Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

On the Gridiron: San Francisco 49ers Production Team Shifts Gears To Engage the Players

23/09/2020

On the Gridiron: San Francisco 49ers Production Team Shifts Gears To Engage the Players Even without fans in the stands, the team presents original material on the videoboards By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor

Wednesday, September 23, 2020 - 2:45 pm

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

Many professional sports have opted for a return to play inside a sanitized bubble. Not the NFL. Without skipping a beat, the league is soldiering on with regular-season games in all 32 stadiums across the country. Similar to our At the Ballpark series, On the Gridiron examines the new routines, habits, and production philosophies of in-venue personnel on any given Thursday, Sunday, or Monday.

In January, still two months from the nationwide stoppage of professional sports events, Levi's Stadium hosted the NFC Championship between the San Francisco 49ers and the Green Bay Packers. As the victorious home team celebrated with fans, it was one of the biggest moments in the venue's six-year history. Now, at the beginning of the team's attempt to return to the Super Bowl, the building is empty and completely different from what it was before the pandemic. And the in-venue and production teams are adopting new ways to put their content to good use.

MORE ON THE GRIDIRON INTERVIEWS

Jacksonville Jaguars Reflect on In-Stadium Fans During Week 1, Connecting With Duval' Community

Without Raucous Crowds, New Orleans Saints Adapt to a Quiet Mercedes-Benz Superdome

The last time we were inside of Levi's Stadium was the NFC Championship Game, and the energy was unreal, says Laura Johnson, director, game day presentation and live events, San Francisco 49ers. Then, to come into the home opener without any fans was a very stark contrast. I don't think there's anything that could have prepared us [for that].

Players Only: Videoboard Material Adds Hometown Flavor San Francisco 49ers' Laura Johnson (on screen) speaks with running back Raheem Mostert via Zoom during a Media Day photoshoot.

With attendance currently at zero at Levi's Stadium, the in-venue and production teams have found new approaches to distributing content. Social media is one of the more likely avenues, but the LED displays inside the venue are still firing up team-focused content. The team is the sole audience for these visual elements.

As we approached our regular-season games, says Johnson, it was a different mindset in terms of what we could do to hype up the players. We're doing our best to provide a sense of normalcy for the guys on the field. We also had to realize that our audience has changed because now it's the players on the field and what's going to get them motivated and engaged.

The team is stacked with personalities, including quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and tight end George Kittle. The crew has been contacting players' families to create unique and original content that captures players' attention during breaks in play.

We worked this offseason with our player-engagement team to reach out to the players' families to source some videos that could provide some motivation for the team, Johnson explains. We had no idea what we were going to get, but we got a beautiful gem with Bruce Kittle in a Luchador mask and dancing around to DMX's Party Up (Up in Here)'. We played that on the videoboard, and [George Kittle] was pointing out to the guys in the huddle that that was his dad. There was a little bit of risk involved because I didn't know if that was going to be too distracting, but, overall, we're playing the music that they want to hear as opposed to more of the mainstream stuff that we would play for the fans in the stands.

Collaborative Effort: Different Levels of Access for Content Gathering Besides reaching out to families to generate some content, production-team members are working together for the betterment of the franchise. One prime example was the team's Media Day prior to the start of the 2020 campaign: Johnson directed the production from her home due to stringent COVID-19 protocols.

Jimmy Garoppolo poses for a video used on the team's social channels as well as inside the stadium.

Media Day was a little bit unconventional for us, she notes, so we had to get a little creative. I physically couldn't be onsite because we could have only a certain [number of onsite staffers]. I was there via Zoom, coaching up our players and getting some lines over to them. It worked out really well, and I think the [players] got a good kick out of it and it made them feel a little bit at ease.

The safety-mandated tiering system within the organization is forcing creative groups to rely on each other when possible. Overall, the main goal is making sure that the steady flow of content that fans have become accustomed to is maintained.

There's a certain amount of people who are within certain tiers, Johnson explains. Our team photographers and social-media team fall into that category, as well as 49ers Studios with our producer and editors. We're heavily reliant on the people who can actually be the boots on the ground, and, for those who can't be, it's a lot of Zoom calls and virtual meetings. It's a lot of collaborating and trying to figure out how we can best work together to achieve that common goal.

Before and After: Digital Offerings Keep Fans Engaged During Pre/Postgame From the time 49er fans wake up on game day til they hit the hay, they will have access to pre/postgame coverage. With the unfortunate adaptations that have come with this season, this 49ers-centric content is being distributed through digital channels like the team's mobile app, website, and YouTube channel.

George Kittle (center) points to the video of his father, Bruce, on the videoboard.

We used to do a tw
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2020/09/23/on-the-gridiron-san-francisco-4...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

06/10/2025

France Tlvisions Wins Prestigious 2025 EBU Technology & Innovation Award in Groundbreaking Collaboration with Dalet

France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...

