DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES—Al Arabiya’s production team went all out for their coverage of the 2016 U.S. election results. With the help of 150 people from the news network, Vizrt and SpiderCam, the creation of a 9290 square meter augmented reality set was pulled off, which consisted of 3D models showing viewers live data and results.
“During the past elections, we made use of immersive graphics with live data, but for the 2016 U.S. Elections, we thought bigger,” says Al Arabiya’s Head of Graphics, Fadi Radi.
The Middle East Broadcast Channel group’s building in Dubai was used as the backdrop and the Dubai Media City’s lake served as a platform on which to place various graphics, maps and models. MBC’s team of designers used Vizrt’s Viz Artist to design the election graphics. SpiderCam’s staff, who are used to rigging their cameras in stadiums where existing support structures are in place, utilized a temporary crane on one side of the lake and trusses mounted to the MBC building for anchor points.
Thanks to no issues with the weather and the SpiderCam system’s stability gyros, the produced shots were steady and smooth. The SpiderCam also provided live tracking data that was processed with Vizrt’s Tracking Hub, so technicians could control the graphics during the live reports.
Vizrt claims this particular augmented reality set was the largest one ever produced in the world for a news production.
