VIER IM POTT in the biggest Saturday night show on German television

Almost two weeks ago, the phone rang on my way home. That's how the story begins. And it ends with a weekend in a studio in Berlin. The producer of „Klein gegen Groß" calls me. They had an idea in which a simulator was to be used as the backdrop for a game. Could we provide them with such a device? A simulator on the fly for one of the biggest Saturday evening shows on public television? Sure!

I am very grateful to the team in Dresden. The guys actually managed to get a simulator ready for despatch from the production line within a few days. I was happy to provide on-site support and installation. When do you ever have time to attend an event like this?

And it was really exciting. I arrived Friday morning at the studio. With the right wristband, I was able to move around freely backstage. The simulator arrived the day before.

The stage team had already built a mobile platform so that he could simply be wheeled into the studio from backstage. The first challenge was to get the simulator up and running within six hours so that it could be used in the first rehearsal.

The set-up and camera angles are tested in the so-called set-up test. The problem is that the simulator requires power. Without power, it first has to start up again. And that would take too much time. The idea was therefore to install an uninterruptible power supply on the platform. But would there be enough power for the computer and the hardware? And if so, for how long? We tried it out once around lunchtime. 150 seconds was feasible. In the evening, we made it to the stage in 45 seconds. So no problem. Hopefully. I had no desire to be the reason for a delay at such a big show...

The dress rehearsal followed on Saturday. Already with the children, but with extras for the celebrity guests. Everything worked perfectly on that day. To be honest, we didn't even switch off the simulator for a few days. The recording began on Sunday around midday. And although we didn't have any problems during the days, I was still a bit tense in view of the large audience and the tight schedule.

People from the VIER IM POTT were kind enough to come to Berlin for the recording. Discreetly dressed and barely recognisable as such.... 😊And what can we say. The child (8 years old) won, of course. 😊

For me, it was simply cool to work backstage and watch for a few days how such a big show works. I ate with the crew and experienced the everyday life of film crews. Real professionals, well-organised processes, and structured communication wherever you look. And that is no easy task. The exemplary care of the children and their families, the handling of the celebrities, all the props and processes. I counted up to 16 cameras at the same time. Different lighting worlds and much more.

And I think they all did a great job and it was a fantastic experience.