Behind The Scenes Of My Biggest Production Ever
Summary
TLDRThe script describes a pioneering attempt to create a world-first five-camera virtual video wall podcast, featuring guests like Tim Ferris. The production faced numerous challenges, including complex technical setups, lighting adjustments, and coordinating rapid scene transitions. Despite potential risks and sleep deprivation, the team strived for an immersive, visually stunning experience that could enhance the traditional podcast format, aiming to captivate audiences with a blend of rich conversation and cutting-edge visual production.
Takeaways
- 🚀 A world-first attempt at a five-camera virtual video wall podcast is being planned, showcasing innovative broadcasting technology.
- 📅 The planning for this ambitious project has been in the works for approximately two months.
- 🤝 Collaboration with notable personalities like Atia Ferris, Dr. Kane, and Mr. Ballan has been orchestrated.
- 📍 The project brings together talents all based or near Texas, facilitating the logistics of the shoot.
- 🎥 Challenges in filming arise due to the complexity of managing multiple virtual environments and the advanced video wall.
- 💡 The production team had to adapt quickly to technical issues, such as lighting and camera coordination.
- 🛠️ The team faced unique difficulties, including warping 2D images onto a curved LED wall and syncing them with the cameras.
- 🎮 One scene involved was fully rendered for a video game using Unreal Engine 5, requiring a complex setup and transition process.
- 🎬 The podcast host emphasizes the value of trying new and exciting things, even if they might not work out perfectly.
- 🌟 The host expresses gratitude for reaching milestones like a billion mids and 2 million subs, and reflects on the growth and transition of their career.
- 🥂 A special mention of receiving champagne from Winston Churchill's custom bottle, symbolizing celebration and appreciation.
Q & A
What is the main goal of the podcast production described in the transcript?
-The main goal is to create a world-first five-camera virtual video wall podcast, aiming to provide a visually stunning and immersive experience for the audience.
How long has the planning for this unique podcast taken?
-The planning for this podcast has taken approximately two months.
What challenges did the production team face while setting up the virtual environments?
-The team faced challenges such as coordinating the lighting for multiple virtual environments, dealing with the technical complexities of a five-camera shoot, and ensuring seamless transitions between different scenes.
What was the significance of using Unreal Engine 5 for some of the podcast's scenes?
-Unreal Engine 5 was used to render some scenes, providing high-quality, realistic visuals that contributed to the immersive experience of the podcast.
How did the changing environments during the podcast affect the conversation dynamics?
-The changing environments revitalized the conversation, creating shifts in energy and mood that enhanced the dialogue between the hosts and guests.
What was the role of the video wall in this podcast production?
-The video wall served as a key technical component, displaying the virtual environments and allowing for a dynamic background that could change in real-time during the podcast.
How did the team address the issue of the LED wall's curvature affecting the image?
-The team had to warp their images back to correct for the stretching caused by the wall's curvature, ensuring that each camera's view appeared as close to reality as possible.
What was the significance of the podcast reaching a million subscribers?
-Reaching a million subscribers was a significant milestone for the podcast, indicating its growing popularity and the impact of its content.
How did the host feel about the potential risks involved in this high-tech podcast production?
-The host acknowledged the risks and potential for failure but was excited by the challenge and the opportunity to create something unique and innovative.
What was the host's perspective on balancing the podcast's visual appeal with the purity of the conversation?
-The host believed in the utility of beauty and aimed to maintain the purity of the conversation while enhancing it with grandeur, occasion, and visually stunning elements.
What was the host's reaction to the technical difficulties encountered during the production?
-The host expressed understanding and appreciation for the crew's professionalism and ability to adapt to challenges, emphasizing the importance of teamwork in overcoming obstacles.
Outlines
🎬 Innovative Podcast Production
The paragraph discusses the ambitious plan to create a pioneering five-camera virtual video wall podcast, a world's first attempt. The planning for this project has been ongoing for two months, and it involves Atia Ferris, Dr. Kane, and Mr. Ballan, who are all based in or near Texas. The production challenges include managing 16 virtual environments on an advanced video wall while maintaining a conversation. Despite potential complications, the excitement for this unique cinema shoot is high, and the team is optimistic about the innovative visual approach to podcasting.
