert heat of
Qatar - despite the challenges of the
high temperatures a great success.
While broadcasting sport events
is a major pillar in spidercam's
activities, it is not the only one. The
industry also uses the spidercam
in more confined spaces: TV
studios frequently use the silent
system to add more quality shots
to their broadcasts.
The spidercam is a frequent
attendant of various casting
shows, like "Deutschland sucht
den Superstar" ("German Idol")
or Talk shows.
The Eurovision Song Contest,
which allows singers and musicians
from all of Europe to compete
against each other, has also used
a spidercam to enrich its content.
Other productions include award
shows, like the treasured "Bambi",
a German TV-award show that is
held annually.
All the above mentioned
involvements are usually produced
live, but spidercam is of course
not limited to these events: DVD
productions of concerts or bands

The spidercam Studio was developed with the aim of making the innovation of
the spidercam usable in more compact form

often use a spidercam to give
the footage an additional angle,
providing viewers at home with
the feeling that they are directly
in the crowd. Classical concerts,
like the Galanacht der Stars - a
concert with Placido Domingo, Anna
Netrebko and Rolando Villazon at
the Schönbrunn Castle in Vienna
- as well as a production of La
Traviata at the Zurich Main Station
have beneﬁtted from the use of a
spidercam. Fans of more modern
music might have enjoyed concerts
of U2, The Police or Robbie Williams,
where a spidercam has on occasion
also been spotted in - but mostly
above - the crowd.
The spidercam is also not limited
to digital HD cameras: On several
occasions the ﬂying system was
equipped with a 35mm camera,
enabling the production of material
for commercials or feature ﬁlms.
Insurance companies have used
the spidercam to enhance their

TV- and theatre ad campaigns,
and Media Markt, an International
consumer electronics store, also
utilised the flying camera for a
commercial shooting.
Broadcasting aside, other options
are possible: Returning to the roots
of the development reveals a truly
potent payload carrier, capable of
moving in all three dimensions over
an area - this offers a multitude of
possibilities. Several special projects
have already been realised based on
spidercam technology.
The spidercam already offers a
variety of options, but it has not
maxed out its limits yet. Not only
is there still potential to be used
from the existing system, but thanks
to continuous work on improving
and upgrading the spidercam,
many applications have yet to be
discovered. We are looking forward
to the challenges ahead - with the
best perspective.

Spidercam captured the 2010 European swimming Championships in Budapest

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