Toast Of Tinseltown wins Rose d’Or award

Toast of Tinseltown has won the international Rose d’Or award for comedy. A huge congratulations to Objective Media and all the team. For Objective Media: Michael Cumming Ben Farrell Matt Berry Arthur Mathews For Suite: UHD Online editor: Matt Roberts Dubbing mixer: Matt Brace VFX: Matt Pettit

Suite’s Environmental Guidelines

 

We are proud to have our Albert Affiliation, and to support its aspirations for a greener industry.

Please see some of the areas we have addressed below;

 

• We recycle paper, cardboard and plastic in both our office and kitchen

 

• We use energy efficient light bulbs where possible

 

• Our bathrooms have timed light sensors to ensure they are not left running

 

• We support cycling to work and have shower facilities

 

• Every evening the kit in our suites & air-conditioning units are switched off

 

• We no longer buy still water in plastic bottles but use glass refillable bottles around the building instead.

 

• We use Brita filtered water system

 

• We have Zip Instant Hot Water taps in our kitchen

 

• All our air-conditioning units are being replaced with more energy efficient units

 

• Virtualisation of servers to reduce power consumption

 

• All internal documentation is now held on our intranet and so is paperless

 

• Company cars and motorbikes are electric

 

• Energy supplied by Pozitive Energy Green tariff

Case study: How classic Hollywood inspired the look of Toast of Tinseltown

Suite Post colourist Lee Clappison explains how he created the look for Steven Toast’s latest outing

By Contributor
Published: January 11, 2022 ⋅ Updated: January 13, 2022

 

Channel 4 sitcom series Toast of London aired between 2012-2015 and followed an eccentric middle-aged actor, Steven Toast (played by Matt Berry), as he spent more time dealing with his problems off stage than performing on it.

The series came to an end after shooting the third season. However, rising from the embers, Matt Berry has brought back his BAFTA-winning comedy creation, Steven Toast in a new 6×30 series Toast of Tinseltown currently airing BBC Two, but this time set in Hollywood, CA.

Produced by Objective Fiction, director Michael Cumming and DoP Pete Edwards, who both previously worked on Sandylands, wanted to follow the same look and feel of the previous series (Toast of London) for the parts set in London, but a different look and feel was needed when moved to Tinseltown.

Colourist Lee Clappison of Suite Post worked closely with the director and DoP throughout the process. “We experimented with lots of ideas to try and subtly change the feel, with some references to the ’70s show Columbo, and some classic Hollywood colours. In particular, Michael wanted to experiment with integrating a classic three-strip Technicolor look.”

Edwards shot the series on the Sony Venice in 4K UHD during which Clappison followed closely to maintain a constant flow of communication between the production and grading stages. “It was a very specific look, we were always mindful of maintaining consistency throughout the series,” Clappison says.

With knowledge of the look Cumming was aiming for, Clappison began emulating the three strip Technicolor process. “I was able to use DaVinci Resolve’s node tree to split out the red, green and blue channels, and experiment with varying combinations of mixing these channels back together. This provided the main part of the recipe for the grade.”

“I loved working on the episode Death Valley, where Toast is in the desert, this seems to really shine with the Technicolor recipe I’d established. The dust and warmth of the scenes, as well as the costumes, especially the double-denim of Aidan Turner’s costume, look amazing.”

Clappison and online editor Matthew Roberts (Suite Post) worked closely in Resolve and Fusion. “We were doing the online at the same time (in another suite), so we could all work together simultaneously and update grades, edits, or effects without any big disruptions,” explains Clappison.

He continues, “The sign-off process was very smooth, and we were viewing everything on matched and calibrated Sony X300 monitors, so whether we were signing off the grade or the online, everything was the same in each suite.”

Alongside the standard online work of the line-up, clocks and credits, Roberts handled more complex tasks. “There was a lot of screen replacement work in two of the episodes, which I used Fusion to do. The background plate was shot in the UK on one camera and the foreground was provided at a different frame rate and colour space from a team in the US.”

In one episode, chroma keying was required for scenes featuring dangerous animals. While some shots were sent to After Effects, others were completed in Fusion. “We had the advantage of keeping the foreground and background separate, so Lee could apply different LUTs as needed, or even help me by removing any green screen spill.”

