Euroleague Basketball Final Four opening show

It’s easy to underestimate the impact crowds have in creating sporting spectacles. During the pandemic, with live audiences largely kept away from live sports, the absence was keenly felt. So when Ombra were approached by Filmmaster Events to collaborate on the Euroleague Final Four basketball tournament show in Cologne, they decided to push their creativity to the limit.

This case study explores how Ombra built and delivered AR pre-show content with the help of Disguise and Notch, ramping up the atmosphere both for fans in the crowd and those watching at home.

The challenge

The first question the team came up against was whether they could create an AR visual that would pair with the real world setting of the Lanxess Arena. They needed to first understand the measurements of the space and work out the camera and spatial calibration. They also had a range of LED screens available in the space whose size or positioning was unknown prior to arriving on site.

The solution

Having mapped the venue out thoroughly within the Disguise software, the team were able to plan the show and pre-visualise every element along the way, building around their individual strengths. “Understanding everyone’s assets allowed us to work best as a team and create a workflow that made the show easier to produce,” says 3D Designer at Ombra, Lorenzo De Pascalis. “I haven’t seen a show with such a big variety of assets work so seamlessly for everyone.”