Behind the Scenes of eduStreamTV - A 3 Day Virtual Educational Event

On Today's Videoguys Live, Jim and Adam, Videoguys' Video Production Specialists, go over how they planned and executed our eduStreamTV event. They also discuss all of the technology and planning that went in to the event.

Watch the full video below:

In Today's Show:

1. Planning a virtual event
2. Picking a streaming platform
3. Preparing, testing, and testing again
4. Bringing in multiple guests simultaneously
5. Tech tips and tricks

Planning Your Event

The Challenge: Bring in 4 Virtual Guests into a Show

• Having four virtual guests was a new challenge for us, we had only ever brought two guests into the TriCaster simultaneously​
• Like with all new workflows it is so important to test your equipment and set-up​
• Don't be afraid to experiment, you might just find something that works​

Coordinate Your Guests

• What format will the show be in?​
• How many guests will there be?​
• Who is going to be on your shows?​
• How will you bring them in?​

Create Your Schedule

• Choose which days' work best for you and your audience​
• Try to stay consistent with show times​
• Avoid Fridays and Mondays if possible (at least for our audience)​
• We choose to go live at 3pm because most secondary schools in our region would be out by then​

Preparation

Picking Your Streaming Platform

• We chose Sherpa from Telestream
• Telestream's Live & On-Demand Video Platform​
• Schedule live events​
• Keep Track of event registration​
• Use features like Q&A and Polls​

Technology Review: Guests' Technology

• Our workflow for this event required we use Teams to bring in virtual guests​
• Do they have access to a PTZ, or studio equipment (Always recommend remote guests wear headphones)​
• Set up a test call​
• Always have a backup plan to bring in your virtual guests.​

​Technology Review: Our Studio

Switcher/Encoder:​

• TriCaster 1 Pro​
• TC1SP Small Control Panel​

Cameras:​

• Panasonic CX-350​
• PTZOptics Move 4K 20x Zoom​
• JVC KY-PZ400N​

AV Switch​

• NETGEAR M4250 AV Network  Switch​

Confidence Monitor/Recorder​

• Atomos Sumo 19​

Bring in Multiple Guests Simultaneously

• We like to have more control of our guests, so we used​ Microsoft Teams with Epiphan Connect
• ​The Easiest Way to Join a Broadcast – From Anywhere​: Make joining your production as easy as any Teams call​
• Mix with Isolated Audio Feeds​: Enjoy total control over who the audience hears in your broadcast with Epiphan Connect, which can isolate participant audio into separate tracks.​

Limitations of Epiphan Connect

• The setup time required can be lengthy (5-10 minutes) ​
• Being Limited to Teams makes it so when Teams updates, Epiphan Connect may not work correctly​

Bring in Multiple Guests Simultaneously - Always Be Prepared

• Have a backup feed from your virtual guests in case anything goes wrong​
• For this event we used Teams over NDI as our backup​
• Teams over NDI gives us many of the same perks as Epiphan Connect​
• Individual Audio = More Control​

Tech Tips & Tricks

• Test in the same environment as the live show.​
• ​If guest cannot make a test call, ask them to join early on the day of show to allow for troubleshooting​
• Always recommend remote guests wear headphones