Turning a Super Bowl Stadium into a Broadcast Studio Innovative Show Design gives the 60th Super Bowl broadcast some added shimmer.

When it comes to massive television events, it doesn't get much bigger than the Super Bowl. Even if you don’t know the first thing about football, a Super Bowl broadcast contains nonstop stimulation and entertainment. Broadcast teams play an essential role in organizing all the excitement, from play-by-play strategy on the field, to sideline interviews, and even introducing performers for the event’s legendary halftime show.

For Super Bowl LX, held this past February at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA, the NFL and NBC wanted a dynamic broadcast approach that not only kept viewers informed and entertained, but aesthetically reflected the character of the Bay Area. As an added challenge for the team , talent would appear at several locations around the stadium.

Luckily, Innovative Show Design was up to the task. With nearly two decades of experience specializing in scene, lighting, graphic design, and fabrication services for network studios, live events, and broadcast television, the firm managed to navigate both aesthetic and technical challenges. We talked to Nate Mitchell, a creative director with the firm, about how the team approached the project while juggling so many different variables.

Mitchell: We have a long-standing relationship with NBC; this was actually our sixth Super Bowl with them. While discussing the “Football Night In America” traveling desk we recently designed and built for them, they asked if we were on board for a sixth Super Bowl.

Mitchell: When designing Super Bowl sets, we like to take inspiration from the hosting city and stadium. For example, for Super Bowl LVI, the desks had a very wavy look to reflect the host venue, SoFi Stadium, whose wave-like design allows the surrounding ocean breeze to enter the stadium.

For Super Bowl LX, we initially took inspiration from San Francisco and its bridges and designed the set around that; however, this design received mixed reviews, so we returned to the drawing board. The Bay Area is somewhat of a hodgepodge of inspiration. The NFL branding seemed to follow a mixture of elements, like redwoods, Chinese lanterns, print presses, and other themes. While this direction was great for the official NFL branding, we felt it didn't work well for NBC's scenic design.

We reached out to the Art Director at NBC to see if they had a direction in mind for the on-screen graphics package. It was in the early stages, but they were leaning toward diamond shapes and the tech industry. Diamond shapes because 60 is the diamond anniversary, and tech to nod to Silicon Valley. We carried the diamond theme across most aspects of the design, like diamond shapes on the walls or etched diamonds in the acrylic, while using very clean "tech" colors of white and brushed metal. We didn't want the set to become too sterile, so we added wooden elements to warm it up.

Mitchell: At times, set design can be like trying to juggle with one hand tied behind your back. You can design the most beautiful set, but if it doesn’t meet the client’s needs or function, it doesn’t do much justice. We approach every project as its own entity. Each set has its own anatomy, which thrives in its specific environment.

When designing broadcast sets, one of the first questions we ask is how many broadcasters will be at the desk... then we add to that. The joke is, “It’s four until it’s five, or five until it’s six.” We always plan for extra talent. This itself forces a balance; you have a potential situation where there’s five people at the desk, or there’s only two. When there are two, you don’t want it to look like the desk is swallowing them, but when there are five you don’t want them to look squished, either. Our designs try to accommodate every possible situation while still having a pleasant look.

This set, like every set, had its challenges. It had a smaller footprint than our typical sets, and we built the desk on casters so it could be easily moved aside to allow for full open standups. To help with both the challenges of talent and moving desks, we spoke with the tech team and got camera information. We then put this information into Cinema 4D to get accurate camera shots. This process allows us, as well as the broadcast crew, to spot any potential issues prior to fabricating anything. This way, the team knows ahead of time which elements will be in the backgrounds of each talent shot, how the cross shots will play, etc.

Mitchell: The process starts with a kind of vibe. Chris Runnells (Innovative Show Design’s founder) and I usually shoot ideas back and forth, make some shapes in Cinema 4D and Vectorworks, and then refine. Once we get a base, we share with other team members to get input.

From there, Chris starts a full environment design. As he designs, he also rough engineers to ensure what we design is accurate to what will be built. With a full white model, we toss ideas for the texture placements and materials back and forth. The Vectorworks design gets imported into Cinema 4D and then I texture it. During this process I use textures of items we can source. I texture wood elements using actual laminate callouts, and I match colors and surfaces to swatches to ensure we depict an accurate representation of the product. We pride ourselves in being “what you see is what you get” across all aspects of the project.

Once the design is approved, we move onto the build and development. Chris takes the Vectorworks drawing and creates full shop drawings, CNC layouts, etc., and I work on graphic development. For this project, I worked closely with NBC’s art team. I provided them with templates, and once they mocked up graphics, I put those back into our rendering. We then passed “Graphic” renderings, as we call them, around for approval by NBC and the NFL.

Mitchell: The sun was a huge variable in the balance of this design. While we look at weather patterns, we don’t have a crystal ball. We had to plan for the potential of overcast or a bright sunny day. The set included a retractable scrim which would have been pulled down if the sun was too bright. This also played largely into our set. Any LED lighting was designed to be purely additive. If we could use the lights, it would add to the design, but if the sun was too bright for them and they weren’t used, it wouldn’t hinder the overall look. The wall elements, which included metal, were also fabricated in a way where they could be easily taken down or swapped if the sun was an issue. Lastly, the LED video panels were custom made to be outdoor rated, but also bright enough for use on a bright sunny day.

Mitchell: In total, we managed eight locations that varied in size.  At the stadium we had the main set, the field set, and the “backstage” set. The main set was the main broadcast for talent and included a desk, LED video walls, and touch screen monitor.

The field set utilized the “Alexa” stage, which is used in “Thursday Night Football.” For this one, we swapped the flooring to match the main set, wrapped the stage skits with vinyl, applied a new roof, and built an almost exact replica of the main desk.

The “backstage” set included three booths and a backstage tech area. Since this was visible to the public, we created walls wrapped in graphics to enclose the tech area. We also provided graphics in two of the booths for SkyTV and Telemundo.

Outside of the stadium, we had three stage sets. Two of the stages were Stageline units, which are portable staging systems. We provided graphics, some scenic pieces, and custom railings with etched acrylic panels. The last was a simple stage with a skirt graphic.

Lastly, there was the Bravo boat set. A boat from the Blue & Gold Fleet was used as a floating party, if you will, which traveled around the Bay Area. We provided graphic wraps for the boat.

Mitchell: Overall, the sets were extremely well-received, and NBC was very pleased. It was easily the best reception of any Super Bowl we've done. In fact, members from other networks toured the set and asked Chris questions. The entire NBC production is nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Technical Team.

Key takeaways

• Design firm Innovative Show Design helped create the set design for Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, CA.

• Using Cinema 4D and Vectorworks, they designed multiple broadcast sets reflecting Silicon Valley and the Super Bowl’s 60th “diamond” anniversary.

• The sets were highly flexible to accommodate variations in the weather and the amount of on-screen talent.