Birds Eye View: Atlanta Falcons Overhead Roof Camera Angle
The 6th Annual Awards
- Best Short-Form Video
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
In the 2023 season, the overhead roof camera angle took the sports content landscape by storm. Debuted by the Atlanta Falcons digital team in Week 2 of the 2023 NFL season - the roof camera is an extremely unique angle that immediately feels like something out of a video game.
How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?
The overhead roof camera angle garnered over 100 million views from the Bijan Robinson juke highlights. A combination of the unique angle, the special editing done to it, and an explosive player like Bijan was the perfect storm for the social media storm it created. Since then, there have been endless notoriety and comments coming from media outlets and fans commending the uniqueness of it. Beyond that it has changed the strategies of content teams across sports, with many of them performing their own version of it.
Objective
In today’s day and age, there is no shortage of content. It is a challenge for creators to create content that stands out and resonates with consumers. Our goal as content creators for the Atlanta Falcons is to always connect our fans to our team and create content that catches the attention of the consumer, our fans.
Strategy & Execution
There are 2 major steps to the execution of this, the capture and the edit process: The capture: Shooting from the roof of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the capture is in 4K so that the proper editing can be done. In addition to the caution of being 300+ feet above the ground, it takes a great deal of care to ensure that the shot is perfect for what the edit needs. The featured player or the ball needs to be close to the center of the frame at all times – which is not easy in sports. Once you get the shot, the edit is what makes it stand out even more. The edit: The edit is the x-factor that gives it that extra layer of uniqueness. Motion tracking to lock either the ball or the helmet to the center of the frame gives it that jittery/video game-like effect. This is the special component of such a unique angle that has seemed to resonate with fans across the world.
Organizations
- Atlanta Falcons
Links
Credits
Austin Hittel
Senior Director of Video & Broadcast Production
Atlanta Falcons
Mark Whittingham
Digital Video Producer
Atlanta Falcons
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 6, 2024 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.