Sometimes you have to bring the studio to the talent. Dealing with the US Men’s National Team in the midst of their Gold Cup preparations, is definitely one of those scenarios. The team doesn’t have time to spend an entire day on a sound stage, they are on a tight schedule, and so creating a top level television portrait shoot becomes a logistical challenge. Catching up with the team in Nashville, we were able to secure a large concert rehearsal space in the downtown Bridgestone Arena close to where they were staying. This big open space proved to be a more than serviceable studio for our needs. Several custom designed sets were designed and built, each on a different wall of the huge room. This allowed for the players to enter the space and move efficiently from set to set. The main set was a large wall with custom built-in lighting units that were all designed and DMX controlled to create unique lighting effects. Another set featured an enormous American flag unfurling in slow motion behind the player. The Art department and the Grip team had to devise a repeatable quick release system that could hoist the flag up then release it on cue. The entire project was shot in 6K on 2 Red Dragon cameras outfitted with Leica Summicron-C lenses. It was definitely a memorable, challenging and fun shoot. Producer: Jen Pransky Director of Photography: Jonathan Belinski Art: Diana Rice
