Concacaf, HBS Broadcast Academy Opens Doors for New Talent, Allows Next-Gen to Hone Skills
27/10/2020
Monday, October 26, 2020 - 12:33 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Developing next-generation talent is an important goal of every sports organization and the efforts undertaken by Concacaf, with assistance from the HBS Broadcast Academy, lay clear the benefits for not only the organization itself but for society as a whole as women like Laura McDonald, a director and producer with Phase Three Productions in Jamaica, can take the next step in career development.
The Live Football Direction courses given by Concacaf have given her access to priceless guidance and industry knowledge, tangible directing experience and - most importantly - self-confidence and belief in her abilities.
The HBS Broadcast Academy has helped Laura McDonald take her production and directing skills to the next level.
Every time I am doing a live game for Concacaf, Oscar Sanchez [Concacaf Director of Broadcast Operations & Executive Producer] picks up the phone and calls me, says McDonald. We just have a chitchat and he reminds me to have fun. Those little calls mean so much, there is somebody with so many responsibilities and I'm just doing my one game, but knowing there is someone belonging to a large confederation believing in my talent and choosing me to do a particular job means so much.
Concacaf have been running the Live Football Direction courses, assisted by the Broadcast Academy, at their Miami headquarters since 2018. Over that period, they have trained 32 participants from 7 countries in areas such as Guatemala, Haiti and Costa Rica. Industry experts such as John Watts and Sebastian von Freyberg have helped Concacaf raise broadcast production standards and develop skills within the North America, Central America and Caribbean regions.
For McDonald the Concacaf courses have broadened her repertoire and opened directing football up as an avenue she never imagined taking in her career. I was doing a lot of entertainment shows, and I love track and field so I had started doing a lot of track meets - that was my comfort zone, she says. I directed Usain Bolt's last race in Jamaica and some pretty big gigs, but I'd never ventured into football. When Concacaf introduced these training courses I thought This is perfect'. I'd always wanted to direct football but my confidence wasn't there, it didn't feel like my safe space. Concacaf gave me the opportunity.
McDonald began working with Concacaf when Phase Three Productions were contracted to cover matched for the confederation in Jamaica. I started as a venue producer, which was basically managing the communication between Concacaf, the stadium operators and the TV production crew, she says. I would be reporting back to Oscar at Concacaf, and he said to me one day You are technical, you direct boxing and all these other sports, come and do this directing course'.
Since then McDonald has gone on to direct matches for Concacaf in Jamaica, Cayman Islands and Anguilla, becoming the first female football director in the region. It didn't sink in until I went to Concacaf to participate on their course. I was looking at the wall that showed everything they cover and I realised Hey, this a big deal' Canada, Mexico, the USA, and all throughout the Caribbean, she adds.
Importantly for McDonald, her participation in Concacaf's courses does not just boost her skills, but she is also able to share that knowledge with her colleagues and teams. Before one of the matches I directed I took some of the information I had gathered from the course and used it as an example in my camera meetings to show the crew what I wanted, she says. After the game I got some real high praise for my Camera 1 operator and I could explain that this was his first time doing it, but he got it perfectly right. I feel it is my duty to impart that knowledge and showcase the skills that are here in the islands.
Coming from a company whose co-founder and Executive Chairman is female and has advocated for McDonald to be given opportunities to progress all through her career, her desire to help the next generation step up is strong - but it has to be a two-way street. I'm an advocate for inspiring other women, and young people, who want to work in live sports coverage, but at the same time you can't just be passionate about it - you have to show me that are willing to put in the work, she adds.
Having her own intern at Phase Three has seen McDonald's journey go from mentee to mentor. I took on an intern eight years ago and she loved sports, she knew all the teams and players and I saw that she worked very hard. I've now passed on my knowledge and the confidence as a woman to say Hey, you can do this'. I can give her jobs in the same way I got the opportunity from my chairman. Now on most football matches I've done since taking the course she has been my assistant. When the Concacaf Gold Cup came to Jamaica in 2019, I made sure to introduce the directors and producers to her so she could take some tips from them and understand the ways they do certain things so she can get that knowledge for herself as well.
With Concacaf's commitment to broadening the talent pool within its region, it can be sure that in the future when major events take place within the territory that they can call upon their own local experts. The major takeaway from the course was that I picked up confidence, says McDonald. Being a director and calling the shots is one thing, but believing in yourself and knowing that you are doing the right thing and are able to communicate that to your team so they will follow the same path is so important.
Concacaf has really stepped up by offering these courses, by gi
LINK: | https://www.sportsvideo.org/2020/10/26/concacaf-broadcast-training-ope... |
See more stories from svg |
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet Appoints Santiago Solanas as CEO to Lead Next Era of Growth and Innovation
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet and Veritone Reach Agreement to Distribute, Transact and Monetize Media Archives
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with URSA Broadcast G2
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
26/04/2024
CBS Sports Launches New Free Streaming Channel
CBS Sports has launched Champions League as a new, 24-hour streaming channel that will serve as the year-round destination for nonstop highlights of the UEFA ...
