07/15/2015
[VIDEO] All the pomp of the Bastille Day celebrations
At the heart of Paris, the Bastille Day Parade is the high point of the exceptional programming that TF1 and France 2 dedicate to the French national holiday. This year, AMP VISUAL TV provided all technical services.
For both French channels, the TV broadcast of the Bastille Day ceremonies is one of the biggest TV events of the year. Attracting excellent viewer numbers, these programmes demand both major resources and significant expertise. The extent and configuration of the parade, the many duplex links with external sites, and the quest for innovative ways to provide footage all make for more complex work.
For many years now, TF1 and France 2 have taken turns providing international footage. In 2015, it was France 2's turn and they entrusted AMP VISUAL TV with the technical production, as well as its private programming. TF1 chose the same service provider for its own programming. We deployed 15 OB Trucks, more than 60 cameras, and 250 staff.
Between the Place de la Concorde, the Avenue Champs Elysées, and the top of the Arc de Triomphe, distances were such that we had to use RF connections for the vast majority of our cameras. They offered an extremely diverse range of viewpoints and angles from fixed cameras, cranes, Steadicams, and cameras embedded within the parade. Our RF department was able to call upon its widely acclaimed expertise from the world of sport. Just as well, because experience and expertise were certainly in need to manage all of the connections in tight coordination with the civil and military authorities present in the area.
Long-distance images
To embellish the programme presented by Marie Drucker and Pierre Servent, France 2 planned two outdoor sequences: Michel Drucker on board a Tiger helicopter, Céline Géraud in an ATL2 (spy plane), and images from a corvette and link-up with Madama (French army base in Niger).
For TF1, Anne-Claire Coudray and Gilles Bouleau were live with Louis Bodin on the frigate "Le Forbin" in the Mediterranean, while Denis Brognard was in a Patrouille de France Alphajet. There was also a link-up with the new Ministry of Defence, Military Academy, and the Esplanade des Invalides where we were able to conjure up a Rafale jet and an A400 in augmented reality (using our LIVE TRACK solution).
The real challenge for AMP VISUAL TV's teams was to manage a complex operation on the very biggest stage, for two different broadcasters. This produced the dual need to coordinate shared resources while simultaneously guaranteeing each channel's full confidentiality.
At the end of the parade, France 2 and TF1 concluded the long morning with an interview with François Hollande in the gardens of the Elysée Palace, where our teams had also set up cameras.
- International Feed: Millenium 2 OB Truck - Director Jean-Jacques Amsellem
- France 2 Private: Millenium Signature 11 OB Truck - Director Jérôme Revon
- TF1 Private: Millenium Signature 10 OB Truck - Director Etienne Toussaint
- Elysée Palace: Millenium 5 OB Truck - Director Tristan Carné
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Jean-Marc PONTHIEU
Outside Broadcasting Sales Manager
+33 (0)1 46 88 10 74
+33 (0)6 07 25 46 83
Jean-Marc.Ponthieu@ampvisualtv.tv