Eric Long
Video production coordinator, Binghamton Mets, Binghamton, NY
CAST member since 2006
What does your organization do?
The Binghamton Mets are a minor league baseball team. Our main emphasis is on family entertainment.
What’s your role in the company?
I oversee all our video production and graphic design. That includes video for our own use at the ball park, such as the features we show on the board during games and the closed-circuit broadcast of the live game inside the stadium. We also create footage to use in TV commercials or to send to the New York Mets or to SportsNet NY (SNY), the New York regional sports network. Along with the video, I’m responsible for the promotions, the mascots—all the game entertainment. On the video side, I work with a staff of about 20 part-timers, including professionals and interns.
Tell us about the special challenges you face in your job.
Managing a staff of part-time, seasonal employees is a challenge. People aren’t necessarily here on a day-to-day basis; some people are gone for weeks. So it’s hard keeping everyone on the same page. Also, the nature of the business makes things difficult. We produce 71 shows a year, and our biggest goal is to make each one different, so even if you come to every game, you never see the same show twice. We work on tight deadlines, with very little down time. Sometimes we have six or seven home games in a row. The challenge is keeping the entertainment fresh and keeping the staff energized.
What training and prior experience led you to this point in your career?
I graduated from Penn State in 2005 with a BA in film and video. I had an internship with the sports department of a TV station during college, so I shot some sports, but I never expected to make that my career. I saw myself moving to Los Angeles to work on movies or TV. But soon after I graduated, I got an opportunity to work in my home town, Lancaster, Pa., producing video for their new minor league baseball team, the Lancaster Barnstormers. Then I spent two years as video production coordinator for the Reading Royals, an ECHL hockey team.
Why do you belong to CAST?
Scott Brown, our general manager, and I gave a talk at one of the CAST meetings. Our experience there convinced us that it was a valuable organization.
How have you benefited from your membership in CAST?
The biggest benefit has been the networking. CAST allows you to meet other professionals who are doing what you’re doing and going through the same kind of issues in this market. I find the speakers at the meetings varied and interesting. Also, the Genesis awards provide an opportunity to see, and get ideas from, everybody’s best work. Winning a Genesis award gives you credibility in the community. We won second and third place in the “Outstanding Debut” category this year; it was cool to be able to showcase the work of two of our interns that way.
Final words?
I’m impressed by the number of people who are involved in CAST and how much time they put into it, in addition to their full time jobs. It just goes to show how much the Southern Tier has going for it in the way of professionals and creative minds.
To learn more about the Binghamton Mets, call 723-6387 or visit www.bmets.com
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