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Show: Breaking Down the Event

Now we are going to talk about breaking down the event we've had our fun and now we need to think about what's what the next steps is. So this is a part a lot of people forget about because we just assume that all this is going to just happen magically and the first thing is for your staff you want rolls and shifts so if you have a fairly you know, healthy amount of time for the whole process like from prepping and delivering the clothes, prepping the shows at the event, having the fashion show and then getting the stuff home that's a really long day and you might have, you know, dedicated people who will stick with you through the whole thing. But you want to make sure of that I have had designers doing an event where they get all these volunteers and then the show ends and all the designers leave I mean all the dressers and everybody leaves because the show's over and that designer is left alone to fend for themselves and pack up their clothes and all these kinds of things. So make s...

ure you have the scat, the staggered shifts so you have the person the team is going to bring you there and then you have the team that's going to take you back and again it depends how long the event is it? Maybe the same team but you want to make sure that team is willing to do that. And this is especially true with volunteers, because I always feel like you never want to ask more than like four hours from someone if they're volunteering, you know, in terms of an event, so I like to have shifts where, if they want to stay and work, you know, the ship that's, great, but eight hours is a full day's work, so you know these things. A lot of times, they're doing it for the fun of it, for the experience of it. So you know, manager volunteers accordingly. If you're paying people to stay the full eight hours, that's a whole other ball game, so, um, inventory. Yes, when do you pay the models, the models? Usually we'll have you sound, sign a voucher at the event once they've showed up. Well uh and then the agency will bill you that's usually the traditional way but you can work out all sorts of deals like if you're getting volunteer ma I mean volunteer miles but independent models you can say you can have envelopes ready at the show and you can pay them directly, but if you're working with an agency, the traditional way to do it is that you don't pre pay but when the model shows up because there may be a model who doesn't show up, they have a voucher, you sign it, they go back and then you pay the agency and they pay the model a model release form so that you can use their images they not unless you asked for that so you can't assume like you can use most of this is very important with usage with photography and video you need teo talk about that with the agency all you really need to do is have a conversation they will tell you what you can, what they what they and their models are comfortable doing and what they're not comfortable doing. So for instance, if I was shooting a runway photograph of a model, I might use that in my portfolio it's promoting me but I'm not selling that image, but if I'm using it for advertising to sell product, that model should be paid for that and show each of the photographer so it's, a very important thing, and the key is, all you have to do is start the conversation. Everybody's different. A lot of people are, you know, comfortable with with giving usage for things. But remember that especially if it's advertising, especially with models, you do not want to use an image for an ad later on from your show without knowing that the agency and the model and the photographer have signed off on it. So and and again, if you anticipate doing that, then let them know in advance and saying, you know, would you like in the ad a credit to the agency and the model, and that might take care of that? You know, I mean a little bit, or or you know or help adjust the cost of it. So think about all the things you can do to make it something that they want to dio, uh, packing, taking special care after, oh, skip over inventory inventory. You wantto make sure you've accounted for everything. So that means you have to do inventory beforehand, too. So make sure you written everything down that you've put out there, and then you want to account for it on the way back on dh the easiest thing to do is is just a have a list of every accessory, every garment, if you have other things like shoes or whatever it is, and then the packing is really important, you don't want to just throw it in a bag and take it out. You want to remember that you're gonna have to do so much to do to refresh that garment afterwards if you treat it that way, so make sure you take special care of it. Exit points. You won't have a strategy for leaving, because the party may still be going on and you might want to leave, you know, or at least get your clothes out of there. So ask yourself, is there another way to get out because you do not benny wannabe walking through your event with your ac cia, you know, it's like you want to make sure that you have a way out that's, actually, you know, uh, out of the way of if the event still going on and then transportation, we talked touched on this earlier, but make sure that you've planned transportation where they're going to be. You know what? Exit your leaving from the venue, the timing and then also, I mean, today is a little easier with, you know, with phones, you know, make sure that you're in communication and getting an e t a kind of, you know, kind of treating it like a like a car service, you know, even if it's ah friend or someone on your team all right, uh, and then we were talking about packing the packaging, the show refreshing repair, um, and packages show content refreshing repair. You want to make sure that the clothes are as good as when they left because you may get requests to have it photographed or a stylus might want to use it in an editorial or in a commercial, you know, they made maybe reasons, and you don't want those clothes to be stuck