Remote festivals push event teams to their limits. Picture a production crew in the Australian outback or the Nevada desert, working long hours under unforgiving sun and starry nights far from home. In these isolated settings, crew welfare isn’t just a nicety – it’s a safety essential. A well-rested, well-fed, and mentally supported team will perform at their best under pressure, ensuring the festival runs smoothly and safely for everyone.
Festival organizers around the world have learned through hard experience that investing in crew welfare pays off. From scorching deserts in the United States to humid jungles in Indonesia, the challenges may vary but the solution is universal: take care of your crew, and they’ll take care of the festival. The following guide breaks down practical strategies – from designing comfortable crew camps to scheduling sane shift rotations – to keep remote festival crews sharp, safe, and motivated.
Designing Comfortable Crew Camps
One of the first priorities when setting up a remote festival site is a safe, comfortable basecamp for the crew. Unlike urban venues where staff can go home or to hotels, remote festival crews live on-site for days or weeks. This means creating a mini village that meets basic needs and provides recovery time after grueling shifts. A well-designed crew camp helps prevent exhaustion and keeps morale high.
Here are key features every crew camp should include:
– Shaded Sleeping Areas: Tents or sleeping quarters must be shielded from weather extremes. Use shade structures, reflective tarps, or portable cabins to keep the morning sun and midday heat at bay. In the desert climates of events like Burning Man, production teams erect shade canopies over tents so workers can sleep past sunrise without roasting. In colder regions, insulated tents or access to heated trailers are vital for warmth.
– Quiet Zones: Position crew sleeping areas away from stages and generators. If space is limited, enforce quiet hours and provide earplugs so crews can actually rest. Some festivals designate a “quiet crew campground” beyond the main hustle, ensuring that off-duty staff can recharge without being disturbed by 3 AM soundchecks or all-night attendees.
– Climate Control & Ventilation: When budgets allow, consider climate-controlled options. High-end festivals might use air-conditioned pods or yurts for critical staff, but even simple measures help – fans in humid tropical camps, or ventilation flaps in tents to catch breezes. In a remote Indian mountain festival, for example, organizers arranged ventilated canvas tents for staff and placed them under tree cover to naturally lower the temperature.
– Central Crew Hub: Set up a communal tent or trailer as the crew’s home base. This hub can serve multiple purposes: team meetings, meal distribution, a lounge for off-duty crew to socialize, and a first aid station. Outfitting the hub with essentials like drinking water, snacks, and phone charging stations makes life easier for everyone on site. This area also doubles as a check-in point where crew leaders can monitor everyone’s well-being each day.
Every site should also meet baseline health requirements – clean toilets, showers, drinking water, and a place to eat. Industry initiatives like Festival Safe note that event employers must ensure these basics for their workers (www.festivalsafe.com), which becomes even more crucial when crews are hours away from civilization.
Building a crew camp is about balancing proximity and privacy. Crews should be close enough to the action to respond quickly, but their living area must feel separate from the festival chaos. A thoughtful layout – perhaps on higher ground for breeze, or near a treeline for natural shade – can transform a basic camp into a sanctuary. Remember: a crew member who gets quality sleep at camp will be far more alert and useful during a 6:00 AM stage build or a midnight strike.
Nutritious Food and Hydration for Endurance
Long days of physical labor and high stress can quickly wear down even the most enthusiastic crew member. Nutritious meals and constant hydration are the fuel that keeps a team going in a remote setting. While it might be tempting to throw some burgers and pizza at the crew, a well-planned menu will significantly boost energy levels, mood, and overall health.
Many successful festivals set up a dedicated crew kitchen or catering service on-site. For example, large multi-day festivals often have a commissary tent where cooks prepare hot breakfasts to kickstart the morning, hearty lunches, and dinners that accommodate various diets. In the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, the crew building Burning Man rely on a giant commissary tent that serves hundreds of meals daily – crucial when the nearest grocery store is a three-hour drive away (journal.burningman.org). Smaller boutique festivals might partner with local food vendors or hire a catering team to ensure staff are fed well even if the event is deep in the mountains or jungle.
