New to Live Production?
Planning an event? / Start here
Planning an Event?
You don't need to know every piece of equipment.
You need to know what questions to ask.A production company can recommend equipment.
What it cannot do accurately without information is understand the event you are trying to produce.
Before discussing speaker quantities, LED sizes, lighting fixtures or stage dimensions, establish the audience, venue, programme, performers, content, timings and technical requirements.
The better the brief, the better the production team can design the solution.
01
Define the event
What are you actually producing?
Start with the basics:
- event type
- purpose
- date
- venue
- audience size
- programme
- start and finish times
- speakers
- performers
- presentations
- entertainment
- recording or streaming
- special moments
A conference, awards night, concert and private performance may all require sound, lighting and video.
They do not require the same production.
Before asking:
How many speakers do I need?
start with:
What needs to be heard, by whom and where?
That change in question leads to a much better production conversation.
02
Understand the venue
Find out what you're working with
The venue affects almost every production decision.
Ask for technical information before the production is designed.
Useful information includes:
- room dimensions
- capacity
- floor plan
- stage dimensions
- ceiling height
- rigging points
- power
- loading access
- freight lifts
- case storage
- installed sound
- installed screens/projectors
- installed lighting
- internet
- noise restrictions
- working hours
- setup restrictions
- venue technical rules
03
Understand the audience
How many people need to see and hear the event?
Audience size matters, but so does layout.
Five hundred people seated theatre-style and five hundred people spread across a wide ballroom may require different approaches.
Consider:
- audience count
- seating style
- room width
- room depth
- balconies
- sightlines
- standing areas
- overflow spaces
- accessibility
- audience movement
Production systems need to work for the audience where they actually are, not simply for the number written on the invitation.
04
Map the programme
What happens during the event?
Build a basic running order.
18:00 Doors 18:30 Welcome 18:40 CEO presentation 19:00 Panel discussion 19:30 Awards 20:00 Live band 21:00 Dinner 22:00 DJ 23:00 Close
That simple programme already tells the production team a great deal.
The CEO may need presentation playback and a confidence monitor.
The panel may need several microphones.
The awards may require walk-up music, lighting cues and video playback.
The band may have a technical rider and backline requirement.
The DJ may require a separate setup.
Production follows the programme.
05
People on stage
Who needs to present or perform?
Identify everyone who will actively use the production systems.
This may include:
- presenters
- keynote speakers
- panelists
- award recipients
- performers
- musicians
- DJs
- hosts
- remote speakers
- interpreters
Then ask what each person needs.
A keynote presenter and a six-piece band both need audio, but the requirements are completely different.
06
Artists & technical riders
Get artist requirements early
If musicians, bands, DJs or performers are involved, request their technical information as early as possible.
This may include:
- technical rider
- stage plot
- input list
- backline requirement
- lighting requirement
- video requirement
- hospitality information
Do not wait until equipment has already been booked.
Artist requirements can materially change:
- stage size
- audio inputs
- monitor requirements
- microphones
- backline
- lighting
- power
- setup time
- soundcheck schedule
Connected Knowledge: Technical Riders · Backline
07
Sound
Start with what needs to be heard
Do not begin by specifying speaker brands or quantities unless you are responsible for the system design.
Tell the production team:
- audience size
- room layout
- programme
- number of presenters
- panels
- live music
- playback
- DJ
- remote participants
- recording requirements
- streaming requirements
Then ask how they intend to provide appropriate coverage and operation.
08
Screens & video
What does the audience need to see?
Start with the content.
Is the audience viewing:
- PowerPoint
- keynote presentations
- films
- sponsor content
- IMAG/live cameras
- remote speakers
- awards graphics
- playback
- data
- social content
Then consider:
- audience distance
- room width
- screen position
- aspect ratio
- content resolution
- playback
- switching
- cameras
- confidence monitors
- recording
- streaming
09
Lighting
What needs to be visible, and what should the room feel like?
Lighting can serve several jobs:
Functional
People need to see presenters, performers and important areas.
Camera
Recorded or streamed events need appropriate lighting for cameras.
Scenic
Lighting can transform the room and support the event's visual identity.
Show
Concerts, performances and awards may require programmed cues and effects.
Tell the production team what the event should look and feel like.
Let the lighting designer determine the appropriate tools.
10
Stage & structures
What has to physically happen on stage?
Consider:
- stage dimensions
- stage height
- steps
- ramps
- lectern
- furniture
- panel seating
- drum riser
- band setup
- scenic elements
- LED structures
- branding
- access
- backstage movement
A stage should be designed around what happens on it, not selected from a price list in isolation.
11
Backline
Are musicians performing?
If the event includes live musicians, establish whether they require locally supplied performance equipment.
Backline can include:
- drum kits
- guitar amplifiers
- bass rigs
- keyboards
- percussion
- associated hardware
The artist's technical rider should define the requirement.
