Westmark School Gets Brand New Production Studio
The Westmark School is now operating with a fully functional professional production studio, thanks to TV Pro Gear, NewTek, Panasonic, and Fujinon. Based in Encino, CA, Westmark serves students with language disabilities such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia. The staff at Westmark theorized that a professional video production system would help some of their students overcome certain language barriers that classroom learning cannot. They contacted Andrew Maisner, President of TV Pro Gear in Glendale, CA.
“The Westmark staff and I came up with the idea of building a multi-camera video production system capable of shooting a daily school newscast. This would challenge the students and provide “real-world” production experience that might help some of them get that first entry level job in a television station or production company,” Andrew said.
“I felt that the ideal setup would be to use Panasonic broadcast cameras with studio viewfinders, CCU’s, Remote Paint and Fujinon 20x zoom lenses as these would be typically found in television stations,” Andrew said. “It was decided that NewTek’s TriCaster TC1 with the large 2-Stripe control panel would be the ideal switcher to teach the students live cutting, live titles and live graphics. The TriCaster’s built-in clip players could be used to playback pre-recorded video that the student reports had captured earlier.”
There was just one problem. Westmark did not have a budget that would pay for equipment at this level. The staff at TV Pro Gear worked with both Panasonic and Fujinon to dramatically lower their prices to help make this project a reality for these deserving students.
“Another reason we specified the TriCaster TC1 for Westmark is the extensive availability of free online tutorials created by NewTek,” Andrew said. This really gives the teacher a head start.
Another great feature of the TriCaster TC1 is that two channels of “Talkshow” are included. “TalkShow” is a joint venture of Microsoft and NewTek that is basically Skype on steroids. It makes possible incorporating live interviews over the internet just like you would see on CNN.
The stage area for the Westmark facility is too small to accommodate a professional looking news set. Also, there was no budget to build one. Here again, NewTek to the rescue. The TC1 includes several photo realistic virtual news sets. This gives student newscasts a “Prime Time Video” look.
Last, but not least, TriCaster TC1 comes with two built-in high-quality Internet encoders. They support live streaming to social media platforms, like Facebook Live, Vimeo, Periscope, Twitch, and YouTube Live.
Digital arts teacher, Jerry White, started teaching at Westmark only two weeks before COVID-19 forced schools to learn online. With a professional broadcasting background himself, Jerry has ample experience working with TriCaster TC1 and plans to hit the ground running when students return to the classroom later this year.
Jerry teaches two broadcasting classes. Right now, he is focused on building video production foundational skills with his students. Over the next year, he hopes to develop Westmark News Network into a multi-camera news program complete with faculty interviews, weekly segments, and sports broadcasting. The students will pre-record clips around campus, edit them in Premiere, and upload them to the TriCaster to add graphics and go live.
Having a video production program has been especially helpful for Westmark’s students who have learning differences.
“A lot of our students thrive in art-based and tech-based classes. This puts them into an environment that is a little bit less stressful because they’re not so worried about little words and things, so they can actually gravitate toward the side of learning that they enjoy,” Jerry said. “Little do they know that while we’re doing it, we’re also helping with some of those learning differences that they have to deal with on a daily basis - like if you’re reading a teleprompter, you’re working on the public speaking aspect, and reading, and being more confident.”
To learn more about custom news studios and flypacks for your school, contact sales@tvprogear.com and ask about their special school financing options.