in a bag, all wrinkled. You want the minute they get back, they should be getting back to focus full good condition on dh. Then the rial important part of packaging show content because the clothes are content. But then the video in the photography you want to be sure. That you have a plan for it and this includes ranging with the photographer and videographer a time when you're going to get the content and depending on what you're asking for, you have to figure out what's realistic for them and also whether they're volunteering or paying my general rule of thumb is I if I can get the raw images by that night or the next morning then I can get to editing only because I could do that but if you don't need them to edit and to just give you the good pictures if you say to them I need at least one good picture of every outfit because they should be shooting multiples and then that could be their goal for editing they're going to make sure they send you the best picture of every outfit on and they can help you with that but you also want to do it in a really timely fashion you want them to have budgeted their time after your show toe to say oh no I've got time to do that that night or the next day because for press and for social media you don't wantto you lose the momentum you want to ride on yes we had a great night and look at this all these incredible photographs and video and whatever it is that you planned on with the photo and video um and then also what the messaging around it is how are you going to package it in terms of the story again getting back to the story what's the news story because you're not doing the show anymore it happened so why is this still exciting? You know it's like because you know, the captured this glamour everybody had a good time now we're doing this so you know, you have some sort of idea of what you want to say not just slapping up the pictures I'm having great comments, you know? I mean, you know, captions I should say and also a great opportunity credit people so if you have if one photographer shot all your runway shots, post a gallery on facebook or on tumbler and make sure you credit the photographer and put a link to their website even if you're paying them like, make sure your acknowledging people because all of a sudden his audience or her audience is going to be curious about what you're doing to your expanding and expanding. So what issues can you anticipate ever after having had somewhere your garments in a show? So what do you think are some issues that you've dealt with anybody after something's been used or warn um stuff can rip stuffed in tear things can fall off completely and be left behind? Oh uh and I have not personally experienced this but heard horror stories of theft for models so being sure that someone's responsible for making sure everything's returned when they're done wearing it. Well, just a little. I mean, this is more on the, uh, like, fine jewelry side, like some shows, I don't recommend it, but if you do have anyone wanting to partner with you that's really sort of high end jewelry, often they will bring in security person, there'll be a table for that jewellery, and only one person designated for it, and then one security person and often models will be asked for their driver's license or their idea or something like that, and just keep it to the security guard keeps to see in the show, and then when everything is accounted for and and the jewelry comes off, as the girl is it's amazing, they're they're good jewellers are trained in it, the jewelry is coming off as they're walking off the stage, so it doesn't even get into the back room. So with anything of value like that, you want to have a plan, and jewelers do a really great job of that, but you could do it with shoes, you can do it with any, any aspect of it. So also in that note, it seems like you'd have to ask the model's not to wear or bring any jewelry going missing, because I've had that happen where their shows and you know a model will take off her jewelry and it's you know her engagement ray or something like that and all of a sudden that's missing so and this also brings up other issues which kind of a bigger context is who's responsible for things like that so you know, do you have insurance that the venue have insurance? Do you have security backstage? Because sometimes you might want one person who's just security and it's not so much toe you know watch the models but it's more to keep people out of backstage so that person could help manage that so that there's not you know any shenanigans it doesn't mean it's only it's been a really rare occurrence but it's something to anticipate and it also makes people it'll feel a little safer yeah another but potential problem that liberal she brought up was smoking if people are models or smoking oh no not allowed just not allowed and you know and the you know some if a model is a smoker I mean and is she smoking in advance of the show and after the show not you know not an issue but backstage there should never be and nowadays that most venues are non smoking that's not an issue but yeah that's there's certain things like you have to set me I was very definitive about that because I feel strongly about it but but yeah, you have to figure out what your goes and no goes are you know like and and when you're we're getting back to models a little bit when you're asking for models you also have to give them directives so you models will often have if you're not doing your own shoes for a show let's say models will have a shoe bag and they also have like hair accessory bags and if they if they have fun with their hair they'll have you know, little puffs and things that they can do very quickly eso good models have that kind of stuff and if they don't you want to say okay, I need her to have a pair of white unused because that's a key thing sort of speakers like white clean sneakers I needed a where have you no knee high black leather boots I need to have you know ah silver pump or whatever it is that you need uh strap oh yes and the undergarments are really key and you