Matrox MXO2 Mini with MAX Essential to Video Journalist’s Kit at UNICEF

Bob Coen is a video producer and global correspondent at UNICEF, the United Nations agency dedicated to upholding the rights of children around the globe. He's responsible for shooting video and producing stories for UNICEF's global website about the organization's work supporting education, health, and sanitation initiatives in developing countries and providing emergency relief in natural and man-made disasters.

"I work as a 'one-man-band' - shooting, writing, editing, and transmitting my stories on the road via FTP to UNICEF headquarters. The videos are also made available to international broadcasters and news organizations through UNIFEED, the daily satellite news feed from United Nations Headquarters in New York, "Bob commented. "So, the quick turnaround of broadcast quality video from remote and difficult locations is an essential part of what I do."

"I shoot primarily to AVCHD files with a Panasonic Lumix HDSLR camera and edit on a MacBook Pro running Final Cut Pro and Compressor. Most of the time I need to turn around stories quickly, in challenging conditions further complicated by a multi-step post-production workflow and very slow Internet connections in the places I work. Using the Matrox MXO2 Mini with MAX technology helps me save precious time producing my broadcast-quality H.264 encodes."

"In 2010 I made several trips to cover humanitarian disasters, including the famine in Niger as well as the post-earthquake recovery and the cholera epidemic in Haiti. The unit was especially useful during my most recent trip to Haiti in late 2010. I was typically working 18 to 20 hour days - shooting all day, then spending long hours at night, editing, encoding, and transmitting. Using MXO2 Mini with MAX cut my H.264 encode times by up to 90% compared to when I previously used either Compressor or QuickTime to do it. I was assured of quick, high-quality encodes that also allowed me several extra hours of precious sleep!"

"I have also used MXO2 Mini for Apple TV and YouTube encodes and have been equally impressed with the speed and quality of the results. I plan to explore the unit's HD monitoring capabilities in the future."

"In my opinion Matrox MXO2 Mini with MAX is an indispensable piece of equipment that should be an essential part of any travelling video journalist's kit."

View some of Bob's work:

For children and families in Haiti, the long road from relief to recovery¹

UNICEF - Executive Director brings a message of hope to Haiti's most vulnerable²

UNICEF - Supported campaign raises awareness about cholera prevention in Haiti