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T Michael Conner Director of Videoboard & Event Production, Arizona Cardinals GAME Eric Long Event Production Manager, Philadelphia Eagles Website: www.philadelphiaeagles.com CHANGERS Twitter: @EaglesShows A profile of two Game Production executives and By Mike DesRoches their use of Sony’s F55 cameras to augment the Sr. Sales Support Engineer, Sony Electronics Inc. in-venue fan experience. Twitter: @DesRochesSony 109 back to TOC back to TOC 110 Game Changers It’s early Sunday afternoon…game day. As you The initial measuring stick for this battle may look over the extended family enjoying the fruits have been the double-sided, 60-yard-wide of your labor, face paint drips onto the shoulder mammoth video board that was unveiled at the of your lucky jersey; a consequence of working opening of AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas over the bbq’s heat. The burn of smoke dissipates Cowboys back in 2009. In the past year alone, as you close your eyes to savor the last chew of all around the major sporting leagues, a fevered juicy, cooked meat. Momentarily, time slows to a pitch of staggering venue upgrades continue to delicious crawl. Snapping back to reality, the urge leapfrog each other for “largest board” or “most for a quick phone check of your fantasy lineup for total area of board space” have taken place, the hundredth time is interrupted by neighboring but the common denominator is a fervent bass thumps and cackles of laughter; both partially desire to provide unmatched entertainment drowning out the squawk of an AM radio touting value. Some may simply call it “Keeping up today’s matchup. A long, final pull of a cold one with the Joneses,” but it’s much more than that. whisks away the salt from that last brat. It’s nearly It’s about investing in the future by having a game time, so you grab a roadie, gather the family, strong team with a vision, committing to that and make your way over before kickof…only to vision, then doing your homework and making plop down on the couch and fire up the big game smart choices to realize that vision, in order to on that home theater system. …This, my friends, maximize that investment. With 65" TV’s now is a major concern of all those involved in sporting commonplace in the home, organizations have venues, specifically event production managers. turned to these new, gigantic video boards to become the “home theater in the stands,” but Make no mistake, there’s a high-stakes battle going the reality is, as boards increase in size and on at professional sports venues, and it’s not just relative resolution from SD to HD, 2K, 4K and on the field between opposing teams. As Josh now the 8K board (Jacksonville Jaguars, installed Beaudoin, associate principal at consulting firm prior to the 2014 season), these boards are only WJHW, has put it, “It’s become a nuclear arms race as good as the quality of cameras, scaling tools with getting the best equipment to provide that and event production teams driving them. premium in-venue experience.” In this context that means these venues do not just want to house This story profiles two top event production a winning team, they’re very much in a fight to “game changers” responsible for making that provide an experience that simply cannot be had in-venue fan experience a noteworthy one; at home in front of the television. For many teams, how, during their respective group’s impressive like the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles, venue upgrades chose the Sony F55 4K cameras, that means sparing no expense — all in the name among others, to fill their gorgeous new video of providing unmatched entertainment value that boards. Also, how they leverage 4K technology to not only keep the fans coming back, but has them augment the fan experience and provide enough spreading the word both vocally and electronically. flexibility to evolve and benefit other groups Simply put, the game has changed. In the past within their organization. Oh, and perhaps a little scores of months, that’s meant spending tens on what keeps them up at night to ensure they of millions super-sizing video boards, upgrading keep those turnstiles turning. control rooms and production equipment to feed/ support them, increasing wireless/data connectivity and making the facilities as glitzy as possible to get that much-sought-after fan interest and increased trafc through the turnstiles. 