Behind the Scenes of Media Day for the Tampa Bay Lightning

Creating this year's Media Day shoot for the Tampa Bay Lightning was a complex process. From the initial planning stages to the final shot, extensive collaboration and meticulous coordination were essential to bring the vision to life. Here’s an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at how the project unfolded, with insights from the team at Diamond View.

Setting the Stage

“The Lightning approached us this year to do their Media Day,” says Will Shanahan, Creative Director at Diamond View. “Our whole goal was to capture content for the video boards, the banners that go around the stadium, as well as the in-game hype video.” Diamond View’s task was to capture the Lightning players' energy in a way that would excite fans and enhance the game-day experience.

The Production Challenge

“We had four sets going on,” recalls Vanessa Diaz, Director at Diamond View. “Will was in charge of two of them, [which included] the Phantom and the lights, ballyhooing around the ice. Jason directed the Triglass set, which was for the Lightning's opening video, and then I was directing the LED set.” Coordinating four simultaneous shoots required not just extensive planning but careful execution.

The crew, numbering over 30, faced the challenge of shooting 27 Lightning players in just one 10-hour day. “We shot everything in one day,” explains Noah Remondelli, Producer at Diamond View. “Everything has to go fast. Everything has to be concise. The timing has to be perfect. There's not really room for error.”

Technical Mastery on Ice

One of the standout elements of the shoot was the use of a Phantom camera for super slow-motion shots. “Thinking through all those logistics, the whole phantom camera and super slow motion, there's a lot that comes with super slow-mo,” says Shanahan. “From the actual camera itself, to the media, to operating it, to the lighting that you need. We are on ice for all of our different sets. A big part was finding the right cam op to be that skater who could hang with these players.”

Creative Collaboration

Collaboration with Triglass was another essential component. “For this shoot, we partnered with Triglass,” notes Remondelli. The synergy between the teams was evident, particularly in the execution of the opening video.

“The whole idea was that we had this traveler that's exploring an ice cave,” elaborates Jason Blanc, Director at Diamond View. “And then through the whole story, we revealed that it's actually players frozen underneath the ice. They explode out of the ice, skate onto the ice, and then that brings us right to their live event. So it ties in together really nicely.”

Capturing the Moment

With so much footage to capture and coordinate, keeping the energy and enthusiasm high was crucial. “When you think about four sets shooting simultaneously, that's a lot of footage. That's a lot of content,” Diaz acknowledges. “It's my job to get them excited about what we're shooting, get them excited about how they look on camera. I really love hyping them up, getting hyped up myself, like, it just makes for a really fun day.”

Blanc shares a particularly memorable moment from the shoot: “There's always a moment on set where you get a shot, you could hear people yelling from the video monitor, and I remember just from looking at the monitor, you don't have sound, you don't have anything else, but people are feeling it. That's super exciting for me.”

The Final Result

The outcome of this collaborative effort is a series of videos and visual content that the Tampa Bay Lightning used to energize their fans throughout the NHL season. The Media Day production showcased what is possible when teams unite with a shared vision and the determination to bring it to life. From the ice caves to the roaring cheers of the stadium, each shot narrates a story of dedication, skill, and excitement.

• View Crew

  Director of Sports & Entertainment: Anthony Santa
  Executive Producer: Susan Mulvey
  Director: Will Shanahan, Jason Blanc, Vanessa Diaz
  Producer: Noah Remondelli
  Production Coordinator: Hannah Page
  DP: Wes Eldridge, Javi Fick
  Cam Op: Bill Mills, Mateus Inke, Micayla Catanzariti
  1st AC: Brandon Richards, Joe Boylan, Nate Hilt
  DIT/Colorist: Alec Pieper
  Editor: Mike Tyson, Michael Csorba
  BTS Videographer: Camila Camacho
  BTS Editor: Liam Dupas
  Gaffer: Tony Sorvala
  Grip: Bryan Pederson, Chris Anderson, Doug Fenclau, Greg Chamberlain
  On Set VFX: Tyson Raw
  Production Asst.: Angie Trujillo, Ethan Stutheit, Madison Harris

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