TV Tech's sister publication Broadcasting + Cable has named the recipients of the 2021 Technology Leadership Awards.

The awards, which B+C started in 1999, honor individuals who have made significant contributions to how TV, digital and streaming media companies use technology.

The 2021 Tech Leadership Awards winners are:

• Greig Fraser, director of photography/producer;
• William Hayes, director of engineering and technology, Iowa PBS;
• Lucinda (Cindy) Hutter Cavell, vice president, Cavell, Mertz & Associates;
• Brett Jenkins, executive vice president and CTO, Nexstar Media Group;
• Yvette Kanouff, partner and CTO, JC2 Ventures;
• Jaya Kolhatkar, executive vice president, data, Disney Direct-To-Consumer;
• Barbara Lange, executive director, Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE);
• Doug Lung, vice president broadcast engineering, NBC Owned Stations;
• Phil McKinney, president and CEO, CableLabs; and
• Phil Wiser, executive vice president and global chief technology officer, ViacomCBS. 

In addition, B+C is introducing a new award for “Technology Leadership Award for Building Diverse Tech Teams,” which will be given to Stephanie Mitchko-Beale, executive vice president & chief technology officer, Charter Communications.

PLUS: What Are the Tech Leadership Product of the Year Awards?

“This year’s winners highlight the growing importance of tech innovation in helping media companies navigate rapid changes in their businesses,” said Kent Gibbons, content director, Broadcasting + Cable. “The innovative tech strategies they’ve pursued during their careers have both helped companies build new business for the digital age and provided consumers with higher quality content and access to content in new ways.”

Recipients will be profiled in the March 22 issue of B+C as well as the April issue of TV Tech. The awards will be presented virtually during the Technology Leadership Summit March 23 and 24, 2021.

For more information and to register for the Technology Leadership Summit, which is produced by B+C, TV Tech and Multichannel News, click here.

LOS ANGELES—In an effort to maintain its prominence as the premier global standards and education body for the film and television industries, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers has announced a new strategic business plan that emphasizes its three pillars: standards, education and membership, with a commitment on inclusiveness and objectivity.

"The strategic business plan officially released today reflects the initiative championed by SMPTE president Matthew Goldman to examine the Society and to establish our guiding principles, vision, mission, and value propositions resulting in this new three-year strategic plan," said SMPTE Executive Director Barbara Lange. "I look forward to working with current and newly elected SMPTE Board of Governors leadership to achieve the ambitious objectives set out in this plan."

With its announcement during the annual SMPTE meeting this week, the society released its first mission statement:

“SMPTE enables the technical framework and global professional community that makes motion-picture, television, and professional media available for all humanity to enjoy for artistic, educational, and social purposes.”

Within its standards work, the society said it will create a "Knowledge Network" environment that enables state-of-the-art standards-development processes while improving how content is discovered, accessed, and monetized.

Within its education work, the society said it will continue to enhance its offerings to become the comprehensive resource for industry-relevant professional development. SMPTE will continue providing education on emerging technologies that professionals must understand for continued career success.

In continuing to build SMPTE membership around the world, the society will focus on extending its presence at the local section level and on ensuring high levels of volunteer engagement, including recognition of service, to create a more robust and diverse global community for its members.

The SMPTE Board of Governors will be responsible for overseeing the Society's new strategic business plan.

As more Silicon Valley companies focus their efforts on streaming video, the society faces the challenge of remaining relevant in a world where tech giants can quickly saturate the marketplace with proprietary formats, bypassing the more universal approach of industry agreed-upon standards. In an effort to navigate this new landscape, the society earlier this year announced its "Vision 2020" strategic plan, which includes expanding membership to other industries and segments that rely on motion imaging, such as gaming, corporate video and internet video, and bolstering its membership, education and standards work.

LOS ANGELES—Although she is midway through the SMPTE 2017 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition, SMPTE Executive Director Barbara Lange is already planning and strategizing for the future—and is in fact, focused as far forward as 2020.

"It's a busy time," she laughed. "No rest for the weary, that's for sure."

Barbara Lange She explained that in addition to the SMPTE events scheduled for 2018—including the HPA Tech Retreat (produced with partner association the Hollywood Professional Alliance), The Future of Cinema Conference at the NAB Show, Entertainment Technology in the Connected Age, Bits By the Bay, the U.K. HPA Tech Retreat, the SMPTE Toronto Boot Camp, and next year's Technical Conference & Exhibition—she and the Board of Governors have been involved in "a strategic planning exercise that we call Vision 2020."

Initiated earlier this year, the Vision 2020 project was designed to examine "how this industry is evolving and changing, and how we can stay ahead of it, and stay involved and stay relevant." Distilled to its most basic, Lange said, the Vision 2020 project asks, "What do we want to be when we grow up, after 100 years?"

(In a related interview, SMPTE President Matthew Goldman echoed Lange's focus: "My top priority for 2018 is to finish our business plan and accompanying roadmap so that we can meet the strategic goals we set out in our Vision 2020 strategic planning efforts.")

Lange admitted this requires an "in-depth thought process. We're building towards consensus about how we want to proceed, and we're going through the exercise, now, of kind of discussing and brainstorming." She said the organization has been examining how to best enact its mission statement—"to be a leader in the advancement of the art, science and craft of the image, sound and metadata ecosystems around the world"—in the midst of rapid technological and business changes.

