Event Production for The FT Live Studio in Davos

The project: event production services

The FT Live host events at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos and they invited us to tender for their 2025 production, which we won.

Our full-service event production package included designing and building the FT Live Studio, which hosted The Davos Daily Show and partner panel discussions, live streaming, AV, webinar production, event filming, and photography.

Creative studio set up

The team at FT Live wanted to create a modern, inviting space with a cosy alpine lodge feel. Our design team mocked up 3D designs incorporating wooden panelling, mock wooden flooring, and a mock brick wall to add warmth and texture. Initially, the set was designed to sit around two windows looking out to the mountains; however, the venue had to be changed and the client didn’t want to lose the feel of space and atmosphere that the windows provided. We got to work designing a solution, utilising LED backlit light-boxes to avoid flickering on camera, which displayed a snowy alpine scene.

Once the structure was set, we sourced all the furniture, props, and set dressing items to bring the vision to life. We then worked with our partners, Scenic Escape, to build the studio from our design. A week before the event, we did a full test build of the studio, including mapping out the cameras to ensure the studio looked and functioned as planned.

Behind-the-scenes highlights

Audio Visual

We provided an AV package including wireless microphones for presenters in the room, a speaker system in the studio for the VTs and prerecorded content, a comfort monitor to display the live feed and messages and a timer to keep the speakers on track. We also created a presenter green room with a TV screen and speaker so the live view could be watched by the teams of the panellists and the FT Live team. We mounted a TV screen on the custom set to show the sessions and llit the studio with a full set of Aperture lighting including a 600d as the main key light, two 300d lights for fill lights and two 60d lights acting as backlights mounted to the set.

Live Streaming, Filming, & Photography

We rigged a high-spec vMix portable production unit to run the stream, which was broadcast to The FT website via Vimeo and SnapStream. Live stream assets were built directly into vMix, including an animated news bulletin ticker for segments of the show, that we designed and could update on the fly. We also utilised SnapStream, which is widely used by the world’s biggest news and broadcast companies, to allow the FT Live social team to clip moments from the shows for their socials.

We had a four-camera set-up in the studio (two FX6’s and two PXW-Z200’s) for a multi-angle broadcast. Two of these were mounted on dolly’s for dynamic movement and maximum coverage of the speakers and studio.

There was an editorial review section within the Davos Daily Show, broadcasting a two-person discussion 200m down the street from the studio, outside. For this, we wirelessly transmitted the camera signal and audio to the studio for broadcasting live. We also pre-recorded and edited some of the panel discussions to be broadcast live within the show if the panellists were unable to make their live slot.

The FT Live team wanted to capture the action of the week, including behind-the-scenes. We had a camera operator filming b-roll in the studio and around Davos for a highlight video, that was edited by our team in London. A photographer similarly captured images from the studio, the team, and the activities at Davos.

In addition to The Davos Daily Show, FT Live hosted six partner events with brands including Google, Standard Charter, and Uber. This entailed providing a variety of services including event filming, photography, vox pops, main stage filming, and live streaming.

We designed and implemented a comprehensive redundancy and contingency plan to mitigate risks posed by any potential failure points. This included a large battery backup solution for power, a 4G-sim card-powered bonded streaming encoder to cover any internet dropouts, and redundant and spare hardware where possible to cover any equipment failures.

Planning & logistics

With such a busy schedule of events and a mix of services, we worked closely with the FT Live team to plan a comprehensive schedule across every day of the project. For The Davos Daily Show, this included set-up and pack-down times, pre-records, live streams, rehearsals, arrival times of panellists, etc. in 15-minute increments. We had run of shows for each of the six partner shows, and a schedule of filming and photography requirements including the kit and team.

We took a team of eight to cover Project Management, Technical Direction, Videographers, Photographers, Producers, AV Technicians, Live Stream Engineers, and Camera Operators. Throughout the production, we communicated constantly with the team at FT Live, predominantly their Head of Marketing for Partner Events, Head of Partner Events Operations, and Social Media Manager, to ensure a seamless and successful schedule of events.

We worked with London Filmed to build and operate our custom studio at Davos, and I can honestly say they went above and beyond at every stage. The team's professionalism, technical expertise, and problem-solving skills ensured a seamless execution throughout the week. From concept to delivery, they helped bring our vision to life, adapting to last-minute changes with ease and ensuring every broadcast ran smoothly. The attention to detail in production, sound, and technical direction was outstanding, and their ability to work discreetly behind the scenes made them an invaluable partner. If you're looking for a team that can deliver high-quality, professional event production while pushing creative and technical boundaries, I highly recommend London Filmed. Can’t wait to work together again!

- Kirsty Loughlin, Head of Partner Events Operations