04/09/2025

Monumental Sports & Entertainment and Dalet Win Prestigious 2025 NAB Show Project of the Year Award

Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...

02/07/2025

FCC Approves Sale of Sinclair Stations to Rincon

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved the transfer of licenses for five TV stations from Sinclair to Rincon Broadcasting, which announce...

02/07/2025

TV Tech's Top Stories of 2025

As the media industry faces an uncertain business climate and rapidly changing consumer habits, TV Tech's most popular stories from the first six months of ...

02/07/2025

Average U.S. Home Now Has Two Smart TVs

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. New data shows that U.S. homes now own an average of two smart TVs, with Samsung and LG dominating the market but Roku and FireTV continue to g...

02/07/2025

Oaktree Acquires FilmRise

LOS ANGELES Funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management have acquired FilmRise, an independent digital streaming content distributor, and merged it with Shout! ...

02/07/2025

ATSC Names Luiz Fausto Vice President of Standards Development

WASHINGTON The Advanced Television Systems Committee named Luiz Fausto vice president of standards development, succeeding ATSC vice president Jerry Whitaker, w...

02/07/2025

Boston Conservatory and the Sphinx Organization Join Forces to Make Classical Education Accessible

Boston Conservatory and the Sphinx Organization Join Forces to Make Classical Ed...

01/07/2025

ITV Celebrates Best Sunday of 2025 with Code of Silence

The launch of Code of Silence, coupled with the Britains Got Talent semi final, gave ITV its best Sunday night of 2025. The first episode of the new crime dr...

01/07/2025

Romola Garai joins Shaun Evans in ITV thriller BETRAYAL, as filming begins in the North West

ITV and Mammoth Screen have announced the start of filming for Betrayal, a gripp...

01/07/2025

L3Harris Delivers Missionized Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Aircraft

L3Harris Technologies has delivered its second Bombardier Global 6500 missionize...

01/07/2025

L3Harris Sets Date for Second Quarter 2025 Earnings Release

MELBOURNE, Fla., July 1, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) will release its second quarter 2025 financial results before the market opens on Thursday, Ju...

01/07/2025

Movicom Selects Clear-Com to Power Communications for Global Live Events

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......

01/07/2025

FCC Rejects License Challenges to 3 Baltimore TV Stations

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has rejected license challenges to three full-power Baltimore TV stations, renewing the licenses for Chesapeake...

01/07/2025

Dalet Flex LTS Update Features Improved Content Workflow Tools

Dalet has released a new update to its Dalet Flex media workflow platform, introducing powerful new capabilities to its flagship platform....

01/07/2025

New Global Game' Summit Explores Future of Soccer, Tech and Media

NEWARK, N.J. With the FIFA Club World Cup final rapidly approaching and the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup now less than a year away, interest in soccer in th...

01/07/2025

COW Job Listing: Laser Engraved Logo

COW Job Listing: Laser Engraved Logo Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments Laser engraved logo July 1, 2025Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Cr...

01/07/2025

LeGrow.Studio Builds Broadcast Hub for ePro League

LeGrow.Studio Builds Broadcast Hub for ePro League Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments TEM Constellation HD and BlackmagicURSA Broadcast G2 drive liv...

01/07/2025

Beeble launches SwitchLight 2.0, bringing AI-powered relighting to any footage

Beeble launches SwitchLight 2.0, bringing AI-powered relighting to any footage Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments New AI model delivers full-scene p...

01/07/2025

Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Created with Blackmagic Design

Steffie Beltt's Mi Amor Music Video Created with Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton July 1, 2025 0 Comments Blackmagic PYXIS 6K digital film camera...

01/07/2025

Sinclair Pays $500,000 to Settle FCC Investigations

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement and Media Bureaus have entered into a consent decree with Sinclair to resolve a variety of in...

01/07/2025

LPTV Broadcasters Association to Hold Webinar on Station Sales

DENVER Low-power television (LPTV) station owners looking to navigate the complexities of selling their assets in todays dynamic media environment are invited t...

01/07/2025

Netflix to Carry Live Programming from NASA+

NASA announced today that live programming from its NASA+ channel will be available on Netflix starting sometime this summer....

01/07/2025

FCC Chair Carr Hires Katie McAuliffe as Policy Advisor

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has appointed Katie McAuliffe to serve as policy advisor in his office....

01/07/2025

GFiber Demonstrates Network Slicing to Improve Home Internet Performance

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. Alphabet's GFiber, the broadband provider formerly known as Google Fiber, has announced that it recently worked with Nokia to demonstr...

01/07/2025

DoubleVerify Debuts Attention Measurement for Social Media

NEW YORK, N.Y. DoubleVerify (DV) has announced the launch of DV Authentic Attention for Social. The product will first launch with Snap, the owner of Snapchat....

