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Pre-production for Black Maternal Health Conference (BMHC) was an extensive and meticulous process. One of the key elements was speaker management, which involved conducting over 20 pre-show calls to test internet connections, video and audio quality, and provide background suggestions. These calls also served as an opportunity for speakers to familiarize themselves with the conference flow, including slide advancement, attendee interaction, and to ask any questions they had. Another critical aspect was the creation of a comprehensive suite of production graphics, designed to engage the virtual audience and prevent drop-offs. This included speaker and slide views, branded overlays for showcasing multiple speakers simultaneously, informational graphics for breaks, and animated lower thirds to identify speakers and their titles. Additionally, a conference-branded slide deck was created, incorporating all presenters’ decks, conference information, and sponsor details to maintain a smooth flow and captivate attendees.
To guarantee the conference ran seamlessly, a detailed conference rundown was meticulously constructed, breaking down every element of the event to the minute. This rundown outlined who would be speaking when, what would be shown to the attendees, how transitions between presentations would occur, and other essential details for the production team. Weekly meetings were held to fine-tune roles and responsibilities, ensuring everyone understood their tasks, who would confirm that virtual presenters were ready, and who would make final decisions in case of any issues. Given the virtual nature of the event, with participants in different locations, constant communication and a clear action plan were crucial to its success. This thorough preparation was vital in delivering a professional and engaging virtual conference experience.
For day 1 of the Black Maternal Health Conference (BMHC), there was a full day of panel discussions and keynote presentations from a variety of expert speakers from all over the country. All of these presentations were done virtually, with presenters dialing in from the comfort of their homes and offices. However, there was a small group of volunteers and attendees who gathered together to take in the streaming event at the Mandarin Hotel in Boston. That meant that there were two parts to day 1: an in-person component and a virtual one. So our team split up and covered both parts!
One part of our team operated out of our control room at our home base in Norwood, MA to fully produce the virtual programming. This involved live streaming and switching the presentations, and managing speakers coming in and out of the Zoom rooms throughout the day. Producing a full day virtual event of this scope is no small task; at the center of it all was a speaker manager who operated a green room to get every guest set up and tested before entering the live environment. Our technical director switched the show, creating a broadcast-like experience by switching between speakers, videos, and slides for a dynamic and engaging virtual audience. Our streaming technician worked to ensure that all of the content was delivered seamlessly to an event platform. Our producers managed speaker timers and coordinated with the event organizers to keep the event on-track and manage last-minute changes to the agenda.
The other part of our team was on site at the Mandarin Hotel and tasked with A/V support and event capture. Our team delivered the streaming event with in room speaker systems and large-format monitors to ensure that everyone on-location could enjoy the show in a theater atmosphere. Additionally, we were tasked with taking still photos and b-roll of the event, as well as interviewing attendees to collect their thoughts on this important topic. It was important to capture attendees engaged in what they were hearing, networking with other attendees and pulling some of them aside to talk to us on camera about why events like these are so important to the community.
The second part of the BMHC was a live, in-person film premiere followed by a panel discussion with the film director and participants. Our team was back on site at the Mandarin Hotel running A/V in the room, recording the panel discussion, capturing photos, and grabbing more testimonials from attendees.
5 Tool Productions provided audio visual support for the event, including wireless microphones and speakers, as well as video playback of the film for the in-person audience. In addition to a panel of experts, the audience had a chance to engage live and ask questions in the room.
The event was also captured as a multi-camera shoot to allow for on-demand viewing for the audience who joined us in-person at the event, as well as those who couldn’t make it to the Mandarin.
A lot of our work went into producing the live content and making sure everything during the conference ran smoothly from the live stream, to the audio at the film premiere, to speakers showing up on time, and more. But our work didn’t end after the event ended! We needed to create content out of everything we captured over the course of our two days working the BMHC.
As with every event we photograph, we turned in an album of edited photos to the BMHC and CBMHRJ team. But, we also created an event highlight reel that included these photos, as well as broll, testimonials, clips from the virtual programming and soundbites from the film premiere panel discussion. Packaging all of this content into one video is a great way to highlight all of the great things that happened at the event, show off the key aspects of what occurred, and encourage registration for next year.
Additionally, we worked with the team at the center to identify and isolate relevant clips from each session that can be used throughout the year to continue to communicate with members of this community.
Do you have an event coming up and have similar needs to what we just discussed in this case study? We’d love to hear from you!
