NorthStar Studios Names Tim Sloan as Senior Director of Systems Engineering
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NorthStar Studios recently announced the addition of Tim Sloan as Senior Director of Systems Engineering. Sloan’s main responsibilities with NorthStar are focusing on the extensive HD conversion and integration for the studio facility with a July 2009 launch date of NorthStar Studios HD studio, post and network origination services. "I am extremely pleased and excited to have Tim Sloan join our engineering staff. He brings a wealth of engineering knowledge and experience to NorthStar Studios. His broad background in production, post production and network origination engineering with organizations like TNN and CNN, coupled with his system design, installation and integration expertise make him a perfect fit for our full service facility," said Mike Arnold, NorthStar Studios Vice President of Engineering and Operations. Tim joins NorthStar with over 25 years of broadcast and engineering experience.
Tim is a Graduate of Western Kentucky University with a B.S. in Broadcast Engineering. He relocated to Nashville from Tampa, Florida where he was VP of Engineering with Professional Communications Systems. Prior to PCS, Tim worked for Broadcast Technology Group/BIS where he consulted with Turner Broadcasting, CNN, a number of R&D projects, integration and system design work. Tim also has worked for TI Broadcast Solutions Group where he consulted with Voice of America News, The Outdoor Channel HD and TV Azteca. NorthStar Studios believes Tim will augment and enhance the current engineering group and bring added experience and support in the facilities HD conversion plans.
Country’s Family Reunion produces a new series at NorthStar Studios
Nashville, TN (January 18, 2010) Country’s Family Reunion entertainment franchise is producing a new “reunion” series called CFR’s Songwriter’s Reunion. The series is produced in HD in a multi-camera format at NorthStar Studios. The highly successful series is focusing on some of country music’s biggest songwriters telling their stories, inspirations, and sharing the background on how they were able to write and produce their music. The Songwriter’s Reunion show is hosted by country music legend Bill Anderson and will be released in early summer of 2010. Larry Black, Producer of CFR’s Songwriter’s Reunion says, “The Songwriter’s Reunion show is long over due in bringing tribute to the people who wrote this music. There would be no music industry without the writers, and this series showcases their incredible rich talent and moving stories”. Over 23 music writing legends are being featured in this series that will be broadcast nationally and released as a DVD series. “No other production studio in Nashville could support such a large production so seamlessly” says Black. “We recently completed our multimillion dollar HD production conversion and CFR’s Songwriter’s Reunion show is the perfect production to showcase our new equipment”, says Grant Barbre, President of NorthStar Studios.
The Songwriter’s Reunion series includes stories and songs from many songwriter legends. Vince Gill (“Go Rest High On That Mountain”), Hank Cochran (“I Fall to Pieces” for Patsy Cline and “Make the World Go Away” for Eddie Arnold), Don Shultz (“The Gambler” for Kenny Rogers), Curly Putman (“The Green Green Grass of Home” for Tom Jones and Porter Wagoner), Sammy Throckmorton and Wayne Carson (“Always On My Mind”) are just a few of the amazing writers who tell their story about the songs that they have written. Black goes onto say “Beyond the great stories these writers tell and sing, this is like a Master Class in song writing where these legends share the roads they took to get their songs to the people”.
Production Highlights:
- Show series title: CFR’s Songwriter’s Reunion
- Website: www.CFRvideos.com
- Executive Producer: Larry Black
- Producer: Jamie Amos
- Directed by: Jim Yokey Studio: NorthStar Studios, Nashville (www.NorthStarStudios.tv)
- Number of Cameras: 8 (in HD)
- Crew size: 100
Underwood, Paisley to return as CMA hosts
The Country Music Association revealed Thursday that Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will return as hosts for the 44th annual CMA Awards. It will be the pair's third time hosting the event. "It's clear that to host country music's biggest might you need two of country music's biggest stars," said CMA chief executive officer Steve Moore during a press conference at Nashville's Northstar Studios. Paisley and Underwood were on hand to share their pleasure in returning as hosts. "We're just really excited," Underwood said. "The time flies by. We start out reading what's on the teleprompter and then by the end of the night it's (more off the cuff)." Paisley said he thought the pair made a good team because Underwood balances him out. "She's just a great, great person," he said. "She brings class, style and grace — everything I don't have — to the show." The CMA Awards will air live from Bridgestone Arena at 7 p.m. Nov. 10 on ABC. — CINDY WATTS
NorthStar Studios named production provider for Country’s Family Reunion 11th Series
Nashville, TN (January 20, 2010) Country’s Family Reunion, the franchise that produces the popular reunion television and video series, announced today that they will go into production for their 11th Country’s Family Reunion series. The series is being produced at NorthStar Studios in Nashville, Tennessee in a HD multi-camera format. Executive Producer Larry Black says, “We have had extraordinary success with the 10 other country music reunion series that we have produced and the demand for more shows has grown even bigger”. CFR features country music’s greatest performing legends and brings them together to share stories, music, and their life’s experience in the country music industry. Season 11 of Country’s Family Reunion will feature some of the biggest country music legends, such as Vince Gill, Lorrie Morgan, Brad Paisley, BJ Thomas, George Jones, Ray Benson, Charlie Pride and Billy Grammer, all while being hosted by fan’s favorite and country music’s own Bill Anderson. Shot in “the round” the series showcases each country music star’s story, their inspirations, and the music that make them the legends that they are today.
