A new documentary from HBO called The Shuffle will chronicle the magic 1985 Chicago Bears Super Bowl run, but it wasn't always easy for director Jeff Cameron.
Speaking to ClutchPoints about his new documentary, Cameron detailed some of the limitations of making a retrospective documentary. Cameron — who has worked with the NFL for documentaries like Hard Knocks, which follows teams in close to real-time — conceded that they were “very limited” in terms of getting archival footage.
What is available is all that's there. Luckily, Cameron had archives to sift through.
“As you saw in The Shuffle, we just don't have footage or photos or evidence of any of these stories,” he explained. “So when it comes to illustrating and showing how “[The Super Bowl] Shuffle” was created, the challenge, but also kind of the fun, is thinking of how we could bring that to life.”
Working on The Shuffle does mean that Cameron still has the iconic Bears anthem stuck in his head.
“It's very much still stuck in my head,” Cameron admitted, specifically referencing the “I'm not here to feather his ruffle, I'm just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle” line.
While “The Super Bowl Shuffle” was an “earworm,” the New England Patriots' response song was even more so.
“That one doesn't leave your head for weeks,” Cameron quipped.
Even if there isn't a lot of behind-the-scenes footage to choose from, NFL Films gave Cameron access to the original 16-millimeter film of all of the Bears' games in 1985. So, they were able to clean it up and make it crystal clear, a technical feat.
“It's the highest quality, highest [resolution] possible,” he explained. “I think keeping it in that 4:3, we overscale. We went back and actually overscanned all of the '85 Bears film to make sure it was the highest quality. So when you watch the Super Bowl footage, it's crystal clear.”
How'd they round up the '85 Chicago Bears?
Getting some of the players, such as Willie Gault, Mike Singletary, Jim McMahon, and Gary Fencik, was huge for Cameron, as only they could retell the story of the Bears' “Super Bowl Shuffle” fiasco effectively.
For Cameron, working with NFL Films has other perks, such as securing the talent. Hindsight is 20/20, and the players seemed open to talking about “The Super Bowl Shuffle” with 40 years behind them.
“At the time, maybe some of them were a little hesitant, a little superstitious about doing this, [but] I think after 40 years, most of them, if not all of them, recognize what it's become and how intertwined it has become with that team,” Cameron explained.
Cameron was able to conduct the interviews, traveling across the United States to connect with each player — Gault was in Los Angeles, and McMahon was in Arizona. Luckily, they were able to catch Fencik while he was in town in Chicago during the Bears' alumni game.
Has anything come close to “The Super Bowl Shuffle”?
The “Super Bowl Shuffle” was such a unique situation. It created superstition due to it being recorded before the Bears sniffed the Super Bowl in 1985. Cameron can't recall anything else like it in NFL history. The closest thing was when the Philadelphia Eagles began their annual Christmas album tradition.
Luckily, they never claimed to win the Super Bowl amid the holiday cheer. Still, it created some superstition for Cameron. Ultimately, “I think nothing has really come close to the bravado of the ‘Super Bowl Shuffle.' And I'm not sure that anything ever will.”
How will in-season Hard Knocks with the NFC East be different?
The Eagles will soon be featured on the NFL's latest in-season Hard Knocks season, which will follow the NFC East. So, their division rivals, the New York Giants, Washington Commanders, and Dallas Cowboys, will also be featured.
Cameron couldn't (and wouldn't) say much about the in-season Hard Knocks, but he did tease it a little bit. Fans will get “to know the players and the faces behind the helmet a little bit more.”
Additionally, they will see the “camaraderie” of each squad and how they plan for each other, given that they face their division rivals twice a year.
Hard Knocks began as a series that chronicled a team's training camp. It traditionally premieres in August or September, meaning the turnaround is quick.
The same goes for in-season Hard Knocks, which will pick up around the time it premieres on Dec. 2 on HBO.
“It's just as hard [as training camp Hard Knocks],” Cameron said. “The turnaround, believe it or not, is actually the same. [In] episode one, we don't delve a lot into the previous 11 or 12 weeks; we assume you know [what has] happened. We like to live in the moment.”
Adding to the pressure is that in-season Hard Knocks follows four teams, compared to the traditional one in training camp. So, now Cameron and his crew have to document four teams' meetings, practices, and games.
Jeff Cameron reveals his pick for a Quarterback and Receiver follow-up
Cameron has also worked with Netflix for their Quarterback and Receiver series. Each season selects a few of the top players at the titular positions and follows them throughout the year.
Currently, there's no word on what will come next — Quarterback Season 3 or Receiver Season 2. In the meantime, Cameron revealed that he'd be interested in seeing a season revolving around various offensive line groups.
“Those guys are just always so entertaining,” he reasoned. “Whenever we shoot an o-line diner or something, there's so much ball-busting.”
Nothing is confirmed, but Cameron thinks he'd have at least one supporter: “I'm sure [Jason] Kelce would agree with me.”
Are more short-form documentaries in the works?
Going forward, Cameron is gonna continue making NFL documentaries. However, what's next is not known. The beauty of something like The Shuffle is that it's like a short story. It tells the complete narrative in about 40 minutes, and future episodes could chronicle another phenomenon in a similar amount of time. It sounds like Cameron wants to continue doing these kinds of docs.
“The Shuffle was such a unique moment in time,” he said, “[and] we really focus on the 12 weeks between it being planned and recorded. I think that approach lends itself well to short documentaries, and I think there are plenty of little pockets in NFL history that are ripe for this short documentary series.”
Some documentaries are spread across several episodes of multi-hour films. The Shuffle being like an episode of a serialized series represents the digital age well.
Nowadays, people are so inundated with their phones, constantly needing stimulation. Social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram grant this with their short-form posts and Reels. Most posts are only a matter of seconds long, and before long, you are scrolling to the next.
Is that lack of attention span why Cameron decided on this type of short documentary for The Shuffle? That may be part of it, but part of the reason may be the “lack of space for” short documentaries.
“You log onto Netflix, or any streaming platform for that matter, and you click on something, and it's six [or] seven parts, it's these long sagas, which are great. And there are certainly stories that deserve all that time,” Cameron rationed. “I think it's refreshing to have a couple [of] stories that maybe aren't long enough for a feature or a multi-part series that exist in a short documentary that you can enjoy in one sitting.
“I think that's a space we're very eager to explore and continue making moving forward,” he concluded.
The Shuffle is streaming on HBO Max.