26/04/2024
Roku Streaming Homes Hit 81.6M
Despite tough competition in the streaming space, Roku reported solid results in Q1 2024, beating revenue expectations, with total net revenue up 19% YoY to $88...
26/04/2024
Sarah Farrell Named General Manager Of Pinewood Toronto Studios
LONDON AND TORONTO Pinewood Toronto Studios has appointed Sarah Farrell as general manager of the Studios in downtown Toronto....
26/04/2024
Quantum to Offer Advanced Filesharing Technology and Performance in StorNext and Myriad Solutions
Quantum to Offer Advanced Filesharing Technology and Performance in StorNext and...
26/04/2024
FilmLight Colour Awards welcomes 2024 entries and introduces new Emerging Talent' award
FilmLight Colour Awards welcomes 2024 entries and introduces new Emerging Talen...
26/04/2024
Picture Shop Announces Chris Evans as Head of Unscripted
Picture Shop Announces Chris Evans as Head of Unscripted Brie Clayton April 26, 2024 0 Comments Picture Shop announced Chris Evans will lead Unscripte...
26/04/2024
Participate in a Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Participate in a Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024 0 Comments By participating in this survey,...
26/04/2024
Hi Barbie! Mattel Launching First FAST Channels on Samsung TV Plus
Toy maker Mattel said it is working with Samsung to launch its first free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels later this year....
26/04/2024
Marty Moe Named President Of Trusted Media Brands
Trusted Media Brands (TMB) said it named Marty Moe as president....
26/04/2024
Ron Howard Directs Jim Henson Documentary for Disney Plus
Ron Howard is the director on Jim Henson Idea Man, a documentary that premieres on Disney Plus May 31. Henson of course created Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Big...
26/04/2024
Kraken Skate Away From RSN Root Sports for Deals With Tegna, Amazon
The ice continues to melt under the regional sports network business as the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League have made a long-term deal to broadcast...
26/04/2024
Warner Bros. Discovery Launches Olli First-Party Data Platform
Heading into the upfronts, Warner Bros. Discovery said it launched Olli, a first-party data platform advertiser can use for converged, targeted advertising camp...
26/04/2024
The Equalizer' Gets Season 5 on CBS
CBS has renewed the drama The Equalizer, which will see season five on in 2024-2025. Queen Latifah stars....
26/04/2024
The CW Inks New Deal for Miss USA, Miss Teen USA
The CW has entered into an exclusive multiyear broadcast partnership for the Miss USA Pageant and the Miss Teen USA Pageant. The 73rd Miss USA Pageant will air ...
26/04/2024
Fuse Urging Young Viewers To Vote With Blunt Campaign
Fuse Media isn't mincing words in a campaign urging its young viewers to register and participate in the 2024 elections....
26/04/2024
Neil Gaiman's Sandman' Universe Expands With Dead Boy Detectives'
Dead Boy Detectives, a series from Neil Gaiman about a detective agency staffed by ghosts, debuts on Netflix April 25. George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri are in t...
26/04/2024
The Story Collective opens largest film and TV studio in the heart of London
The Story Collective has gradually repurposed the former Mortlake Brewery to include production offices, workshops and sound stages By Matthew Corrigan Publi...
26/04/2024
Richard Perkett joins Amagi as chief product officer
Perkett joins the company following a 25 year career in product management, product marketing, engineering and user experience (UX) across multiple industries ...
26/04/2024
Teradek Announces Smaller More Robust Built-in Antennas f...
Teradek, the industry leader in wireless video transmitters and receivers, announced today the launch of new Bolt 6 LT 750 and Bolt 6 Monitor Module 750 RX with...
26/04/2024
Amagi Names Richard Perkett Chief Product Officer
NEW YORK Amagi has appointed Richard Perkett chief product officer (CPO)....
26/04/2024
NAB Board Election Results Announced
WASHINGTON, D.C. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has announced the results of the 2024 NAB Radio and Television Board of Directors elections. The...
26/04/2024
Mattel to Launch First FAST Channels on Samsung TV Plus
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. & NEW YORK Mattel has announced a deal to launch its first three 24/7 free ad supported streaming (FAST) channels on Samsung TV Plus, Samsung...
26/04/2024
NextGen TV Launches In Portland, Maine
PORTLAND, Maine Viewers here can now receive the NextGen TV signals of five local stations with the launch of ATSC 3.0 service from host station WPFO, which is ...
26/04/2024
Rogers Inks Agreement to Deploy Comcast's Products and Technologies
TORONTO Rogers Communications has signed a 10-year agreement with Comcast to bring the latest Xfinity products and technology to Canadians....
26/04/2024
Calrec scoops third Argo win with NAB Show Product of the...
Calrec is very pleased to announce the benefits of its highly flexible approach to customer service has been recognized with a third award for the Argo range. T...
