CBS Sports Super Bowl LV Plans Have all the Angles Covered with 120 Cameras, Speciality Rigs By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Thursday, January 28, 2021 - 5:29 pm
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CBS Sports is pulling out all the stops for Super Bowl LV with a production that will feature 120 cameras, never-before seen camera angles, a Trolley Cam flying alongside the field 10 rows off the field, and more when the game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs kicks off February 7 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL.
This is the biggest event in America each year and we couldn't have asked for a better matchup with arguably the greatest player of all time and the most exciting player in the NFL, says Sean McManus, CBS Sports, chairman.
McManus says that producing football in a pandemic has been different and the same strict procedures and protocols that have been in place all year to keep staff safe will be part of the plan.
We will have testing and screening and wearing of PPE and we also have extra mobile units for social distancing, he adds.
McManus says he can't say enough about the job Coordinating Producer Jim Rickhoff and Lead Director Mike Arnold have done with respect to the quality of the production they put on each and every week, adding that Arnold will be directing his sixth Super Bowl (and working on his 13th since his first in 1982). We'll also have all the bells and whistles, cameras with unique views and it will be an incredible technical showcase, he says.
Harold Bryant, CBS Sports, executive producer and EVP, production, says there have been numerous challenges this year getting to this point.
We've embraced those challenges and the quality and innovation is better than ever going into this Super Bowl, he says. It allows us to bring viewers closer to the game and that is our goal.
The arsenal CBS will rely on totals 120 cameras, including 32 cameras in the eight endzone pylons, two wireless pylon cameras that will move along the sidelines, 18 robotic cameras, four flying cabled cameras, 25 super-slo mo cameras, 10 4K cameras, two 8K cameras, and a camera on a MovieBird crane. Those cameras will be part of more than 350 channels of replay recording/playback with Rickhoff and Arnold calling the shots from NEP Supershooter CBS.
The Trolley Cam will fly parallel to the field at speeds up to 65 mph.
Topping the list is Trolley Cam, one of four flying camera systems that will be in use. The Trolley Cam will speed from one end of the stadium to the other, ziplining along a wire and positioned to provide the viewing angle of a fan in the eighth row of the stands. The rig can travel up to 65 mph and will provide a look at the players from a vantage point not used in the history of the Super Bowl.
Rickhoff says the Trolley Cam, which was tested last week at the AFC Championship Game, is an example of a new look that is only possible due to the lack of fans.
It goes across the field and runs parallel and will give a look you might not have seen, he adds.
Adds Bryant: It's almost a perfect view.
The Sony Venice camera offers a cinematic look thanks to its shallow depth of field.
In recent weeks one of the most buzzed about technical additions to NFL broadcasts has been the Sony Venice camera which CBS has used to capture images following a scoring play, during warm-ups, or on the sidelines with a completely fresh look with a shallow depth of field. Two Sony Venice cameras will be used for the first time ever live at a Super Bowl and the camera, provided by Inertia Unlimited, will be operated on a traditional Steadicam rig, as well as a MOVI rig to capture the flare of the action in what has been described as a 3D video game look.
Bryant says of the Venice camera: It almost has a 3D look and it will be moving and walking onto the field with players during time outs.
A look at the Sony Venice Steadicam rig.
Crane shots will also, literally, get a big improvement with the use of a 53-foot Movie Bird crane, traditionally reserved for major motion pictures and television productions. It will be located on the upper concourse to give dramatic sweeping shots of the THE SUPER BOWL TODAY pregame set, game action as well as serving as one of the many augmented reality encoded cameras that will be strategically placed throughout the stadium.
It will give us a very cinematic look and it's the first time we're using it, adds Bryant.
As for new angles of coverage during the game 10 4K cameras and two 8K cameras will be scattered throughout the stadium allowing the production team to extract close-up shots in the key moments of the game. The 4K cameras will be controlled robotically from high up in the stadium concourse levels while the two Sony 8K cameras will be fixed on robotic gimbals slung to the stadium in a way that provides an angle from near-field height for a unique view of the field.
On replays we will be able to zoom in tight when we need a clear shot of something like a foot on the line, says Bryant.
Look for a new graphics look from CBS Sports for Super Bowl LV.
The Super Bowl is also a great time to bring out some unique graphics looks, and CBS will offer up the motif of Super Bowl LV of sea and sand by using four augmented cameras. Animations, in-game graphics and augmented reality will continue to enhance the viewer experience. Utilizing the power of the Unreal Engine, embers and particles will light up the Tampa night during America's most-watched event with detail never before seen on sports television.
AR will be weaved in throughout the game to help tell the story, says Bryant.
All year long CBS Sports has decentralized its NFL coverage and that will continue for the Super Bowl. Remote replay operators will provide instantaneous footage playbacks from home
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CBS Sports Super Bowl LV Plans Have all the Angles Covered with 120 Cameras, Speciality Rigs By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director 
