City of Glendale Christmas Parade | Live Broadcast & Event Production

Producing a Citywide Holiday Tradition

The City of Glendale's annual Christmas Parade brings together hundreds of parade participants, performers, organizations, and community members for a major holiday celebration.

For Two Second Media, producing the parade broadcast is far more than arriving with cameras on the day of the event.

Each year, our team works alongside city organizers to plan, coordinate, and execute a complete live broadcast production while helping ensure the parade moves through the designated broadcast area in an organized, coordinated fashion.

With more than 200 parade entries annually, multiple on-camera hosts, four camera positions, live performers, sponsors, and extensive technical infrastructure, the production requires months of preparation and precise execution.

It is a project where event planning, logistics, live television production, and real-time event direction intersect.

Planning Begins in February

Although the parade takes place during the holiday season, our involvement begins much earlier.

Each February, Two Second Media joins the parade's planning board, working alongside City of Glendale organizers throughout the year to prepare for the event.

Our planning responsibilities include coordinating the broadcast location, stage and announcer area, parade entries, performance requirements, sponsor recognition, and the technical needs of the production.

The placement of the broadcast area is particularly important.

The location must accommodate the hosts, cameras, production crew, lighting, audio, and supporting equipment while allowing the parade to continue moving safely and efficiently along its route.

We also coordinate with participating bands and performers to ensure their performances take place in the appropriate location for the broadcast.

For a parade with more than 200 entries, those details require substantial preparation long before the first float begins moving.

Coordinating Talent, Sponsors, and Broadcast Content

A successful parade broadcast needs more than camera coverage. It requires a coordinated on-camera program.

Two Second Media hires and manages the broadcast talent, including two hosts stationed on stage and a third host who moves throughout the crowd.

The stage hosts guide viewers through the parade, while the roaming host brings a different perspective through interviews and interactions with spectators along the route.

Our team also coordinates with sponsors and advertisers to ensure their recognition is incorporated into the broadcast.

These responsibilities become part of the overall production plan, connecting the event's participants, on-camera talent, sponsors, and technical crew into a single coordinated presentation.

Building a Broadcast Studio on a City Street

On the morning of the parade, our crew arrives early to begin transforming the designated area into a working broadcast environment.

We set up the stage and announcer area, install audio systems for the surrounding crowd, prepare lighting, and incorporate decorations appropriate for the holiday event.

At the same time, the team coordinates with vendors responsible for providing power and internet connectivity to the broadcast position.

The production crew installs and tests the cameras, audio systems, lighting, and other technical equipment needed for the live broadcast.

Unlike a permanent studio or traditional event venue, this entire operation takes place on a public street that must be temporarily closed to traffic.

That creates one of the production's greatest logistical challenges.

The setup, testing, broadcast, and subsequent breakdown must all fit within the limited street closure window established in coordination with city officials and police.

Every department must work efficiently, with a clear understanding of the schedule and its dependencies.

Four Cameras, One Coordinated Production

The Glendale Christmas Parade broadcast uses four cameras, each assigned a specific purpose.

A camera mounted on our jib crane provides elevated, moving shots that capture the scale and visual excitement of the parade.

A wireless handheld camera moves through the crowd and along the parade route, following the roaming host and capturing interviews, reactions, and close-up moments.

A dedicated camera covers the on-stage hosts, keeping the broadcast connected to the announcers guiding viewers through the event.

The fourth camera provides a reliable, continuous view of the parade as entries pass through the broadcast area.

Together, these camera positions create a dynamic production that can move between sweeping views of the parade, host commentary, individual entries, and spontaneous crowd interactions.

Coordinating those perspectives requires a director who can anticipate the action, manage the production crew, and respond immediately to changes in the live environment.

Directing the Broadcast and the Parade

One of the most distinctive aspects of this production is the director's dual responsibility.

While directing the live broadcast, our director also works with a parade staff member to coordinate when floats, bands, performers, and other entries move into the designated broadcast area.

This coordination is essential because the needs of the parade and the needs of the broadcast are closely connected.

Bands and performers must arrive in the appropriate position to be captured effectively. Parade entries must move through the area in an organized sequence. Camera operators and hosts need to be prepared for what is coming next.

At the same time, the production must maintain a natural flow for viewers and spectators.

With more than 200 entries passing through the route, the director must manage both the creative presentation and the operational timing of the event.

It is a level of coordination that extends well beyond conventional live video switching.

Working Within a Limited Street Closure

Producing a live broadcast on a major public street introduces challenges that do not exist in most event venues.

The production depends on temporary access to the roadway, coordination with police and city officials, and the timely arrival of equipment, crew, vendors, and parade participants.

The setup window is especially demanding.

The stage, broadcast positions, lighting, audio, cameras, power, and internet connectivity must all be installed and tested before the parade begins.

Once the event is underway, the crew must work within a tightly controlled environment while coordinating the movement of performers, floats, hosts, and cameras.

Afterward, the production must be dismantled so the roadway can be returned to normal use.

The limited closure window makes advance planning, clear communication, and efficient on-site execution essential.

A Year-Round Partnership With the City of Glendale

The annual Christmas Parade broadcast represents an ongoing production partnership between Two Second Media and the City of Glendale.

Our role begins with planning board participation in February and continues through the many months of coordination leading up to the holiday event.

On parade day, those preparations become a coordinated live production involving talent, camera operators, technical crew, city staff, police, vendors, sponsors, and hundreds of parade participants.

For Two Second Media, the project demonstrates our ability to operate at the intersection of event planning and broadcast production.

We don't simply document what happens. We help create the conditions necessary for the broadcast to happen successfully.

From the earliest planning meetings to the final camera shot and equipment breakdown, the Glendale Christmas Parade is an example of large-scale event production built on preparation, coordination, and precise execution.