Mike Walker Creative

Every year churches all over the country gear up for Christmas productions. This has been the second year in a row I haven’t had any production responsibilities for a church, but every year it’s still fresh on my mind.

I have a very simple philosophy on church production….go big or go home! When I say that you need to understand I am not saying that the production needs to overshadow everything or that you need to pull out your full bag of tricks. What I am saying is this, in the church world we get to tell THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD…so why not be good at story telling?

I just got back from trips to NYC and Las Vegas. Their messaging is big and larger than life. In some cases complex and in some cases very simple, but they they are still saying it loud and proud. Why can’t the church do the same? In some cases it’s a taste thing, in some cases it’s a talent/skill level, the one thing I don’t buy is that it’s a budget thing. You can do plenty of great story telling on a smaller budget….I have done productions that cost upwards of $750,000 and I have done productions with less than $1,000. Get creative and tell a good story. It’s not about having a ton off moving lights, it’s not about HD video, it’s not about technology at all (even though they CAN be valuable tools)…it’s about getting creative and making a good presentation.

In thinking through a good presentation, don’t get locked in to entertaining yourself. Just because you and your staff think it’s a good idea doesn’t make it relevant to the majority of your attendees. Does your presentation make people want to come back for more or did they get their fill until next year? The choice is yours on how you want to approach it, but my approach has always been to gain return attendees after the first of the year….it’s good marketing

I have seen a couple of really good Christmas eve presentations in the past 2 years. At the end of the day do what you can do well. If you can pull off a large elaborate event….do it….if you can’t then maybe simple is the way to go…but either way do it well. Your audience demands it. If you want proof then look at your numbers from previous years and in the weeks that follow.

This is a long one, but I haven’t done near as well as I had hoped on keeping up….so here it is… Pictures to follow…

I arrived in Swaziland late yesterday afternoon and had a few moments to catch my breath last night. As I sat to catch up on email I glanced at my calendar to realize the last several weeks have flown by.

On Sunday October 21^st I left Dallas headed for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I spent a week on the ground in Rio putting together a sound system for a missions organization. I left there on Saturday night the 27^th putting me back in Dallas at noon on the 28^th. I ran to my house, did laundry, showered, changed, repacked, and headed back out the door at 5am to head for South Africa. I flew to JFK in New York City for long layover and then a 17 hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa.

Upon my arrival to the hotel in Sandton City I slept for 3 hours and then got up to fly to Swaziland for a site survey. Upon arriving we had a few issues we had to sort out with the venue so I stayed behind in Swaziland for the evening to meet with venue and a small delegation from the government.

My body’s clock still had not adjusted so I only slept 2 hours that night. The next morning had our meeting and then flew back to Jo-berg.

Upon arriving in Jo-berg I was notified I had to run to the hotel to change out my clothes and catch another flight to Mthatha the next morning to meet with Chief Mandela for the day regarding an event we would be doing immediately following MegaFest.

That trip was a quick in and out trip and back to Jo-berg for the evening where we had a meeting with SABC (the largest broadcast corporation in Africa).

Saturday and Sunday were final meetings to prep for load in/event week.

Monday morning started load in at the venue. It took 3 days to get steel and structure in the air (the stage and roof). On Thursday October 9, we put in sound, lights, and video.

For the main stage audio Gearhouse supplied a Vdosc system. The delays were all Kudo systems, there were 3 delay systems through out the park. FOH consoles were PM5D with a Soundcraft MH3 as a side car to handle tracks, choir mics, etc…The stage had a pair of Midas XL3’s chained together (doing analog for a show this size was a beating). Gearhouse didn’t have a console of a large enough format to handle what we needed to do in the digital realm….so……we made do.

We had 5 large LED screens at the main stage and through out the park with a 5 camera shoot. Dale Hill from The Broadcast Group handled the directing duties alone with 5 cameras shooting “b roll” of the event.

Lighting was minimal as it was a day time event.

Friday was a rehearsal day which included sound checks for all artists. I need to go back and count exactly how many different artists and speakers we sent across the stage in 2 days.

The opening segment was very cool. We had 5 African drummers enter stage to a traditional drum cadence. Zolani, who is the Chief Protocol Officer for South Africa entered the stage to deliver a message to the crowd in their native tounge. As he left the band started a percussion track to go along with the African drummers. We then had 200 dancers fill the arena and stage as Myron Butler entered the stage with singers from the US and Africa to do a rendition of “This is the Day” with a bit of an African twist. The crowd went nuts. It was amazing to see it all come together. People from all across the globe had been working on different portions of the segment simultaneously for several weeks and the first time we saw it come together as one was the day before. It’s amazing what a great team can do together…even if they are on separate Continents….people solve problems.

MegaFest was 2 days of constant action. Worship was provided by Myron Butler, The Potters House band, and Israel Houghton (who was amazing), as well as a host of South African Artists which were too many to name, and the even concluded with Bishop TD Jakes on Sunday afternoon.

