The Massive Task of Producing the UFC 100 PPV

by Kid Nate on Jul 13, 2009 11:15 PM EDT in News Comment 30 comments

Emma May chronicles a little bit of what goes into putting on the show at the Vancouver Sun:

An intricately designed remote camera hung just overhead of the octagon and slid along 18 vertical and horizontal cords turning its long lens on the fighters to capture the overhead angles, while four hand-held camera men stood on tall stools at four corners of the octagon. Crane-mounted cameras filmed the fighter’s walk-ins and still more digital cameras filmed back stage goings on and scenes from the crowd.

In all, some 200 UFC employees made this internationally seen show work, and scores more worked on it ahead of time to handle administration, marketing, medical checks, transport, construction and the press.

As much fun as it is to second guess Dana White's job as a personnel manager or his savvy as a strategist, its very gratifying to see that there is very little to bitch about with the production of the current UFC programming.

Sure they didn't document the Buffer 360, but otherwise they covered the action comprehensively and unobtrusively. In the old days, the UFC production was strictly ghetto, and even for much of the Zuffa era they were clearly outclassed by PRIDE. But a lot of that had to do with business realities, namely that PRIDE brought in a lot more revenue than the UFC did. Well all of that has changed and its very nice to see that Zuffa really is plowing a nice chunk of their money back into ever-improving production quality.

UFC 100 coverage

0 recs | Comment 30 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Read More: ufc 100, backstage, business of mma, UFC 100

Comments

Now if they can just get rid of the gladiator.

The Declaration of Hendopendance

by capital L on Jul 13, 2009 11:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Man!

None of my casual friends get sick of complaining about how sick they are of that bleeping gladiator.

by asa on Jul 15, 2009 5:40 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Im in collge right now

And when people ask me what I hope to do after school I tell them that the eventual goal is to become a mixed martial arts promoter. The challenges presented are so varied and the skillset required is so balanced that its something I’d honestly feel disappointed in myself if I never accomplished that goal.

he was injured. injured bad.

by troy145 on Jul 13, 2009 11:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Director of Production position for Zuffa, LLC anyone interested. Be prepare for 18-20 hrs a day there

by The Bronzeville Bully on Jul 13, 2009 11:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

“So what happened to the last guy?”

“Had a nervous breakdown, swallowed a bunch of sleeping pills, slit his wrists, hung himself, jumped out a window, shot himself and then threw himself in front of a subway.”

“God, what made him do that?”

“He had to deal with Mr. White all day, every day.”

Keep firing Assholes!

Thanks to Bisping's reenactment of the Battle of Cowpens, walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by Ubernoober on Jul 13, 2009 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

He had to deal with Mr. White all day, every day.

In a professional sense, White is probably a real pain to work with due to the control freak nature. In a personal sense, he is probably the best friend you ever had.

A man should never waste an opportunity to keep his mouth shut.

by iiowyn on Jul 14, 2009 12:38 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That’s why I said Mr. White, not Dana :P

Keep firing Assholes!

Thanks to Bisping's reenactment of the Battle of Cowpens, walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by Ubernoober on Jul 14, 2009 12:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

mr white??

he was injured. injured bad.

by troy145 on Jul 14, 2009 12:45 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I love that movie so much, you have no idea.

Keep firing Assholes!

Thanks to Bisping's reenactment of the Battle of Cowpens, walla walla walla I'm an idiot.

by Ubernoober on Jul 14, 2009 12:47 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

How bout a little fire, Scarecrow

How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert

by subo on Jul 14, 2009 2:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

In all, some 200 UFC employees made this internationally seen show work, and scores more worked on it ahead of time to handle administration, marketing, medical checks, transport, construction and the press.

This is generally why I don’t like to give Dana all the credit for a great show.

by madiq on Jul 13, 2009 11:48 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs

rec!! more props to the UFC production crew!

"I’m not going to stop yelling because that would mean, I lost the fight!"-Kenny Powers
shooter/cutter for AllElbows.com

by ekc on Jul 14, 2009 12:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Just remember, if Dana doesn’t get all the credit for the good things because there are so many employees, he shouldn’t get all the blame when something doesn’t go perfectly.

by Phildo on Jul 14, 2009 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed. But he SHOULD be scrutinized for the things that he himself says.

by madiq on Jul 14, 2009 12:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Honestly, I wish they did a bit more flash in their intros ala Pride and currently Dream. I’m not saying they need pyro, but they could definitely spice things up a bit. I don’t remember anyone decrying Prince Naseem floating to the ring on a flying carpet as pro-wrestling. The only difference is MMA isn’t established like boxing is.

