Sundays in Atlanta
The 6th Annual Awards
- Best Advertisement (61 Sec to 5 Min)
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
For the last two seasons, the Atlanta Falcons have built a campaign around ”Sundays in Atlanta, GA” aimed at showcasing the culture of the team and the fanbase. Sundays are all about professional football as fans congregate inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, a venue that was voted the #1 in overall fan experience last season.
To capture the energy, excitement, and culture of the fanbase and the community, the Falcons worked with a production team to capture the energy during the team’s opening game and the buzz in the community for the 2023 season. Atlanta is all about ”southern swagger,” and this campaign kickoff video captured that environment.
The Falcons worked with Lovely Day Studio, utilizing drones, steady cams, and a team of four videographers, capturing the environment inside, outside, and surrounding the team’s home stadium. This video helped kick off the Falcons integrated ”Sunday’s” campaign, which also spans retail and lifestyle.
How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?
This pushed the industry forward, showing how capturing the fan energy around the game can be even more impactful when it comes to defining fan identity and creating a sense of FOMO around the games. We weren't limited by internal resources, instead partnering with a production company that could be additive to the resources we have in house. We were able to further our reputation as the #1 fan experience in the NFL.
Objective
- Focus not just on the gameday experience (a theme of the 2022 video), but showcase the unique culture around the city
- Showcase the passion, energy, and enthusiasm of the fans of gameday
- Create a sense of FOMO for fans not in attendance
- Showcase influencers and celebrities at the game
- Capture gameday traditions from unique perspectives
- Work with Lovely Day Studio to supplement the Falcons Digital Video team’s gameday capabilities
- Capture evergreen moments that could be used outside of the campaign launch video
- Increase ticket sales
- Amplify the video in various formats across social channels, including NFL collaboration
Strategy & Execution
Pregame
We rented out the iconic Cascade roller skating venue, inviting several competitive skaters to take part in the video shoot. We utilized hoverboards and gimbal rigs to shoot alongside the skaters, dressed in Falcons gear.
The team captured shots around the city of Atlanta including Krog Street, record shops, murals, and overpasses with views of the Atlanta skyline.
On Friday, the team also hosted a kickoff rally at Atlantic Station where T.I. and the Falcons cheerleaders performed. Players also took the stage to hype up fans.
Leading up to the game, the crew utilized an FPV drone to capture scenic inside the empty stadium, flying over the seats and getting footage of the stadium exterior, including Atlanta skyline.
Gamday
The video crew arrived at the stadium early to capture various fan moments—including the Dirty Birds March into the venue. The focus was on everything outside of the play on the field, instead highlighting the team’s Train Horn sounder (Braves legend Andruw Jones), pregame festivities in Home Depot Backyard, mascot Freddie Falcon’s pregame zipline from the stadium rafters, halftime performance including BMX stunts, hip-hop artists in attendance, Dirty Birds Nest fan section, and focusing on the fan energy overall.
Organizations
- Atlanta Falcons
- The Lovely Day
Links
Credits
Scott Kegley
Vice President, Digital Strategy
Atlanta Falcons (AMB Sports and Entertainment)
Austin Hittel
Senior Director, Video Production and Broadcast
Atlanta Falcons
Ryan Mucatel
SVP, Marketing Communications
Atlanta Falcons (AMB Sports and Entertainment)
Davis Paul
Creative Producer
The Lovely Day
Kia Steiger-Dahl
Creative Producer
The Lovely Day
AJ Sjostrom
Videographer
AJ11 Productions
Rob MacEnaney
Videographer
The Lovely Day
Amanda Butcher
Production Assistant
The Lovely Day
Joe Gregua
Production Assistant
The Lovely Day
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 6, 2024 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.