Monday following MegaFest I was supposed to travel to Mthatha to catch a good nights sleep before going back to the village of Mvezo (birthplace of Nelson Mandela), however we missed our flight and ended up having to fly to East London. After getting stuck at the Jo’berg airport for 6 hours we made the 1:40 flight to East London, checked in to the hotel, slept for 3 hours and made the 4 hour drive to Mvezo. Upon arriving at Mvezo we set up sound and stage for Bishop and Chief Mandela to address the crowd. On a side note, up until 10 minutes prior to the start I only had 1 side of the PA working, but we got it working and no one ever knew J

We finished the event at Mvezo and made the 4 hour drive back to East London for an appearance by Bishop Jakes on TBN South Africa. We actually got a decent nights rest and left the hotel at 6 the next morning to go back to Jo’berg.

After all the running we had been doing I realized I hadn’t taken advantage of being in South Africa, so I decided to do a little shopping and have some chill time.

After a good nights sleep a small team of us (David Todd – the conference coordinator, Rico Gonzales – Audio Engineer, Curtis Hairston – Security, and myself) made our way from Jo’berg to Swaziland via van (4 hour trip).

We checked in at the venue to see how things were going with the stage install. Stage was up and ready to go so we went to the hotel to rest a little.

Today (Friday) I am sitting at the venue watching audio and lighting go in. The PA is getting tuned as I type. Tomorrow we have rehearsal and sound checks during the day with a dinner as a guest of The King tomorrow night.

Sunday we will be on site by 6 am, doors at 10 am, pre music at noon, worship at 1pm, and Bishop Jakes should hit the stage around 2 pm. Following the event it will be off to the hotel for a quick shower then hit the road back to Jo’berg so we can sleep in our normal hotel beds.

The next week will be spent closing out the events and then home by the end of the month.

What I failed to mention was that during the weekend of MegaFest I had another event loading in, in Dallas, TX for World Ventures Travel. I hired Ken Gilstrap of 808 media to production manage the event from start to finish. The event included audio, lighting, flying effects, as well as snow effects. Special thanks to Ken Gilstrap, TMS Lighting out of Omaha, NE, Oliver Brothers Sound, SnowMasters, Gemini Stage Lighting for labor, ZFX Flying, and Mauri Decker for lighting design for all their work as the event went off flawless. It was nice to know that even though I was on another continent, things were handled in a professional and excellent manner….my blackberry and skype also came in handy. J

I know that was a lot of information, but I know I haven’t been the best at keeping things up to date. So that’s all the latest….

I have been in Johannesburg South Africa for just over a week for 3 events. All events are with TD Jakes.

We are doing MegaFest which will be a huge outdoor stadium event going on this Saturday and Sunday October 11-12. The event will include TD Jakes, Noel Jones, Paula White, Mary Mary, Yolanda Adams, and worship by Israel Houghton plus many more. It should be a huge event.

The second event will be a special event at Nelson Mandela’s birthplace.

The third event will be a crusade in the country of Swaziland where they are expecting crowds of over 80,000.

Outdoor events are always fun doing load in. The first few days end up being a lot of “hurry up and wait”. When loading in a stage it takes several days to get the structure in the air and we are in the slow process of making this happen. The nice thing is that the production office is fairly quiet as most of the rest of the event staff won’t arrive at the venue until tomorrow.

I will keep updating pictures as we go along.

I just arrived back in country from Brazil. As I walked in to look over items on my desk I saw the cover of a magazine article with a stage design…that drove me crazy. It was way too busy, had nothing to do with the messaging of the organization, was lit poorly, etc…

The old saying of “just do something” is not always the correct response. Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing at all.

I am ALL in favor of pressing forward and doing things that create momentum, but at least show there is progress happening. If you are still at the same level today that you were 2 years ago there is a problem.

In the words of Bill Hybel “move me, scare me, change me, but don’t leave me the way you found me”. Don’t rest of what you have done, and more important…if you (or your staff) have become your own biggest fans….it’s time for change.

Have a plan. Make it look like you thought about things and that what you are putting in front of people is intentional and not accidental….or do nothing at all.

I have always tried to think through a persons entire experience when the encounter an event or an organization. If a persons first interaction with your organization is the web…is it an experience that appeals to you or appeals to them…what you want versus what they are looking for. When someone arrives at your store or event. What messages do they receive when they drive in the parking lot until the time they drive off?

So why the intensity level? You never get a second chance to make a first impression. With all the options out there today people can tune you out quickly. Don’t give them a reason to tune you out. Think through the details, think through the experience…start to finish. Don’t look at it with your eyes…look at it through their eyes. I read not too long ago that your brand isn’t what YOU say it it…it’s what THEY say it is.

I come in contact with way too many organizations who don’t think through the details and don’t put the work in to be great. Too many people settle for mediocrity….it’s in the details and the first impressions.