🌟 Adapting to New Podcasting Challenges
This section highlights the challenges faced in creating a podcast at an unprecedented level of technical complexity. The team is dealing with rapid scene changes, lighting adjustments, and the integration of multiple environments. The use of a 3D view port as a 2D wall presents unique visual challenges, such as image warping due to the curved wall. The team's goal is to correct these visual discrepancies for each camera and ensure smooth transitions between scenes. The pressure is on to meet the schedule and deliver a high-quality product.
🚀 Immersive Podcast Experience
The paragraph emphasizes the immersive and dynamic experience of recording a podcast in a changing environment with adaptive lighting. The guest, Dr. K, shares his appreciation for the unique setup and the positive impact it has on the conversation. The technical aspects, such as the use of Unreal Engine 5 and the challenges of transitioning between scenes, are discussed. The crew's professionalism is highlighted as crucial to the success of the project, which aims to provide a visually stunning and engaging podcast experience.
🎉 Celebrating Milestones and Growth
This segment focuses on the celebration of podcast milestones, such as surpassing a billion mids and reaching 2 million subscribers. The host reflects on the journey from a simple setup to a complex, immersive production. The guest, Tim Ferris, is acknowledged for his influence and guidance. The conversation touches on the importance of maintaining authenticity while enhancing the production value of the podcast. The host also shares personal insights about growth, transitions, and the challenges of fame.
🌈 Balancing Substance and Style in Podcasting
The final paragraph discusses the balance between the substance of content and the style of presentation in podcasting. The host expresses a desire to enhance the podcast with grandeur and beautiful visuals without compromising the integrity of the conversation. The potential criticisms about the shift towards a more mainstream media style are acknowledged, but the host defends the value of beauty in enhancing the podcast experience. The host also reflects on personal growth and the evolution of their career, emphasizing the importance of enjoying the journey and the community's support.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Virtual Video Wall
💡Unreal Engine 5
💡Podcasting
💡Technical Challenges
💡Immersive Experience
💡Production Value
💡Dynamic Environments
💡Lighting
💡Collaboration
💡Cinematography
Highlights
Planning for a world-first five-camera virtual video wall podcast, showcasing innovative broadcasting methods.
Collaboration with notable guests such as Atia Ferris and Dr. Kane, adding depth to the podcast's content.
Executing a complex production with 16 virtual environments, pushing the boundaries of podcasting.
Utilizing one of the most advanced video walls in the world, enhancing the visual experience of the podcast.
Incorporating real-time adjustments and lighting fixes to adapt to the unique challenges of filming in virtual environments.
The use of a curved LED wall, introducing new technical difficulties such as image warping.
Implementing a live-switching situation with OBS, managing multiple camera angles and environments simultaneously.
Creating a dynamic podcast atmosphere with changing scenes and lighting, affecting the energy and flow of conversations.
Overcoming technical challenges like syncing aperture fixtures with the blackout app for seamless transitions.
Designing podcast environments with references, allowing for more control and immersive experiences.
The importance of the crew's professionalism in handling the complex and sleep-depriving production process.
Celebrating podcast milestones, such as crossing a billion midpoints and 10th anniversary, marking significant achievements.
Integrating high production value into the podcast, setting a new standard for the industry.
The unique experience of being a guest in a highly technical and elaborate podcast setup, offering a rare opportunity.
Addressing the potential criticisms of shifting from the purity of talk to a more visually focused broadcasting style.
The goal of maintaining authentic conversations while enhancing the podcast with grandeur and beautiful visuals.
Reflecting on personal growth and transitions, from nobody to a micro-niche influencer, sharing the journey with the audience.
