Leyard Luminate Pro installed at RTL Deutschland’s new 360-degree studio

Conceived by architecture and design studio Veech x Veech, RTL’s new 360-degree facility is a state-of-the-art, next generation, multifunctional high-end broadcast studio equipped with four hanging, freely moveable, and rotatable LED walls, along with a fixed curved video wall from Leyard Europe, totalling almost 150m2 of LED. This, combined with an overall advanced infrastructure, allows presenters to move around the studio and interact with the content, making news presentations more dynamic, accessible and easier for viewers to understand.

“RTL wanted a ‘physical’ studio that would replace their existing greenscreen studio,” says Leyard’s Director of Business Development, Hans Van Houdt. “The studio is used for multiple formats, including RTL Aktuell, RTL Nachtjournal, and magazine shows Punkt 6/7/8, and Punkt 12, all of which are broadcast live. It needed to have a general RTL look and feel, but each show also needed to have its own identity.”

Integration Partner:

Leyard Europe was brought into the project following its provision of a short-term solution for Guten Morgen Deutschland (Good Morning Germany, a daily morning show). “RTL had seen that we were able to complete the installation for this studio in a very short timeframe, and that we understood what was needed to have LED walls running in a broadcast environment,” explains Van Houdt.

The installation of the LED screens was completed within one month, with the studio going live in September 2022. Leyard Europe was chosen for both the high quality and reliability of its products and the company’s extensive experience in the broadcast industry. The success of the Guten Morgen Deutschland studio, and the Leyard Europe team’s ability to collaborate with Veech x Veech on the best technical solution for the project, was also a deciding factor. “The fact that we have a large European support network that’s able to provide all the necessary services was also vitally important,” adds Van Houdt.

The installation was performed by Leyard Europe and RTL’s in-house system integrator, CBC (Cologne Broadcast Centre). An outer wall of Leyard Luminate Pro Series (LPO7.8mm) complements the central high-resolution displays, with one side of the studio framed with the curved video wall, measuring 10m long by 2.7m high. Two mobile, computer-controlled monitors complement the minimalist set and ceiling-mounted robotic cameras are finely tracked by sensors. The equipment in the new studio - LED walls, lights, monitors and cameras - also has the added benefit of a significantly lower power consumption than the previous green screen studio.

High-precision robotic drives allow the set elements to be re-configured and adapted to the channel’s round-the-clock schedule, with tailor-made sets created in minutes depending on the incoming news. Standard configurations are already preset, and new configurations can be quickly programmed and saved as required.

“The modularity of the individual components and the free configurability of the system allow a completely brand-specific design for each programme, which creates an unmistakable identity, but can be transformed into another programme format at any time. Freely configurable LED walls and robotically controlled cameras create media environments across the entire available area - that's what we call maximum efficiency gains. New perspectives are continuously created for the viewer, with programme content dynamically presented in the interplay of moderated and digitally recorded elements.”

Stuart A. Veech
CEO & Creative Director, Veech x Veech

“For us, the focus is on the news, the story or the guest, and the new studio creates the ideal atmosphere for this in every situation,” concludes Stephan Schmitter, Managing Director of RTL NEWS and Chief Journalistic Content Officer of RTL Germany. “Our claim to reach as many people as possible with independent journalism is substantiated every day with our great team. Now the new studio has added the appropriate technical framework to support this mission.“

“The new functionalities will enable us to make information even more understandable and attractive for viewers in the future. The variable spatial structure is also a true innovation in production technology, making our studio the most modern in Europe. With this new facility, it will take our formats to a whole new level both visually and in terms of content, without sacrificing the familiar feeling that our viewers have for their favourite brands.”