Virtual audience
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Virtual audience during a Ellen DeGeneres Show, YouTube video |
A virtual audience is the use of
The practice emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, due to lockdowns and restrictions on gatherings preventing in-person attendance in the studio or venue.
Implementation
Virtual audiences are often implemented using existing videoconferencing platforms such as Microsoft Teams[1] or Zoom,[2] or with proprietary platforms, such as one developed by technology company The Famous Group,[3][4] and an internal system designed by the BBC.[5][6]
Members of a virtual audience witness the event or the recording of a program via livestreaming.[7][5] In turn, the audio and video feeds from their webcams can be aggregated by the production staff and incorporated into the program or event, such as the audio mix,[6] and presenting the video from feeds inside the studio or venue as either a mosaic on video walls,[7] or on individual screens.[8]
Notable examples
Virtual audiences became prominent on many non-scripted television programs after their return to production, including
Some shows used a mixture of both in-person and virtual audiences; Let's Make a Deal maintained a smaller number of in-person audience members as contestants, but added a virtual audience whose members could also participate in the show.[10] Similarly, The Ellen DeGeneres Show placed virtual audience members on individual screens replacing seats in its audience area, which were later mixed with limited in-person audience members.[8] The Masked Singer used a mixture of stock footage and limited in-person audience members to preserve the illusion of a full audience, but did employ a virtual audience for a "fan vote" feature used as part of the judging process.[11]
Virtual audiences were sometimes used during sports and sports-related events, particularly when they were held
The professional wrestling promotion WWE introduced a closed studio known as the "ThunderDome", which featured a large-scale virtual audience displayed on multiple tiers of screens formed into a curved "grandstand". The ThunderDome stage was used at multiple venues in Florida, and replaced a smaller-scale studio at its WWE Performance Center training facility in Orlando. It was used for WWE's main weekly programs and almost all pay-per-view events from August 2020 through June 2021, before WWE returned to hosting in-person touring events.[13][14][15][16] WWE's third brand, NXT, moved from Full Sail University to the Performance Center in October 2020, adopting a new stage design that similarly incorporated a virtual audience, along with limited in-person attendees.[17][18][19] NXT would later reinstate a full-capacity studio audience in June 2021.[20][21]
Reception
The use of an audio-only virtual audience during the 74th British Academy Film Awards faced mixed reception; Deadline Hollywood noted that it "certainly added more atmosphere than BAFTA would’ve gotten from a silent Royal Albert Hall", but that some viewers and journalists questioned whether the show was actually using a canned laugh track and crowd noise.[6][22]
Multiple writers have described virtual audiences as being
See also
References
- ^ a b Medina, Mark (July 24, 2020). "NBA to feature 'virtual fans' at arenas for season restart". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ Wagmeister, Elizabeth (2020-11-18). "The (Talk) Show Must Go on: How Daytime TV Has Safely Continued Production Amid the Pandemic". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ a b Bickerton, Jake. "Saturday Night Takeaway gets Virtual Interactive Audience". Broadcast. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ a b Dachman, Jason (14 September 2020). "The Famous Group Blazes Virtual-Fan Trail With New WWE, US Open Integrations". Sports Video Group. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ a b "Case study: The BBC Virtual Audience and CEDAR – IABM". theiabm.org. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ a b c Kanter, Tom Grater,Jake; Grater, Tom; Kanter, Jake (2021-04-12). "Virtual BAFTAs Get Thumbs Up From Industry Despite Audience Noise Confusion; TV Ratings Not So Pretty". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c Gonzalez, Sandra (20 October 2020). "TV shows dealing with live audience restrictions deserve applause". CNN. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ a b c Del Rosario, Alexandra (2020-10-29). "'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' Welcomes Back Limited, Masked Live Studio Audience". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
- ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (2020-10-20). "Let's Make a Deal: Socially Distanced Set Features Mostly Virtual Audience". TVLine. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ White, Peter (2020-10-20). "'Let's Make A Deal' Returns To The Studio With Redesigned Set & Preps First CBS Primetime Specials". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ^ Peter White (September 21, 2020). "The Masked Singer: Fox's Rob Wade On How The Mystery Singing Competition Got Back On Stage". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- ^ a b "Surreal experience of being an NBA virtual fan shows why technology is nothing without humanity behind it". CBSSports.com. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
- ^ Barrasso, Justin (17 August 2020). "WWE Turning Orlando's Amway Center into 'WWE ThunderDome'". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2020-08-17.
- ^ Otterson, Joe (2020-08-17). "WWE to Establish 'ThunderDome' Residency in Orlando's Amway Center". Variety. Retrieved 2020-08-17.
- ^ "Contender Profile: WWE Production Designer Jason Robinson on Creating Big Fan Experiences During Pandemic". Below the Line. 2021-06-17. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ^ Dachman, Jason (July 16, 2021). "WWE Returns to the Road With 25-City Tour, Adds AR Steadicam and High-Res LED Screen". Sports Video Group. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
- ^ "FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY SHUTS DOWN, NXT TAPINGS HEADING TO WWE PC | PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
- ^ Pollock, John (2020-10-02). "NXT moving to the Performance Center beginning with TakeOver". POST Wrestling. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
- ^ Barrasso, Justin (4 October 2020). "NXT Unveiling the Capitol Wrestling Center at Sunday's TakeOver 31". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
- ^ Thomas, Jeremy (April 7, 2021). "Note On Audience Changes at NXT Takeover: Stand & Deliver". 411mania. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
- ^ Dias, Luke (June 13, 2021). "WWE Achieves Record High CWC Attendance for NXT TakeOver: In Your House". EssentiallySports. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
- ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2021-08-21.
- ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2021-08-23.