The Role of a Producer at the Arsana Music Festival

In the diploma thesis, the author focused on the work of a media producer at a multi-day event where up to 50 events need to be organised within one week. In the theoretical part of the thesis, he explained the characteristics of organising and managing a media event, project documentation, fundraising, and the production, distribution and storage of media products. In the ** practical part of the thesis**, he devoted his attention to the Arsana Music Festival from its beginnings to the present day. All respondents confirmed this. They also confirmed that the tasks of the media producer at the Arsana Music Festival are distributed amongst several people.

Problem

In the diploma thesis, the author focused on the work of a media producer at a multi-day event where up to 50 events need to be organised within one week. In the theoretical part of the thesis, he explained the characteristics of organising and managing a media event, project documentation, fundraising, and the production, distribution and storage of media products. Throughout the entire work, he kept returning to the definition of a media producer because he had difficulties in defining the functions and tasks of the core team members.

The work of a media producer is so demanding and multifaceted that it extends into many other areas, such as event organiser, PR specialist, coordinator, and for their work they require extensive knowledge that likewise extends into many areas (legislation, administration, management).

Solution and Method

In the practical part of the thesis, he devoted his attention to the Arsana Music Festival from its beginnings to the present day. He anticipated that he would establish that the work of a media producer is very demanding, that preparation for a multi-day event takes a long time, that they must collaborate with many different colleagues, and that their work is closely intertwined with other profiles as well. He confirmed all of this in the analytical-research part of the thesis.

Using a Gantt chart, he explained and demonstrated year-round work on the project. From preparation to execution of the festival, up to 50 people are involved, and naturally the media producer must collaborate with all of them. This means they must work with different profiles and must have the ability to establish good relationships with all stakeholders.

He anticipated that the work of a media producer has also changed over the years, which is why he formulated the research question: 'How much does the media producer contribute to the development of the festival and what is their role in the festival's success?' He established that there is no festival without a media producer and that their role in the festival's success is extremely significant and indispensable.

Results

All respondents confirmed this. They also confirmed that the tasks of the media producer at the Arsana Music Festival are distributed amongst several people. This also meant that it was difficult for him to define their tasks according to the definition and competences of a media producer, as they perform work ranging from artistic director, who collaborates with the programme and organisational committee and is responsible for the concept, to event organiser, PR, and all the way to executive work at individual events.

In the research, he established that the work of the media producer is predominantly carried out by Mladen Delin and Niko Zagoršek. Mladen Delin is the festival director and artistic director, who takes care of the conceptual part and in the second part of the festival is only a supervisor. Niko Zagoršek is responsible for the executive part of the festival and ensures that everything planned is also carried out.

All other activities required for the execution of the festival are performed by two additional colleagues. Neva Kumer takes care of the administrative part and coordination of volunteers, whilst Alen Krajnc is responsible for the promotional part and care for performers. All colleagues are to some extent also media producers, yet none of them calls themselves a media producer.

It can be concluded with certainty that it would not be possible to execute the festival without a media producer, as they have a decisive role in the development of the festival. The ** fundamental tasks** of a media producer are financial and human resources, marketing plan, communication with sponsors, content and programme of the festival, promotion, logistics, technical matters and the well-being of participants. At the Arsana festival, the media producer shared the work with their core team, whilst the organisational and programme committees assisted them with decisions.

The key finding of the research is that the work of a media producer is indispensable and has an exceptional impact on the success of the festival. The key proposal for improvement is that in future it will be necessary to employ a media producer and thereby relieve the existing colleagues, as they would need a professional who, in accordance with their knowledge and competences, would contribute to the development and success of the festival. They would devote themselves primarily to marketing, media relations, sponsorship, e-marketing and promotional events, which would contribute to maintaining and continuing the festival tradition in Ptuj.

The treatment of the topic was beneficial to the author in their professional work, as I intend to perform the work of a media producer and continue to educate myself in this field. Academia will benefit from the diploma thesis, as it demonstrated all dimensions of the work of a media producer through a concrete example from the local environment. In accordance with the stated facts and findings, it can be concluded that the set objectives and purpose of the diploma thesis were fully achieved and that the formulated research question was successfully answered.