Event livestream

What this is about

Ask one question first: what happens when something fails? A livestream is a broadcast — mixed live, sent live, watched live — and its plan is therefore two documents in one. The technical half maps the signal chain from stage to platform: cameras, audio from the house console, vision mixer, encoder, and the internet line with a tested backup path. The editorial half is the run of show: who is on when, which graphics fire, how breaks are bridged. Unlike the aftermovie, which selects the best moments afterwards, the stream has to survive every moment as it happens. Setups range from a single-camera talk to a mid-sized multi-camera production with its own directing position.

The format determines scope, crew and timeline — before the first location has been scouted.

What runs differently here

Where this differs from the general case:

• Redundancy is planned per link in the chain: second encoder, second internet path, spare cables — the plan names what takes over and who switches it
• Audio comes before image: a feed from the house console, monitored by one dedicated person, because viewers forgive soft pictures and leave over bad sound
• The run of show scripts the whole broadcast including gaps — pre-show loop, break slates, moderation bridges — so silence never reaches the stream
• A full rehearsal on the real line at the real venue is a schedule item, not a luxury: it is where the plan meets the building's reality
• Rights are live questions: music in the room, speaker consent and platform terms are cleared before the encoder starts

What the plan has to deliver

A production plan is useful to this role when it provides the following:

• A signal chain diagram with every device, cable path and its designated backup
• A run of show with timings, camera cues, graphics and responsibilities per minute
• A rehearsal slot at the venue on the production line, with the real stream key
• An escalation card: who decides on failover, who informs the audience, who talks to the platform

Common pitfalls

What most often goes wrong in practice:

• Trusting venue Wi-Fi as the primary uplink for the one thing that must not drop
• Taking audio from a camera microphone instead of the house console
• Rehearsing in the office and meeting the venue's power, network and stage reality on show day

With TillyGen

TillyGen structures the livestream as broadcast planning: run of show, crew positions and technical checklists in one place, so the rehearsal tests a plan instead of improvisation.

Change one constraint and the consequences travel through the whole plan: affected shots are flagged, the call sheet is regenerated, and nobody keeps working from yesterday's version.