DETROIT, Mich. — In back-to-back years, the Detroit Lions are in the playoffs and Starlight Aerial Productions is in the sky, putting on a Lions-themed drone show complete with the season's signature chants and celebrations.
"We love doing it for the fans. We love doing it for the Lions," said Matt Quinn, CEO of the Coloma-based drone show company. "When you get to take some of these iconic things that happen during the games and actually replicate them in the sky, that's something we love doing."
On Saturday night, Starlight Aerial Productions collaborated with the Detroit Lions and Northstar Drone Shows to put on a 10-minute performance for international fans in Windsor, Canada (though the show could be seen from across the Detroit River in Motown, too).
"We have these neighbors that support all the things the Detroit Lions are doing," Quinn said. "The Lions gifted [the show] to Windsor and said, 'Here you go. Thanks for being our fans.'"
The phrase "Two Nations, One Pride" perhaps summed up the show, which also included a combination of the Canadian and U.S. flags, lyrics from "Gridiron Heroes" and Amon-Ra St. Brown's headstand celebration.
"What shapes are going to make the biggest impact? How many shapes can we fit within the flight time?" Quinn said.
Shortly after Christmas, the Detroit Lions contacted Starlight about designing another drone show to commemorate the team's playoff berth. But as the show approached, the company had not yet been approved to fly its drones in Canadian airspace. Looking for help at the last minute, Quinn reached out to Northstar Drone Shows, an Ontario-based drone company that agreed to run Starlight's show through its own fleet.
A snowstorm also pushed the show — originally scheduled for Friday, Jan. 10 — to Saturday, Jan. 11.
"When you see these videos of hundreds and thousands of people watching the show, celebrating what the Lions have accomplished," Quinn said. "We love being a part of it."
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Starlight Aerial Productions recently won the Platinum Pinnacle Award for Performers at the 2024 International Council of Air Shows (ICAS) Convention. According to a release, the West Michigan company was the first-ever unmanned pilot performer to win the award.
As drones increase in popularity, Quinn wants to remind people who own them to "learn the rules; learn the regulations; follow them."