111 back to TOC back to TOC 112 Game Changers MICHAEL CONNER Arizona Cardinals Currently employed by the Arizona Cardinals as the Director of Videoboard and Event Production, Michael C. Conner started working with the team as freelance Producer/Director in 2000 and was hired to head the department in 2006, the inaugural season at University of Phoenix Stadium. Directing game presentation and production for Arizona Cardinals football games and working on event presentation for many other events including Super Bowls XLII and XLIX, Fiesta Bowl, BCS Championship games, NCAA Basketball, Cardinals NFL Draft Party and many Concerts, he has enjoyed presenting some of the most exciting events in one of the nation’s finest venues. Mike has been producing, directing, shooting and editing highly acclaimed programming for a national audience for more than 30 years. His credits range from entertainment shows for ESPN to acclaimed documentaries for the NBC family of networks. With wide experience throughout the United States to locations as far away as Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Latin America and much of Europe, Conner knows how to get in and get the job done no matter how remote the location or difcult the challenge. In 2014 he traveled to Russia to direct the live venue production for the medals ceremonies at the Sochi Olympics. Technical Highlights Camera/Replay Implementation — Two PMW-F55 4K Live cameras and seven HDC-2570 cameras, one HDC-2400 & BRC-H900 PTZ (rented two HDC-2400’s for the Super Bowl). Five Evertz Dreamcatcher replay systems. Two for 4K zoom, two in a 6x2 config, 1 for social media. New Video board — New Daktronics HD13 on South EZ - 164' wide by 54' tall — (3836x1260 resolution) with 8 outputs of their Vista Systems SPYDER (four X20 frames). Integration — In-house staf (Shane Gavin and Jamie Gillespie, event and systems engineers) and Pro Sound and Video based in Orlando, FL 113 back to TOC back to TOC 114 Game Changers Mike DesRoches: Mike, you’ve had a possible. And to reward the emotional pretty exceptional run last season topped — and financial — investment fans have of by hosting the Fiesta Bowl, Pro Bowl made in choosing to spend the day with and a small event called the Super Bowl. us means that what we provide has to be That must have been pretty special to the absolute highest quality. Consumers run the boards for that. We can get into have so many great entertainment “we’re looking to create the most that later, but specific to Cardinals games, options, especially here in Arizona, and what would you say is your functional we’re competing with all them. Our job entertaining, passionate and “mission statement” on game day? is to make sure that at the end of the day engaging fan experience possible” Cardinals fans have the best possible Michael Conner: In a nutshell, we’re in-stadium experience and are looking looking to create the most entertaining, forward to the next time they can come passionate and engaging fan experience back and do it again. 115 back to TOC back to TOC 116 Game Changers MD: Heading in that direction, prior to the 2014 season, there were numerous significant upgrades made to University of Phoenix Stadium including the new Daktronics 164' “When it came down to cameras, our wide x 54' tall board in the south end team tested out a few manufacturers’ zone. But those new high-resolution boards need high quality imagery 4K, as well as some non-4K, solutions to feed them. How did the purchase and chose the F55 for 4K and HDC-2570 decision come about and how did you cameras for our HD hard camera needs.” decide on the F55 and HDC cameras? MC: Like most teams, the Cardinals are constantly evaluating the fan experience and exploring areas in which it can potentially be improved. In assessing priorities, enhancing the video board operation to take advantage of the latest advancements and technology ranked high on the list. Because the stadium is owned by the Arizona Sports & Tourism Authority, the video board renovations were a collaborative efort between the Cardinals and AZSTA. Everyone understood the benefits not only for Cardinals fans but also in the ability to attract future events to the stadium. We worked with Pro Sound out of Orlando for some of the integration, but we have a lot of in-house technical expertise on staf, led by Gavin on the video and IT systems side, and Jamie on the audio systems side. We also have a great relationship with Evertz and leaned on them heavily. When it came down to cameras, our team tested out a few manufacturers’ 4K, as well as some non-4K, solutions and chose the F55 for 4K and HDC-2570 cameras for our HD hard camera needs. They seemed to be the best fit with our Evertz Dreamcatchers, and provided the same chains for camera control Arizona Cardinals Scoreboard Production team (left to right): between the HDC’s and the F55’s. Shane Gavin, Jamie Gillespie, Mike Conner, Amanda Flanagan, Brian Myers. 117 back to TOC back to TOC 118 Game Changers MD: What would you say is a unique ability that you’re getting out of the 4K cameras in order to “It was very important for us to augment the video board experience, and how would you say it benefits fans? advance into the 4K technology to enhance the fan experience.” MC: It was very important for us to advance into the 4K technology to enhance the fan experience.