Industry Insights – A Festival Field Guide
Want to find your way into the festival scene? We’re partnering with Team Love to share knowledge, connections, and practical steps.
Saffron and Team Love are delighted to announce a new online community education initiative for marginalised people in the music industry. Between March and May, the two Bristol-based organisations will be teaming up to deliver a three-part series of workshops, designed to demystify pathways into the festival scene for artists, DJs and aspiring industry professionals.
The programme for the series will celebrate the interweaving ties between Saffron and Team Love, whose longstanding partnership has seen graduates of Saffron programmes secure gigs and work placements at several of Team Love’s events. Sessions will be hosted by Saffron community members who have also been part of Team Love’s lineups or operations, including Love International booker, Ellie Stokes, DJ Danielle, and award-winning artist Marla Kether.
Workshops will be delivered via Saffron’s digital members platform and are open to women, trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people worldwide. They can be accessed via a members subscription, or by purchasing a ticket, with bursary spaces available.
WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
25 MAR: BOOKINGS & PROGRAMMING W/ ELLIE STOKES
Ever wondered how festival lineups come together? Join us for an online workshop and discussion with Ellie Stokes—Love International programmer, DJ and graduate of Saffron’s Mix Nights course—as we explore the world of bookings and programming.In this session, we’ll dive into the role of a festival programmer and how it interweaves with Ellie’s own journey as a DJ. Using Love International as a case study, we’ll break down the process of curating a festival lineup—from the initial vision to final bookings—covering timelines, key decision-makers, and how programmers liaise with artists.
24 APR: WARMUP DJ TO HEADLINE ACT W/ DANIELLE
In the second part of Saffron x Team Love’s Festival Field Guide, Danielle shares the journey of her career so far. In this 90-minute online session, she’ll outline the steps that took her from interning at a record shop to playing major festival slots at Glastonbury, Dekmantel Selectors, Love International, and more. She will then guide the group through a visioning exercise to help you define your own path in the industry. The session will conclude with a relaxed discussion and Q&A – so join us live, if you can, for the full experience.
27 MAY: SELF-MANAGING A LIVE SHOW W/ MARLA KETHER
Independent artists often wear many hats, especially when it comes to live performances. In this session, Saffron artist, DJ and producer Marla Kether will tell the story of her performance at Team Love’s FORWARDS Festival, sharing all the preparation that went into making the show a success.
From outfit choices and staging to band management, tech specs, social media strategy, and advancing, Marla will break down the essential steps that go into preparing for a festival slot without a dedicated team. Through personal insights and practical advice, Marla hopes to inspire emerging artists to take charge of their own performances and maximise their festival experience.
ACCESS
Access to these sessions is free for sustainer and soulmate members of Saffron’s online community, Saffron Members Club. Membership packages start at just £5.50 per month and provide access to regular online workshops, an online community space, video masterclasses, free music tech tools, discounts and much more. If you are unable to afford a ticket but believe you would benefit from attending these workshops, please email us on members@saffronmusic.co.uk.
Workshops are open to people worldwide but will be running at 7.30 pm UK time so please bear differences in time zone in mind. If you purchase a ticket but aren’t able to attend live, you will automatically be emailed a recording of the workshop(s) after the event.
GENDER POLICY
The gender imbalance in the music technology industry is well-recognised. While we are absolutely not ‘anti-men’, we see that a shorter-term solution is to provide fellowship and learning environments that are not dominated by the cisgender male perspective. Therefore, these workshops are intended for women, non-binary, trans and gender non-conforming people to attend. While we do not ban cisgender men from attending, we hope that they will respect that this event is not intended for them.
ABOUT TEAM LOVE
Team Love is an independent, Bristol-based, event production company platforming innovative content and musical programming to create engaging, exciting and high quality experiences for our audiences. Social responsibility is central to their work, producing events which contribute to wider change in the local community and beyond.
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