When I was younger, I thought people that focused on details were people who couldn't think of the big picture. But as I have matured, I've realized it's the details. It's not a journey upward. People always want to make things bigger and better, but it's the depth. It's a journey inward.
A/V at live events is a rush. If you make a mistake, there's no going back.
In fact bringing the whole experience to life requires a lot of skills that aren't usually required of a creative on a day to day basis. We may be rushed on deadlines, and frantically trying to solve creative problems under the gun, but none of that requires quite as much coordination, communication, quick-thinking, technical know-how, and flawless execution as it takes to really pull off a seamless live experience. It is the marriage between art and execution. And both are required to be at the top of their games on game day.
There's always a little tension between artists and operations and logistics people. The creatives work on their amazing craft and the operations people ensure everything is moving forward. Tensions can rise between the two. To be the best though, you have to embrace both, and as you get experience with these styles of events, you begin to understand why.
There are so many moving parts, so many people involved to create a successful event, you need to over communication. Sometimes this can be seen as nagging. But it isn't. And when you see things go wrong at events, you wish you had just said that thing to that person one more time. Everyone needs to understand that you can't take chances. It's not about trust or egos. It's about the dedication to creating a seamless experience for your guests.
A lot of these lessons can be learned from the kitchen. It all clicked for me when I watched chefs work in the kitchen to create a meal for 50+ people. Timing is everything. But obviously the craftmanship of making the best food possible is also paramount. There is little room for error or the guests will get angry.
With our annual luncheon this year, we wanted everything to be 98% done by the week before the event. And are we glad we did. Because then we can spend the whole next week a little more relaxed and going over the details and the execution. And organizing is so crucial. It gives you time to think through every aspect of the event. And in the end it's those details that take your event from good to fantastic and memorable. Unfortunately, one slight miss can ruin an entire presentation that may have been the greatest thing ever. It's just the way it is.
We were there the evening before doing our first dry run. We only had two computers for the first run throughs, not the three we would have the next day. So in a way we practiced it harder than it actually was.
Even the day of, we went through our first run-through and the video sound wasn't working. why? The sound cable wasn't plugged in. This is why we rehearse.
We used that extra time to see what details we may have missed. Or in case last minute ideas came up that could make the event even better. Being prepared gives you the flexibility to adapt to these changes calmy, efficiently and creatively.
It's important to have everything wrapped up ahead of time so you can leave time to figure out the unexpected things that will inevitably come up.
Time is your enemy in these situations, and it will fly so fast you'll be wondering where it went. Everyone knows planning is important, and I don't think anything I've written here is profound. But when we find ourselves in these situations it is easy to not plan and to get caught up in just getting everything done on time, leaving no room for practicing and fine-tuning or for things to go wrong. It is something you have to understand to fully embrace, and once you do, you'll always think that way.