“The Country’s Family Reunion series is a production that we value having at NorthStar Studios,” says Grant Barbre, President of NorthStar Studios, “This incredibly popular show series utilizes all of our HD services, from our studios and cameras to our HD post production suites. We are providing CFR with all the tools to produce a world class production”. Black goes onto say that, “NorthStar Studios is a state of the art production facility that can handle the size and talent of our production”.
Production Highlights:
- Executive Producer: Larry Black
- Producer: Jamie Amos
- Directed by Jim Yokey
- Host: Country music legend Bill Anderson
- HD series and DVD release target date: Summer 2010
- Pre-order by going to CFRVideos.com
NorthStar Studios and Olympusat Sign Long Term Broadcast and Transmission Agreement
Nashville, TN (October 19, 2010) -- Nashville based NorthStar Studios announced today that it has formed a long term broadcast network origination and transmission agreement with Florida based Olympusat Inc. NorthStar Studios will be providing network origination services for a number of Olympusat’s broadcast networks. “Broadcasting a variety of Olympusat’s cable networks from NorthStar Studios is an important step in our continued network origination service growth,” says Grant Barbre, President of NorthStar Studios, also adding, “There are a lot of synergistic operational opportunities between our two companies, and we look forward to supporting Olympusat’s long-term broadcast initiatives.”
Olympusat is a leader in the broadcasting industry that owns, operates, and provides turnkey operational and distribution services for independent linear and non-linear HD and SD broadcast networks. Olympusat also represents more than 30 diverse channels and has developed into being a top tier provider of independent programming networks to the cable, satellite, and telco industries. Formed in 1999, Olympusat was the first independent company to offer a package of Spanish language networks in the U.S. in a satellite multiplex format. NorthStar Studios will be broadcasting HD and SD networks from its Network Operations Center.
NorthStar Studios is the largest full service television broadcast and production provider in the Southern Region providing HD and SD broadcast services for numerous networks cable outlets and television shows. NorthStar Studios features turnkey HD production services with 7 studios, post production, field production, network operations services, and transmission. For more information on NorthStar Studios visit www.NorthStarStudios.tv . For more information on Olympusat visit www.Olympusat.com.
PRESS
Pure Country 2: The Gift- Release date in October
In November of 2009, many Nashvillians had the opportunity to participate in a free concert taping when country singers Katrina Elam and George Strait filmed throughout the city for a movie that was called A Pure Country Gift at the time. Now the movie has changed its name to Pure Country 2: The Gift and is scheduled to open in limited release on Friday, October 15.
Pure Country 2: The Gift - Plot
Pure Country 2: The Gift is the story of a baby named Bobbie (Katrina Elam) who is given the gift of a beautiful singing voice by the angels. To keep her gift, she must abide by three simple rules of character and kindness.
Pure Country 2: The Gift - Story
When she is old enough, Bobbie moves to Nashville to launch her singing career. Along the way, she begins breaking the angels' rules, even as she meets an honorable young cowboy (Travis Fimmel), finds her long-lost father (J.D. Parker), and receives sage advice from her tour headliner, country music legend George Strait. Bobbie’s ambition threatens to cause her to lose more than just her voice.
Pure Country 2: The Gift - Nashville Connections
Filmed on location across Nashville including the Municipal Auditorium, Twin Pines Ranch in Lebanon, and Nashville's NorthStar Studios, Pure Country 2: The Gift is being marketed to the faith and value audience. Pure Country 2 is directed by Christopher Cain and also stars Dean Cain, David Chattam, and Jeremy Childs. Pure Country 2: The Gift releases on Friday, October 15, 2010.
WITH HELP FROM BRITA’S “FILTERFORGOOD” CAMPAIGN, NASHVILLE’S GABRIEL ENTERTAINMENT AND NORTHSTAR STUDIOS GOES GREEN
Gabriel Entertainment and NorthStar Studios will have their first green video shoot beginning the week of January 18th thanks to the help of Brita and their “FilterForGood” campaign. Gabriel Entertainment producer, Jamie Amos, contacted Brita’s representative to enlist their help after receiving a reusable water bottle and signing a pledge to reduce bottled water waste from the Brita tent at last year’s Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
“I’ve used my Brita water bottle every day since I took the pledge. When this shoot came up, I thought this would be a great opportunity to continue and expand Brita’s goal in reducing bottled water waste” said Amos. “Our executive producer, Larry Black, has been very supportive in the effort and understands that using reusable bottles not only benefits the environment but also helps on the amount of bottled water unnecessarily wasted and discarded on video shoots.”
In addition to using the donated 180 reusable water bottles and filtered water pitchers donated by Brita, the shoot will be recycling all recyclable products and using biodegradable coffee cups, plates and recycled paper goods.
