Ben Wong makes sure the discussion is heard clearly on the livestream.
Much of the work of diplomats goes unseen behind closed doors. But sometimes the movers and shakers on the world stage like to speak publicly to an audience. MTI got such a call when German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer came to the U.S. to meet with President Biden and Defense Secretary Austin. She also stopped by the German Marshall Fund of the United States for a livestreamed chat.
The German Marshall Fund is a non-partisan policy organization founded in 1972 as a tribute to the Marshall Plan and dedicated to strengthening ties between the United States and Europe. So it was the perfect site for the event.
Ani Wong wires the subjects for audio.
Defense Minister Kramp-Karrenbauer was speaking with former Ambassador to Turkey Marc Grossman, now Vice Chairman of the Cohen Group, the international policy organization headed by former U.S. Secretary of Defense, William S. Cohen.
Putting the Pieces Together
Cinematographer Ben Wong lit and framed the shot for the livestream and then did the sound mixing. Ani Wong assisted with the setup and monitored the livestream. All Metro Teleproductions crew are fully vaccinated.
Keeping the subjects in focus so that the event goes smoothly.
Says Ben, “It was a one-camera livestream, but the tricky part was that we had to have two translators working. One so that the English interviewer’s questions were translated to German…and the second [translator] would translate the Minister’s answers in English so the interviewer could understand her. The streaming audience would hear the Minister’s answer start in German then dip down to allow the translated English to be brought up to full volume.”
Of course, the difficult aspect of the job was making sure all the audio levels for each speaker were consistent and also to maintain coherence as so many translations were going back and forth simultaneously.
The stage is set for a high-level discussion. (Photo courtesy of the German Marshall Fund of the United States.)
In the end, the event was a success and everyone was heard loud and clear. “It was a big hit,” said the client, always music to our ears.
Metro Teleproductions, offering video production in the Washington, D.C., area for 20+ years, is owned and operated by Dave Lilling with creativity, reliability and professional excellence. Contact Dave at 301-608-9077 or dave@mtitv.com for video production success!