Key considerations for crew catering include:
– Balanced, Energizing Menu: Heavy, greasy foods can lead to afternoon slumps. Opt for menus rich in complex carbohydrates, protein, and fresh vegetables to provide lasting energy. Think robust stews, salads, stir-fries, or local cuisine that is both hearty and healthy. Vary the menu across days to fight menu fatigue – a bored crew is surprisingly excited by something as simple as a different sauce or dessert mid-week!
– Dietary Needs: Account for vegetarians, vegans, and those with allergies or dietary restrictions. In global festivals, you may have crew from multiple cultures – providing a mix of food options (spicy and mild, meat and plant-based, etc.) shows respect and keeps everyone nourished. Communication is key: gather dietary requirements in advance and plan accordingly so no one goes hungry or has to subsist on protein bars.
– Scheduled Meals & Breaks: Coordinate meal times with crew shift schedules. Stagger meal serving times if necessary so that no matter when someone’s break falls, there’s a fresh meal waiting. Implement a system (like meal vouchers or a crew meal wristband) to manage access smoothly. Also ensure rest breaks around meals – a crew member with time to sit, eat slowly, and digest will return more productive than one gobbling a sandwich on the run.
– Hydration Stations: In remote heat, water is life. Position water refill stations and electrolyte drinks in all work areas and the crew camp. Encourage a “hydrate often” culture – for instance, Australian outback festivals have water coolers in every staff vehicle and require crew to take water breaks every hour in extreme heat. Avoid over-reliance on caffeine or energy drinks; while a coffee boost is fine, too much can lead to dehydration and crashes. Instead, provide alternatives like iced herbal teas, coconut water, or electrolyte packets to mix into water.
Keeping the crew well-fed is also a psychological boost. Sharing a good meal together can become a morale-building moment each day – a chance for everyone to unwind for a bit, share stories, and build camaraderie. Festival producers often recount that the quality of crew catering directly affects team spirit. As one veteran production manager from the UK put it, “if you take care of their meals, the crew feel taken care of in every way.” Investing in nutritious food isn’t just about calories – it’s about showing the team they matter.
Hygiene, Showers, and Laundry in Remote Locations
Maintaining basic hygiene in a remote festival environment is vital for health and comfort. Crew who can shower, change into clean clothes, and use proper sanitation facilities will stay happier and healthier over the course of an event. Neglecting these needs can lead to illnesses (like skin infections or heat rash), lowered morale, and even crew attrition mid-festival.
Showers and Sanitation: Ideally, dedicate separate crew bathrooms and showers that are off-limits to attendees or at least available during crew-only hours. This ensures your team isn’t waiting in long lines after a long shift just to get clean. Portable shower units can be rented and plumbed into water tanks on site. A simple schedule (e.g. women shower in the morning, men in the evening, or vice versa) can help manage limited facilities if needed, or assign specific times for each department to avoid bottlenecks. Encourage crew to actually use these facilities by keeping them well-stocked (soap, disinfectant, towels if you can) and clean via regular servicing.
Laundry Access: For multi-day festivals (especially week-long builds or multi-week events like large arts festivals), consider how crew will handle dirty clothing. It might not be feasible to have full laundromats in the middle of nowhere, but there are solutions:
– Provide basic laundry supplies at camp. Even a bucket, washboard, and environmentally friendly detergent can allow a crew member to hand-wash essentials. Set up a clothesline area (preferably under sun and wind) where items can dry during the day.
– Mobile Laundry Services: Some event production teams arrange for a mobile laundry van or outsource laundry runs. In remote Australian events, organizers have hired services that collect crew laundry every couple of days, drive to the nearest town to wash and dry, then return the clean clothes. If budget permits, this approach can be a lifesaver during muddy or dusty festivals.
– Rotate clean work gear. If providing uniforms or crew t-shirts, supply at least two or three per person so they can swap out for a fresh shirt every day. This not only helps with hygiene but also makes crew easily identifiable to each other and to attendees. Remind crew to pack adequate changes of socks and other basics if laundry on site is uncertain – foot hygiene, for example, is crucial when staff are on their feet 12+ hours.
