Les Mills introduces projected image technology to deliver Masterclass videos

Mindful of global travel barriers that have affected its international presenters during preparations for the latest round of Les Mills Masterclasses, the group fitness giant has made use of projected image technology to show instructors from different countries as if they were in the same location.

Introducing the technology, which she says creates a type of hologram effect, Les Mills Producer, Ross Peebles explains “I guess they’re holograms … basically projected images of presenters from around the world.”

With COVID-19 having created massive challenges in the production of Les Mills Masterclass,  Peebles advised “when travel restrictions were initially introduced, our response was to create the United Releases, which featured Presenters from around the globe who filmed themselves on iPhones. We subsequently evolved this tactic from Q4.2020.”

However, with international travel restrictions remaining in place the Les Mills Masterclass team set about enhancing production sand sound quality.

Les Mills Line Producer, Georgia Burn commented “we need professional, clear, high-quality audio for a Les Mills production

"Unfortunately, iPhone audio recording won’t work for us."

Employing new solutions, Burn added “our biggest challenge was creatively bringing a group of international presenters together while maintaining consistency of the class.

“We could have sent a camera crew out to film someone in China presenting BODYPUMP, but then it would have looked and sounded - both from a creative perspective, but also a technical perspective - very different to what may have been filmed in Sydney or the UK.

"So we hit upon a coherent and consistent concept that ensured every shoot would look the same."

Shoots were set up in London, Shanghai, Sydney and Paris, with Peebles directing production from Les Mills International in Auckland.

Explaining how this was managed, Peebles added “we essentially watched the shoots on a more robust version of a Zoom call.

“This allowed us to both monitor and direct the cameras, to make sure we're getting exactly what we need.

"We also had Kylie Gates, our Creative Director, and the program directors with us to monitor the performance elements."

Peebles added that filming around the globe over consecutive days meant the teams faced added challenges from time zones and language barriers, going on to say “we were filming five days in a row, where the presenters are at the opposite ends of the earth, so what time do you film?

“The Paris team didn't finish filming until around 04:15am local time. It was a massive undertaking for the teams to shoot BODYATTACK or BODYCOMBAT tracks at 03:30 in the morning, wearing masks, maintaining social distancing, operating under what would have been clearly challenging and stressful circumstances at the best of times, let alone with those additional pressures as well.”

Filming week occurred as Europe and the UK faced the threat of further lockdowns, meaning the teams had to be incredibly flexible and prepare for a range of scenarios.

As Burn concludes “everything was changing constantly - it was very unpredictable.

“Literally days before we filmed in Paris, France introduced an overnight curfew which caused massive issues for us. And just a few days after the shoot came a national lockdown. There were heaps of challenges, some foreseeable, some less so.

“We just tried to anticipate potential issues as best we could and mitigate those right from the outset.”

Images: Les Mills used projected image technology, creating a type of hologram effect to show presenters from different countries in the same studio. Credit: Les Mills.