Super Bowl XLVIII is five months away, but Fox Sports, which will carry the game on Feb. 2, will start NFL fans around the world thinking about it on Sunday, when the first NFL on Fox pregame show is broadcast live from a set in Times Square.
Although, to viewers, the pregame show location may seem a bit of hype, it actually serves a very practical purpose for the production team and Fox Sports. The network has big plans for the week leading up to the Super Bowl, and Times Square and the surrounding area will be at the center of those activities. The pregame show gives the production team a chance to do a run-through on the intricacies of New York City parking permits, trying to produce a live event from the crossroads of the world.
We have a big team in New York working on the pregame now, says Steve Grigely, director, technical and field operations, Fox Sports. We will have a big presence on Super Bowl Boulevard in February.
Super Bowl XLVIII may be the big story of the new season for Fox Sports but isn't the only one. Also important is the role the recently launched FS1 network will play not only during Super Bowl week but every week. For example, NFL pregame coverage actually begins an hour earlier on FS1, leading into the NFL on Fox pregame show on Fox Sports at noon ET. The Fox NFL Kickoff Show will be produced in Los Angeles and have different on-air talent (Joel Klatt hosts along with the Fox Football Daily crew) for a four-hour show airing from 11 a.m. ET to noon PT.
We will be ready to do two-way hits from the different stadiums an hour earlier each Sunday, says Grigely, On Fridays, we will do hits from remote sites like hotels and practice facilities.
Helping out for those hits will be Dejero Live+, the cellular-based transmission system that allows either live transmission or, if bandwidth is an issue, content to be recorded and then sent as a file when bandwidth increases.
As for the actual game coverage, Grigely says the biggest change is that there has been an attempt to equalize the equipment on the B and C shows (there is one A game, four B games, and then games 6, 7, and 8). The move gets all of the non-A games on a more equal level in terms of cost and functionality.
It makes it easier as we can get the formula down [to produce the game] and each crew knows what it has [technically] and can do, says Grigely. We are also trying to keep all the crews working on the same trucks; in the past, some crews have had to jump from truck to truck. This year, we're making an effort to keep all of our crews on the same trucks, especially since the equipment levels will be more harmonious across the board.
Game Creek's FX production unit will once again handle the Fox A game, and the B games will be produced out of NEP SS22, NEP SS32, Game Creek Northstar, F&F GTX-11 or -14, and NCPVI. Corplex Iridium is on tap as a swing truck, if needed.
In terms of camera complement, the B games will feature 13 cameras (including two POV cameras, a super-slo-mo from VER, and an Inertia Unlimited X-Mo), and the A shows will feature 18 cameras (including a Skycam, two POV cameras, four super-slo-mos and an Inertia Unlimited X-Mo).
All games feature ChyronHego graphics for player pointers and player tracking. We're happy with them, and they are a big part of our coverage, says Grigely. And we are looking to get more and more of that into the shows.
Fox Sports is also looking to get more and more of the 4K Fox Super Zoom system, complete with a Canon C500 camera, an Aja processor for the zoom function, and an EVS replay controller, into the show.
We're excited about using the EVS user interface because it gives our operator the best chance to get the right shot, says Grigely. It's the easiest user interface to use, and we'll be fine-tuning the use of 4K as a production tool.
The use of 4K camera systems as a production tool within an HD broadcast gives the director and producer an opportunity to zoom in on a close call, such as whether a knee is down before a fumble or feet are out of bounds on a pass.
There is a cost but also a learning curve, says Grigely. So it isn't something you slap into the B-game crew and have it work seamlessly. And the driving force to use it is always how it can help tell the story better.
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
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, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
29/04/2024
29 04 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces James J. Robinson's debut feature First Light
First Light
Principal Photography is underway on Firs...
29/04/2024
Capitol Broadcasting recently became the inaugural company honored with inductio...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
27/04/2024
On April 26, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher E. Kubasik joined CNBC's Mor...
27/04/2024
PORTLAND, Oregon Audinate Group Limited, the developer of the Dante AV-over-IP solution, announced significant new additions to Dante Connect, its cloud-based D...