He continues, “I used the Delta keyer to get a core key and a second key to add fine hair detail, and then combined.” Roberts also completed extra rotoscoping work, in the same effect, if the key had missed anything – again using Fusion’s planar tracker to help, adding a defocus onto the background if needed to help bed it in.

Roberts concludes, “By using Fusion, we could open up the composite and treat each layer separately (for example, by adding different LUTs on each layer), and then grade the composited shot as a whole. It has led to a more flexible approach, and keeps the clients and the grade happy.”

Toast of Tinseltown is available to watch on BBC iPlayer and continues on BBC Two tonight.

SUITE LTD

Health & Safety

COVID-19

Version 1.4

December 2021

Introduction

At the beginning of the lockdown period Suite Ltd initiated a remote work from home policy for the majority of its staff and clients. Now, with the easing of the rules on self-isolation, the company has adapted the Newman Street building so that it complies with the Government guidelines and has made the facility Covid friendly for clients who now wish to work at Newman Street.

Suite Ltd’s priority is to safeguard its staff, clients and suppliers so as to prevent the spread of the virus. Our operational decisions during these challenging times will always put the well-being of staff and clients first.

As the guidelines and regulations relating to Covid-19 are evolving, the Directors of Suite Ltd will regularly review our policy and make changes wherever it seems appropriate.

1. Social Distancing

Suite Ltd has taken the following measures to ensure socially distancing.

These measures are:

• Nominated work areas for all staff.

• A register that keeps track of staff and clients. Couriers and delivery personnel are requested to wait in the entrance hall.

• A drop off area will be available for deliveries to avoid hand to hand interaction.

• A two metre distancing tape placed around communal areas.

• Any meetings between clients and management to take place by Zoom or similar. Alternatively, one to one meetings can take place in the meeting room where a two metre derivation can be applied.

• All visitors to Suite Ltd’s facility will be required to fill in a Track + Trace register

• Runners and Edit Assistants are not to access suites currently being used by clients/staff.

• All food to be left at the back of the edit suite or outside the door

While Suite Ltd discourages visitors from attending the workplace it recognises that there may be occasions when this is necessary in which case the House Manager or a Director of the company needs to be informed and the visitors name added to the log book.

The Kitchen areas are closed to all staff & clients excluding the one allocated runner.

For more information about social distancing, staff are referred to: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/staying-alert-and-safe-social- distancing/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing.

Any questions arising to be made to Directors of the company.

 

2. Personal Hygiene and Well-being

Suite Ltd will encourage everyone to follow the well-publicised hygiene measures to ensure everyone’s health and safety.

· Hand washing frequently using soap and water for 20 seconds.

· Verbal only greetings.

· Clients and staff are not permitted to order personal items to be delivered to the facility.

· Only essential personal items should be brought to the workplace.

• There will be no newspapers, magazines or bowls of fruit in the reception area.

The Directors of the company are mindful that these new working conditions might generate some added stress and encourage any constructive feedback with a view to altering these protocols if appropriate.

 

3. PPE

Protective Masks

A supply of masks will be made available to lower the chance of individuals spreading the virus. For the avoidance of doubt it is generally deemed that protective masks should:

· Cover both nose and mouth.

· Not be allowed to dangle around the neck after or between each use.

· Not be touched once put on.

· Be changed when they become moist or damaged.

· Be worn once and then discarded.

· Hand hygiene must be performed after disposal.

 

Hand Sanitisers

Hand sanitiser dispensers are available throughout the building and at reception.

 

Anti-Bac Wipes

Anti-Bacterial wipes are supplied in suites, reception & communal areas throughout the facility.

 

4. House-keeping

Each day a designated staff member will:

· Spray/wipe down all door handles

· Spray/wipe down all sanitiser dispensers

· Ensure hand sanitisers are always full

· Ensure toilets are cleaned and stocked with soap

 

5. Symptom Management & Contact Tracing

Suite Ltd has a staff and client sickness register for COVID-19 reporting.

· Anyone with symptoms must follow the Government guidelines on self-isolation and are not allowed to attend any site.

• If any employee or visitor receives a notification from the NHS app that they have been exposed to COVID-19, they must follow the apps instructions, go home and self-isolate immediately.

• Anyone with suspected COVID-19 in the facilities will be requested to leave immediately. If required transport will be arranged for them to get home. All areas visited or potentially visited by the individual will then be deep cleaned.

