USA – Recently launched by Minute Media, Sports Illustrated FC marks Sports Illustrated’s first move into studio based production. The weekly panel show connects a vibrant community of football enthusiasts worldwide across social media platforms and FAST TV (Free Ad-supported Streaming Television) under the new Sports Illustrated Television (SITV) channel.
Minute Media’s football media platform 90min helped inform the studio approach. The brand began in 2011 with fan opinions and storytelling via a website and app, then expanded into video in late 2014. The company initially ran two video operations in Tel Aviv and London, established in 2015.
“We relied more on creativity, ideation and DIY ideas to overcome the lack of advanced equipment as the budget was always tight. Nevertheless, we had many success stories and viral videos reaching millions of viewers,” said Sports Illustrated FC’s Executive Producer and Head of Video Production, Jony Geron.
Those early experiences laid the groundwork for a more considered approach to long form panel discussions, formats that now sit central to Sports Illustrated FC’s premium video content strategy.
With no dedicated studio budget, the operation needed to be agile and revenue focused in order to make commercial sense. The solution was to design a studio that could hold up for multiple daily live shows, podcasts and interviews while remaining simple enough to run with a minimal crew.
The resulting setup features four Blackmagic Studio Camera 6K Pros, equipped with the Blackmagic Focus Demands and Blackmagic Zoom Demands when operated and an ATEM Television Studio 4K8 live production switcher with content recorded on HyperDeck Studio HD Plus broadcast decks. “I was extremely impressed by how well designed the cameras are for studio use, and the fact that we could use our existing EF lenses,” said Geron. “That all helped with the decision.”
Audio over XLR is handled through the ATEM Microphone Converter, allowing multiple microphones to be fed cleanly into the ATEM Television Studio 4K8 for mixing and embedding into the live program.
Where previous studios were described as “one big improvisation,” the new setup offers consistency, reliability and studio level control. “All four cameras are wired with only one ethernet cable to the ATEM, giving full control to the operator of the show. The lights are all rigged to the ceiling and controlled remotely, the video quality is so impressive, and the fact we don’t need to worry about camera power or lighting is such a massive change for us,” Geron shared.
“We’re only now beginning to see what the solution can really do,” Geron said. “The biggest win is how much time it has saved and how many risks it has removed. One person can walk in and record a four camera, hour long show with seamless quality control and have it ready to launch in a matter of hours.”
Today, the studio is a core asset for Sports Illustrated FC, enabling the brand to operate immediately at a premium level in the studio production landscape. “Our output is stronger, conversations flow better, and audience engagement is much higher,” Geron concluded.
