HMV

Project: Store Managers’ Conference & dinner

Location: Hilton Metropole, London

Agency: Captiva Event Management

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Our creative and logistical teams worked closely with the comms team at HMV to organise their annual Store Managers’ Conference. The event, held at the Hilton London Metropole, provided store managers with a chance to experience first hand the big games releases for the Christmas period.

To ensure the event was fun and engaging we planned a full two days of presentations and workshops. In addition, an interactive games exhibition gave computer games publishers the opportunity to present their portfolios and share forthcoming business plans, and allowed delegates to immerse themselves in the latest games and gaming technology.

HMV staff and suppliers were also treated to a themed gala dinner and awards ceremony, followed by entertainment from dynamic classical quartet, Escala, Welsh rock band, Stereophonics and the quirky singer-songwriter-guitarist, Seasick Steve.

Technical

For HMV we ran the widescreen and sidescreens using Dataton Watchout production software. Instant external control was the gateway to interactivity; we needed flexibility to run this event, which utilised ever-changing and fast-paced multi-media. Using MIDI control pads (to trigger tasks, time lines and tween-tracks) we ran AVs, live camera and external speaker support from Apple’s Keynote.

With this new control, we were able to give HMV the ability to make major changes to the running order. The production team was able to respond to every client amendment — whether a change in running order, a new video or a replacement graphic — with ease and aplomb right up to the last moment.

“On stage was buzzing with excitement,” comments Tess Ferguson, who was calling the show. “But behind the scenes everything was calm and serene. This sort of technical responsiveness really takes the pressure off everyone. Plus, the client was delighted!”