First, can you let me know what you do with NFL Films and your other work as well?
Well, NFL Films is my day job. When I’m not at NFL Films I’m doing speaking engagements and mentoring – giving back to mentees – for college and high school kids interested in sports television. I try to give them some insight into how to get involved in that work. I never had that – I had a difficult road to get here and I’m trying to help others find a less difficult road. And we definitely need more minority creatives.
At NFL Films, my job is as a storyteller, whether it’s behind or in front of the camera. As a writer, cinematographer I really wear four hats – editor, producer, director, and writer.
At NFL Films, what is it you hope to achieve most in the stories you tell?
At NFL Films we all pitch stories – there are about 60 of us. The stories I pitch – I want to inspire people with them. That’s my goal.
Of course at NFL Films they have to be football-related. But they are inspirational stories – short-feature documentaries usually. And they are heartfelt – hopefully they do inspire people.
I did one recently on Colts’ coach Frank Reich. He has a foundation that fights sex-trafficking. That’s something you don’t often hear about – a coach with a foundation like that, saving kids from evil things like that. People hopefully are made aware by that story.
I’ve also done stories on a woman who coaches a high school football team in Philadelphia and on Vance Johnson, who had a downward spiral after his time in Denver.
Do you find that that players today are often in a sense dehumanized a bit by stat-driven games like fantasy football and by social media? Is part of the job to “re-humanize” them?
Absolutely. As a storyteller, my main job is to humanize players and coaches. That’s my goal every day when I walk into the building.
My approach can change with the player. There are often close-knit players who often don’t want to talk to someone about what they’ve gone through and sit for a few days doing so. You have to talk to them about that – about wanting to have others see them as human beings. That’s the main thing.
What have been the stories that you felt most moved by that you’ve worked on?
I’d say two stand out. When Hurricane Maria hit Houston, JJ Watt raised millions to help the community and those affected there. I was able to go and spend a week with him and the Houston team. I never realized how powerful the platform they had was. He raised $34 million. Being there and being able to document that – it was special. Being able to show the power of an athlete’s platform like that and to show people how amazing JJ Watt was. I felt pride in what I was able to do there.
Also – documenting Mickey Grace’s coaching work at a Philadelphia high school. She was able to break some barriers and help kids there who had nothing. The respect they had for her was amazing.
Are there projects you are most excited or hopeful to do in the future?
I’d like to work more with Frank Reich and the Colts. He is such an awesome man and coach who is doing something incredible. They recently bought a building to be the headquarters of his foundation. So maybe a part two of his story.
I also would like to do a story on high school football again – the affects the pandemic had on high school teams.
Do you find the self-branding players are doing today gets in the way at all of you working with them?
Not really. It’s all about collaboration. A player can have an incredible platform, but so do we. We’ve been around since 1962 and have a loyal fanbase, as do the players. So we can work together and help them amplify their brand and presence.
We work with retired players as well. Chad Ocho-Cinco is a correspondent for us, for example. We’re great for each other. That’s an example of what a collaboration can do.
Any Steelers players or projects you plan to work on soon?
I haven’t done any yet, but I’d love to see the Steelers on Hard Knocks. We need a new team and that would be a great show. We can show the world what it’s like to be a Steeler and how great the franchise is from the inside.
I think Mike Tomlin would take some convincing!
Ha yeah. It would, but it would be a win-win for the NFL and for the Steelers. The Steelers are such a great franchise and Tomlin is such a great coach. I would love to work with him.
Is it hard getting teams to agree to work with you at times?
It’s mainly about trust. We’ve been doing this for decades. Teams and players know our job is to make them look good. The agents and PR teams know who NFL Films is. We’re here to make them look good!
Read more by former Steelers via the book Steelers Takeaways: Player Memories Through the Decades. To order, just click on the book:
