France.tv Studio enhanced its production capabilities with a LED video facility, complementing its green screen studio and featuring Brompton Tessera processors, for a range of TV content.
France.tv Studio, the production subsidiary of France Télévisions, has enhanced its production capabilities with the installation of a LED video facility. Part of the France 2030 initiative, this investment will bring considerable change to content production at its V-Studio in Vendargues in southern France.
Originally built by Les Tontons Truqueurs (LTT), a company that specialises in on-set VFX and previs, the facility became part of France.tv Studio when France Télévisions acquired LTT. Supported by the Occitanie Region where Vendargues is located, V-Studio has already gained industry recognition, winning the Trophée SATIS in the Production & Filming category at the SATIS 2024 Expo.
“The installation was a carefully considered decision,” said Pierre-Marie Boyé, Production Manager at Les Tontons Truqueurs, adding that the idea for the project originated in 2019 with the release of The Mandalorian television series by Disney. Its approach had various features in common with the workflow Les Tontons Truqueurs had developed using a green screen for the daily series Un Si Grand Soleil, a France.tv Studio drama production.
Addressing Green Screen Limitations
Installed in early 2024, the LED wall was planned as a complementary tool to the green screen and designed to address some of its limitations. Several producers have already used it to produce content suitable for a variety of formats including dramas, documentaries and commercials.
“The installation was carried out by Alabama Media, with key contributions from their technical directors Joël May and Christophe Catania,” Pierre-Marie said. “Their expertise helped us effectively integrate the LED components, creating a high-performance, flexible production environment.”
L - R: Laurent Theurin, Technical Sales Manager for France at Brompton Technology; Leo Pechon, VFX Supervisor and Set Manager at Les Tontons Truqueurs; Alexandre Green, Freelancer, Freelance Operator on set
The V-Studio is a fully modular facility designed to allow as much versatility as possible in order to support a wide range of projects from drama series, documentaries, commercials to motion-capture recording. The transformation of the space is based on the integration of four Absen Polaris 2.5 Pro V10 LED walls driven by three Brompton 4K Tessera SX40 LED processors, a combination that achieves accurate colour calibration and image fidelity at the studio. The walls’ refresh rate of 7680 Hz and 1/8 drive mode match the prerequisites of the SX40 processor.
With features including very precise screen calibration, camera synchronisation and modern colour space management, the Tessera processors have given LTT a great deal of confidence in their ability to maintain image quality for both LED displays and filmed content.
Colour Tools
The processors’ design focusses on achieving the best possible content reproduction from a given set-up of LED panels. Among their tools are multiple colour control parameters representing the panel area, revealing information about the panels that is used to generate consistent results.
Many of these tools are supported by Bompton's Dynamic Calibration process, which can achieve a higher brightness and wider colour gamut from the panels than is possible with conventional calibration. Instead of applying fixed values from the factory, Dynamic Calibration processes information in real time to determine the best possible approach to driving each LED over its surface.
The result is brighter whites, higher contrast ratios and more saturated, accurate colours, better representing the particular content in use, in the given conditions, with more depth. Users can also modify colours in real time using a mouse, load custom 3D LUTs, and assign personalised or standard colour targets.
The LED Advantage
The studio’s main screen measures 10m by 4m, with two 4m x 3m movable panels to either side and a large, adjustable ceiling measuring 8m by 4m. This configuration is very flexible and able to accommodate real-time 3D filming, motion-capture as well as vehicle sequences, within a controlled environment.
“The versatility of the LED screens is an advantage for us,” said Leo Pechon, VFX Supervisor and Set Manager at Les Tontons Truqueurs. “By combining our green screen techniques with the LED walls, we have an immersive production tool that goes beyond what traditional methods can achieve. The results are immediate and continuous, and allow enormous creative potential for our productions.”
The setup also includes two tracking solutions – a StarTracker system from Mo-Sys and a 20-camera Vicon Vero system – that make it possible to capture motion and track objects very precisely. With the addition of three APY rendering nodes powered by NVIDIA A6000 ADA Lovelace GPUs, the studio delivers high-performance rendering needed for real-time production.
Fictional Productions
France.tv Studio’s team noted that the Brompton LED processing is able to solve challenges specific to fictional productions. “With Brompton, we found our rhythm,” Pierre-Marie commented. “The Tessera software’s straightforward interface and colour grading-style features give us the precision we need. It’s a real advantage when working with demanding fictional content, where every detail matters.”
“The issue of screen calibration and colour rendition in the camera is fundamental for fiction,” said Laurent Theurin, Brompton’s Technical Sales Manager for France. “With the SX40, you have very accurate synchronisation with the screen, with the ability to adjust its panels to the nearest pixel for the most faithful colour rendition possible.”
Recent projects supported by V-Studio include the ongoing France.tv Studio drama Un Si Grand Soleil, as well as Les Disparues de la Gare, a new Disney+ series, and the upcoming A Priori, produced by Amsto. Additionally, the studio is assisting on several short films, including Trek Salama by Naoile Jouira and La Dernière Nuit du Papillon by Nadja Anane. These films would have been severely challenged without the use of the studio, which allows filmmakers to create fully realised sets in a controlled studio environment. www.bromptontech.com