These new plans could mean anything from rethinking how the Board of Governors is organized and members are represented, to expanding the organization's participation in areas beyond media and entertainment. "I personally am very excited about where the board wants to go," Lange continued. "Stay tuned."

Keeping that next generation of SMPTE members in mind, Lange has also been working with the HPA's Young Entertainment Professionals Program (YEP), an initiative that provides a framework for young professionals to network and learn from peers and mentors. Those selected for the yearlong YEP program participate in HPA events, including the HPA Tech Retreat and HPA Awards, as well as exclusive mentoring events. "It's a great program to cultivate the next generation of entertainment professionals," she said.

To accommodate the continued growth of the annual Technical Conference & Exhibition, SMPTE will be holding next year's event in a new venue—about five miles southeast of its current Hollywood location. The Westin Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, will allow the event to be centralized in one hall. Goldman explained the move in an interview, stating, "Simply put, we are a victim of our own success. We have outgrown the Hollywood & Highland location and so we sought a venue that will allow us to expand, while still providing the social networking opportunities. "The new location allows the conference and exhibition to continue to grow," he said.

HOLLYWOOD, CALIF.—Shortly before the start of the SMPTE 2015 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition, Digital Video magazine spoke with Barbara Lange to get her thoughts on the upcoming conference program. 

TV Technology: What shifts or advances — technical or business — would you say are driving the content for the conference component of the SMPTE 2015 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition?

Barbara Lange: The rapid shift to IP-based media ecosystem is written all over SMPTE 2015. From papers on cloud, to facilities infrastructure, to new forms of color management to the new OTT frontier and big data, it’s all about how the media landscape has shifted to being nearly all virtual and digital. We are excited to be the place where the industry turns to learn about the latest technology in media.

Barbara Lange
TVT: Have any new events have been added to this year's program? Are there any "can't-miss" presentations, sessions or events you'd recommend?

Lange: Oh my, where do I start?! Our newest and most exciting event this year is the SMPTE-HPA Student Film Festival, which takes place on Tuesday evening. This event embodies what SMPTE is all about — delivering the quality images that meet creatives’ artistic intent — and we are highlighting young people. I am thrilled with the enthusiasm these students exude because being part of SMPTE is a very big deal to them. Another new event is the demo room associated with our Symposium, which took place on Monday. The demo room highlighted those working in virtual reality, complementing the Symposium’s topic.

We were delighted to be working with the HPA’s Women in Post group, once again, to host the Women in Technology luncheon where Cheryl Boone Isaacs told us all about how she is expanding diversity at AMPAS. Other events include the Opening Night Reception in our expanded exhibits hall and our Industry and Fellows Luncheons. We close out the week with our very special Honors & Awards Dinner and Ceremony where we will be recognizing more than 40 individuals on their many wonderful contributions to SMPTE and the industry. All of this is along side a superb conference with more papers than ever. It’s a very busy week, indeed!

TVT: How has SMPTE worked to generate new interest and involvement in this year's programs?

Lange: It begins with a group of dedicated volunteers who labor for months to develop the program in a way that addresses the industry needs. Of course, the current SMPTE work on UHD and 4K with its associate attention on high-dynamic range (HDR) imaging, wider color gamut (WCG), and higher frame rates provides a great deal of fodder for the conference. The SMPTE Annual Technical Conference, by definition, covers the gamut of media technology and we rely on the expertise of our industry leaders to produce a world-class educational experience.

TVT: What do you want attendees to take away from this year's event?

Lange: We hope that attendees will leave Hollywood with a better understanding of the technology through the conference and exhibition, stronger ties with old and new colleagues that they’ve met, and a greater appreciation of SMPTE and what the Society provides for them. All while enjoying the wonderful SoCal sunshine in the heart of Hollywood.

TVT: How has SMPTE's partnership with the Hollywood Post Alliance evolved over this past year?

Lange: It’s evolved a great deal to the point that all the necessary legal work is all behind us now and we can get to work! The staffs have been working together on projects already, which has helped both organizations prosper. The HPA and SMPTE Boards are also working together as we plan our new relationship going forward. HPA is busy planning its 10th Awards event (November 12, 2015 at the Skirball Cultural Center in L.A.), the 2016 Tech Retreat and expanding its Board with new members. I am particularly excited having HPA in our family as we celebrate our Centennial next year.

TVT: How are you feeling about SMPTE's role in the industry as the organization heads to its centennial year?

Lange: I am feeling great about SMPTE’s role as we approach our Centennial and plan for the next century. I often refer to us as the “100-year old start-up” because everything is new again and we have to act like a young, nimble start-up as we embark on the new challenges ahead. SMPTE is as relevant today as we were back in 1916. We are setting standards that truly influence the media landscape and this work is making a difference in how people make, produce and consume motion imaging. I am honored to be a part of SMPTE during this momentous occasion and look forward to even greater things in the years to come.

Lange joined SMPTE in January 2010 as executive director following 13 years at IEEE where she was responsible for developing and managing new online subscription products with revenues in excess of $150 million, including digital periodicals, conference proceedings, standards, e-books and education products – all of which were delivered from IEEE’s digital library platform IEEE Xplore.