On Monday, March 28 the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games launched an international selection process to hire a mega-events production company. The awarded firm or consortium will be in charge of the production and executive management of the ceremonies and large live events for the Rio 2016 Games.

The creative aspects are excluded from this process and will be the object of a future selection phase, restricted to Brazilian talent.

Bidders are asked to register on the Rio 2016 official site (http://www.rio2016.com/en/assets-and-services), and will be required to prove prior experience in the production of Olympic or Paralympic Ceremonies. The winner will be selected by an Evaluation Commission formed by members of the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee, representatives of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and other experts yet to be announced.

The first presentation to be produced by the Organizing Committee is a show of approximately 8-minutes during the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games, in just over a year, when the Olympic Flag will be handed over to the Mayor of Rio.

The executive production company will be involved in other large projects besides the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Rio 2016 Games, such as the Delivery of the Paralympic Flag at the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games, the Tour of the Olympic and Paralympic Flags, the Live Sites in Brazil and at 15 international locations, the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay, the Medal Ceremonies, the Reception of the Delegations at the Olympic and Paralympic Villages and the Sports Presentations during the Rio 2016 Games.

The mega-events of the Olympic and Paralympic Games are superproductions attracting the attention of billions of people all around the world. The Opening Ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Games involved 20,000 professionals, 30,000 fireworks, 300,000 lighting devices with an estimated global audience of two billion people.

“The events and ceremonies will be critical components of the spectator experience, and an essential tool to awaken the interest of the largest number of people possible for the Rio 2016 Games. Projects such as the Olympic and Paralympic Flag Tour and the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay will result in greater public engagement and participation throughout Brazil. The ceremonies will convey images of Brazil that will be remembered forever all around the world, and it is critical to partner with a top level organization in their production.  This is why we will select highly qualified suppliers, and work with the best Brazilian and international professionals” said Leonardo Gryner, CEO of the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee.

The evaluation of proposals will take into account alignment with the Rio 2016 strategy; full understanding of the project scope; planning, control and governance methodology; commitment to Rio 2016 inclusion and sustainability policies; the proposed production team; the solution designed to ensure compliance and continuity of the services in any circumstance; and the commercial proposal.

Selection process stages

March 28 to April 27, 2011– Qualification stage

To access the regulations, bidders will be required to register on the official site of the Games (http://www.rio2016.com/en/assets-and-services) and submit the legal, financial, tax, labour and technical documentation, including portfolio and case study.

May 5, 2011- Qualification

Disclosure of the names of firms/consortia qualified in the first stage. These will be invited to the Rio 2016 briefing session.

May 11, 2011– Briefing, in Rio de Janeiro

At this meeting, all the specifications and technical information required by Rio 2016, and necessary to prepare the Production and Executive Management Proposal and the Commercial Proposal will be presented to the qualified firms and consortia.

June 13, 2011– Submission of proposals

Delivery of the Production and Executive Management Proposals and Commercial Proposals by the qualified firms and consortia.

June 13 to June 16, 2011– Presentations and interviews

Interviews with qualified firms and consortia, when they will be given the opportunity to make presentations about their proposals, based on the requirements described during the Briefing.

Until June 30, 2011– Announcement of finalists

Announcement of the finalists

July 1 to August 25, 2011– Final stage

Negotiations with the finalists and presentation of revised proposals.

Until August 31, 2011– Announcement of the winner

Announcement of the winner and contract signature.