want to think about, you know, nude undergarments you know that are not going to interfere strapless bras, thongs, hosiery without any kind of seems things like that that are going to enter again it depends on your show you might want, you know, white bobby socks, you know depends on what you're showing but figure out what needs to go under and won't won't show show through I remember this guy it's like we had a guy in a fashion show and he had white trousers on and we couldn't see it backstage but when he got on the runway and the lights hit here's wearing mickey mouse underwear and it was it actually ended up being this adorable moment on the stage it was very funny and he had no idea what everyone was doing and I but figure about that so you know, like remember also to look at your clothes under really powerful lights because things were going to happen so but yeah, you can send directives to the agency to give to all the models say this is what you're going to need often if it's something really, really special, you'll need to provide it but if it's a basic like you know black pumps, I need a satin pump and a patent pump that's something that should be in every bottles kit and if it's not, she should probably invest in it dead. So all right, so, um, what is the purpose of taking photos that you're showed we actually kind of touched on this those categories of where you want to have images taken uh, same thing with the video? What is the purpose of shooting video at your show? What kind of messages would you attach to your imagery so once the show is done, what you know, how are you feeling? What do you want to share and really define that a couple of things are fashion time says I want to hear what jae does with all of his photos I do maybe yes, maybe some more examples there and then some examples of the messaging as well ok, yeah, so a different points in my career I've taken photographs for different reasons like I said to you guys and I forgot what session that you know, I started taking photography out of necessity because I needed document my work and on it was terrible and over the years and I've never liked taking a class probably well now on creative life on dh the key to it was that I was very instinctual like I didn't know the tech part of it andi used my photographer friends used to tease me because I say I knew I got the shot by the click like I know what I was seeing and if I heard the click at the right time I know but I got the right shot so and it was just very, you know, instinctual but at the time I was shooting runway so I you know, that was about a look you know, like little boxes of models that would be distributed on a page at the time I had a little magazine and that I already knew what I needed it for, so I think that's the key to the whole foot of, um, strategy behind photography more recently, since I've been doing this long this this long, I trust the photographers who are there shooting the show to go for those shots. What I want is lately, my big thing is sort of moments and textures and atmospheres like, so, you know, the empty runway, the, you know, the the model on the phone, you know, all those kinds of things, and if I get people in the front row, I don't go up to them and ask them to, you know, to pose for me to smile, I try to get them in a moment where they're having a real conversation and, you know, so for me that's the fun thing, and then I'm always shooting the photographers like I love getting photographs of the photographers in action, and they love it, you know, because they're at work and no one's paying attention to them, but I love it because it tells these great stories. So that's, why emphasize stories so strongly? Because I think, whether it be words or images or video, you want to be figuring out what stories you want to tell with the messaging, I think, um, I tried to make it so that it's like, right right now, when I when I do an event and I capture those images, I try to come up with what the common denominator is in the images I took because I don't always know while I'm shooting, you know, I shoot I used to have always carry a crime camera around my neck, and I was kind of known for that like, it was weird to see j without a camera around his neck, but now, since the phones have gotten so good, you know, it's, I take out the camera when I need it, but the phone is my go to and s I don't always know what the story is going to be while I'm shooting, but I try to let the pictures speak to me and say, you know, oh, it was, you know, the mood behind the show or are this thing you didn't see all the things you didn't see, you know, you have a more well rounded experience, so again strategy about like, what you think is fun and interesting, and you can also ask people like, I think it's a kind of a cool thing well, you could do two things you can ask people and get feedback about, you know, what were your favorite parts of the show and why did you like it? But you can also do that kind of fun thing that people do on facebook and things like that, which is captions like take a great picture and asked for the best caption, you know, and have people play with it and interpret it and again there's where you have that story telling but a dialogue as well, what about hashtags? J do you tryto facilitate those and get going? I do for the bigger picture like, you know, for boston fashion week way used to do b f w in the year, but I realized that there now there are all these other fashion weeks and cities with these that are all to be w so I've had to come up with a weight, so this year I think I'm not sure don't quote me on this, but I think it's weird, you know, ibos f w and then the year you know, so because we just want, you know you need thio nowadays with everybody doing it, chances are you're going tohave repetitive cash bags, so you need to kind of find tune the major ones, I think, and then let people, you know, create new hashtag, you know, it's like model moment, you know, someone's going out there, you know, shooting all the models, whatever their focuses and encourage them to do that