27/04/2024
TORONTO Bell Media has launched 10 English and French-language FAST channels featuring entertainment, factual, news, and sports programming. The new free stream...
27/04/2024
An extensive new analysis of the news segments in the broadcast evening news programs of ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS has found that broadcasters devoted most of their...
27/04/2024
GERMANTOWN, Md. EchoStar's Hughes Network Systems has opened a new manufacturing facility and private 5G incubation center in Germantown, Maryland....
27/04/2024
Harry Pappas, one of three brothers who founded Pappas Telecasting Companies in 1971, died April 24. He was 78 years old....
27/04/2024
ATLANTA and LONDON Mexican telecommunications and broadcast company Televisa has selected Synamedia for an overhaul of its broadcast distribution....
27/04/2024
Participate in the Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this surve...
27/04/2024
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 2024 NAB Show
Brie Clayton April 26, 2024
0 Comments
SDVI, the leading platform provider for clo...
27/04/2024
Berklee's Music and Health Institute Launches Community Health Musician Cert...
27/04/2024
Charter Communications reported higher first-quarter profits despite continued cord-cutting and competition for broadband customers....
27/04/2024
Two environmentally-focused groups are partnering to engage the unscripted TV world in finding better ways to address climate change. Reality of Change is an ec...
27/04/2024
Sarah Garcia has been promoted to weekend anchor at KTLM McAllen, Texas, known as Telemundo 40. Starting April 27, she will anchor Noticias Telemundo 40 weekend...
27/04/2024
CBS Sports said it launched a new 24-hour free, ad supported streaming television (FAST) channel devoted to the UEFA Champions League....
27/04/2024
Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts received $35.4 million in compensation in 2023, up 11% from the previous year, according to a proxy statement filed by th...
27/04/2024
Art Happens Here With John Lithgow, which sees the actor study dance, ceramics, silk-screen printing and vocal jazz with students in Los Angeles, debuts on PBS ...
27/04/2024
Remember Leave It to Beaver? Bewitched? Dragnet? When cable ratings were rising?...
27/04/2024
Next up for the weekend binge at Catchy Comedy is Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Every weekend, Catchy Comedy features The Catchy Binge, a marathon of a classic sitcom....
26/04/2024
Sundance Film Festival CDMX 2024 kicks-off today with screenings in 5 theaters in Mexico City and the opening-night film, FRIDA, directed by Carla Guti rrez...
26/04/2024
[Editor's Note: This interview is part of a larger feature about the women d...
26/04/2024
Once again this year, SGL Carbon opened its doors to interested children and young people. On the occasion of the German Girls and Boys Day, which took place on...
26/04/2024
Orders1 of $5.5 billion; book-to-bill of 1.06x
Revenue of $5.2 billion, up 17%,...
26/04/2024
Five Considerations For Communications Modernization In The 21st Century
In the digital-enabled battlespace, the Joint Force needs to shoot, move and communica...
26/04/2024
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
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
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...
26/04/2024
FilmLight Colour Awards welcomes 2024 entries and introduces new Emerging Talen...
26/04/2024
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
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this survey,...
26/04/2024
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
Trusted Media Brands (TMB) said it named Marty Moe as president....
26/04/2024
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
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
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
CBS has renewed the drama The Equalizer, which will see season five on in 2024-2025. Queen Latifah stars....
26/04/2024
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 Media isn't mincing words in a campaign urging its young viewers to register and participate in the 2024 elections....
26/04/2024
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 has gradually repurposed the former Mortlake Brewery to include production offices, workshops and sound stages
By Matthew Corrigan
Publi...
26/04/2024
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, 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
NEW YORK Amagi has appointed Richard Perkett chief product officer (CPO)....
26/04/2024
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...
Super Bowl XLVIII is five months away, but Fox Sports, which will carry the game on Feb. 2, will start NFL fans around the world thinking about it on Sunday, when the first NFL on Fox pregame show is broadcast live from a set in Times Square.
