2024 New England Patriots Schedule Release | Good Jules Hunting

ABOUT THIS ENTRY

Our 2024 schedule release video, Good Jules Hunting, featured recognizable Patriots alumni Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski in a clever parody of Good Will Hunting, the Boston-based, 1997 film which won an Academy Award for best original screenplay. The video earned widespread praise, ranking in the top 5 on most rankings across the sports media landscape.

How does this represent "Excellence in Engagement"?

We were particularly proud of how faithful we were to the original movie, Good Will Hunting, and placed high importance on getting many of the details and references correct. It was meant to be a movie trailer and so it needed to look and feel like one. We felt that an accurate and clever parody would enhance viewer engagement and increase virality. This proved to be true, as many comments about the video praised how each iconic movie scene and line related well to Patriots history and lore.

Objective

The NFL began a tradition of releasing schedule release videos in 2018. The idea was to create fun, engaging, and often humorous videos to build anticipation and excitement among fans for the upcoming season. Teams began putting their own creative spin on these videos over the years, ranging from pop culture parodies and social media trends to high-production skits featuring players, mascots, and celebrities.

The goal for the Patriots 2024 Schedule Release was to create a viral video that engaged the NFL audience as a whole that displayed the Patriots 2024-25 season schedule.

Strategy & Execution

Our team made the distinction early on that we wanted to target a national audience, as opposed to just our regional or local audience. With that in mind, we knew we had to conceive a story that featured (1) household names and (2) recognizable references.

We landed on a concept that featured recognizable stars Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski in a parody of Good Will Hunting. We decided that a movie trailer script would work best in order weave schedule related jokes into the movie’s most recognizable scenes.

With this concept, we eliminated the potential of having too similar of an idea to any other teams, which was happened in years past with other NFL clubs. Parodying a classic Boston film that was critically acclaimed both honored our New England roots while not alienating audiences outside of our fan base.

Organizations

• New England Patriots

Featured

• Robert Kraft
• Julian Edelman
• Rob Gronkowski
• Ernie Adams
• Jerod Mayo

Credits

Junhee Chung
Senior Video Producer and Editor (Director, Co-Writer)
New England Patriots

Veronica Behonick
Social Media Manager (Art Director)
New England Patriots

Eric Adler
Photographer/Editor (BTS Photographer)
New England Patriots

Saylor Murphy
Social Content Creator (BTS Social)
New England Patriots

Matisse Baumann
Content Operations Manager (Production)
New England Patriots

Hollie Mendillo
Production Coordinator (Production)
New England Patriots

Julieann Challacombe
Digital Services Coordinator (Art PA)
New England Patriots

Chris Cassidy
Digital and Social Media Coordinator (PA)
New England Patriots

Kristen Miquel
Senior Analyst, Digital & Social (PA)
New England Patriots

Tamara Brown
Content Producer and Host (PA + Talent)
New England Patriots

Casey Ellms
Digital Content Creator (PA)
New England Patriots

Dillon Citarella
Graphic Designer (PA, Graphics)
New England Patriots

Evan Lazar
Senior Reporter - Football (Talent)
New England Patriots

Fred Kirsch
VP of Content (Executive Producer)
New England Patriots

Ashok Moore
Senior Director - Digital/Social Content & Strategy (Executive Producer)
New England Patriots

Michael Dussault
Content Manager (Producer)
New England Patriots

Michael Runde
Video Producer (Editor)
New England Patriots

Bradley Amus
Senior Video Producer (Drone Pilot, Compositor)
New England Patriots

Jeremy Ramirez
Director of Photography

Derek Emanuel
1st Assistant Director

Jake Davidson
1st Assistant Camera

Ja'Najia Walker-Holliman
2nd Assistant Camera

Leo Epstein
Sound

Ruben Alves
Gaffer

Tony Ventura
Key Grip

Chris DelSesto
Electrician

Dustin Howard
Grip

Josh Nam
Key PA

Alexandra Francisco
Writer - Lifestyle (Co-Writer, Screenplay)
New England Patriots