Harmony Festival, SXSW, Wintergrass Festival, & More Discuss Festival War Stories at IMFCON in Austin

New York, NY (PRWEB) November 29, 2011

The International Music Festival Conference (IMFCON) announced the speakers for their panel session entitled, “In the Trenches: Festival War Stories” for the annual IMFCON taking place December 4-6, 2011 in Austin, Texas at the Omni Hotel & Resort Downtown Austin.

Moderating the panel will be Howard Sapper, Chief Executive Officer, Harmony Festival, and speaking will be: Doug Cox, Executive Director, Vancouver Island Music Festival; Louis Meyers, Executive Director, Folk Alliance International, and co-founder SXSW Music & Media Conference; Stephen Ruffo, Executive Director, Wintergrass Festival; Brandy Johnson, Promoter Rep & Production Manager, AEG Live; and James Burke, Director, Arts & Cultural Programs, City Parks Foundation & SummerStage.

This panel will provide a discussion of the best and worst of festival war stories. Panelists and the audience will share stories from decades of dealing with musicians, sponsors, and audiences.

“In this changing landscape of Festival Production, it becomes more important for all of us to work together to enhance the Festival experience for all types of music and gatherings,” said Stephen Ruffo.

The 2011 IMFCON will feature top music festival industry leaders discussing the latest trends in operations & management, ticketing, sponsorship, programming, marketing & public relations, dealing with talent, agents, and managers, negotiating contracts with venues, digital technology solutions, long term planning and sustainable growth, greening your music festival, and executive management.

Sponsors and Partners for the 2011 IMFCON include: K2 Imaging, InTicketing, Fairplex, Tessitura Network, Eventbrite, Brown Paper Tickets, Ticketfly, Zevia, Heffernan Insurance, N’Take, Open Air Cinema, Greencopper Publishing, XOMO Digital, Creative Communications, Sound Mind Events, Karl’s Event Rental, CineCause, Doodson Insurance, The Emblem Source, Skytics, Weldon, Williams, and Lick, Hertz Entertainment Services, National Event Services, Front Gate Tickets, Tribeca Cinema – the Works, Southern Outdoor Cinema, Refreshing Ideas, Royal Restrooms, Worldwide Ticketcraft, Brown Distributing Co, Volunteer Local, Tour Tech Support, FFJ Marketing, Qube Digital Cinema, Cinedigm, Festival Genius, TRS The Registration System, Vendini, Gibson, Film Festival App, Music Lab, Cinematransformer, Fleming’s Steakhouse, Texas Film Office, Robertson Taylor, Steelbridges Insurance, Aggreko, Ticketbiscuit, Print Mafia, Dataflow, Shiftboard, AAA Flag & Banner, Celebrity Access, Festival Network Online, The Hollywood Reporter, and more.

About International Music Festival Conference:

The International Music Festival Conference is the only conference addressing the issues facing the music festival industry. The IMFCON mission is to promote and strengthen the global music festival industry through education, networking, dissemination of information, and the cultivation of high standards for the industry. The IMFCON was founded in 2007 and provides the only annual conference & symposium for music festival professionals and entertainment executives to network, learn from one another, establish partnerships, and understand the latest trends in festivals and music. http://www.imfcon.com

For those interested in learning more about the International Music Festival Conference please contact Laurie Kirby at laurie(dot)kirby(at)michaelbass(dot)com or 626-470-6043.

###

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/11/prweb8998728.htm