Grass Valley To Debut AVORA In North America

Grass Valley will give its all‑in‑one live production platform AVORA its first North American showcase at NAB Show New York on 21–22 October.

The system will feature on the Grass Valley stand (#121), with live demonstrations by Solutions Architect Vanesa Andrés at the Broadfield booth (#613).

Andrés recently returned from IBC2026 in Amsterdam, where she supported the GV Forum production using Event Producer X and led demos of the newly launched AVORA. Preparing for New York, she said the key distinction between AVORA and Event Producer X is operational simplicity, particularly for common on‑air tasks.

She highlighted a GV Forum moment when CPO Adam Marshall requested a bespoke three‑box layout mid‑show. In Event Producer X, building that scene demanded deep familiarity with Maverik X concepts such as keyers, image stores, EMEMs, banks and macros—configuring multiple keyers, storing the composition, creating a macro and assigning it to a switcher control before it could go live.

By contrast, AVORA allows an operator to assemble sources directly in a visual layout editor and use the scene immediately. That lowers the barrier for less‑experienced switcher users while still supporting rapid changes in a live environment.

AVORA consolidates tools for live production into a standalone system underpinned by AMPP technology. Switching and audio can be handled within the same environment, with graphics and remote contribution integrated across workflows. It supports visual shot‑based production as well as traditional program/preset operation, enabling operators to choose the control style that matches their experience. Productions can be run by a single operator or split between team members—such as separate audio and vision roles—via individual browser interfaces.

Feedback from a North American sports production customer that has been evaluating Event Producer X and Sports Producer X underscored AVORA’s positioning. Supporting everything from complex matches to smaller fixtures, the team identified AVORA as a strong fit for lower‑tier events where speed of deployment and operational efficiency are paramount.

Two advantages stood out to them: AVORA can significantly cut event preparation time by enabling operators to build productions quickly without extensive pre‑configuration, and it reduces the training burden, making it easier to staff shows and scale resources. They also viewed AVORA as a development platform for the next generation of technical directors—allowing newcomers to gain confidence on an intuitive system while learning core live production principles—and indicated they could equip one of their offices with at least 10 AVORA systems.

AVORA's ability to save and recall complete show setups also benefits recurring corporate productions. Teams can load a familiar template, update speakers and assets, and rehearse efficiently without rebuilding the format from scratch.

At GV Forum, CTO Ian Fletcher demonstrated how AVORA can bind production cues to a presentation script. As prompting followed his voice, the system automatically triggered camera changes and graphics at the right moments—an approach that can help corporate presenters pre‑plan cues that then track their delivery during the live show.

grassvalley.com