After two packed days of inspiration, learning and an abundance of networking, the biggest and best Media Production & Technology Show (MPTS) yet attracted a record 10,000+ visitors from 47 countries.
Held at London’s Olympia on 10 – 11 May, the editorially curated programme comprised of over 100 live sessions, 250+ hours of free content across six theatres and featured more than 300 speakers.
Combined with a packed show floor of 300+ exhibitors and sponsor partners, the event showcased the depth and breadth of the UK’s creative and technical excellence.
Peaky Blinders creator and Star Wars screenwriter and filmmaker Steven Knight CBE delivered the opening Keynote Address in which he spoke about his own creative processes and exciting plans to further develop the Midlands as a film and TV hotspot.
Other notable speakers included Danny Brocklehurst, Daniela Neumann, Jo Plaete, Nathan Orloff, Markus Stemler, Mary Nightingale, Louisa Bremner and Deborah Williams OBE.
The booming interest in Virtual Production was reflected in a keynote session by Epic Games and in the expanded Virtual Production theatre, which hosted a case study of HBO’s House of the Dragon and insights from Pixotope, Absen, Move.ai and disguise with plenty more for visitors to take away on the show floor.
The Audio theatre proved a big hit with attendees wanting to learn about the latest equipment and best practice for a variety of production genres.
Speakers included Emmy and RTS Award winning composer Nainita Desai, BAFTA Award and German Film Award winner Markus Stemler and BAFTA nominated Kate Davis.
The Post Production stage featured state of the nation panels with leading industry figures in post and VFX from Picture Shop, ENVY, Fifty Fifty, Lux Aeterna, Ghost VFX and Framestore.
The creative team behind The Boy, The Mole, The Fox & The Horse shared the workflow that helped them win an Oscar and visitors also got the chance to go behind-the-scenes on the colour grading on His Dark Materials and the VFX and animation on Apple TV+’s Prehistoric Planet.
Many exhibitors were impressed by both the number and the mix of visitors.
First time exhibitor, Dawn Bochenski, Marketing Director, CVP, said: “It’s been our first time exhibiting at MPTS and we will definitely be coming back. The quality of the customers and panels was perfect for us.”
Lexie Morgan, Marketing & Communications Leader, HHB, said: “MPTS has been really wonderful, it is great to see how much the show has expanded this year.
“In my opinion, it just seems to be getting better and better every year and I can’t wait to see what next year brings.”
Aura Popa, Marketing Manager, 80six & Virtual Production Studios by 80six, said: “We had a fantastic show, with so much interest in our in-camera visual effects solutions for car shoots.
“It was really impactful to give producers and creative directors the chance to see the workflow in action.”
Commenting on the show,Richard Warburton, Product Director, Global Distribution, said: “The show has been really good with a steady flow throughout the two days.
“It’s been great to have the 1st full year (kind of post-Covid) of lots of different shows in a row. So we are here just off the back of NAB.
“We have seen a really good mix of people from independent filmmakers, people doing corporate video commercial works to the typical kind of broadcasters production companies. Lots of education as well, which has been great.”
Gareth Capon, CEO, Grabyo, added: “We had a great time at the show this year at MPTS, I think the interest in cloud production has significantly increased in the last twelve months and we saw a lot of traction with customers and people looking at solutions in transforming the way that live TV is being produced. So we’ve got a great partnership.”
Julie O’Grady, Marketing Director, Lucidlink said: “It was great to meet with customers, partners, and prospects in the heart of the UK M&E community, demonstrating how LucidLink enables remote collaboration from anywhere in the world.
MPTS 2023 was a huge success for us, and experiencing professional ‘white glove’ treatment from all the show staff, just made my job that much easier.”
Charlotte Wheeler, Event Director, Media Production & Technology Show, said: “This has been an incredible show this year, packed to the rafters with visitors who all seemed so keen to engage and learn with seminars and visiting the exhibits.
“We’ve heard what it takes to put together world class award winning productions, had the veil lifted on disruptive technology like AI and not shied away from tackling topics that challenge our industry like diversity, skills shortages and sustainability.
“We thank everyone who gave their time and expertise to make MPTS such a thrilling success and rest assured – We are already working on MPTS 2024!”
MPTS2024 will take place at Olympia London on 15 – 16 May 2024.