Vizrt Powers Graphics for Fox Sports’ Super Bowl Broadcast

Fox Sports used Vizrt’s broadcast graphics systems for both pre-game and main telecast on-air graphics for this year’s Super Bowl.

Supporting the broadcasts were more than two-dozen Viz Engines, Vizrt’s real-time 3D compositing engine, as well as Viz Trio graphical user control interfaces. Augmented reality graphics powered by Viz Virtual Studio systems working in conjunction with NCam optical camera tracking were used for graphics and effects. In addition, the Viz Libero sports analysis tool was utilized for enhancing play-by-play coverage. Viz Engines drove a Microsoft Perceptive Pixel touch screen for displaying Vizrt’s social TV tools and real-time stats.

“We are thrilled to be able to deliver a high quality production thanks in part to our friends at Vizrt. They continue to provide tools that allow users to push the limits of on air graphics,” said Zac Fields, Vice President Graphics & Technology, FOX Sports Media Group.

Some of the graphics systems were used during the four days leading up to the big game inside a temporary studio set up in New York’s Times Square, where the city has established “Super Bowl Boulevard,” a fan-friendly zone encompassing ten city blocks along Broadway. The Vizrt equipment was housed within a control room set up inside a mobile production truck parked on site.

“We are extremely proud to have worked with Fox Sports on this major sporting event, as they are a very innovative company that always seems to find new and interesting ways to leverage the power of the Vizrt graphics platform,” said David Jorba, Executive Vice President of Operations at Vizrt Americas. “This year we will see Fox Sports doing very creative things with graphics that others only dream about.”

One Viz Trio graphics operator was dedicated to producing lower third graphics, full screen graphics, real-time stats and interactive charts. A second operator worked the famous “Fox Box” statistics with Vizrt technology. During Super Bowl week, the average playlist used by each operator (and stored on Viz Engines configured as a central repository) was made up of more than 1,500 graphics items.

Fox has used Vizrt technology for its graphics production since 2010, in the studio as well as onboard the various mobile production trucks. This includes generating the popular “Cleatus” CGI robot that appears during program interstitials during every NFL on Fox telecast.