One thing the UFC does very, very well is make people care about midcard talent, or at least the hardcore fans care about them, but flashy entrances would definitely help remember certain people more. Tom Lawlor shimmying to the cage to “Who Let The Dogs Out?” while leading Seth Petruzelli on a leash with a bone in his mouth was hilarious and is the reason I’m not gonna forget who Tom Lawlor is anytime soon.

So, while the production values are definitely excellent, more sizzle please. Being theatrical like pro-wrestling doesn’t mean you’re automatically sleazy or fake like pro-wrestling.

by Chromium on Jul 13, 2009 11:50 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I don’t agree, I think the flashy intros cheapen the products. EliteXC tried it and there was a lot of backlash, myself included. And I know a lot of people liked the Pride intros but I honestly had to mute my TV every time the screaming lady screeched the fighter names.
Being there, the intimacy of being so close to the fighters as they walk out is part of the experience and not something conveyed well on PPV but believe me it helps to complete the event live.

by pr0cs on Jul 14, 2009 12:02 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Plus they only work if the fighter is into it...

and even then he looks like a douche if he walks into the ring and quickly gets dropped or submited.

Those Pride/Dream intros look pretty silly when the fighter just stands there and walks to the ring without playing along…which happens more often than not.

Not everyone is Mayhem Miller (thank dog).

by Razreshat on Jul 14, 2009 9:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Pride intros were a joke

One thing the definitely don’t need to do is add another 2 minutes of fluff to events.

by Amish on Jul 14, 2009 2:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Preposterous

It ends in an armbar or a strangle regardless.

by capital L on Jul 14, 2009 7:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

from someone who has worked in MMA production, the UFC has the BEST LIGHTING, BEST DIRECTING, BEST SOUND, BEST PLAYBACK…well almost the best at everything… i think there fighter profiles and lacking in prodcution(seriosly, a mister, still!!) but overall, it is always well done…

"I’m not going to stop yelling because that would mean, I lost the fight!"-Kenny Powers
shooter/cutter for AllElbows.com

by ekc on Jul 14, 2009 12:04 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

almost all the fighter profiles are done in house. The main event ones are done by an outside production company

by The Bronzeville Bully on Jul 14, 2009 12:32 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

My favorite camera angle, and one which I hope they continue to use, was right before the fight, just after the staredowns. It was a low camera angle view over the shoulder of one fighter looking across to the other. Only lasted a couple seconds, but it really put me in the moment and got me hyped.

Also, Sexiyama coming out to Con Te Partiro. Fucking AWESOME. But where was the hand-holding? :)

"The path to enlightenment is through suffering"

by RearNakedChoker on Jul 14, 2009 12:43 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Fuck that, where were the Gono dresses?

How's the weather up your own ass? - Stephen Colbert

by subo on Jul 14, 2009 2:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don’t know, I was just hoping for some sweet hand-on-hand action from the Sexy.

"The path to enlightenment is through suffering"

by RearNakedChoker on Jul 14, 2009 2:45 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

The author of the source article

is named Emma May? Is that a joke?

There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

by misterjonez on Jul 14, 2009 3:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It certainly looks strange. She has an mma blog under that name, at least: http://emmamayblog.wordpress.com/

by Sventsh on Jul 14, 2009 5:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ha! Just caught that, good eye!

"The path to enlightenment is through suffering"

by RearNakedChoker on Jul 14, 2009 3:30 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Our taglines sound about right for 13th century Catholic

dogma. No good.

There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

by misterjonez on Jul 14, 2009 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I watched an old showtime event last night

and by old, I mean only a few years. The first thing I noticed was the production value. It looked very dated. Fewer camera angles, the ads were just block letters, the entire thing looked so bush league compared to what promotions put on today.

by ryanwk628 on Jul 14, 2009 8:53 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

In terms of capturing the fights, which is what’s most important, the UFC’s production is indeed excellent. As far as everything else goes, though, it’s pretty drab and repetitive. Competent, sure, but it does nothing to get get me excited for the fights.

by JRN on Jul 14, 2009 1:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs