Creating an idea for a festival

How to come up with an idea for a festival?

Why do you need an idea and what should it be like?

Those questions come up for anyone who wants to organize a public event. It is quite important to have a good name for the event so that people would be attracted to it. It is also useful to have some kind of a concept or philosophy of what the event is about. This will enable people to make a decision whether to go or not and gives an idea what awaits them if they decide to join the event.

Where do you begin?

Our experience with both the New Era Festival in Põlva and Cita Vide in Latvia, shows that brainstorming is a working method for developing the idea. Some 5-10 people come together and write down everything that occurs to them. Later on the ideas will be read and discussed. This method can provide you with a great idea for the festival.

Think of the kind of music you like or the kind of atmosphere you would like to create. Think of the festival - what should it be like? Your ideas about it are the starting point. From then on you can try and find words that best convey the idea to the audience. Some questions to ask yourself: What should people expect from the event? What is it that you are offering to those hundreds or even thousands of people? What would your ideal festival be like? Which events do you like most and why? What differentiates your idea from all the others in your country? Why is it important to create such an event? Etc.

It pays off to give thorough consideration to the idea before starting to plan anything else. Everything flows from the idea. If you don't have a solid idea, you probably cannot organize a festival. If you do, you have already taken the first big step toward creating a memorable event.