The in-venue show producer will also be responsible for initiatives outside of Draft Theater.
With a record 275,000 fans in attendance for opening night in downtown Detroit, the NFL Draft has become far more than just the “made for TV” event it once was. Over the years, his on-site NFL experience has become a true spectacle, with multi-million pixel LED boards and entertainment shows on par with television broadcasts. Every year, to make everything successful, the NFL relies heavily on his partner in in-venue entertainment, Van Wagner.
“This great setup and canvas in Detroit allowed our team to showcase its talent,” he says. Bob Becker, President of Van Wagner Productions. “We have to make this show bigger and better every year, and they rose to the challenge. Planning and Development Process tim [Tubito, director, event presentation and content, NFL] It's always a collaborative process. There is mutual respect on both sides so we can all give our best and put on a world-class event. ”
In addition to overseeing on-field production at the draft, Van Wagner works closely with NFL Media and ESPN to build an overall operation that shares resources, video feeds and infrastructure. .
“Draft technology planning is a whole team effort,” he says. Nate McCourt, Director of Technical Operations, Van Wagner. “Our teams, our ESPN/ABC teams and our NFL Network teams, are always collaborating on ways to increase efficiency. We share a lot of fiber infrastructure across our Draft footprint. It was a team effort to lay cable in every square inch of the draft property, which spans six city blocks in downtown Detroit.”
Live from Detroit: Van Wagner adds pool feed to list of responsibilities
For the first time this year, in addition to his regular programming duties, Van Wagner is also driving pool feed coverage of key draft moments on behalf of the NFL. This includes coverage of his pre-draft performances and ceremonies as well as all selection announcements over his three days during the draft. This plan was created in conjunction with NFL broadcast teams, ESPN/ABC and NFL Network to streamline coverage of key moments of the draft.
Six primary cameras provide coverage of the pool feed. Main podium camera, RF Steadicam in the green room, RF Steadicam on the main stage, DynamiCam 4 point in the green room, DynamiCam 4 point in the theater, and mirror cam in the player tunnel (on the “hat pedestal” in the walkway between the green room and the theater). RED Komodo 6k) behind one two-way mirror.
On the programming side, Van Wagner uses four BSI RF handhelds, one RF Sony HDC-P50 Steadicam, and five Fletcher robots, including four Sony HDC-P50s with a combination of 40X and 14X. 14 cameras cover the draft theater. Lens and Panasonic AW-UE150 green room PTZ system).
Production for both the in-venue and pool feeds will be facilitated by the Van Wagner production team at Game Creek Video Encore and PrimeOne Office mobile units (four trucks total). In addition to dedicated cameras, there will be feeds shared with NFL Network and ESPN/ABC productions that can be incorporated into the NFL Draft in-venue show.
On the communications side, SAV Entertainment deployed 80 Riedel Bolero 1.9 GHz beltpacks and 50 panels for the show to support the operation's intercom.
Show and combined power is provided by CES Power via a redundant power system consisting of four UPS systems and two twin-pack generators.
Centralized fiber distribution services Van Wagner's entire production, with the team installing more than 7 miles of fiber across the site.
guided by Jessica Lee, Vice President of Studio Operations, NFL Media, The NFL Network team oversees the draft's remote traffic, including tours of clubs' draft rooms, ENG staff to prospects' homes, and feeds from club viewing parties across the country. All feed enters the premises and is distributed to each group on the premises. Approximately 60 shared remote feeds are received to service events and other sharing between tracks.
Setting: 53 million pixels of LED works with Ross Video Gear
Draft Theater's 220-foot-wide, 74-foot-tall main stage features 11 displays with a total of more than 53 million pixels of LEDs. The entire stage show is controlled by Ross Video's dashboard venue control software.
“This project is supported both creatively and technically by the Ross Sports and Live Events team,” said McCourt. “The NFL/Van Wagner/Ross relationship continues to deliver world-class production.”
The Ross Xpression Tessera drives pixel-accurate content to 11 LED displays, and the XPression CG system is used for overlay graphics. Three 5RU Ross Ultrix routers and nine new Mosaic image processors operating in both 3G and UHD formats are part of the overall LED content management system. OpenGear frames with Gator Toolbox cards convert video signals to 12G for signal processing.
Dashboard software is used to control televised picks and teams, trigger lights, and more. Additionally, the Ultritouch control and monitoring panel allows main show producers to easily recall graphics and change the videoboard layout.
Led by Van Wagner's creative team Producer Brian Scott and Creative Director Aaron Fletcher, You will be responsible for taking the event visual identity developed by NFL Creative and bringing it to life on the Draft Theater canvas.
“This was truly a collaborative process between VW's creative team and the NFL, developing and delivering 10 different looks for each team, as well as some special stage looks that will be used in other parts of the show. “We do,” McCourt said. “Over his three days at the draft, there will be approximately 400 unique looks on screen in total.”
Other key members of the Van Wagner team include: producer Lindsey Anson; Operation Producer Cassidy Colpoysand Technical Manager Cameron Epperson.A large contingent of Los Videos — led by Manager, Content and Workflow; Greg Koo — We can also support production on site.
In addition to last night's show presentation, Campus Martius Van Wagner, who drew a record attendance of 275,000 fans in one day, partnered with Bitfire to stream the Draft Theater show to 14 locations in Detroit.
“This has proven to be an invaluable asset,” McCourt says. “With the site reaching capacity on Thursday evening, more than an hour before the start of the draft, the NFL was able to extend the unique coverage fans experience on-site to a broader audience in the city.”
Christian Hernandez contributed to this article.