Transcripts
[Music]
big day big day man so we've been
planning this for probably about two
months now to try and
do what is essentially I think a world
first five camera virtual video wall
podcast and I've had Atia Ferris Dr Kane
Mr ballan orbiting for a little while
and I thought right they're all in or
near Texas we might as well pull the pen
and uh I haven't seen what's going on I
haven't seen any of the complications if
you watched the last Vlog that we did in
La you'll know that just filming things
in the real world can often come with
quite a lot of complications so trying
to film something with I think a total
of maybe 16 virtual environments on one
of the most advanced video walls in the
world whilst also trying to light and
shoot all of the rest of the stuff and
also trying to have a conversation um
many things may go wrong this week but
uh I'm excited this is the most excited
I've been for one of these Cinema shoots
I I really love trying to do something
different and cool and it may be a total
catastrophe but it'll be a good story
and you're going to get to watch it
unfold I genuinely think this might
break people's brains heck yeah I'm
excited I think it's a really cool way
to visually kind of bu up Podcast yeah
me too so when Chris reached out to us
and said I've got this incredible vision
for a podcast we were like wo we've
actually never done a podcast at this
magnitude here so uh he came in with a
lot of different ideas a lot of
different uh production value I think
that was going to bring to uh his
platform this one's definitely been
difficult because it was a really quick
turn and there's like 12 different
environment so normally there's a person
running a wall and there's also a person
building and I've been doing both we
have like an OBS or like a live
switching situation here so it's just
like it could skip it could dip to Black
it could I understand what you mean yeah
uh the only thing I mean you know
yesterday and you did it three times
perfectly but I think let's for today
let's keep it A's less of a we've only
got two scenes and we're going to cycle
through them both and it's 20 minutes on
each which is cool segments tend to be
around about 10 minutes or so this
project has come with some new
challenges as we've never done something
at this uh level for podcasting before I
understand that we're trying to do a lot
technically this week so couple things
one is that we usually design with one
camera in mind this one has five for our
five camera shoot there weren't points
of interest where we needed them to be
and the lighting was way off we throw it
up on the wall we frame up we see how it
looks and then we got to take it down
make all those changes throw it back up
test it the wall is typically used as a
3D uh view port a window into the 3D
World and this one we're just using it
as 2D so as you can tell the wall is
curved and so when we throw up a 2D
image on a curved wall you're going to
get some stretching that comes along
with it so as you can see here like our
image is kind of warping this way
because of the wall shape because we're
not using an Unreal Engine five in real
time we're having to warp all of our
images back so we're having to frame out
each section of the wall try to correct
per camera so that's one of the
challenges we're facing now I'm working
closely with Zach to try to get that
looking as close as possible to reality
we're really tied on schedule so we're
trying to make sure we can get through
all the environments correct at all
before our talent gets here and so we
can roll on time I hope we can make it
work we will make it
work we're running late again
technically making this happen this one
especially so this scene that we're
doing right now one of them is
completely rendered for a video game in
unreal 5 and that means that we need to
stop recording and then like cut and
then come back into some other stuff and
all of the lights need to change so uh
taking a bit longer to set up than we
might have anticipated
so feeling the pressure it'll be all
right where's the projector that's a
screen that's so
that's all powered it's all lit from
behind those are all individual mixes so
that's that wheel and that smoke is
going to be turning for like while we're
recording birds are going to be flying
around wow this is more impressive than
being at a a nice TV studio um not just
because of obviously the number of
cameras but this is this is cool and I
don't know that people can appreciate it
from where they are but it's as I
learned these are LEDs this is not a
projector Peter's building a
studio I'm not sure he's chosen the
right day to take advice about how to do
like a nice low lift low complexity
podcast
[Music]
Studio apple and Charlie
7 3 2
[Music]
1 I found when it went from dark to
light I was like ah like I've got a
little there's a little something going
on that it's cool man it's really cool
obviously when you're recording usually
nothing change apart from maybe the Sun
going in and going out but as you sat
down when the scenes move the energy
changes between both of you today was
fun man I mean it was a bit stressful
because it took quite a while for us to
get cracking and I don't want to waste
the guest's time and you're kind of
getting a little bit anxious and wanting
to get started and stuff but it's wild
having the environment change while
you're in it it's crazy because it
really do and the lights also all change
to match the colors of the background
and it gets this specifically cuz this
one's super light and then the museum is
really dark I have no idea if this is
going to look good on camera I literally
have no
idea hardcore sports teams and they um
love their
beans Boston yes Bostonian nice
yeah yeah
it's just have a look at it on
the the
[Music]
lens yeah yeah I have every color of
Zara t-shirt that they make every single
one of them and they've stopped doing
this one Zara bring this color back
please is there a world where anything
needs to be back there maybe
not I tried um they're just detail this
so one of the challenges we're facing
right now is some of our aperture
fixtures aren't talking to our blackout
app on this
crmx so we're trying to do is reset some
things update some firmware so that we
can get it all connected cuz we're
swapping in between scenes and a single
interview so we're not cutting so we're
just trying to make sure that is all
super smooth when we're moving from one
environment to the next today is uh in
space orbiting in space but
because it was made for a game so it's
got like 3D Parallax effects to it we
basically need to shut down for 3
minutes so the only way that we can do a
transition that's not going to look
totally awful is for me to tell Tim
about like a section that I'm going to
move us to and I'm going to ask him a
question and then he's going to have to
not answer and then screen's going to go
black and also all of the lights are
going to go black so we'll fade from
like space to Black and then back out
from black after 3 minutes once they run
all of the new stuff up and then fade
everything up and we'll be in a new
place so I think that's the only way
that we can do it so we're like this is
like a live performance it's like
threading the needle of like right Tim
and don't forget like when I step one
step to the left like you need to go to
the right this is what happens when
technology has an attitude the DMX
system isn't working it's not talking to
our blackout app so they can't control
it in between the transitions do at 5
and then we five and then we it's been a
very very long process uh long long days
especially for the team here here's the
thing we're all sleep deprived and we're
trying to function the best we can and
if it wasn't for the crew's
professionalism and able to just to
stick to chorus this whole thing would
fall apart so the crew is so
important
good to meet you man yeah good to meet
you too cool setup yeah we're trying
something a bit different this time you
know it's not my kitchen table but it'll
do just kidding format super fun very
immersive I feel like I'm flying on a
creature through Avatar at the moment it
does change obviously uh very Dynamic
very fun as a guest to be part of
something this elaborate and complex cuz
I know for sure I'm never going to do it
myself personally so this is a rare
opportunity to enjoy something new oh
yeah happy 10th
anniversary amazing thank you I've heard
that this is your favorite podcast
actually crossed a billion mid last year
I haven't announced it I guess I'm
announcing it now uh if I'm celebrating
them both at the same time
congratulations yeah thanks thanks
thanks guys we're in this Avatar world
as you can see right like we're not
bringing all our podcast equipment out
there come on that's ridiculous listen
I'm just trying to make pretty pictures
bro oh my goodness dude this is
amazing I even like the smell wow yeah
there's Haze in the air as well there's
a little bit of haze towards some
atmosphere while we're doing this this
is super cool dude I'm glad you like it
I'm really excited I think it adds a
completely different energy to a
conversation it's huge 3
two Dr K welcome to the show CH Chris is
awesome at having great conversations
but it's amazing how much of a
difference it is to be in the right
space and feel the right energy our
first conversation was like over the
Internet so I was in my space he was in
in his space and even this place
something about the air and like The
Greenery it feels different and it feels
very conducive to like I don't know
dialogue and
exploration and like I I thought it was
honestly just completely awesome I feel
like a UFC fighter that's just been
through 15 rounds today was good uh I
think we went 3 and 1/ half hours with
Tim 3 three and a half and then 2 hours
with Dr K and then about an hour of ads
it's been so much fun to do something
that you're like wow no one's ever done
this before there's not there's not much
stuff you can do that other people
haven't done before and this is one of
them I hope it looks good I hope you're
enjoying seeing behind the scenes and uh
I'll see you
tomorrow men are working rapt fixtures
make sure that they have a Hardline DMX
by them um so I'm running a firmware
update I think we're going to gain back
control those so we're going to try to
Hardline them and I didn't sleep good
it's weird the harder I work the worse I
sleep which makes it more and more
vicious but caffeine and nutonic will
keep me going today so this is kind of
what we actually built the entire shoot
around and originally BM was going to be
the first episode that we were running
with and then we were going to have AA
and Ferris and Dr K and we would have
finished yesterday uh but scheduling
meant that we had to change it so we've
saved the most technically complex the
one that's got the most things that
could go wrong the thing that we spent
the most money on and the highest
followed guest uh last as he tells
different stories the scenes are going
to move so there's a degree of
coordination that's kind of happening
and um it's actually really fun it kind
of feels a bit like being a performer
but doing what I know well which is the
conversation thing if you ask me to
dance or Draw or
um I'm not going to be able to do that
but I'm really really excited for this
we've spent so much money I mean to
render these things in Unreal Engine 5
it costs an awful lot of cash for
today's shoot we are doing kind of a
marsh land so this was the reference
that was sent over kind of like a swampy
feel it's a very um monochromatic type
color and it's definitely highlighting
these Navy Seals in like their kayaks
like they're kind of marching through
the Marshland so what you'll see on the
wall here was based off of this we take
the references and then we kind of
compile everything that we want to
include and it allows us a little bit
more control it just takes even more
time to make that happen it is a pretty
big undertaking to do this many
environment changes per episode
typically we will uh set up a shot for
one environment one location whereas
these episodes have multiple
environments that we're seeing so it's
it's a new thing for our team to see I
think so far it's been looking pretty
good but it's definitely a big
undertaking don't forget these guys
usually have scripts they have have
professional camera people there's
actors they know what's going to happen
next meanwhile we've literally asked
them to repurpose their video wall into
what a v DJ does like a video DJ would
do dead mouse mixing tracks and being
like Oh and when you know strobe comes
on make sure that you change the colors
to this thing so they've been waiting
and watching me talk and then if I say a
thing or the guest says a thing that
they think is related to they've been
great uh I've I've been unbelievably
impressed we've gone over
every single evening uh we've asked them
for way more than they should do we went
to them with a brief and they were like
yeah no worries and made it in I think a
few days so we owe them an awful lot so
the scene you're you're about to see
right here was designed by Ace who's our
virtual production supervisor we got
helicopters moving jets flying overhead
um which we all be playing back in the
podcast behind them after some notes I
took it upon myself to redesign it last
night and I'm just noticing I kind of
miss something here on these trucks this
tire goes into the ground which I don't
know if you've ever driven a truck
before that's not supposed to happen if
you're seeing lines on the screen that's
because of the Hertz rates of the LED
wall so the LED wall set to 24 frames
exactly so if you're any faster on your
shutter speed you're going to see all
these lines just roll through the screen
if you can see on the
screen we're individually placing each
shot for our cameras
so this is our wide shut so we're
framing that and then we're also kind of
working in all these different
[Music]
things awesome yeah decent setup huh
needless to say this is the most
impressive set I have ever been on I
think I mean I'm I'm I normally film in
my studio which is a crappy green screen
and like my tripod and Camera cuz there
is a lot more this is this is amazing
good to meet you man how are you good
I'm good man this is like insane yeah
this is going to be special so you are
uh the most technically complex the most
expensive uh most things can go wrong uh
with the most intricate lighting so uh
hooray there we go we've got everyone's
got their fingers crossed middle third
your third my third but what it means is
that they can put stuff behind you or me
that's not like actually part of the
render but that looks really good so
let's say that we wanted Moon over your
shoulder and we wanted this house they
can just chop that pull that out you it
almost like that yes exactly what you're
left with is is a like cinematic piece
of content though correct which is
pretty amazing no one's doing that in
podcasting at least not at that the
level you're doing right now I don't
think so I think because you've already
established the Baseline of like
authenticity adding production to it
does not jeopardize the shows like yeah
it doesn't feel like uh it's all uh
style and no substance because you've
already invested 750 episodes before
You' tried to do a video walk this isn't
me trying to replace the reason that I
started doing the show right I I will
happily talk to some dusty academic with
a unpronouncable surname from some
University you've never heard of from
the spare room in my house all day but I
also want to do this and I've been
really excited there's a lot of
criticism about sterile transactional
boring communication and one thing I can
definitely say is that this week has not
been boring and really during the the
recording I felt like the mood changed
every time the scene changed it really
felt like where you are is now different
you know the the military scene that was
in there it felt like it just went on
forever out here in my peripheral it
really seemed like it just went out it
just it was cool it like almost
revitalized the conversation cuz he
would change the the question as the
scene was changing and so it just felt
like oh it's like a new scene even
though it's the same conversation so it
definitely the energy shifted and he
told me that would happen and it this
was really cool this a unique
podcast
we did
it
and I told a story this is going to be
embarrassing if I can't open it uh I
told a story to a TIA I think about uh
champagne that Winston Churchill had a
customized bottle built of uh and this
is it so I actually haven't opened any
of this yet but he shipped me some of
this and it arrived yesterday so oh
we've got to save it for an occasion but
what more of an occasion is there than
spending a deposit on a house on a video
shoot for 3 days so here we
are I will
get I'm so glad that that wasn't pointed
at something expensive Winston
Churchill's champagne in plastic cups
thank you very much for all of your
efforts this week it's been unbelievably
intense and I know that I've made you
work very hard thank you cheers cheers
Che it took us 5 and 1 half years and
600 episodes a th000 videos to hit a
million subs and it's taken 9 months and
150 episodes to hit 2 million Subs I
think when this drops this will be
around about 2 million Subs but I mean
God go back and listen to the first
episode that I did in my old office in
New Castle Upon Time with a single Yeti
microphone balanced in the middle of the
table talking to Stu Morton my friend
from the gym who was going to row the
Atlantic solo I say mhm every other
sentence because I didn't learn that
nodding silently was a thing that I
could do in a podcast and I'm now on the
biggest video wall in Texas filming with
Tim Ferris literally a pod father the
guy that taught me how to release a
podcast before he knew who I was seven
years ago
and it's cool it's a cool Arc I feel
like this has been a nice a really sort
of nice occasion to bring things into
land you are observing me go through a
moderately big transition I think at the
moment in life um you know this is going
to be the next phase now I moved out to
Austin two years ago I didn't really
know is this going to be the thing is
this going to work moved out on my own
to a brand new country to try and you
know talk to people on the internet and
accidentally turned into a
career I also understand that champagne
problems uh too much attention is not
exactly something that I am worthy maybe
of any sympathy for and there's people
that have got it way worse and all the
rest of the stuff but I'm trying to be
as open and honest as possible about
what the experience of going from
absolute nobody to like Micro Niche
degenerate influencer Fame whatever
wherever it is that I'm at now and
if if it was me as a fan of a show like
this I would want to know what it's like
and I hope that it comes across that way
this isn't me trying to Humble brag
about like oh look at how much attention
I get or whatever I don't I don't get
that much attention thankfully because
you guys seem to be uh unreasonably
reasonable and um not obsessive in any
of the bad ways and like supportive in
most of the good ways as well which is I
think the perfect balance but that I can
see that changing you know the episode
that you'll hear with Tim we talk an
awful lot about the Perils of Fame and
about why he's you know purposefully
sort of
defamed himself he's made himself less
[Music]
recognizable so that is four episodes in
3 days first ever Five camera shoot on
this volume the largest volume in Texas
maybe the first ever virtual video wall
podcast that's been done like this ever
haven't seen anything on the back of the
lens I have no idea if this is going to
look even remotely realistic or cool or
beautiful or whatever I know I it's
really fed up this week I've been really
really excited and I understand as well
there's a Justified criticism which is I
don't care about how it looks I'm just
here for the conversation uh stop trying
to return something that was supposed to
be about the purity of a talk into TV
which was the exact thing that
everybody's trying to go away from and
there's kind of this anti-mainstream
media thing and I'm don't get me wrong
like I'm a part of it but I think that
there is utility in Beauty and I think
that if I can maintain the purity of the
conversation whilst adding Grandeur and
occasion and gorgeous visuals to
something which you already enjoy for
the people who want that I think it's
really cool hopefully it brings joy to
you hopefully it helps you learn about
yourself and the world around you
hopefully it makes you feel less alone
or less personally cursed with the
things that you're dealing with because
of the openness of me or the insights
that you learn from the guests I'm going
to try and enjoy the next million Subs
as much as possible that's the goal have
as much fun over the next million Subs
as I can I really appreciate apprciate
you hopefully this has been interesting
to see as a fly on the wall what we've
done and hopefully the episodes come out
cool and if they don't I have blown a
house deposit on uh giving myself an
answer that I don't need to answer again
all
[Music]
[Music]
right
Ver más vídeos relacionados
Cinematography Case Study: The Monuments Men - Hollywood Slick
NEUROSCIENTIST Explains Nofap Relapse (Andrew Huberman)
ரூ. 11 லட்சத்தில் Hyundai Creta Facelift..! நாடே காத்திருந்த அசத்தலான SUV..! சிறப்பம்சங்கள் என்ன?
El XOKAS INDIGNADO tras las FALLAS de su NUEVO SETUP
مراجعة وتقييم Assassin's Creed Mirage
How to edit SO good your viewers get addicted to your videos
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)