Breaking Down the Golden Globes

Breaking Down the Golden Globes with metroConnections Producers

Haley Wakefield, metroConnections Producer
Krystina Reader, metroConnections Associate Producer

As we kick off 2019, we also get to kick off one of our very favorite times of year: awards season! The season began on Sunday with the Golden Globes, and we have a few thoughts from a show producer’s standpoint on what went well and not so well during the production.

#1 WOW Moment: Steve Carell teeing up Carol Burnett’s first annual “Carol Burnett Award”

Steve’s approach to introducing Carol’s accomplishments was smooth, captivating, and genuine. His ability to deliver his message in such a confident manner could be attributed to a thorough rehearsal; an action plan always recommended by producers. Additionally, the video content reflecting on Carol’s accomplishments was well pieced together and meticulously researched; it was evident that a lot of time and effort went into gathering footage from the past 50 years.

Cringe-worthy Moment: The multiple delays in transitions

During the Emma Stone, Olivia Colman and Rachel Weisz introduction of “The Favourite,” they seemed confused and didn’t know who was supposed to speak at which part on the teleprompter. While we can’t know what the prompter script looked like, we always suggest using bold font, different colors, or larger text to indicate who speaks at which part. There are so many celebrity presenters for a show like this, and it would be nearly impossible to have a full rehearsal. However, with some easy prompter adjustments, these issues could hopefully be avoided.

Laughable Moment: Jim Carrey having to move from the movie section to TV section

A captivating emcee is a must for game shows, award ceremonies, and recognition events; in the same respect, having a well-liked, laughable comedian execute a pre-planned skit is a must to loosen the crowd and energize the room. Jim Carrey and the hosts executed the skit with easy laughter and fun.

Encouraging Moment: Sandra Oh’s opening monologue

Sandra reflected on the year of change and how her accepting the host position reflected that change. Additionally, we felt Glenn Close echoed that sentiment by stating the importance of women taking care of not only themselves, but their passions, to better their industries. The theme of empowerment and inclusion was thread throughout the program and we foresee it being upheld as a theme in other shows during the 2019 season.

Venue Moment: The Beverly Hilton space was too cramped

Poor walking paths led to bad camera angles and delayed time getting to the stage. Also, the full dinner rounds setup led to uncomfortable seating – imaging having your back to the stage while wearing an elaborate dress! A new venue could provide a better landscape for different stage sets.

Microphone Moments: Noisy envelopes

The winner envelopes kept hitting the standing mic because the envelopes opened top to bottom. If they opened left to right this issue could have been easily avoided.

We also would have been more comfortable with a stage manager guiding winners to the stage. It seemed like overall stage management was lacking a bit and having someone at the bottom of the stairs to confidently point people on stage in the right direction could have been really helpful.

What did you think of the awards season kick-off? Was there anything else you would change or applaud? We’d love to hear your thoughts! info@metroconnections.com