Illumination Dynamics Powers ESPN at X Games, Super Bowl

Over the past month, Illumination Dynamics supported ESPN’s busy winter schedule by providing equipment for the Winter X Games and the Super Bowl.

For the first time at X Games this year, slope style was scheduled at night and the athletes competed under the lights making for a spectacular show. There was also complete 3D coverage providing spectacular images for those at home. The addition of these two components called for added lighting and power distribution.

Toughing out the brutal weather in Aspen to assist in the broadcast was Illumination Dynamics (ID) for their 11th consecutive year. ID provided redundant power for the nine mobile units, two uplinks and the Super Pipe Control Tower that was the hub for all TV on Buttermilk Mountain.

To power the lighting on the Slope Style and Super Pipe, as well as the catering, office trailers, athlete lounge, VIP tent, special guest tent and sponsor tents, ID supplied an additional eight generators, for a total of fourteen, ranging from 60kW to 300kW. In addition, ID was proud to supply the lighting gear needed for the X-Center shows, the award stage and the X-Fest area. Three tractor trailer loads of distribution, cables, transformers and more than half a dozen of ID’s broadcast crew also joined ESPN in the freezing cold to provide lighting and power for the four day event.

As the X Games competition was preparing to begin, ID was also busy at Pan Am Plaza in Indianapolis, this year’s the site for the extensive TV compound used to broadcast ESPN’s coverage of the Super Bowl.

ID provided redundant power for the compound which broadcast several ESPN programs such as: SportsCenter, NFL Countdown Shows, Mike and Mike, Sports Nation and ESPN International.  In addition, ID powered the studio and demo field and provided an extensive lighting package to Lighting Designer Michael Franks.

Inside the stadium ID provided lighting and a lighting director for ESPN’s international feed for the Deportes and ESPN Brazil pre- and post-game shows as well as their announce booth positions. While the weather in Indianapolis was a vast improvement over Aspen, the ID crew was equally busy, helping produce more than 110 hours of successful broadcast from Pan Am Plaza.