It has been called the „Best Film School in the World“: The National Film and Television School (NFTS) in Beaconsfield near London, UK, offers a level of media education you hardly get anywhere else. Its students go on to work on big blockbusters and future classics, shaping the industry with their output. To achieve these impressive results, the NFTS relies on only the best equipment possible. In audio monitoring, they found PSI Audio to be the one brand to provide the most transparent and neutral results, making them the perfect choice for their various studios. More than five dozen PSI Audio speakers grant the students the acoustic insight they require for optimal results.
The contents of this press release
- PSI Audio chosen for monitoring at NFTS
- The Best Film School in the World
- Chosen by ear: PSI Audio
- Students do not want to leave
- PSI Audio A17-M: Price and availability
Yverdon-les-Bains, 18th December 2017 – Swiss studio monitor manufacturer PSI Audio was chosen to provide the audio monitoring for dozens of new studios at the world renowned National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield near London, UK. After a long and meticulous selection process, the NFTS picked PSI Audio monitors from an initial set of seven brands and 15 models. Well known for its high quality standards, the NFTS would not settle for less than ideal.
The Best Film School in the World
Founded in 1971, the NFTS has established itself as one of the world’s leading film schools. British newspaper The Observer went so far as to call it “The Best Film School in the World”, and looking at the school’s alumni credits, it is hard to disagree. From “Harry Potter” to “Skyfall”, major blockbusters were created with former NFTS students involved in all fields. In the audio branch, every student gets their own studio for the time of their studies – a professionally equipped, industry standard studio they can use 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. One major aspect of the NFTS is bringing the students together for projects, as Senior Supervising Engineer Jérémy Rodeschini explains. “Everyone is invited to collaborate on the story.” This heavy focus on the creative part of the process also means that the technology involved needs to work without requiring too much effort and attention.
Chosen by ear: PSI Audio
The high standards of the school, its staff and the students are mirrored in the choice of equipment. So picking a new piece of gear is no easy feat. “All in all, it was a four month process,” Rodeschini reveals. And he adds: “People are very passionate about speakers.” But the goal was clear: Studio monitors that would not colour the sound, but reproduce it neutrally. That would not fatigue the listener’s ears and would perform for years to come. From an initial selection of 15 models by seven brands, more than half were quickly eliminated, and then a jury of industry professionals and tutors blind tested the remaining candidates. This second phase left three models still in the running, but one faltered in the low end and the other disappointed in the high spectrum. The only speakers that did not display any particular weaknesses were the PSI models, so they were chosen for the new stereo setups and 5.1 environments alike. Rodeschini is quick to mention another advantage of the Swiss manufacturer: “They came over here on multiple occasions, so we knew they would be there if we needed them. We felt appreciated by PSI Audio.”
Students do not want to leave
After the speakers were installed in the studios, Rodeschini noticed a remarkable change. “Nobody was talking about the speakers anymore,” he says with a smile. “After all the discussions during the selection process, nobody was talking about the speakers after they were installed.” According to Rodeschini, this is because the PSI Audio monitors just do their job: They reproduce audio without appearing as a part of the listening chain themselves. They do not colour the sound, they do not alter it; they just reproduce it, as a good monitor should. So well did they perform, in fact, that students from the Composing for Film and Television MA wanted PSI Audio monitors for their own studios after hearing them in the film suites. But there is a downside to this acoustic excellence: “The students are afraid to leave the School, because they know they will probably not find such good working conditions anywhere else!”
PSI Audio monitors: Price and availability
The NFTS bought PSI Audio A14-M, A17-M, A21-M monitors and A125-M subwoofers. Manufactured to the highest standards and built to last a lifetime, the PSI Audio speakers deliver top end sound performance with incredible precision and no colouration.
