
The Simpsons Funday Football: ESPN Creative Studio's Michael Spike' Szykowny Pulls Back the Curtain on Creative Process By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Monday, December 9, 2024 - 3:13 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
During more than 2 decades at ESPN, Michael Spike Szykowny has seen his share of innovations. However, the 10-time Emmy Award winner believes that tonight's The Simpsons Funday Football animated Monday Night Football altcast is unlike anything you've ever seen before in live sports.
The VP, edit animation graphics innovation creative production, ESPN Creative Studio sat down with SVG to provide an inside look at the monumental efforts that went into The Simpsons Funday Football, which premieres tonight on ESPN2, Disney , ESPN , and NFL (on mobile).
Michael Spike Szykowny, VP of Edit Animation Graphics Innovation Creative Production for ESPN Creative Studio,
The much anticipated, additive telecast will feature Bart as a member of the Bengals and Homer with the Cowboys, with Lisa and Marge serving as on-field sideline reporters. ESPN NFL analysts, and Simpsons enthusiasts, Mina Kimes and Dan Orlovsky will make their animated-telecast debut as they provide live in-game analysis. Drew Carter is set to provide play-by-play. The trio will call the game from ESPN's Bristol, CT, studios while simultaneously appearing as Simpsons-inspired versions of themselves within the telecast. A variety of other Simpsons characters will also be seen during the broadcast from Atoms Stadium in Springfield.
How did the idea for Simpsons Funday Football come about?
As we started looking at possibilities for our next [animated broadcast] this season, The Simpsons was at the top of our wish list, and, thankfully, [The Simpsons team] was up to do it. Part of it was dictated by the time of the game: Toy Story was early in the morning and seemed like a better time for kids, but a primetime game definitely works better for something like The Simpsons. Once we got the greenlight, we had about 3 months to put this together, but we were also working in parallel on Dunk the Halls [alternative NBA broadcast] so it has been a very busy time.
TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW: Inside the Tech That ESPN and the NFL Use To Bring Springfield to Life
PRODUCTION OPERATIONS: The Game May Be Set in Springfield, but the Production Team Is in Bristol
CREATIVE PHILOSOPHY: ESPN Creative Studio's Michael Spike' Szykowny Pulls Back the Curtain on Creative Process
TRACKING TECHNOLOGY: Sony's Beyond Sports CEO Sander Shouten Analyzes How Tracking Tech Enables Real-Time Animated Altcasts
MUSIC & THEME SONG: ESPN Records Unique Twist on Monday Night Football Theme for Animated Alternative Broadcast
What were your early conversations with the Simpsons creative team like?
Obviously, they have been doing this very successfully for 36 years, so we wanted them to take full ownership and determine the story they wanted to tell. It all started with the reason this game is happening. They came up with the idea of Homer falling asleep and the game taking place in Homer's dream. Inside Homer's dream anything can happen, so that gave us the main canvas to work with. Of course, you can't plan everything for a live game, but you can certainly plan the beginning, middle, and end, and we fill in the rest as the game is happening. I think it's also important to note that, from the start, the NFL was great about working with us and [the Simpsons team], hearing all of our ideas, and turning back very few.
What has it been like to work with such iconic property like The Simpsons?
They were wonderful partners, and they got the spirit of what we were trying to accomplish and jumped on board with how we have to work for a project like this. The Simpsons has always been edgy and not wanting to just repeat the same things. I think that [is evident] in [their] letting us work in that universe.
In every project like this, you start with a lot of people involved, and then you end up whittling it down to a core team that is going to be working on it every day. With that small group, we were able to move quickly and make decisions because you have to keep moving forward on these kinds of projects; there's no looking backward. The Simpsons [team] - especially [Executive Producer] Matt Sellman and [producer] Joel Cohen, whom we worked with closely - understood that very well. I feel like we were in sync with those folks. Of course, they're doing their show every week, and we're doing our day jobs so we all have a lot going on besides this project, but we were able to work together to get it all done.
The Simpsons is a 2D animated show, but tonight's game will feature 3D animation. How did that work?
[The Simpsons team] deserves so much credit for putting the trust and faith in us to make that [2D-to-3D] transition. They actually have done 3D in some of their Treehouse of Horror broadcasts in the past. We got models from the company that they used, and we built out a lot of it ourselves, too. We started with just the main characters - Bart, Homer, Lisa, Marge, and Maggie - and expanded the universe from there.
It's tricky because lighting for 3D is different from lighting for 2D and there are a lot of other factors that you need to account for. But, in the end, I think we pulled off. It was truly a team effort between us, The Simpsons, Gracie Films, and we also worked with our friends at Big Studios, who handled a lot of the 3D animation work. It was a true partnership, and I think that shows in the final product.
What lessons from the Toy Story Funday Football and Big City Greens Classic productions did you apply to this project?
It's interesting because they all have their own unique challenges and advantages. With Toy Sto
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
30/04/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) concluded its third regular season on Saturday, reporting growth across attendance, viewership, digital engage...
