International. The John Lennon Education Bus uses Blackmagic Design equipment-based workflows, including ATEM Television Studio HD8 ISO switchers and Blackmagic Studio Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro units, as well as DaVinci Resolve Studio, the editing, color grading, visual effects and audio post-production software.
In 1997, Brian Rothschild, co-founder and CEO, contacted Yoko Ono in order to "create a songwriting contest in honor of John Lennon, to give authors around the world access to the music industry," Rothschild said. "The project is now in its 27th year and offers prizes of $390,000 in cash and other types in 12 music categories. When we were looking for ways to promote the contest, we came up with the idea of creating a mobile music studio and launched the first version of the Lennon bus in 1998."
The intention of this production bus is to provide an experience to students in audiovisual production. "Our workshop participants are hands-on experimenting with today's cutting-edge technology to get a glimpse of how original digital content production works with the same tools and techniques used in the professional field," said Jeff Sobel, Chief Technology Officer. "They also learn about affordable tools with which they can start making productions right away."
Creative content on Lenon's bus is shot with a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro unit, which gives students the ability to produce videos individually, in groups, or by capturing various angles of scenes. "We worked with Westlake Pro to integrate an ATEM Television Studio HD8 ISO switcher, as well as install camera input and output panels in each room of the studio," added Sobel. "These devices, along with the Triad Orbit Quick Install Brackets, are the ideal solution for connecting three Blackmagic Studio Camera 6K Pro units, which work seamlessly with the ATEM switcher. These studio cameras allow you to develop professional-quality productions as well as live streams over the internet or simply capture more angles in the studio."
"DaVinci Resolve Studio also offers intuitive post-production dynamics with a huge amount of features. Audiovisual content shot with the Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro in Blackmagic RAW format provides maximum fidelity, and DaVinci Resolve Studio is the best solution for generating projects for Dolby Vision," added Sobel.
Lennon's bus has a simple goal. "The bus and its programs are designed to inspire the next generation to imagine a better world," Sobel said.
For his part, Rothschild said: "The student sessions on the Lenon bus bring young people together in order to create a project in a single day. They can write and record a song, and then shoot a video or get together to produce a documentary around a topic of their interest. The holding of events allows student projects to be publicized and brings together students, famous artists and community leaders with the purpose of holding debates on important issues for youth today. Of course, the name John Lennon is associated with a special theme focused on social justice and peace."
