Editing Traumahead Sportz


'''Traumahead Sportz''' is an American [[paintball]] video production company established in 1996 by filmmaker [[Jeff Gallatin]] in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company became known for producing tournament coverage, player interviews, equipment demonstrations and documentaries distributed on VHS, DVD, television and later online.[1][2]

Traumahead Sportz was among the early companies regularly documenting professional paintball tournaments on video. Its archive includes footage from the [[National Professional Paintball League]] (NPPL), [[Paintball Sports Promotions]] (PSP) and other competitions during the 1990s and 2000s.[2][3]

The company states that it produced approximately 85 episodes between 1997 and 2010.[2]

== History ==

=== Establishment ===

Traumahead Sportz was established in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1996 by Jeff Gallatin, who had previously worked filming skateboarding competitions and live music.[1]

The company's retrospective filmography identifies ''Hematoma'' and the Knoxville Indoor tournament among its earliest productions in 1996.[3]

It subsequently expanded into professional paintball tournament coverage, producing recordings of major American competitions.

=== Early VHS productions ===

By 1997, Traumahead Sportz was producing commercially distributed VHS recordings of NPPL events.

Its coverage of the 1997 Pittsburgh NPPL tournament included professional ten-player matches, interviews, equipment demonstrations and behind-the-scenes material.[4]

The production featured:

* Tournament footage from professional ten-player competition.
* A tour of the [[Smart Parts]] factory.
* [[Bob Long]] demonstrating the Delta Defiant paintball marker.
* Interviews with professional players and industry representatives.
* Coverage of the tournament's closing ceremonies.

The video was distributed in both NTSC and PAL formats, allowing it to be sold in North America and international markets.[4]

The company's early productions also included footage from the 1997 [[Paintball World Cup]], tournaments at Badlandz and the ZAP Amateur competition.[3]

=== WARPIG and PigTV ===

Traumahead Sportz was an early contributor to [[WARPIG]]'s online video service, [[PigTV]].

In 1997, PigTV distributed excerpts from Traumahead's Pittsburgh tournament recording, including match footage, equipment demonstrations and interviews.

The material was made available using RealPlayer, one of the principal internet video formats of the period.[4]

WARPIG's coverage of the 1997 Paintball World Cup also included an interview with Jeff Gallatin discussing Traumahead's tournament video productions.[5]

The collaboration provided an early means of distributing Traumahead footage online while the company continued selling complete recordings on VHS.

=== Expansion during the 2000s ===

Traumahead Sportz continued documenting major tournaments throughout the early 2000s.

Its filmography records coverage of NPPL and PSP events in cities including Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago, Atlantic City, Philadelphia and San Diego.[3]

The company also filmed international competitions, including the 2003 Toulouse seven-player tournament in France and the 2003 Aruba Open.

Its footage documented the transition from traditional ten-player tournament competition to seven-player and X-Ball formats.

The company's catalogue also includes ''Strange Bus Tour'' (2005) and ''Hellweek-XSV'' (2007).[3]

== Selected productions ==

The following is a selection of productions identified in the company's historical filmography.[3]

{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Production or event
|-
| 1996
| Hematoma
|-
| 1996
| Knoxville Indoor
|-
| 1997
| Pittsburgh NPPL
|-
| 1997
| ZAP Amateur
|-
| 1997
| Paintball World Cup
|-
| 1998
| Skydome
|-
| 1999
| Las Vegas NPPL
|-
| 2000
| Los Angeles 2000 (LA2K)
|-
| 2000
| Paintball World Cup
|-
| 2001
| Gettysburg NPPL
|-
| 2002
| Las Vegas
|-
| 2003
| Toulouse Seven-Player
|-
| 2003
| Aruba Open
|-
| 2004
| San Diego NPPL
|-
| 2005
| Strange Bus Tour
|-
| 2005
| Paintball World Cup
|-
| 2006
| Huntington Beach NPPL
|-
| 2007
| Hellweek-XSV
|}

This is a selected list rather than the company's complete production catalogue.

== Television production ==

Traumahead Sportz expanded into television programming during the 2000s.

