Shortly after the marching band graces the field, a moment of silence washes over the crowd as eyes rise to view the Hoo Vision screen atop the stadium's grassy hill. Why? Because every Virginia fan knows this screen is home to one of the most memorable moments of the pregame show -- the beloved CavMan videos.
Since its debut in 2000 at a home game against Brigham Young University, the "Adventures of CavMan" have captivated audiences with its action-packed thrills, which pit CavMan against a rival team's mascot, who is threatening the University community. In these carefully-crafted scenarios, CavMan dramatically manages to defeat these evil-doers, sometimes simply with the wave of his sword. Just how does CavMan do it?
The answer lies behind the technical skills that animator Erik Elvgren employs when creating the videos. Elvgren, producer Todd Goodale and video editor Bryan King are the driving forces between CavMan's evolution over time and are the guys who make sure that the fans are satisfied year after year.
"Given that the first CavMan was shown at the Carl Smith Center dedication game, I think a majority of fans thought it was a special feature for one game," Goodale said. "When Virginia played Richmond the following week and CavMan returned, the crowd reaction was great."
The initial concept of the videos was the brainchild of Ann Holland, the wife of Terry Holland, a former director of athletics. After seeing a team entrance video produced by the University of Texas, she brought the idea back to Virginia, where Elvgren jumped on the chance to implement such a production during the pregame show.
"I recall that being a crazy first summer," Elvgren said. "The idea was to try and get fans into the stadium prior to kickoff to support the team. I actually tried to talk her out of CavMan and into something more like what the [Baltimore] Ravens do -- a mix of video and graphics. But she insisted that animation was the thing, and I have to admit she was right, and I was wrong."
The CavMan videos, although capitalizing on preexisting videos at other schools, are unique at Virginia. Not only are the videos produced in-house, but "most universities and professional sports teams run the same video prior to the start of each game," Goodale said.
Creating new and exciting concepts for each individual game, however, remains challenging. Over the years, "keeping the videos fresh" has meant changing technological equipment, using different environments and camera shots and integrating live people into the videos, according to Elvgren.
"In the past, we've sent out grassoots e-mail messages to people to alert them we'll be shooting scenes on a particular day," Goodale said. "We've also had Charlottesville or University 'celebrities' in the video before."
Inclusion of well-known football players also resonates well with the audience. Elvgren said that, when picking the players to include in the videos, his department targets the "marquee players that fans will know on sight," or ones that have a particular skill, such as using a kicker to send a ball to Monticello.
"I was asked to participate in one of the CavMan videos because I was Connor Hughes' holder for field goals, so they asked me to hold the ball for the video," said quarterback and fourth-year College student John Phillips.
The players are then integrated into the videos through film editing with CavMan animation.
"We shoot video of the background scenes with or without people, depending upon the scene," Goodale said. "Erik then places and positions the animated characters into scene and adjusts their movements to match the movements of our 'actors.'"
Even though Phillips often misses out on the experience of watching the Hoo Vision version of the CavMan videos, both players and fans also have access to them online.
"We hear from fans that they enjoy going to see them from time to time and the kids like to watch them 'over and over,'" Elvgren said.
Perhaps the most important element of production is drafting the unique storylines for each individual CavMan adventure. Starting in January or February, the production team brainstorms future ideas for the videos on a storyboard, or what they call an "animatic," and later applies the latest animation graphics to their ideas to make their work look as real as possible.
"The biggest change is that, last year, we started using motion capture technology," Elvgren said. "This is where we dress up an actor in a suit with reflective dots on the joints and video them from eight angles at once. The movement of those 'dots' is then compiled through software into a 3D recreation of the movement which gets applied to CavMan or a bad guy mascot."
This technique allows CavMan to literally come to life on the jumbo screen by creating the illusion of real human movement.
The CavMan videos, which are produced six or seven times a year, have come to signal the true beginning of every football game. But even if fans think they know the drill, think again -- the videos will soon air in the new John Paul Jones Arena, and surprises are in store for one particular CavMan video later in the season.
"This year we are making a major change by moving CavMan to the Rotunda," Elvgren said. "I would like to add some more fan involvement. Maybe we can run a contest to see who can come up with the best idea for an episode. And we have one really fun surprise that I cannot tell you about that will happen at a midseason game."
Despite the changing scenery, football players, such as long snapper and fourth-year College student Tyrus Gardner, see these videos as a vital element and morale builder not for only the team, but for everyone who appreciates the sport.
"It was a great experience to be affiliated with the CavMan videos," Gardner, who appeared in a video with Connor Hughes and Phillips, said. "I think the CavMan videos are very important to the overall tradition and legacy that these videos hold in Virginia football."
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