Pitt Studios Launches at the Pete

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

At an opening ceremony that was also its first live broadcast, Pitt Athletic Director Heather Lyke introduced Pitt Studios, a brand new, state-of-the-art facility in the main lobby at the Petersen Events Center on Oct. 4.

The 6,000 square foot facility houses three redundant broadcast control rooms, multiple editing suites and a broadcast studio located in the lobby of the Pete. 

The studio will give students and talent hands-on experience producing live events and news. Also, there is a significant educational component to the project: Athletics has collaborated with the Film and Media Studies Program to partially fund a faculty position and to aid in the creation of a broadcast curriculum, giving Pitt students a chance to observe and interact with broadcast professionals during live network broadcasts for ESPN.
 
"Up to this point, our students have had to go elsewhere to gain this kind of experience," said Director of Film and Media Studies Randall Halle. "I know our film and media studies students will have meaningful placement opportunities and will be directly responsible for live content via Pitt Studios and the ACC Network."

The broadcasts will support the ACC Network scheduled to launch in August 2019 in collaboration with ESPN. In addition to the opportunities Pitt Studios will offer to students in terms of experience, every school in the ACC will be part of the network and will receive equal proportions of its revenue.

Contact:

Will Entrekin will.entrekin@pitt.edu (412) 648-4493
Category:
Campus
Tags: Pitt Athletics Petersen Events Center Film and Media Studies Program ACC
  • Featuring design features cues from the city, the studio set includes pictures of the Cathedral of Learning and Pittsburgh’s skyline, as well as brick work meant to emulate the Cathedral’s architecture. The set is one feature of the state-of-the-art facility that will give students hands-on experience in broadcast production. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • Director of Athletics Heather Lyke introduced Pitt Studios at a ceremony on Oct. 4. The studio will support the launch of the ACC Network, a collaboration with ESPN. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • Deputy Athletic Director Christian Spears highlighted Pitt Studios’ use of advanced server and broadband fiber technologies that will facilitate more than 100 sports broadcasts per year. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • Director of Film and Media Studies Randall Halle discussed how the new studio will provide students the opportunity to gain hands-on production experience. “I know our film and media studies students will have meaningful placement opportunities and will be directly responsible for live content via Pitt Studios and the ACC Network.” (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • Pitt Athletics has collaborated with the Film and Media Studies Program to partially fund a faculty position and to aid in the creation of a broadcast curriculum. This will give Pitt students a chance to observe and interact with broadcast professionals during live network broadcasts for ESPN. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • A personalized education grant from the Office of the Provost will support students with internship and externship experiences. Pitt Athletics applied for the grant with the hope of providing more students with hands-on experiences with media partners. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • Pittsburgh-based production partner NEP lent technical expertise during the development of the Pitt Studios facility, including final installation of the technical operations center and control rooms. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)
  • On a big screen located in the lobby of the Petersen Events Center, people watched as Associate Athletic Director for Major Gifts Pat Bostic and Larry Richert, Pitt football sideline reporter and KDKA Radio morning news host, made the first live broadcast. (Mike Drazdzinski/University of Pittsburgh)