In 2008, the company produced the ''Paintball Gear and Tactics Show'', featuring paintball equipment, playing techniques and industry coverage.[6]

On 21 August 2009, the company was scheduled to launch ''The Traumahead Sportz Show'' on the Untamed Sports Channel, available through DirecTV and selected American cable providers.

The announced programme included tournament competition, recreational paintball, equipment reviews and scenario events such as D-Day and Invasion of Normandy.[6]

The production was supported by paintball manufacturer [[Tippmann Sports]], which was identified as an early programme sponsor.

== Video game contributions ==

Traumahead Sportz also supplied video material for the paintball video game ''[[Greg Hastings' Tournament Paintball Max'd]]''.

The game's credits identify Traumahead Sportz alongside [[DerDer Productions]], Jawwbraker and [[Monkey With a Gun Productions]] as video contributors.[7]

== Distribution and archival preservation ==

In January 2012, the online video service iPaintball.TV announced a licensing agreement with Traumahead Sportz to distribute its historical productions.

The announcement identified 55 DVDs and 30 television programmes covering approximately 15 years of paintball history.[8]

The company's official website subsequently developed an archive of historical matches, interviews, equipment reviews and tournament highlights.

Its retrospective catalogue includes footage of professional teams such as [[San Diego Dynasty]], [[XSV]], [[Russian Legion]] and [[Infamous]].[9]

In 2025, Traumahead Sportz introduced new historical programming under the ''Traumahead Live'' name.

The programme featured interviews with former professional players and industry figures, including [[John Dresser]] and [[Chris Lasoya]], alongside archive footage and discussion of historical paintball equipment and tournaments.[2]

== Music and production style ==

Traumahead's early tournament films combined match footage with interviews, product demonstrations and music-driven highlight sequences.

WARPIG's contemporary description of the 1997 Pittsburgh VHS specifically noted its use of energetic music alongside tournament action.[4]

Complete soundtrack listings for the company's historical productions have not been established.

== See also ==

* [[Paintball film]]
* [[DerDer Productions]]
* [[Monkey With a Gun Productions]]
* [[WARPIG]]
* [[National Professional Paintball League]]
* [[Paintball Sports Promotions]]

== References ==

# [https://traumaheadsportz.com/journey/ Traumahead Sportz, "Journey", company history identifying Jeff Gallatin, the 1996 establishment in Raleigh and other contributors.]
# [https://traumaheadsportz.com/ Traumahead Sportz, official website, historical archive, production history and Traumahead Live programming.]
# [https://traumaheadsportz.com/filmography/ Traumahead Sportz, "Filmography", retrospective production catalogue covering tournaments and other projects from 1996 onwards.]
# [https://www.warpig.com/pigtv/classics.shtml WARPIG, "PigTV Classics", contemporary descriptions of the 1997 Pittsburgh NPPL video, VHS distribution and online footage.]
# [https://warpig.com/paintball/tournament/wc97/index.shtml WARPIG, "World Cup 1997", original coverage including the Traumahead Sportz interview.]
# [https://www.uspaintballleague.com/dev_subdomain/news/64/ US Paintball League, "Paintball Goes Live on Prime Time TV August 21st", 2009, announcement of the Traumahead Sportz Show.]
# [https://www.mobygames.com/game/23186/greg-hastings-tournament-paintball-maxd/credits/xbox/ MobyGames, "Greg Hastings' Tournament Paintball Max'd", Xbox credits identifying Traumahead Sportz as a video contributor.]
# [https://ipaintballfilms.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/ipaintball-tv-licenses-15-years-of-paintball-history/ iPaintball.TV, "iPaintball.TV Licenses 15 Years of Paintball History!", 13 January 2012.]
# [https://traumaheadsportz.com/category/paintball/ Traumahead Sportz, historical tournament footage and video archive.]

== External links ==

* [https://traumaheadsportz.com/ Official Traumahead Sportz website]
* [https://traumaheadsportz.com/filmography/ Official filmography]
* [https://traumaheadsportz.com/journey/ Company history]

[[Category:Paintball media]]
[[Category:Paintball companies]]