Sound and light: Teesside’s digital studio is at the technological cutting edge
WITH TECHNOLOGY developing the way it is, a university investing in a brand-new digital studio is buying into the cutting edge. That’s certainly the case with University of Teesside, whose new digital TV and sound studio is among the best facilities of its kind in the UK.
For local band Das Wanderlust, the opening of the studio offered just the kind of amazing lucky break that new bands need. At the same time as they were trying to record a video for their new single Puzzle, the studio’s technicians needed to test out their video production technology – so they agreed to produce the video cost-free.
Wanderlust: video in a day for local band
The digital TV and sound studio, on Teesside’s Middlesbrough campus, offers state-of-the-art broadcast quality surround sound and high-definition video production facilities, including a green screen set for video effects. A track-based motion control camera system allows technicians and video production students to create any number of visual effects, from simple crowd duplications to highly detailed complex artificial live action based sequences. The facility also doubles up as a sound studio and includes a mixing desk called an ICON D-Control.
Mark Buschbacher, the studio’s video engineer, originally from Arizona, has worked for the past 12 years for visual effects companies in Los Angeles and London. Buschbacher described how the Wanderlust session came about: “Our type of equipment is regularly used on many major movies to create effects and is one of the only systems of its type in UK education. We wanted to test the facilities so when Das Wanderlust approached us we offered them the chance to create the video for no cost. They came up with the storyboard and it took just one day to shoot. I think we’ve produced something that’s different, colourful and fun to watch.”
Das Wanderlust was formed four years ago; their current line-up is: Laura Simmons, 24, from Enfield, Andy Elliott, 26, from St Albans, and Wesley John Stephenson, 32, from Yarm. The band are currently on tour in the UK and Europe.
Andy said: "Due to line-up changes since the song was recorded, we decided not to appear in the video for Puzzle. Instead it features Laura’s little sister Louise and a friend’s daughter, Natalie, playing ghosts doing distinctly un-ghostly things such as chopping vegetables and playing the piano. We've been a little obsessed with ghosts for a while now, and we managed to get plenty of mileage out of quite a simple visual idea – although making the video was a really steep learning curve for all of us!
"This is the first time we’ve had a proper video and we’re really happy with the way it's turned out. Mark did a great job and we’d love to work with him again. We think it has a real charm about it, and the fact it was shot for free was an amazing help for a relatively new band like us. Puzzle has been played on Radio One and 6 Music and we're also hoping the video will be screened on MTV2 - although you can see it now on YouTube."
With the studio now up-and-running, the university’s budding video-makers will be itching to get their fingers on the dials. It will be exciting to see, over the next few years, what they come up with.
