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What’s up Rock Nation! Today we’re joined by Dom, aka Dom The DP, a longtime freelance cinematographer best known for shooting with NFL Films. Dom has captured 16 Super Bowls, worked across 20 NFL seasons, and recently won an Emmy for Netflix’s Quarterback. In this episode, we talk about what it takes to shoot football at the highest level, how NFL Films captures the story of a game in real time, the difference between regular season and Super Bowl assignments, why getting called back as a freelancer is about more than just being talented, the transition from film to digital, the shot that still haunts him, and what young sports filmmakers need to know if they want to break into the industry.

Check out Dom here:
https://www.instagram.com/domthedp/

00:00 – Intro
01:01 – One-Handed Crack
01:54 – Shooting 16 Super Bowls
03:24 – How Super Bowl Camera Assignments Work
04:22 – Shooting Regular Season vs Super Bowl
05:34 – Sync Sound, Frame Rates, and NFL Films Coverage
06:32 – How to Shoot Better Football
08:54 – Dom’s First 10 Years Shooting on Film
10:23 – The History of High-Speed Football Shots
11:23 – The Lens Setup NFL Films Uses
12:36 – What a Weasel Camera Operator Does
13:19 – Finding the Best Backlight in a Stadium
14:35 – What Dom Would Tell a First-Time Shooter
15:46 – Why You Have to Love Football to Shoot It Well
17:56 – How Producer Notes Shape Coverage
20:06 – Inside the NFL Films Archive
21:32 – Where to Stand During Live Game Action
23:50 – Working Your Way Up at NFL Films
25:39 – Why Mic’d Up Moments Matter So Much
27:08 – Dom’s Go-To Football Lens
29:11 – Dom’s Favorite Gameplay and Mic’d Up Moments
32:21 – Shooting Film vs Shooting Digital
34:04 – How Much Time You Got on One Roll of Film
38:23 – The Shot That Still Haunts Dom
38:54 – The Minneapolis Miracle
42:28 – Learning From Missed Shots
44:17 – Getting Called Back as a Freelancer
45:42 – Why Being Likeable Matters in This Industry
47:49 – Dom’s Full-Time Jobs Before Freelancing
51:42 – Winning an Emmy for Netflix’s Quarterback
52:05 – Shooting Netflix Receiver and Quarterback
56:12 – Sports Cinematography Advice Dom Disagrees With
59:36 – Dom’s NFL Films Internship
1:02:28 – Advice for Young Sports Filmmakers
1:05:49 – Balancing Freelance Work, Family, and Travel
1:10:15 – NFL International Games
1:12:24 – Traveling Internationally With Camera Gear
1:14:51 – Shooting YouTube Content on an Alexa 35
1:15:37 – Wrapping the Episode With Dom

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