London’s BSC show is a really “good” show. Replace “good” with “targeted”, “effective”, “local” or “well-attended” and you get the picture why I think it’s one of the most important dates in my calendar.
I obviously have a fairly biased agenda. I sell the universal commodity that everyone needs… money. It makes sense that a show that focusses on digital cinematography kit that only seems to go up in price makes it a must-attend for us at Adamantean. The timing of the show works well too; two days, Friday and Saturday is clever, and just before what sounds like a busy shooting season coming up.
The Covid protocols that delayed so many major US-backed shoots have now been lifted. My understanding is that any shoot that started before the end of January had to shut down if a crew member contracted Covid. Even if the shoot ran for 3 months, from January to March, and a crew member caught Covid in Feb, it’s the start date of the shoot that determined the protocol. This restriction lifted at the end of January, which meant that many shoots were delayed to avoid a total shutdown of a shoot if someone contracted the virus. Spring should see an upturn in work, from what seems to have been a quiet start for some.
One of the infinite number of consequences of the pandemic is that it’s totally disrupted the cadence of new product launches. Remember the good old days when new products would be announced at one show, usually NAB or IBC, and actually launched at the next big show? Those days are long gone, and product launches now seem to be when they feel like it, or in time for major events like World Cups or Olympic Games.
The more observant might have noticed a subtle a change in the way that major sporting events are covered, with fans and player reaction shots now televised with cine-style technology. Shallow depth of field shots that really capture the emotion which have been used in film-making forever, but are new to sports coverage where usually the whole shot is in focus. I like this development.
With this in mind, the BSC show was the first UK show to feature the ground-breaking Fujinon 25-1000mm cine-style box lens. It can be mounted on to cameras with 35mm or a full frame sensors, and delivers impressive results, even with me operating it in the confines of an exhibition hall. The shallow depth of field will be a director’s dream, and a camera operator’s nightmare, trying to get the focus right. This cutting-edge tech comes at a hefty price, so I’d expect to be hearing from OB companies trying to buy these for this year’s sporting and festival events, and then in to next year’s Paris Olympics.
Another clever piece of hardware that is also certain to be in Paris is the Motion Impossible Agito. This modular dolly system is as at-home going round a running track at up to 32mph as it is silently crossing rough terrain following tigers in the jungle. The dynamic impact that a moving camera adds to sporting and wildlife content adds exponentially to the viewing experience. It can run on a track or on wheels, upright or hanging upside down, and can be set up to follow magnetic tape along a set floor. The tape can even be under a carpet making it exceptionally discrete and versatile. Nice work guys.
There were a few facilities houses at the show too, showing off their inventories. I do like the Super Falcon dolly which is really well put together, the one I saw belongs to VMI. And Shift 4 has gone from strength to strength since the current management team took over, and their new “cine” division looks really impressive. They’ve redeveloped and extended their North London base to include some extensive lens testing facilities in consultation with DoP’s and focus pullers, which seems like a smart thing to do.
Sunbelt Rentals is an interesting development. I was crawling past some roadworks on the M1 recently and noticed that the diesel generator that was powering the overhead lights was on hire from Sunbelt. As part of the global plant and machinery hire company Ashtead Group, it’s interesting that they have now entered the highly competitive and niche UK Film and TV rental market with the purchase of camera and lens rental specialist Movietech in May, Manchester-based lighting specialist PKE in July, and crane hire company Alpha Grip in December. Who’s next?
This BSC show felt different to any other UK show I’ve been to; it felt like a European show that just happened to be in the UK. The first half a dozen voices I heard as a came in were European ( I mean mainland Europe, we are still European, geographically at least), which demonstrates just how widespread the appeal of the show has become. Dare I say that the show has outgrown its Battersea venue? It will be loathed to move, and I hope it doesn’t as it could lose its identity and uniqueness. Having said that, you’d do well to find a spot in central London further from a tube station than the Battersea Evolution.
The BSC organisers also run the new Euro Cine Expo show in Munich which has it’s 2nd show in Munich in June. I went to the first one and it’s got a similar look and feel of BSC as you’d expect, just with more BMW’s in the car park.
If you went to BSC, what did you think? If you exhibited, was it worth the considerable effort that these shows demand? Comments welcome.