Typically, I don’t walk the red carpet - but over the years I’ve worked behind the scenes to create more red carpet experiences than I can count! Rolling out the red carpet is an exciting affair for everyone involved – fans are eager to see their favorite celebrities, celebrities are excited to be seen, and filmmakers can’t wait to share their project with the world! The energy in the air is electric - and what we at LRE love most about producing red carpet’s - is that they set the stage for what’s to come!
We’ve produced some pretty extravagant carpet events. We transformed a theatre parking lot into an Asian Cultural Experience for more than 600 kids during the premier of the The Karate Kid with Jaden Smith & Jackie Chan. We created a special carpet event for Will Smith’s hit The Pursuit of Happyness – for hundreds of families and fans feverish with excitement to see Will Smith in person. But as any Event Planner knows all too well, a lot of times “what’s to come” includes planning for the unexpected! Lucky for us, in the words of JK Simmons in his State Farm Insurance commercial....
“We know a thing or two, because we’ve seen a thing or two.”
Like when during our Karate Kid red carpet, we had to contend with absolute pandemonium when all of a sudden there was a torrential downpour of rain without warning – sending kids and parents alike running for cover! Or like when we realized an hour before Will Smith’s arrival that the red carpet wasn’t nearly long enough to accommodate the huge crowds that turned out to see Big Will in person – and we had to calm the chaos to deliver an outstanding experience for each and every person who attended. As with any cloud, there’s always a silver lining – and it’s exactly these types of experiences that have prepared us to expect the unexpected at every turn.
It’s our job to manage even the supernatural, and keep the drama where it belongs – on the carpet and on the screen. And we did just that, yet again, when we sponsored and produced 8 red carpets for the 13th Annual Dallas International Film Festival (DIFF) powered by Capital One. This event was one of the largest happenings in Dallas, featuring 170 films; 72 Filmmakers; and 10 bands. So how do we prepare, create, and deliver a strikingly stellar event?
Our secret weapon, of course... our LRE (ROS)! We visualize, brainstorm and construct the flow of each of our events from start-to-finish, and then create a custom-made Run-of-Show (ROS). Our LRE (ROS) is a highly detailed document that maps out timelines, staffing duties, logistics, transportation, vendor duties, lighting, staging, talent calls and all the other event details down to the tiniest detail. Sound tedious? Well, it is – but we love it! Throughout the years it has yielded some extremely positive results, such as:
· Seeing the holes and filling in the gaps;
· Detecting red flags and staying ahead of a “crises”;
· (and my favorite) Being in the moment!
Sure, during DIFF we had our share of challenges – like thunderstorms threatening to move us from outside to inside at a moment’s notice, or having to re-arrange and reschedule talent appearances - but when those things happened, our experience prepared us to handle them with ease. And when we receive notes like this, we’re glad to know that Lightning Rod Events has struck again!
“Thank you so much for making my first experience ‘walking the red carpet’ such a smooth one. You and your team are spectacular!”
-Mary Beth Minnis [Producer/Executive Producer] / JUMP SHOT: The Kenny Sailors Story
If you enjoyed this blog or found it helpful let us know below. Please follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, & Facebook.
###