Redefining a Multi-Camera Live Broadcast with Cinema Tools
A multi-camera live broadcast built entirely on cinema cameras is a production workflow where dozens of synchronized, high-end digital cinema systems replace traditional broadcast cameras, feeding a real-time control, shading, and switching environment that must deliver uninterrupted coverage at television scale. For the Eurovision Song Contest, that meant 24 ARRI ALEXA 35 Live cameras covering every angle of the stage, audience, and special rigs while going to air in front of roughly 180 million viewers. ARRI, long dominant in feature filmmaking, stepped into a broadcast arena that has been ruled by conventional systems designed for speed and reliability over cinematic image quality. The production became a practical test of whether cinema camera production methods could meet the pressure of live event cinematography, where camera cuts happen every second and no take can be repeated.
From Hand-Built ALEXA 35 Live Bodies to an OB Truck
The workflow began weeks before rehearsals, with every ALEXA 35 Live system hand-built from milled blocks of aluminum and titanium at ARRI’s headquarters in Munich. In parallel, the team prepared LPS-1 Live Production System units, fiber camera adapters that give the cinema bodies familiar broadcast-style control. These systems then had to mesh with NEP’s outside broadcast truck, originally designed around Grass Valley camera chains. Eight camera control units were integrated into the OB environment, while cable cams, cranes, and wireless rigs connected through Riedel’s MediorNet infrastructure. According to ARRI, the only extra hardware needed was a compact interface to translate intercom and tally protocols, with the rest handled through signal routing and tele-return inside the truck. The result was a control room where each shader could manage six to eight ALEXA 35 Live cameras under intense time pressure.
Synchronization, Shading, and Real-Time Color Management
At the heart of this multi-camera live broadcast was tight synchronization and centralized control over dozens of cinema feeds. The ALEXA 35 Live cameras were tied into the LiveEdit rundown system, which linked predefined looks in the cameras to specific songs and segments. That meant shaders and color teams could recall scene-appropriate profiles as directors followed the script. Veteran NEP Engineer-in-Charge Erhard Thüringer described shading the ALEXA 35 Live as “completely identical to standard broadcast cameras,” a key factor in winning over operators in the truck. Inside what ARRI called “coordinated chaos,” shaders matched exposure, color, and contrast across cameras in real time, watching up to 27 streams on banks of monitors. This approach allowed cinematic latitude while preserving the broadcast discipline needed to cut seamlessly between wide overheads, Steadicam moves, and fast audience reactions.
Technical Challenges of Cinema Cameras in a Live Environment
Deploying high-end cinema cameras in an unpredictable live environment brought a new set of practical considerations. Eurovision’s stage combined intense moving lights, massive LED walls, and pyrotechnics that could easily overwhelm smaller broadcast sensors. The Super 35 sensor in the ALEXA 35 Live delivered higher dynamic range, helping prevent highlight clipping on specular lights while keeping shadows clean. It also reduced moiré on bright LED backdrops, a benefit tied to sensor size and pixel structure. Skin tones remained consistent even as lighting cues shifted between saturated colors. Florian Rettich, who crafted the custom looks, emphasized that there was “enough dynamic range that we can play with,” allowing the team to render fire effects with natural color and detail where many cameras would lose nuance. These technical strengths supported bolder stage design without sacrificing a stable live signal.
What Eurovision Proved About Cinema Camera Production at Scale
Running an entire song contest on 24 ALEXA 35 Live cameras was more than a visual upgrade; it was a systems test of cinema camera production at broadcast scale. The project showed that with the right adapters, routing, and control surfaces, cinema bodies can slot into existing OB workflows while raising the ceiling for live event cinematography. Shaders retained familiar iris and matrix control, while directors gained richer depth of field, smoother highlight roll-off, and more detailed color on everything from LED screens to fireballs. Thüringer went so far as to say that if he had to choose cameras for this production himself, he would also select ARRI systems. As cinema and broadcast technologies continue to converge, Eurovision’s experiment suggests that live shows can achieve film-like images without giving up the pace and reliability that live television demands.
