Filmwerks International Plans Powerful Presence at Super Bowl LI

The firm is providing sets, lighting, and electricity to Fox Sports and NFL Network

Filmworks’ fleet of trucks/trailers that headed to Houston for Super Bowl LI

When Super Bowl LI kicks off in Houston next weekend, Filmwerks International will be all over the big game for both Fox Sports and NFL Network. In total, the company will have 15 tractors and trailers of truss, glass, soft goods, and power, supporting nine sets between the two broadcasters.

Filmwerks began planning and coordinating with them in May to design and create sets that would meet the unique vision of each. For Fox Sports, this ranged from a 40- x 40-ft. three-story glass-enclosed studio in Discovery Green — the central hub of the Super Bowl LIVE fan festival in downtown Houston — to an on-field set for pre/postgame broadcasting as well as in-game reporting.

Says Filmwerks owner Mike Satrazemis, “Our custom-designed and -fabricated LED site light fixtures will light up the main set for Fox at Discovery Green.”

Filmwerks has built custom-designed sets and lighting fixtures for Fox Sports and NFL Network.

Filmwerks will provide 140 kW and 260 kW of power, respectively, for NFL Network’s two Discovery Green sets. In addition, a 160-kVA UPS system will support NFL Network’s presence at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Rounding out the power requirements will be a 260-kW small UPS for Opening Night coverage and 150 KW for the red-carpet show. Across the multiple locations, Filmwerks will provide all redundant power.

“This was the definition of a team effort,” says Filmwerks International GM Chad Corbin. “It was a huge undertaking by our designing, engineering, and fabrications departments that put in a lot of hours in order to pull this job off. There were a lot of custom pieces that had to be designed and built for the studio sets at the same time we were finishing the production of our new LED site lights.”