I am in Washington DC which I love as a city, but working here is quite the challenge. Outside of Chicago and New York its probably one of the tougher places to do events…..miles of red tape

We loaded in a show today starting at 8 am and finished up at midnite (long day for all).

I was recently have started using some different technology tools to help with event/tour management. First I started using ActivCollab which is an online project management tool. I came across it by working with Church Media Group on a couple of projects. They recently made the shift from Basecamphq.ActiveCollab has been a life saver on a few projects and today was one I wish I had used it on. One of the most challenging things I find with events that have multiple people working on them is the collaboration on show documentation. In ActivCollab it actually helps organize the documents and keep everyone up to date with the latest version. I have had way too many times where not having the latest update has come back to haunt me. This helps fix it.

I have also made a switch to a program called Master Tour Database which is put out by a company called PCGuild(production consultants guild). This thing is ROCKSTAR cool. Not only is it a database that is laid out correctly for tour/event folks, it also has an archive of information gathered from countless tour managers and event managers. It was the coolest thing when I was putting all the information in and got to the venue info, typed in DC Convention Center and it pulled up everything I needed including contacts and rigging information. Then it got better….I started looking up hotel information and there was everything I needed to know about the hotel including room service hours, laundry service, etc….very cool stuff. If you do events or tours it’s an amazing tool…check it out.

I will be posting pics once I start getting things uploaded.

Phil Cooke has always called me “the live event guy”. At first I hated the label because there was so much more I was able to do, but at the end of the day it turns out he was right. When the heats on and you don’t get a second chance…that’s my world. 

I was recently watching old episodes of a show called Studio 60 (I still can’t believe they took it off the air). In one episode the show is falling apart due to a prop master strike in LA. One of the guests of the show who is used to working in network television is freaking out when one of the regulars of the show walks by and says “this is live tv. This isn’t your little show where you get to stop and do it again”…

When you go live there is no going back. There’s no take 2, there’s no rewind function….you are live, there’s no where to hide, and anything can happen. This is why preparation leading up to the event is paramount. 

I am getting ready to do a couple of large events in the next couple of months. 1 in Washington DC and 1 in South Africa. When we go live failure will not be an option so every possible detail of the planning is being gone through with a fine tooth comb. Here are a few of the first steps we will be taking:

1 - Identify the team - Who is who, what do they do, and what roles are most critical to the success of the event. For instance, one of the events is an outdoor event during the day so lighting isn’t near as critical as it is for an event that is indoors in a dark arena or theater. 

Be as specific as you can here, but leave a little room for some flexibility.

When doing large festival type events with several bands or speakers the transitions between each one are critical. Make sure your audio team is top notch. The on stage monitor engineer and the person responsible for patching the mics are probably the 2 most critical people to your success. If the mics are patched right then the Front of House engineer has a much easier job. A smooth stage goes a long way to making sure things appear smooth for the audience. A stage that looks out of control can make an audience edgy and can lead to unresponsiveness. 

Again, identifying the team is critical. Figure out where you are strong and areas you might be weak. It helps the leading process.

2 - Lay out the 50,000 foot over view of the event for the team - listen for any concerns - there usually aren’t a lot at this point.

Take time to plot out a visual over view of the entire event to give everyone a visual.

3 - Start laying in the details of the event. Who is speaking? what mics do they use? Do you have the correct amount of wireless? Who is singing? What bands are playing? Do you have enough mics, stands, stage risers, stage space for stage changes? 

Lay out each individual stage plot and input list. In some cases I have gone so far as to map out the traffic flow of the stage to give everyone a visual of the movement to avoid on stage traffic jams.

Again, listen to the team for any concerns - address what items need immediate attention and table the rest to come back to.

Make sure to include scenic, lighting, and video in these discussions so they feel connected to what’s going on and can also help identify pitfalls. 

4 - If it’s a multi day event, lay out each day. The larger the event the more need for greater detail. I have worked on events that are broken down in 3-5 minute increments and some times tighter than that if broadcast is involved. 

5 - Communicate, Communicate, Communicate - You would think this would be self explanatory, but I cant tell you how many times I have seen departments become silos during large events. People get so wrapped up in making sure their area is covered that the quit seeing the bigger picture and they quit communicating with others as they go. I have used several methods that have worked well (and some that haven’t). In larger events where the team is spread out I like to use basecamp. In any event I always like to establish a communication hub, someone who is responsible to gather, track, and distribute all the information. This single area could make a complicated event become simple or, done poorly, can derail even the simplest of events.

These are merely a few of the things I look at. I am a live event guy who likes to do live events which can include live events going to broadcast. One of the balancing acts you have to play in broadcast/live events is who is leading. One of my pet peeves are events that look great on tv but are boring and stale live. I believe you can do both and do them both exceptionally well. My approach has always been to create a GREAT live event and have tv or broadcast capture that as opposed to putting on a great tv broadcast that’s not much fun for the live audience. The nice thing is that you get to pick.

With the events upcoming I am sure I will be posting more ideas on this as we get closer.