Lollapalooza returned to Chicago's Grant Park from August 3 to 6. Between stages, festival grounds offered plenty of props for guests to pose with—including a giant fake lollipop in the festival's signature blue-and-orange hues.
Guests also posed for snaps in front of the food chain's giant hashtag, which spelled out #LifeIsBurritoful.
Summer-staple games—including ping-pong—were also readily available on festival grounds.
More games, including an oversize Connect-Four board, could be found in a family-friendly area known as Kidzapalooza.
In keeping with the festival's whimsical, throwback vibe, a first-of-its-kind roller rink invited guests to take a spin for free. The set-up also had an arcade featuring nostalgic (and also free) games like Donkey Kong.
Some brands incorporated old-school games into their activations. Godiva, for instance, had a giant Plinko-style drop board. Depending on where their game chips landed, guests could win prizes such as tote bags, keychains, or free ice-cream treats.
Toyota had two tents on festival grounds. In one area, known as "Cosmic Paradise Presented by Toyota," guests could pick up a Lite-Brite peg and embed it on a board on the side of a Toyota vehicle. Guests won different prizes depending on which color their pegs lit up in.
In Toyota's other tent, known as "Toyota Music Den," a doughnut etching experience took place in the trunk of a model car. Guests could take home the treats, which were emblazoned with messages—such as "Donut Give Up—Corolla"— written in powdered sugar.
The brand had a cheerful activation that let guests pose inside a prop wine bottle that was surrounded with bubbles.
In State Farm's #HeretoHelp lounge, guests could charge their phones and study up on local charities. The lounge also hosted charitable activities. On Sunday, for example, guests could make dog toys for a local shelter.
This year, a first-time scavenger hunt called Jane Says—named after the song by Jane's Addiction lead singer and Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell—challenged guests to certain tasks taking place throughout the park. Billed by festival organizers as "part scavenger hunt, part quiz show, and part mission for global good," the activity let guests win prizes for themselves or cash prizes that could be donated to charity. Lollapalooza earmarked $100,000 for local and global initiatives via Jane Says.
One aspect of Jane Says included a daily vote, which let guests weigh in on questions by placing a colored ball in a bin that corresponded to their answer. On Saturday, for instance, festivalgoers could respond to the question of "Who Did You Vote For in Last Year's Presidential Election" by placing a ball in bins labeled with "Hillary Clinton," "Didn't Vote," et cetera.
In another Jane Says challenge, guests used their body heat to try to win free T-shirt prizes from a frozen block of ice.
In Red Bull's V.I.P. area, guests could play ping-pong while watching Red Bull TV's live footage from nearby stages.
Known as "Kosmosworld," the area had leafy, shaded seating areas.
In addition to a central bar, guests could grab drinks from mini refrigerators set up in each seating area.
Pepsi brought its "Zero Chill House" to festival grounds. The fun-house-style activation invited guests to jump into a pit of foam blocks in the soft drink's signature hues; guests could also grab prizes.
Twix set up a backstage activation open to musicians and other V.I.P. guests. Built out to look like a record store, the activation offered sweet snacks, drinks, and a virtual-reality experience.
Yoga brand Lululemon was a first-time sponsor. The company set up a backstage activation that invited V.I.P. guests and musicians to relax with gong baths and five-minute meditation sessions.
Tito's Vodka also hosted a V.I.P. retreat. Guests could have cocktails from an open bar and get premium views of the Tito's stage from the lounge area, which also supplied tacos, private restrooms, and plush seating. Throughout the weekend, bands to take the Tito's stage included Live and Joseph.
On Saturday night, Lucky Brand hosted an off-site event at the Freehand Hotel. BMF Media Group produced and designed the event, which had a '90s house party theme and featured a performance from Brandy. The event took over several rooms, turning them into '90s-style bedrooms filled with posters for Nirvana and other bands of the era. In the room, music from bands like Smashing Pumpkins played, and guests could pick up beers in red Solo cups.
The walls at the event were decked with Lucky Brand's current and vintage campaign images. Guests could take home custom-embroidered bandanas from the brand.
Beauty brand Bed Head TIGI took over several areas of the Hard Rock Hotel for a pop-up salon activation on August 4 and 5. Pink-and-orange signage featured hairstyles guests could have done on-site—including twisted top knots and braids—and a grassy, flower-covered wall provided a backdrop for photos.
