Live From Super Bowl LVII: Van Wagner Deploys Two Control Rooms for In-Venue Show at State Farm Stadium

Live From Super Bowl LVII: Van Wagner Deploys Two Control Rooms for In-Venue Show at State Farm Stadium A new IP-capable control room will be used for the first time By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor

Friday, February 10, 2023 - 11:20 am

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Generating excitement and buzz inside a Super Bowl stadium is the main goal of Van Wagner, but, as in-venue productions grow in size and scope, the technology required to power elements on game day needs to follow suit. For Super Bowl LVII at State Farm Stadium, Van Wagner will occupy not only newly renovated control-room space near the building's upper level but also a secondary control room at field level.

Our show is no [smaller] than what it was [for Super LVI] last year in Los Angeles, says Bob Becker, president, productions, Van Wagner Productions, but we can't fit all of our people inside the main control room. We have been able to in the past, but Super Bowls have gotten increasingly complex.

Sub-Level Space: Secondary Control Room Handles Overflow, Drives Fan Engagement Developing additional workspace for the larger staff required by this complex production was paramount for Van Wagner. It used the same tactic for Super Bowl LV in Tampa Bay's Raymond James Stadium in 2021 to accommodate COVID-19 protocols, but this plan has been implemented to greatly enhance the company's plans. More important, the secondary control room, located on the venue's field level, is responsible for fan-engagement opportunities, such as Dance Cam, as well as for the host show throughout the game.

The last time Van Wagner operated at this building - Super Bowl XLIX in 2015 - this secondary control room wasn't available. The area has become valuable for other NFL-related productions outside the main in-venue show, including the NFL TikTok Tailgate concert featuring Jason Derulo and the Black Keys prior to kickoff on Sunday. The sub-level control room will ease the stresses on both the production staff in the main control room and the technology being used.

A secondary control room has been built at State Farm Stadium to alleviate pressure on the main control room.

During the last Super Bowl here, we cut our Fan Cam show off the [main game] switcher and taxed the efforts of both the people and the equipment, Becker explains. As shows get more technologically advanced and we're asked to do more, we began constructing these sub control rooms to give us some more space.

Up Top: IP-Capable Control Room Serves as Main Production Hub As if producing the biggest in-venue show of the year weren't a difficult enough task, Van Wagner will handle Sunday's festivities from a newly renovated control room that hasn't yet been used for an official game. Torn apart and put back together with all IP-capable technologies after the 2022 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve, the production-control room was assembled by Insignia Event Services - the Arizona Cardinals' AV, engineering, and production company - in less than 40 days. Led by Manager, Engineering, Jesse Janosky; Chief Engineer Matthew Alvarado; and Broadcast Engineers Ian White and Johnathan Wulf, the effort was designed to benefit the club's long-term goals after years of finding temporary solutions to permanent problems.

They made a bold decision to transition the core of the control-room system to IP following the end of the regular season due to some challenges with the prior router, says Nate McCoart, director, technical operations, Van Wagner Productions. Jesse and his engineering team essentially redid the entire core of the control room in the last month coming into Super Bowl.

Van Wagner's Nate McCoart (left) and Bob Becker inside the secondary control room at State Farm Stadium

For Van Wagner, anchoring production efforts on a full IP core would elevate production quality but could also raise potential risks during production of a high-profile event like Super Bowl LVII. The risks have been minimized by thorough preparation and a commitment to outfitting the control room with a reliable tech backbone.

When the Cardinals were ready to deploy [these technologies] in the physical rack room, says McCoart, it was pretty much plugging in things that had already been set up and configured. That has made the transition [to our show] a little bit smoother, so everything has been rock solid heading into one of the biggest shows of the year.

Videoboard Production: Ross Video Gear Powers Multiple Facets At the center of Van Wagner's efforts are the production solutions and support of Ross Video, whose involvement began in October 2022. After handling the Week 7 matchup between the New Orleans Saints and Arizona Cardinals, the two companies sat down to iron out what they wanted to change about the Cardinals' in-venue show. With the franchise deploying a large complement of Ross Video equipment - Acuity production switcher, openGear OGX Frames for signal processing, Ross Video's tally system, UltriTouch routing system, XPression Tessera for all LED signage, DashBoard control system for complete venue control - Ross Video Manager, Solution Specialists, Global Sports and Live Events, Andrew Lahey and his team have become very familiar with the building. Another advantage is that Super Bowl LVII is Ross Video's seventh straight working with Van Wagner.

We learn so much from each other, says Lahey. While there will always be surprises, they lessen every year because we almost know what they want [in their show]. Nate and I have a handful of meetings throughout the year, so our relationship is strong.

Ross Video's Andrew Lahey, Bradley Wasilition, Stefan Tribble, Amber Barnett, Andrew Sampson, and Gregory Kuh are on hand at Super Bowl LVII.

Playing a major role in the preparation for Sunday's championshi

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2023/02/10/live-from-super-bowl-lvii-van-w...
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