Waste management is another factor – greywater from showers or laundry must be properly disposed of or stored, which requires planning with your sanitation team. Additionally, emphasize personal hygiene practices: provide handwashing stations in crew areas (especially important if the crew is handling food or attendee-facing tasks). Little touches like hand sanitizer bottles, wet wipes, and electrolyte tablets in crew kits go a long way in keeping everyone feeling refreshed and cared for.
By prioritizing hygiene, festival producers not only prevent health issues but also send a clear message to their staff: “Your well-being matters.” A clean crew member is more confident and comfortable, which translates into better focus and productivity on the job.
Mental Health Support for Remote Crews
The mental strain of festival work is real – long hours, high pressure, remote isolation from home, and often the sensory overload of the event itself. In recent years, the live events industry has begun to acknowledge that mental health is as important as physical safety for staff and volunteers. For crews in remote locations, the isolation can amplify stress. Therefore, savvy festival organizers implement measures to safeguard their team’s mental well-being.
Practical ways to support crew mental health include:
– On-Site Counselors or Peer Support: If possible, have a trained counselor or mental health first-aider on the crew, especially for longer events. Some large festivals have begun establishing wellness tents not just for attendees but for staff – quiet, confidential spaces where a crew member can talk to someone if they feel overwhelmed. For example, at major European festivals, it’s not uncommon to find a “crew welfare” officer whose sole job is to check on staff morale and direct folks to professional help if needed.
– Access to Helplines: Partner with mental health organizations or provide contact info for helplines that crew can call 24/7. In Australia, the non-profit Support Act offers a dedicated Wellbeing Helpline for music industry workers, providing free counseling sessions and crisis support (supportact.org.au). Simply knowing that such resources exist can reassure crew members that it’s okay to seek help.
– Regular Check-Ins: Crew chiefs and stage managers should routinely check in on their teams, not just about work progress but how everyone is holding up. A quick morning briefing where leaders remind crew about self-care (hydration, resting when off-duty, looking out for each other) sets a supportive tone. Encourage a buddy system – people paired up to watch each other’s back and notice signs of extreme fatigue or stress.
– Downtime and Decompression: Just because a festival runs non-stop doesn’t mean the crew should. Schedule short breaks where crew can step away from the frenzy. Even a 15-minute breather in a calm area can help reset a frazzled mind. Post-event, if possible, provide a decompression period: some organizers host a low-key staff party or group meal after teardown is complete, giving everyone a chance to celebrate their hard work and vent or laugh about challenges. This helps crew mentally transition out of “crisis mode” and reinforces team bonds.
Another key is training and culture: incorporate mental health awareness into pre-festival training. Let staff know the signs of burnout and that it’s not a weakness to speak up. A supportive culture where people can admit “I need a break” without judgement will prevent small issues from becoming crises. Over the years, festivals in countries from the UK to India have begun destigmatizing mental health in event production, realizing that a clear-headed crew makes smarter decisions and avoids mistakes.
Above all, make it clear that the crew’s mental and emotional health is a priority. Simple gestures like providing a phone charging station and designated time for crew to call home, or a comfortable chill-out zone with shade and maybe some games or music for off-duty relaxation, can alleviate the psychological toll of being in a remote, high-intensity environment. Happy crew members who feel supported will go the extra mile to put on a fantastic festival.
Scheduling Shifts and Rest Rotations
In a remote festival, there’s often a “make it happen” mentality – crews push hard to meet tight build deadlines and to keep the show running no matter what. But running on adrenaline alone is dangerous. Structured shift rotations and mandatory rest are non-negotiable for safety. A tired crew member is not only less productive; they’re also more prone to mistakes that could result in injuries or costly errors.
