Testimonials - Synergy 3

Ross Synergy 3 Works Miracles at Children's Miracle Network

Andy Carleton & Lee Ollerton
Children's Miracle Network
Salt Lake City, Utah

Children's Miracle Network is a 200 city ad hoc television network in the US, Canada and Mexico that comes together once a year for the purpose of televising the CMN Telethon live for 21 hours. The show has aired on the weekend following Memorial Day each year since 1983. Last year, we collected over $212 million to benefit children's hospitals all over North America and Mexico. In 18 years, we have collected nearly $2 billion. We are the world's largest telethon in terms of the total dollars raised.

The show originated from the former Osmond Studios in Orem, Utah for the first four years, then moved to Disneyland's Videopolis in California from 1987-1995. In 1996, the production moved to DisneyWorld in Florida.

The main difference between CMN and other telethons is that every nickel donated during the telethon stays in the town where it was donated, none of it comes to the national headquarters. National sponsors help underwrite the cost of the live production.

Our hosts include singer/talk show host Marie Osmond, Dukes of Hazzard John Schneider, '49er Steve Young and ESPN's Robin Roberts. Over the years our entertainment acts have included Bill Cosby, Bob Hope, Styx, Celine Dion, Britney Spears, the Oak Ridge Boys, Boyz2Men, Amy Grant, Wayne Newton, NSync, LeAnn Rimes, David Copperfield, John Tesh, Kenny Loggins, David Crosby, Graham Nash, the Osmond Brothers, Connie Stevens, etc.

Preproduction for the telethon begins about 5 months prior to the actual show. About a week prior to the show our 150+ person staff and crew starts to assemble from all over the US.

This is an all digital production using 3 Ikegami HK388 studio cameras and 5 HK388P portable cameras (two of which are run hand held on the stage, two are mounted on 30-40' jibs and one on a fixed platform behind the audience about 25' up). Other equipment includes 8 DigiBeta machines, 2 BVW-75 recorders, Chyron Infinit, Leitch 4 Channel Still Store, and an Amek 56 input audio mixer.

Three years ago we realized that the 16'x20' videowall, which is part of our main stage, had become such an important production element that we couldn't run it off one of the aux busses of the main production switcher anymore.

Lee writes:
The "Video Wall" used in the production of the CMN Telethon started as a "fun" element used mostly for background for musical numbers and a big screen view of the show for the audience. Over the years this production element has blossomed into an essential part of the body of the show. Every entertainment act is reinforced by some kind of video on the wall, whether it's close-ups of the talent or video playback of our CMN Champions (the kids who have been helped by the CMN affiliate hospitals). The national sponsor logos (like Wal-Mart, Marriott, IOF Foresters, Delta Airlines, Dairy Queen and Ace Hardware), which were displayed on art cards in the "old days", are now displayed solely through the video wall and a 30" monitor used as a secondary set piece.

Andy writes:
It was decided that the videowall needed it's own production switcher, tape playback, and TD/director. NDTC (now AT&T Digital Media Remote Productions) provides mobile production facilities for the show. The production truck is the largest all-digital production truck in the world. The truck has a GVG 4003T 3 M/E switcher with dual channel Krystal DVE's. That year we used a GVG1000 that NDTC had installed in addition to the GVG4000.

In the postproduction meeting held in June it was decided that the 1000 worked fine but didn't provide the flexibility that we needed. We needed a bigger switcher with more effects.

Lee and I had seen the Synergy 3 introduced at NAB '98 a few months earlier that year and knew that it was what we were looking for. The compact size of the main chassis and the built-in features, including Squeeze and Tease, would be important to us in a live mobile truck environment.

We contacted the Ross Video folks, who were happy to donate the use of the switcher to us for the week, and made arrangements to have the Synergy 3 shipped to NDTC in California for integration into their truck.

Kevin Thompson and his engineers at NDTC were able to install the switcher in place of the GVG1000 in less than a day, so the truck arrived in Florida with the switcher installed and running. Kevin and his crew were impressed with the small size of the rackmount chassis and simplicity of integrating the Synergy.

Lee has run many different production switchers: GVG 1600, 200, 300, Abekas A82, etc. He found the control panel layout to be very intuitive. Ross provided a technician on site for training, Lee found that it wasn't very necessary.

Lee writes:
With the fast paced format of this show there is little time to set shots for aesthetics let alone size and place graphics to accommodate each shot. With the ease of operation, and the Squeeze and Tease feature on the keyers, rough presets can be stored, then position and size are fine tuned moments before going on air. Separate ME's can be used to feed the wall, the small monitor, and still store devices.

All these factors ease the stress of the "physical setup" and allow for concentration on the creative aspects of the production.

Back to Andy:
Paul Spitzer, the TD who was running the main feed from the GVG4000, had a chance to look over the Synergy 3 during setup and noted some features that the GVG4000 did not have. At one point during the live show, the director asked if Paul he could do an unrehearsed multi-layered DVE effect with a transition. Paul tried to quickly figure out if it was possible with the GVG4000/Krystal, finally, in exasperation (and with a smile on his face) he pointed at the Ross and said, "I could do it if I had THAT switcher!"

We were so happy and impressed with the Synergy that it was decided that it would become a necessary part of our show from that point on.

This past year we were able to get a Synergy 4. The additional MLE allowed Lee more flexibility to feed additional on-set background monitors.

Over the years we have had some pretty exciting equipment failures (i.e. 4-wire intercom problems on a live satellite hookup with the Soviet Union, generator failures, complete failure of our "total board" when the interface connector was ripped out of the back by an inattentive lift operator, microwave interference from a local ENG crew covering our show, storm drains backing up about a foot of "water" onto the lower stage at Videopolis after a huge rainstorm) As an engineer, I've always found these articles much more valuable when the author was able to relate some experience with tech support.

I, unfortunately or fortunately, have had virtually no experience with Ross tech support. The switcher has just worked.