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Lindsay Barker in Mediakinetic’s studio
The art of livestreaming
As the world moved online 12 months ago, the demand for livestreaming skyrocketed. Millie Bruce-Watt chats to Bath-based theatre technician, Luke John Emmett, and TV producer Lindsay Barker of Mediakinetic’s Bath hub, about how livestreaming is now here to stay
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ver the last 12 months, technology has been our saving grace and livestreaming has unquestionably become the star of the show. At midnight on 23 March 2020, office doors shut and businesses closed indefinitely. The world moved online and our longer working days were soon filled with e-meetings via Zoom and Teams – two words that quickly became part of our everyday vocabulary. Our cherished moments of social interaction were digitalised and we depended on fast internet connections to see us through virtual pub quizzes and lockdown birthday celebrations. For those not as tech-savvy as the modern-day influencer, this was a challenging transition. For those who were all too used to travelling to meetings, it took a moment to master group calls and breakout rooms with little to no training, all while continuing ‘business as usual’. And what about the arts? What about our entertainment? The cornerstone of our communities collapsed under a seismic shift in support. The industry ground to a halt and, not only did work disappear overnight for freelancers and theatre makers, but no safety net was deployed in the event of an emergency. As a result, we noticeably suffered from its absence. Within hours of the lockdown being announced, we called for a prominent and permanent arrival and upgrade of livestreaming and event platforms. We needed it to work well and we needed it to work now. We asked Lindsay Barker of Mediakinetic – specialists in filming corporate and brand communications, event and remote livestreaming – and Luke John Emmett, an award-winning Bath-based Lighting Designer, event manager and theatre technician, for their perspectives. Both have been working at the forefront of the livestreaming industry, pulling the four corners of the world together and helping people stay informed, entertained and engaged at the high level we expect. Over the last 12 months, they have witnessed firsthand the power of livestreaming, which, they stress, is here to stay. “When Covid hit and many people were working from home, it 22 TheBATHMagazine
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was fascinating to see how businesses transformed in line with viewing habits,” says Lindsay. “We were already set up for livestreaming, but the focus quickly became “how can we make this remote livestreaming?” by which I mean the whole team working from home, but being able to still direct multi-camera broadcasts with multiple participants, from their respective homes, with graphics, video inserts and interactivity with an audience. “Whilst a lot of people quickly got on board with video calls, audiences quickly expected something more from large corporate firms or public facing household names. Throughout 2020 and 2021 we brought together more livestreams than ever before, taking both TV presenters and directors of organisations large and small through a baptism of fire of the best cameras to use, lighting, sound, backdrops, connectivity and presenting to a screen with no audience to play off. It was a different mindset.” Similarly, when the theatres shut, Luke, like many other freelancers in the arts and entrainment industry, was forced to find a new way to earn a living. Both Lindsay and Luke felt the shift in demand for livestreaming and were required to adapt immediately. “Pre-pandemic I was a theatre technician, lighting designer and event producer so everything was live and most of it was working with real people and a real audience,” he says. “The week before the pandemic, I was working on Dirty Bath at The Rondo. Even by that point, even though it was a sold-out run, the audience had dropped to about half so people were already quite hesitant before it closed down. “I moved on to Zoom very quickly and looked at the more advanced ways of using it. From there, I started getting work from people who wanted to do online theatre shows or wanted to record and rehearse things on Zoom. Then I moved to virtual events and managing the technical aspects of the online event, getting people on and off the virtual stage, making sure their cameras and mics were working, they were positioned well on screen – lots of similar things I would do in a theatre but across a camera. “Now, the majority of my time is spent training people how to use
