Hi Reader,

With the World Cup final this Sunday, I've been thinking about one of the wilder rides this career has given me.

In March of 2005, ESPN sent us to Colorado Springs to spend a week filming the US Men's National Team. They were training at altitude, preparing for a World Cup qualifier against Mexico at the famous Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, 7,200 feet up and packed with more than 100,000 fans.

Reporter Lisa Salters was embedded with the team for the feature, and we filmed everything: training sessions, interviews, the team hanging out in their hotel rooms, the quiet work nobody sees.

Then came the part I still can't quite believe. When the week wrapped, we boarded a private jet with Landon Donovan, coach Arenas, and the entire US team and flew with them to Mexico City for the match. Oh, and Drew Carey was there. Not just hanging out that week, but sort of an imbedded fan on the whole journey.

By that point in my career I'd been on plenty of memorable jobs. But some moments still stop you. Sitting at 40,000 feet with the national team, headed to one of the most intimidating stadiums in world soccer, was one of them.

Mexico City was a whole different level of intensity. The security was unreal. As we drove around with the team, paparazzi chased our bus on motorcycles, and there were cops everywhere. It was insane.

But my favorite morning had none of that. I got up before dawn to film golden hour around Estadio Azteca. The stadium at sunrise was so beautiful and quiet, and what a lovely city. The contrast with what was coming later couldn't have been bigger.

Then came game day. I followed Landon out of the tunnel as he entered the pitch. The sound of 110,000 people in that stadium hit like a wave. Epic doesn't begin to cover it. I felt his energy, and tried to capture it with a wide lens from a low angle looking up into the fishbowl of fans. I wish I could find that footage!

The US lost that match 2-1. But the guy we'd been filming all week set up the lone American goal.

I tell this story not to name-drop, but because of what it taught me:

You never know where this work will take you. When I picked up a camera, "private jet to Mexico City with the national team" was not on any list of mine. The gigs that become stories rarely announce themselves in advance.

Travel light. When the team plane is leaving, nobody waits for your third case of gear. The leaner and more mobile your kit, the more of these rides you get invited on. And back then, packing light was hard, since our lights were heavy tungsten Arris. With today's LEDs, it's much easier to build a lightweight travel kit.

And access like that isn't given, it's earned. A crew that's quick, quiet, and easy to have around gets invited deeper inside. A crew that's in the way gets left at the hotel.

Enjoy the final on Sunday. Somewhere in that stadium, a camera crew is getting the ride of their life

That's a wrap for this week's Freelancers Friday. I'll see you back here next week with more real-world lighting breakdowns, freelance business tips, and behind-the-scenes fun.

Have a great weekend!

Cheers,

Tom Miller Freelancers Film School​

P.S. Want to revisit past issues? The whole Freelancers Friday Collection lives here: https://freelancers-film-school.kit.com/​