01/07/2025

FCC Rejects License Challenges to Three Baltimore TV Stations

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has rejected license challenges to three full-power Baltimore TV stations and agreed to renew the license for C...

01/07/2025

Magewell Brings NDI into Conferencing Software and More w...

Compact new converter lets users capture live NDI and streaming sources into software over a USB interface Video interface and IP workflow innovator Magewell ...

01/07/2025

Disneys Hercules Brings Mosaic Visuals To Life On Stage W...

Disguise, the award-winning tech company driving visuals for Broadway and West End hits including Redwood, Stranger Things: The First Shadow and Disney's Fr...

01/07/2025

KIT Plugins release NOIZ One Vox

Vocal-processing plug-in joins NOIZ Hub series Launched in 2024, KIT Plugins' NOIZ Hub series was created with the aim of providing a range of professio...

01/07/2025

7 Day Mastering: New course from Mastering.com

New self-paced learning programme announced Mastering.com have announced the availability of a new online course designed to cover the fundamentals of maste...

01/07/2025

Heather Gray Named Vice President and General Manager of WRAL and FOX 50

Historic appointment ushers in unified leadership for WRAL-TV, New Media, and Digital Solutions RALEIGH, N.C. - 6-27-25 - Capitol Broadcasting Company is prou...

01/07/2025

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Spyrosoft's Jonathan Witty on Futher Business Expansion in the U.S.

SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Spyrosoft's Jonathan Witty on Futher Business Exp...

01/07/2025

The NIL Effect: How the Shifting Business of College Athletics Impacts On-Campus Video Production

The NIL Effect: How the Shifting Business of College Athletics Impacts On-Campus...

01/07/2025

Cherry On the Cake: Inside the Technical Production of the Tour de France 2025 with EMG / Gravity Media

Cherry on the cake: Inside the technical production of the Tour de France 2025 w...

01/07/2025

NESN's Josh Jun on Keeping Alternative Broadcasts Fresh for Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins Fans

NESN's Josh Jun on Keeping Alternative Broadcasts Fresh for Boston Red Sox, ...

01/07/2025

TNT Sports Races Back Into NASCAR With Fresh Look, Familiar Edge

TNT Sports Races Back Into NASCAR With Fresh Look, Familiar Edge Production approach emphasizes creative freedom, bold storytelling, casual-fan-friendly tone B...

01/07/2025

cetecom advanced certifies Rohde & Schwarz test solution for the verification of Next Generation eCall functionality

cetecom advanced certifies Rohde & Schwarz test solution for the verification of...

01/07/2025

Watch: A Line Crossed: Netflix Drops Explosive Trailer for New Series, 'Marked'

Back to All News Watch: A Line Crossed: Netflix Drops Explosive Trailer for New...

01/07/2025

Broadcast Pix Showcases Live Production Tools at ACM 2025 in Boston

Tyngsboro, Mass. - June 30, 2025 - The 2025 ACM Annual Conference at Boston University was an energizing and inspiring gathering of community media professional...

01/07/2025

Teresa Smith Announced as Commissioning Editor for Factual Entertainment

RT has announced that Teresa Smith has been appointed Commissioning Editor with responsibility for Factual Entertainment following a public competition. This s...

01/07/2025

RT is Supporting 26 Arts and Cultural Events across Ireland this July

This July, RT is delighted to support Galway International Arts Festival, Earagail Arts Festival in Donegal, Belfast TradFest and 23 other arts and cultural ev...

01/07/2025

How AI Factories Can Help Relieve Grid Stress

In many parts of the world, including major technology hubs in the U.S., there's a yearslong wait for AI factories to come online, pending the buildout of n...

30/06/2025

Discover Weekly Turns 10: Celebrating 100 Billion+ Tracks Streamed and a Decade of Personalized Discovery

There's nothing quite like the magic of finding music that feels made just f...

30/06/2025

Spotify's Editors Pick Their Best Songs of the Year (So Far)

When it comes to new music, Spotify's team of editors across North America is always on the hunt for songs that make them feel, think, and move. They're...

30/06/2025

SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel

SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel 30 June, 2025 Media releases SBS is expanding its international news offeri...

30/06/2025

The Forsytes Season 2 Commissioned by MASTERPIECE on PBS

Star Studded Ensemble Cast Are Joined by Richard Rankin as Filming Begins on the Second Season [June 12, 2025 - Boston, MA]: The Forsytes, Debbie Horsfield...

30/06/2025

Artemis II Mission Advances with Successful RS-25 Engine Checkout Tests

The Artemis II Space Launch System core stage is integrated with the solid rocket boosters inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy S...

30/06/2025

WRAL-WRAZ Raleigh Names Heather Gray as VP and GM

RALEIGH, N.C. Capitol Broadcasting Co. has named Heather Gray vice president and general manager of WRAL-TV and WRAZ-TV here....