To ensure people exhibiting a fever are not allowed in the facility Suite Ltd will take temperature readings of all staff, clients and suppliers entering the premises. A reading of

37.8 or higher will be considered as a fever and therefore a symptom of the virus.

Where an individual tests positive, any and all employees or clients who could have come into contact with said individual would be notified and asked to follow self-isolation guidelines (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home- guidance).

 

6. Travelling to Work

Suite Ltd has joined the cycle to work scheme to encourage cycling to work. For further information about commuting on public transport the advice is frequently updated and is available at this website:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-safer-travel-guidance-for-passengers.

 

7. Compliance

As with all Health and Safety regulations the issue of compliance is paramount.

Non-compliance should be reported to the Directors of the company.

Repeated non-compliance of the social distancing and hygiene measures may result in disciplinary action or even access to the facility denied.

All reports of non-compliance will be registered and kept in accordance with guidelines and stored for 12 months in accordance with GDPR.

Wherever possible Suite will advise its suppliers that they are required to wear face coverings when delivering to the facility.

The monthly internal Newsletter will serve to remind employees of their responsibilities in respect to Health and Safety whilst at work, similarly the company will keep clients informed of any changes in policy.

 

The Directors of Suite Ltd undertake to ensure that the business is at all times operating within the Government approved guidelines of COVI-19 and will regularly review this policy document in the light of any changes in the regulations.

This document and any subsequent alterations is available on www.suitetv.com

We’re proud to say that we worked on the following nominated shows. Voting for the National Television Awards has now opened! Head over to: https://www.nationaltvawards.com/vote to cast your vote before 11pm on Friday 4th June 2021. Don’t miss the show on ITV, hosted by Joel Dommett, live from the 02 on Thursday 9th September.

 

 

 

Dear Client,

In these difficult and testing times we realise that there may still be a demand for programming and we would like to introduce our response to the crisis – SUITE VIRTUAL.

Almost everything we have provided before, is now available through our virtual post facility.

We are here and ready to help, this FAQ addresses what we imagine would be your main questions, but don’t hesitate to call us on 0207 636 4488 if you want to know more.

• All our staff are now working remotely and are ready to help.
• We also have staff who can safely drive to the Suite offices if required.

How can I get Rushes to Suite?

• You can deliver files to us electronically via Signiant/Aspera or any other internet based delivery mechanism.
• We can accept media from Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud and similar – although please contact us about this first as we can usually suggest something much faster.
• We have a secure FTP server with 24TB you can use to upload your media to us.
• You can deliver drives to our Technical Director any time of the day or night in North London (Zone 2) who can arrange to get data onto our system.
• We can arrange for an Edit Assistant to safely get to our Central London Office to receive drives and ingest them.

What facilities are you offering to wrangle my rushes?

All our Edit Assistants are remotely working and can do almost all the usual tasks you expect from them:

• Ingest.
• Grouping / Sync Mapping / Logging.
• Preparation of webviews for online logging so you can review your assets from home.
• Preparation of deliverables and final masters.

What Offline facilities do you have?

All our staff editors are remotely connected to Suite and so can work on offline as usual.

What Online facilities are you offering?

All our Online suites are also remotely accessible so we have all the usual online finishing tools
available.

As monitoring over a remote link has restricted bandwidth some technical checks are not possible.
However we have a solution to this problem (please see QC below.)

What Audio facilities are you offering?

Our audio staff have facilities at home. So they can:

• Prep
• Tracklay
• Mix (stereo only)

What grading facilities are you offering?

Lee Clappison – Suite’s Senior Colourist is now setup with full grading facilities at home.

What about graphics and effects?

Our VFX department are set up at home with all the usual tools for graphic design along with the usual
post-production fixes and quality keying.

What QC facilities are you offering?

Our Technical Director has a fully QC facility at home with appropriate grade one monitoring.
We can check all your deliverables with the same level of professionalism you expect from Suite.

 

We can also use these QC facilities to check any technical queries that may arise in a remote online
session.

Can you still deliver files to the broadcasters?

Yes – as we have remote access to the facility we can do all the usual AS-11 file creation, AQC, PSE
checks and delivery of files.

Yes, but how do I collaborate?

We have several options for screen sharing so you can be “in” the edit.