26/04/2024
New Adobe Photoshop with Advanced Generative Fill and Generate Image Brings New Superpowers to All
New Adobe Photoshop with Advanced Generative Fill and Generate Image Brings New ...
26/04/2024
Trends And Takeaways From NAB Show 2024
Trends And Takeaways From NAB Show 2024 Melanie Ciotti April 25, 2024 0 Comments NAB's Eric Trabb (right) awards SNS with two NAB Show Product of ...
26/04/2024
Sony's Ci Media Cloud Keeps NHRA Moving
Sony's Ci Media Cloud Keeps NHRA Moving Brie Clayton April 25, 2024 0 Comments Cloud-Based Media Asset Management and Collaboration Platform Accel...
26/04/2024
2024 Emerging Leaders Internship Program Open for Applications, Deadline May 31st
Capitol Broadcasting & Leadership Triangle Collaborate for Third Year Capitol B...
26/04/2024
MIX 101.5 Launches New YouTube Shows
The staff at CBC Radio have been hard at work creating several new features for listeners and viewers. Several debuts are taking place this spring. I have nev...
26/04/2024
Skeem Saam' May Spoiler: Has Lehasa killed Khwezi?
Skeem Saam' May Spoiler: Has Lehasa killed Khwezi?The Skeem Saam' May teasers mention Lehasa being apologetic about killing someone. Is it his baby mam...
26/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Thursday's episode, 25 April 2024 [video]
Skeem Saam: Thursday's episode, 25 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African s...
26/04/2024
Prison Journalism: Some issues to consider
Prison Journalism: Some issues to considerWesley Leong was incarcerated at the age of 15 in 1996 at Pollsmoor Prison. He is currently part of Restore's rese...
26/04/2024
Tonight on Scandal: A line is crossed and a mother starts to lose focus
Tonight on Scandal: A line is crossed and a mother starts to lose focusDon't miss Friday, 26 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Scandal! o...
26/04/2024
Ross Video Unveils Raiden: An All-New Data-Driven Weather Graphics System
Powered by XPression, the world's fastest-growing real-time motion graphics engine, Raiden combines data gathering, processing, and visualization tools to t...
26/04/2024
The Real-Time 6-to-12-String Guitar Converter
By Craig Anderton With this technique, when you play a standard 6-string electric guitar, you'll hear the rich, vibrant sound of a 12-string guitar. The pr...
25/04/2024
Inside the Archives: Highlighting the Importance of Preservation for the Festival's 40th Edition
Sundance Institute Founder Robert Redford during a press conference at the 1996 ...
25/04/2024
SNS Dealer Of The Year Awards: See The Full List Of Winners
alt= class=wp-image-12361 data-lazy-src=/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NAB-booth-2024-960x540-1.jpg/> Set against a vibrant backdrop of innovation and collaboratio...
25/04/2024
Trends And Takeaways From NAB Show 2024
alt= class=wp-image-12356 data-lazy-src=/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NAB-mod-win-960x540-1.jpg/>NAB's Eric Trabb (right) awards SNS with two NAB Show Product...
25/04/2024
Peacock Subs Jump 55% YoY to 34M in Q1 2024
PHILADELPHIA Comcast beat earnings estimates in its Q1 2024 financial report, as streaming losses continued to decline and Peacock's paid subscribers spiked...
25/04/2024
Seattle Kraken Inks Deals with Tegna and Prime Video
SEATTLE The Seattle Kraken have inked new multi-year agreements with Tegna and Prime Video that will expand access to their games over broadcast stations and st...
25/04/2024
Opinion: charting a cloud driven future
M2A Medias Matt Hughes asks, is it time for news broadcasting to shift to the cloud? By Contributor Published: April 25, 2024 M2A Media's Matt Hughes ...
25/04/2024
Cintel Scanner G3 HDR+ Restores Egypt's Cinema Treasures to Their Former Glory
Cintel Scanner G3 HDR Restores Egypt's Cinema Treasures to Their Former Glo...
25/04/2024
Sinclair Names Kevin Coskren Chief Meteorologist at KTUL Tulsa
Sinclair Broadcast Group said it named Kevin Coskren chief meteorologist at KTUL, its ABC affiliate in Tulsa, Oklahoma....
25/04/2024
Attend The Business of TV News Event in D.C. on May 2
The Business of TV News, a new one-day event featuring Martha Raddatz, Shannon Bream, Glenn Kirschner and other major figures in television news, happens at Hot...
25/04/2024
Problematic FCC Conditions On Station Sale Could Create Detroit Drama
Conditions put on the proposed sale of WADL Detroit, to Mission Broadcasting have created a potential drama in the Motor City....
25/04/2024
TelevisaUnivision 1Q Loss Widens But DTC Business Expected To Turn Profit in Second Half
TelevisaUnivision reported a $52 million loss in the first quarter, up from $3 m...