When planning crew schedules, treat rest as a critical resource. Here are some best practices for rotations and shifts:
– Limit Maximum Shift Length: As a rule of thumb, try to cap shifts at 8-12 hours, depending on the intensity of the work. During peak crunch times like final load-in or overnight stage changeovers, it’s tempting to let shifts stretch longer. Resist that temptation and bring in additional crew or stagger teams if extended coverage is needed. Many experienced festival producers aim for the “8 hours work, 8 hours rest, 8 hours recreation” principle whenever possible, even if the recreation just means sleep in this context.
– Mandatory Rest Periods: Ensure that every crew member has at least a solid 8-hour block of rest in any 24-hour period – and more is better. This aligns with standard labor guidelines in countries like those in the EU and helps prevent burnout. In practice, this might mean creating two or three teams (morning crew, evening crew, overnight crew) that hand off duties in shifts. If someone must pull a double shift due to an emergency, make sure they get an extended rest afterward and are not back on duty first thing.
– Rotation of Duties: For crews doing very strenuous jobs, rotating tasks can prevent both physical and mental fatigue. For example, swap out your lighting techs or riggers to less strenuous assignments after a few hours up on the truss, or rotate security staff from a high-stress perimeter post to a calmer position periodically. Variety can reduce monotony and muscle strain, keeping people sharper. Plan these rotations into the schedule so that each person knows when a changeover will occur.
– Night and Day Shift Equity: Often the same few people get stuck with the graveyard (overnight) shift every night – a morale killer over a multi-day festival. Try to rotate the undesirable shifts so the burden is shared, or provide extra incentives for those who work through the night (like a small bonus, extra time off the next day, or a hearty midnight meal). Festivals in places like Canada and the UK, where summer daylight is long, often still run activities through the night, so an equitable approach ensures no team feels unfairly drained.
A good scheduling system – even an Excel sheet or a scheduling app – is worth its weight in gold. Clearly communicate the rota to everyone, and post it in the crew hub so people can check when their next duty and next off-shift are. Build in overlap between shifts for handover, so the incoming team gets briefed and the outgoing team can leave without guilt. Equally important, watch for signs of fatigue: crew chiefs should be empowered to say, “You’ve done enough for today, go rest,” if they see someone struggling. After all, a festival site can be dangerous if someone’s wandering around half-asleep – heavy machinery, electrical systems, and high structures demand alert minds and bodies.
Remember that accidents caused by exhaustion can undo months of hard work. Studies in occupational safety have likened extreme fatigue to being under the influence of alcohol (archive.cdc.gov) in terms of impairment. It’s a serious risk. By proactively scheduling rest and reasonable hours, festival organizers protect not just their crew, but also the festival attendees and the event itself. In the long run, an efficient rotation schedule actually gets the job done faster, because a rotating crew stays sharper and makes fewer mistakes.
By embracing these practices, festival producers can transform even the most remote, challenging site into a supportive and efficient workplace. The crew is the backbone of any festival – when they are looked after, they go above and beyond to deliver a spectacular experience for attendees. In summary, here are the key takeaways when planning crew welfare for remote festivals:
- Plan Crew Camps Thoughtfully: Set up dedicated crew camping areas with shade, weather protection, and quiet space so staff can get quality sleep between shifts.
- Prioritize Food & Water: Provide healthy meals and constant access to drinking water (and electrolytes) to keep your team fueled and hydrated through long days.
- Maintain Hygiene Facilities: Ensure on-site showers, clean toilets, and even laundry solutions for longer events to keep crew comfortable, clean, and illness-free.
- Support Mental Well-Being: Offer mental health resources like access to counselors or helplines, and foster a culture where crew can communicate stress and take breaks without stigma.
- Enforce Rest and Rotation: Create shift schedules that cap hours and include mandatory rest periods. Rotate duties and night shifts fairly to prevent burnout and accidents due to fatigue.
- Monitor and Adjust: Keep an eye on crew morale and health throughout the festival. Listen to feedback and be ready to adjust plans (add extra breaks, bring in extra help) if people are struggling.
- Crew Welfare = Festival Success: Remember that taking care of the crew isn’t an extra – it’s fundamental. A supported, sharp team is more productive, makes fewer mistakes, and ultimately creates a safer, more successful festival.
25th August 2025