 

So, please get in touch – we’re here to help.

T: 0207 636 4488
E: Bookings@suitetv.com

Keep yourselves safe,

 

Your friends at Suite

Sandylands

Wednesday 4th March, 10pm, Gold. 

Emily Verma is living the high life in London, having escaped the clutches of
Sandylands – her seaside home town where her semi-estranged father Les Vegas
remains a local celebrity as arcade owner and self-proclaimed ‘King of the Strip’.

However, when Sandylands becomes headline news after a bloodied pedalo is
washed ashore – a pedalo last hired by Les – Emily is forced to make a reluctant
visit home, where she quickly discovers that all is definitely not what it seems in her
old stomping ground.

Starring Natalie Dew, Sanjeev Bhaskar, David Walliams, Sophie Thompson, Craig Parkinson, Simon Bird, Harriet Webb, Hugh Bonneville and others.

There’s a new Dubbing Mixer in town!

Suite’s new Mixer Matt Brace answers a few of our quickfire questions…

 

Matt Brace, our new Dubbing Mixer, joined us back in February. Previously at Lucky Cat, he has started a new venture here at Suite! He may be a great mixer, but I wonder how well he does under our quickfire questions…Let’s get to know Matt!

 

How did you get to where you are now?
I started mixing live sound in the theatre because I liked all the buttons. I tried location recording but hated being outside standing there with a boom etc it was very tedious. I wanted a bit more of a creative challenge so that’s when I tried Post Production.

 

Did you go to university?
I studied a BA in Theatre at the University of Hull. I then did a Masters at the Northern Film School in Sound in film.

 

Do you think university is important?
Er…yes. That’s where I met my wife! In all seriousness, the right course is very important. In regards to this industry, a very practical, hands on course is vital in my eyes.

 

Any advice for aspiring post production students?
Yes. Make stuff. Get hands on: as much experience and insight as you can.

 

Any TV highlights for you this year?
Oh it has to be Fleabag and Killing Eve! The writing and acting in both
are phenomenal.

 

Go to drink at the pub?
Local craft ale (does that sound pretentious?).

 

How do you fill your spare time?
Anything that involves not sitting on my bum. Long distance running and pottery are top ones. I’m also a massive family man, so spending as much time with them as possible is an obvious one.

 

Best recent film highlights? Roma was amazing. The cinematography and sound was superb! I know it was a while back, but Baby Driver is another one, that soundtrack though! How amazing was it?

 

Matt Pettit, our Visual Effects Artist, joined us back in November 2016. He may be great on After Effects, but I wonder how well he does under our random questions…Let’s get to know Matt! (A different Matt we promise!)

 

How did you get to where you are now?
I started at Suite as a Runner and in my first week I was interested in training with the VFX Artist. With video editing being what i initially thought i wanted to do, VFX was something I ended up liking even more, and realising that’s where my talents lie. The company eventually moved me into the VFX department when the previous artist left the company.

 

Did you go to university?
I studied Television and Video Production at Southampton Solent and specialised in Post-Production in my third year.

 

How do you fill your spare time?
I play football a couple of times a week and go to watch Fulham attempt to play football on Saturdays. I go to the gym and run a bit too.

 

Who’s winning the champions league final?
After Fulham missed out “narrowly”, I think Liverpool will do it but I’ll be supporting Spurs because my Uncle Ron is a big fan!

 

TV Highlights for you in the last year?
This Country stands out to me the most. I showed it to my dad and thought I’d lost him watching one scene. Lee and Dean is another comedy favourite of mine, which is actually cool because I got to work on it. Sunderland Til’ I Die was a great football documentary I would recommend too.

 

Music highlights for you in the last year?
The new Foals album is a big one I’m listening too at the moment and Daytona by Pusha T was probably my favourite Hip-Hop album of last year.

 

Advice for aspiring post production students?
Get as much work experience as you can in different areas of post-production. See what you like and then go for it! No matter what ability level you are, it’s the people that want it the most and show an interest to learn that normally do the best.

 

Go to Nandos order?
Chicken. Please.

 

 

Sally4Ever takes home a BAFTA for Best Scripted Comedy!

 

             

A HUGE congratulations to Various Artists, Phil Clarke & Julia Davis
on their BAFTA win for scripted comedy.

We’re extremely proud this masterpiece was all crafted here at Suite.