The event's #YourHairYourWay hash tag appeared on mirrors and on bars. In addition to hairstyling, guests could book makeup touchups and manicure appointments, and celebrity DJs including Brandi Cyrus and Rumer Willis spun tunes.
Production designer Derek McLane used a jaw-hopping 45 million Swarovski crystals in this year’s stage design—which is 40 times more crystals than the past 10 years combined. The design required more than 3,250 hours to fabricate over four weeks, and weighed 15,500 pounds. This year marks the 11th year that sponsor Swarovski has illuminated the Oscars stage.
The academy’s annual Governors Ball took place at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland immediately following the Oscars on Sunday. This year’s event—which drew 1,500 winners, nominees, presenters, and other A-listers—honored the award ceremony’s 90th anniversary with a celebration of the history of film. Original, seminal artifacts were on display, as well as footage and stills from iconic movies, costume designs, curated music from every era of filmmaking, and a presentation on the history of Oscar statuettes.
Overseeing the planning for the first time this year was Academy governor Lois Burwell, an Oscar-winning makeup artist. She teamed up with longtime event producer Cheryl Cecchetto of Sequoia Productions, who managed all details of the decor and entertainment for the 29th consecutive year.
According to Cecchetto, decor was kept simple to allow the artifacts to shine. “The tones of the entire room were calm and welcoming—I call them spa colors—so that what would pop are the artifacts that had a pivotal difference in the history of film,” she said. “All these items represented what goes into making a film. The academy even allowed us to take 12 Oscars out of the vault—four of them were Oscars that were built before 1940.”
Decor included 2,000 yards of linens in elegant color tones including Oyster Metallic Mesh, Platinum Gemstone, Champagne Metallic Nusilk, Bronzine Nusilks, Coffee Bark Taffetas, Antique Ivory Taffetas, and Champagne Halo Circle.
“It was nonstop history, but it was presented with very cutting-edge, modern materials,” explained Cecchetto. “So I consistently used lucite to give the feeling of that was then and this is now.”
Flowers from longtime collaborator Mark's Garden included 5,000 succulents mixed with roses and ranunculus arranged in gold and copper containers. The flowers will later be planted at the Motion Picture Television Fund.
For the 24th consecutive year, chef Wolfgang Puck catered. Eric Klein, Puck's vice president of culinary, worked alongside the famed chef to create more than 60 dishes, from one-bite hors d'oeuvres to small-plate passed entrees. Puck's signature dishes such as smoked salmon Oscars, potato with caviar, and truffle macaroni and cheese returned, alongside new items such as Miyazaki Wagyu beef tartare on puffed black rice, crab-stuffed hibiscus, taro root tacos with spiced eggplant, edamame and black truffle pot stickers, and black bass with salsa verde.
In a change this year, Cecchetto’s team decided that instead of having the dessert buffet on the balcony, massive dessert buffets with live-cooking demonstrations would be displayed on the west side of the ballroom. “It was such a hit,” she said.
See more about this event in our Governors Ball preview story.
Vanity Fair’s Oscars after-party continued to be the most exclusive bash in town. The Sunday-night event once again took place at a custom-built space between the Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts and City Hall, and was hosted by new Vanity Fair editor Radhika Jones.
A wall of greenery and marquee signage created an instant photo op at one end of the bash, while the rest of the party had simple decor, allowing the unique paneled ceiling and 50-foot bar to take center stage.
Guests dined on fried chicken prepared by chef Thomas Keller, as well as 1,700 In-N-Out Burgers that were served throughout the night.
The 26th annual Elton John AIDS Foundation's Academy Awards viewing party, hosted by the singer and David Furnish, took over a 40,000-square-foot tent in West Hollywood Park on Sunday night. Antony Todd Inc. handled the design and production. The event spanned several rooms, including a cocktail lounge with mirrored walls, plush gray couches, and signage promoting sponsor Bulgari.
New this year, longtime vendor Crumble Catering teamed up with the Roca Brothers of the Michelin three-star restaurant El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain, to prepare dinner in a space that later saw a performance by rock band Greta Van Fleet. After the Oscars telecast ended, Alexander Gilkes of Paddle8 conducted a live auction.
The evening raised $5.9 million; over the past quarter-century, the A-list event has raised more than $62 million to help people at risk for or living with H.I.V./AIDS.
The after-party also took over a space with deep-red lighting and draping, plus a dance floor and a massive disco ball. Illusionist David Jarre and DJ Johnny Dynell entertained the crowd.
Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel hosted his own private party on Sunday night at the Lot in West Hollywood. The venue was transformed into a mini food and cocktail festival, with chefs from Tartine Bakery, Frankies 457 Spuntino & Prime Meats, A.O.C., and more serving Kimmel’s favorite foods and drinks from Tequila Don Julio and Ciroc.
Later, a 14-piece jazz orchestra called Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band took the stage, followed by performances from Snoop Dogg, Rita Ora, and Bebe Rexha.
Mercedes-Benz held its annual viewing party on Sunday night at the Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills. The evening, which was designed and produced by Sterling Social, offered comfortable seating and big screen TVs, plus passed hors d’oeuvres, a photo booth, and a makeup station. It drew celebrities such as Jamie Foxx, Jane Lynch, and Christoph Waltz.
Sugarfina provided a candy bar with boozy treats such as champagne-filled gummy bears.
Guests at the viewing party could vote for their picks for Best Picture.
Rolex sponsored the Academy Awards green room for the third year, and designed the decor to celebrate the brand’s Swiss heritage. The 100-square-foot space, which was located backstage at the Dolby Theatre, was meant to evoke a chic mountain chalet, with an arched ceiling, velvet sofas, and plenty of wood and bronze details. Photos of celebrities wearing Rolex watches decorated the walls. Event Eleven handled production.
Virtual windows in the space looked out on the Matterhorn and other snowy mountains.
The magazine hosted its 11th annual Black Women in Hollywood awards on Thursday at the Beverly Wilshire. Intended to honor and celebrate Hollywood's most impactful African-American women, this year's honorees included Lena Waithe, Tiffany Haddish, Danai Gurira, and Tessa Thompson. The full gala was televised on OWN on Saturday night.
While last year’s event switched to an evening gala to honor the award show’s 10th anniversary, this year returned to its standard luncheon format. “The luncheon format is what makes the event distinct,” explained Jovanca Maitland, director of live events and experiential for Essence. “Guests build their schedules around our daytime event, making it a priority.”
Show development and production—including the overall design and fabrication as well as the eye-catching stage backdrop and set design—was handled by AgenC in partnership with the Essence event team.
“Each year we build our event around a theme that is celebratory of our honorees,” Maitland said. “This year, with all the buzz around black women leading and directing box office films from action to sci-fi to comedy … we began the creative process with one word in mind—badass. We worked collaboratively with our production partners at AgenC and designed with a color palette of burnt gold, cashew, and botanical greens in mind to give the event a fresh, modern, and bold daytime look and feel. The bold colors are represented in our invitation, step-and-repeat, table decor, and florals, and are key to the stage design.”
Sponsors such as L’Oreal, Coca-Cola, and Walmart created eye-catching, interactive stations for luncheon guests.
Typically held the day before the Oscars, the Film Independent Spirit Awards honor indie filmmakers. This year's ceremony, held Saturday in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica, handed out top honors to Get Out, Call Me By Your Name, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. The ceremony took on a blue and orange color scheme, and sponsors included Lindt Chocolate, Fiji Water, and Bulleit Frontier Whiskey.
The award show’s sponsor, AT&T, expanded its activation this year with a pop-up hospitality suite dubbed the DirecTV Bungalow. Designed and produced by Best Events, the venue served as a pre-awards cocktail station and a place to have trophies engraved after the show.
The pop-up, which overlooked the Santa Monica pier, was designed to evoke the feeling of a house in the Hamptons. The AT&T logo was incorporated in a visual way throughout the space.
Held at a private residence in Beverly Hills, WME’s pre-Oscar party took place on Friday night. The event drew WME executives, agents, and clients such as Denzel Washington, Octavia Spencer, and Guillermo del Toro, and was designed by Tom Ford Designs and produced by 15/40 Productions.
Women in Film, a professional organization focused on recognizing and promoting the visions of female creators, held its 11th annual pre-Oscar cocktail party on Friday. Designed and produced by Event Eleven, the event moved to Crustacean Beverly Hills this year—and also marked the opening night for the newly renovated seafood restaurant.
Emma Stone hosted the event with Women in Film president Cathy Schulman, and A-listers such as Viola Davis gave impassioned speeches about the strides women have made in the industry and the work left to be done. The design, which extended to the tented step-and-repeat, had a feminine color palette of teal with pink florals.
The floral-heavy design also tied into the photo booth from MirMir.