Do not assume the sound supplier automatically includes backline.
Explore Backline12
Power & connectivity
What does the production depend on?
Different production systems require appropriate electrical power.
The production team and venue should establish:
- available supply
- distribution
- loading
- isolation where necessary
- cable routes
- backup strategy
Events may also depend heavily on connectivity for:
- streaming
- remote speakers
- cloud presentations
- registration
- show control
- communications
If the event cannot function without internet, treat connectivity as production infrastructure rather than a convenience.
13
Build the schedule
Give production enough time to succeed
Your audience may see a three-hour event.
The production team may need considerably longer.
Schedule:
- venue access
- load-in
- rigging
- setup
- system checks
- rehearsals
- artist soundcheck
- client walkthrough
- doors
- show
- strike
- load-out
Event day is bigger than show time
- 01Venue access↓
- 02Load-in↓
- 03Setup↓
- 04System checks↓
- 05Rehearsal / Soundcheck↓
- 06Doors↓
- 07Show↓
- 08Strike↓
- 09Load-out
14
People & responsibilities
Who is actually running the show?
Equipment needs operators and technicians.
Depending on the event, this may include:
- production manager
- show caller
- sound engineer
- monitor engineer
- lighting operator
- video engineer
- playback operator
- camera team
- stage manager
- backline technician
- stagehands
- streaming team
- technical crew
Ask:
Who is responsible for operating each system during the show?
A quotation containing equipment without the necessary people may not represent a complete production solution.
15
Redundancy
What cannot be allowed to fail?
Not every piece of equipment requires a duplicate.
Start by identifying critical failure points.
For example:
If the CEO's presentation cannot continue without the playback computer, what happens if that computer fails?
If all show communication depends on one network path, what happens if it disappears?
If a keynote microphone fails, how quickly can another be used?
Redundancy should be based on consequence, not simply on duplicating everything.
16
Compare quotations properly
The lowest total doesn't necessarily represent the same production
Two quotations can have very different prices while appearing to describe the same event.
Before comparing totals, compare scope.
Equipment
Are the proposed systems actually equivalent?
Quantities
Are important items missing?
Crew
Who is included, for how long and in what roles?
Logistics
Are transport, loading, setup and strike included?
Venue costs
Are venue technical charges included or separate?
Artist requirements
Have technical riders been accounted for?
Rehearsals
Is additional working time included?
Redundancy
What backup has been planned?
Taxes
Are taxes included or additional?
Exclusions
What will become an extra cost later?
17
Ask what has been assumed
Assumptions become surprises later
This may be one of the most useful questions you can ask:
What assumptions did you make while preparing this quotation?
Examples might include:
- venue provides stage
- venue provides power
- artist carries backline
- client provides presentation laptop
- internet is venue-supplied
- rehearsal happens during setup
- rigging points are available
- content is supplied in the correct format
An assumption is not necessarily a problem.
An unshared assumption is.
18 / Before you ask for a quote
Send these 12 things
A practical production-brief checklist.
- 01
Event date
Include setup and rehearsal dates if different.
- 02
Venue
Include room/space and city.
- 03
Audience size
Expected attendance and seating/layout.
- 04
Event format
Conference, awards, concert, launch, private event, etc.
- 05
Programme
Even a draft running order helps.
- 06
Timings
Venue access, setup, rehearsal, doors, show and finish.
- 07
Stage requirement
What happens on stage and who needs to be there.
- 08
Speakers & performers
Presenters, panels, artists, bands, DJs.
- 09
Technical riders
Send them early.
- 10
Content
Presentations, films, playback, graphics, live cameras.
- 11
Recording / streaming
State whether either is required.
- 12
Non-negotiables
Anything already decided or particularly important.
Your production company
- 01What assumptions have you made?
- 02What is excluded from this quotation?
- 03What does the venue need to provide?
- 04What are you supplying?
- 05Who will operate each system?
- 06How much setup time does this plan require?
- 07Have artist technical riders been reviewed?
- 08What are the critical failure points?
- 09What redundancy is included?
- 10Are transport, setup and strike included?
- 11Are rehearsals included?
- 12Who is responsible for overall technical coordination?
The goal is not to interrogate suppliers.
It is to ensure everyone is pricing and planning the same event.
20
What a good production brief does
It replaces assumptions with information
A good brief does not need to specify every microphone, loudspeaker or lighting fixture.
It should tell the production team enough to design the right solution.
The strongest briefs explain:
what is happeningwhere it is happeningwho is involvedwhat the audience needswhat the performers needwhen everything happenswhat cannot be compromised
The technical design can then follow.
Brief the event.
Then design the production.
You do not need to become a sound engineer, lighting designer or production manager to plan a good event.
You need to communicate the event clearly enough for those specialists to do their jobs properly.
Continue with real BTS knowledge
Knowledge field
Backline
The instruments and performance equipment artists rely on.
Explore Backline