Production
Crafting the story for you…
“What’s the role of a production department? Very simply put, we tell stories.”
“Yes, it’s a sporting competition, and we focus on the action and the results, but at the heart of it, there are individuals, with their dreams and expectations and the people who support them, back at home or in the stadium. Understanding the human element is key to making sure the audience can connect with an event that might be happening thousands of miles away from their home, so that the content truly comes alive.”
Crafting the Story for you
The production of a major event is more than just the pictures on the screen. Whether the live coverage or the promos and features hyping up the event in advance, the task requires the creative vision to find the narrative audiences want to see and the technical expertise to deliver it faultlessly.
Different Angles
Be bold and brave in your thinking when it comes to new ways to present content.
- Innovative solutions to bring the viewer into the action are always high on the editorial agenda, with the application of on-board cameras during the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France, a prime example of thinking outside the box.
- Miniaturised cameras installed on the bicycles’ saddle tubes transmitted live images of the race to viewers worldwide. While such methods are becoming widespread, at the time, it was a major step forward in coverage and delighted hardcore fans of the sport.
Finding the story
Capturing the action and emotion of an event and relaying it to the viewer is key.
- It is not all about just throwing more cameras and more angles at the audience. However, with previous projects having reached over 40 different cameras for coverage of one match, it is safe to say HBS has investigated every avenue of thought in bringing an event to the viewers’ screen. The primary objective of live sports coverage is to share the action and emotion of the event with those watching around the globe, and to do that in a way which allows the spectator to feel the passion of the athletes and understand the narrative.
- In this regard, HBS’ work has repeatedly earned high praise and awards for its approach, with content from HBS’ coverage of the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) winning L’Equipe.fr’s Public Prize for the Best Sport Slow Motion at the Golden Podium Awards in 2012.
Create a Buzz
It is not just the live content that matters. Building hype in advance is what draws a crowd.
- Live is king, but what about the hook to bring the eyes to your product in the first place. Hype and review are equally important in establishing and maintaining interest in a major sports event or series. Ensuring that fans are aware and motivated to tune in, and kept engaged with the property outside of the whistle-to-whistle period, cannot be under-estimated. A keen eye for fresh angles and an inventive vision to present them is necessary when hundreds of hours of post-production content are generated.
- Magazine shows telling the story from event-to-event on a global series remind your audience why they have to catch the next step on the journey, while promo clips or profiles keep the scene-setting short and snappy. Again, HBS’ credentials can be seen with the Best Sports Trailer prize awarded for Ironman’s 2011 event in Nice, France.
Your sport, your event, your story…in HBS’ hands the world will see the unfolding drama from as many angles as you wish, with a world-class level of visual story-telling. Captivating, creative content, delivered with the reassurance that comes with decades of experience.
Facts & Figures
+6,000
Hours of content produced for a major event
44
Most ENG crews deployed around a host country for a major event
790
Features, promos and daily updates produced for a major event
