The 3-D project, which premiered Oct. 30, is believed to be a first for college football: a 3-D spot produced in-house by a university and broadcast during a college football game.

The spot, which was part of a broader marketing initiative developed by University Brand Services, took over Vaught-Hemingway Stadium following the second quarter of the Ole Miss/Auburn game. Matthew Graves, a filmmaker in Ole Miss Media and Documentary Projects, led the 3-D project and said he wanted to produce something that would captivate people in both 2-D and 3-D.

“More than anything, I’m excited about the idea of doing something that to my knowledge has never been done at a college football game before,” Graves said. “3-D is blowing up all over the place, and I really feel like this is a great opportunity for Ole Miss to be on the forefront of this re-emerging technology.” Graves said he had been tinkering with the idea of 3-D at Ole Miss and approached Jim Ebel, the university's chief marketing officer, with the idea earlier in the fall 2010 semester. The game day event was supplemented by this website, an ESPN commercial and additional marketing pieces that will be produced over the next year.

A team led by Robert Jordan, director of brand photography, took on the logistics of having 65,000 3-D glasses printed and distributed at the stadium for the premiere. Graves worked with co-producer Micah Ginn and said he received help and support from numerous people within the Brand Services group, including Andy Harper, director of media and documentary projects, and his filming crew.

The entire project demonstrates that innovation is part of the culture here at Ole Miss, Ebel said. “Taking risks and being the first to do something is how organizations build excitement and stretch people’s imagination,” he said. “This 3-D project is of the caliber of a high-dollar Hollywood production, but it was done here for minimal cost by our own talent. Doing innovative projects like this show the world something else amazing about Ole Miss.”