30/04/2026
NBC Sports will air national MLB coverage on Sundays beginning May 3, with MLB Sunday Leadoff on Peacock and NBCSN at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by the debut of th...
30/04/2026
Clear-Com has appointed Brian Grahn as Market Outreach Manager of the Americas and Ben Turnwell as Business Development Manager for EMEA live.
Grahn joined Cle...
30/04/2026
ARRI has introduced the cforce MAX, a new lens motor for the Hi-5 lens control system. The cforce MAX is twice as fast as the cforce plus motor it replaces whil...
30/04/2026
Knuerr, Voxtronic, and IHSE will jointly present an integrated control room solu...
30/04/2026
The CW Network and ESPN have announced an agreement to make the ESPN App the exclusive streaming home for all CW Sports live events. CW Sports will continue to ...
30/04/2026
Ed Sheeran's The Loop' tour launched in Auckland in January 2026 before moving on to Australia, with South America and the United States to follow late...
30/04/2026
Audinate has announced Dante Preset Creator, a free online tool for configuring Dante network settings before hardware is available on site. Presets created in ...
30/04/2026
Yahoo Sports has announced the appointment of Jarrod Schwarz as General Manager of Yahoo Sports. Schwarz will oversee product, design, and technology; revenue a...
30/04/2026
Nielsen has released a new report, Get Ready with Media Intelligence: 2026 FIFA World Cup Edition, examining U.S. soccer viewership trends, fan engagement, and ...
30/04/2026
USA Lacrosse and SportsEngine have announced an expanded partnership, naming Spo...
30/04/2026
Telos Alliance will participate in the 2026 Media Production and Technology Show (MPTS), taking place May 13-14 at Olympia London. Rather than exhibiting from a...
30/04/2026
The global streamer buys the U.S. DTC platform solutions provider for a reported...
30/04/2026
Tigo Sports, Paraguay's leading sports broadcaster, has upgraded its video infrastructure with Ateme solutions for live encoding, multiplexing, and signal c...
30/04/2026
World Rugby and IMG have announced a long-term media rights partnership focused on growing rugby in the United States ahead of the Men's and Women's Rug...
30/04/2026
For the second year in a row, Overtime and the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) are teaming up through a renewed content partnership to bring fans even...
30/04/2026
The 22-year ESPN vet's responsibilities will reportedly be taken over by SVP Mike Foss...
30/04/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
30/04/2026
Amazon and Duke University have announced a multiyear agreement for Prime Video to present exclusive coverage of three Duke Blue Devils men's basketball neu...
30/04/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
30/04/2026
Music is evolving, and so are the ways you discover and connect with artists. In...
30/04/2026
Between April 22-29, the first inaugural Stockholm Music Week brought together thought leaders and partners across industries including music, tech, government,...
30/04/2026
Iconic large-format console upgraded
API's iconic Vision console has just been treated to an overhaul that aims to meet the demands of today's profe...
30/04/2026
Comes complete with miking accessories
The LCT 440 Pure has proven to be a popular member of Lewitt's mic line-up, offering impressive technical perform...
30/04/2026
24 October 2026 at The Octagon, Sheffield
Now in its eighth year, SynthFest UK is the largest event of its kind in the UK, bringing together the top keyboar...
30/04/2026
SBS & NITV LEAD NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK 2026 WITH LANDMARK GULPILIL DOCUMEN...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz equips new Terminal 3 at Frankfurt Airport with security scanner...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz expands broadband amplifier portfolio with new power classes up ...
30/04/2026
Jennifer Ehle (Contagion, Zero Dark Thirty) and Alex Hassell (Rivals, Wasteman, ...
30/04/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 29, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announ...
30/04/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 30, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) reports first quarter 2026 results.
Highlights
Orders of $7.8 billion; book-to-bill of 1....
30/04/2026
Behind the Broadcast: The Sound of Elite Golf Golf is gaining popularity; the 2025 Ryder Cup achieved record-breaking viewing figures in the UK specifically, wi...
30/04/2026
STA VENERA, MALTA, APRIL 29, 2026 CPI Media, a voluntary organization within the Missionary Society of St Paul (MSSP) and a leading media house dedicated to p...
30/04/2026
New software platform delivers comprehensive timing measurement across production workflows...
30/04/2026
Once again, the UK Pavilion in Hall 5 of BroadcastAsia 2026 will feature the latest and best in technology specifically developed and tailored for modern media ...
30/04/2026
Avid powers faster workflows and next-generation immersive audio with latest Pro...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Scalable broadcast-grade production over public internet, replacing traditional OB workflows...
30/04/2026
Live demonstrations highlight LCEVC ecosystem momentum, AI-powered video pipelines, and expansion across broadcast, streaming, and social media.
DTV (TV 3.0) ...
30/04/2026
Student Spotlight: Matthew Leon The dual major shares his path from community college to Berklee, and how his heritage influences his work.
April 29, 2026
B...
30/04/2026
Berklee Artists to Perform at Major Global Music Festivals As part of the Berklee Popular Music Institute, students will perform at Lollapalooza, Governors Ba...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...