Brita partnered with Nalgene to launch the FilterForGood campaign, which encourages people to reduce their bottled water waste by switching to reusable bottles filled with filtered water. Since the campaign launched in 2007, more than 170,000 people have taken the pledge to reduce their bottled water waste, keeping an estimated 180 million disposable bottles out of landfills. Visit filterforgood.com to learn how you can make a difference.
WITH HELP FROM BRITA’S “FILTERFORGOOD” CAMPAIGN, NASHVILLE’S GABRIEL ENTERTAINMENT AND NORTHSTAR STUDIOS GOES GREEN
Gabriel Entertainment and NorthStar Studios will have their first green video shoot beginning the week of January 18th thanks to the help of Brita and their “FilterForGood” campaign. Gabriel Entertainment producer, Jamie Amos, contacted Brita’s representative to enlist their help after receiving a reusable water bottle and signing a pledge to reduce bottled water waste from the Brita tent at last year’s Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
“I’ve used my Brita water bottle every day since I took the pledge. When this shoot came up, I thought this would be a great opportunity to continue and expand Brita’s goal in reducing bottled water waste” said Amos. “Our executive producer, Larry Black, has been very supportive in the effort and understands that using reusable bottles not only benefits the environment but also helps on the amount of bottled water unnecessarily wasted and discarded on video shoots.”
In addition to using the donated 180 reusable water bottles and filtered water pitchers donated by Brita, the shoot will be recycling all recyclable products and using biodegradable coffee cups, plates and recycled paper goods.
Brita partnered with Nalgene to launch the FilterForGood campaign, which encourages people to reduce their bottled water waste by switching to reusable bottles filled with filtered water. Since the campaign launched in 2007, more than 170,000 people have taken the pledge to reduce their bottled water waste, keeping an estimated 180 million disposable bottles out of landfills. Visit filterforgood.com to learn how you can make a difference.
NorthStar Studios First in Nashville to Install Digidesign VENUE Systems for Television Production Service
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NorthStar Studios, Nashville’s largest full service television production facility, has announced the purchase and installation of a new state of the art audio production system – Digidesign VENUE. “This is a first in Nashville and NorthStar Studios is on the cutting edge of audio support for television production in the US” says Grant Barbre, President of NorthStar Studios. “The Digidesign Venue audio systems are an incredible addition to our production facility enabling us to support a variety of live and taped productions in all three of our control rooms with pristine audio support. This is a serious investment in our studio which we expect will attract clients who produce major music and concert multi-track productions for television broadcast.”
The VENUE system is designed to answer the needs of modern live sound television studio applications the state of the art system is shaping the future of live performance audio. This highly expandable and customizable system comprises the D-Show™ mixing console, local and remote I/O racks, artist-driven PQ monitoring, and Pro Tools® recording interfaces. With numerous hardware options for every system component, VENUE offers the ultimate in flexibility for all types of live sound applications. “VENUE features, such as Virtual Soundcheck and native storage and control of TDM Plug Ins are wonderful assets for any live event workflow – particularly music for television. So it goes without saying, that we’re thrilled to have a broadcast facility the caliber of NorthStar Studios adopting and employing VENUE, especially in one of the greatest music cities in the world,” comments Robert Scovill, Market Manager for Live Sound Products for Digidesign.
VENUE leverages Digidesign’s core technologies and delivers the quality and flexibility that are Digidesign’s hallmark coupled with unique features, such as TDM effects plug-ins, artist-driven PQ monitoring, and seamless recording and playback integration with industry-standard Digidesign® Pro Tools systems. NorthStar Studios has installed the Venue system into all three of its control rooms which allows NorthStar Studios to produce three independent studio productions at the same time.
NORTHSTAR STUDIOS TO PROVIDE NETWORK ORIGINATION FOR BIZTELEVISION
NASHVILLE, TN - Newly launched television network BizTelevision based in Dallas, Texas has announced that Nashville, Tennessee’s television production facility, NorthStar Studios, has been selected as their broadcast network origination provider. BizTelevision delivers relevant business news to a broad demographic audience.
“NorthStar Studios meets all of our broadcast needs, says Vice President and General Manger of BizTelevision Justin Murf. “NorthStar Studios strong experience in Network Origination and exceptional production services provides us with a full service broadcast option that we require to offer our television audience a quality broadcast.”
BizTelevsions’ soft launch occurred in late fall of 2009. The network has already signed twelve new broadcast markets and plans a presence in every major market by 2013. BizTelevision programming combines Main Street with Wall Street and provides specialized programming for business professionals, families and retirees. The network will also deliver a children’s weekend programming schedule to teach children the basic lessons about money and savings. BizTelevision plans to produce several of the planned shows at NorthStar Studios.
Grant Barbre, President of NorthStar Studios is pleased about the addition. “We consider BizTelevision a natural fit for our growing Network Origination business unit. Network Origination services combined with our ability to produce shows live or taped for BizTelevision creates a win/win for both companies. BizTelevision fills an important niche in this economic climate where viewers are eager to learn more about money management, investment opportunities and entrepreneurship.”
NorthStar Studios is Nashville’s largest full service television production providing HD and SD broadcast services including network origination, studio production, post production and field production support.