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INSIDE LOOK
BACKBONE INTERNATIONAL JORIS JOOSEN, FOUNDER OF BACKBONE INTERNATIONAL, TALKS TO TPMEA’S STEW HUME ABOUT THE COMPANY’S GROWTH IN THE MIDDLE EAST EVENTS MARKET.
Starting as a freelance producer for Dutch entertainment and medium enterprise, ID&T, a young Joris Joosen had the foresight and vision to create a fresh venture. The goal? To provide a service that translated creative plans into feasible productions across the globe. Over the last nine years, Backbone International has attempted to cultivate this vision while maintaining high standards in efficiency, safety and quality. With a wide variety of services, the company supply production management and technical production along with technical design and overlay management. Since its creation, Joosen [who currently takes on the role of Managing Director] has
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always wanted Backbone to live up to the ‘International’ name it its the title. To this end, the company has bases in New York, Amsterdam, Jakarta and Hong Kong - establishing itself in the world of large-scale dance music, with clients including Sensation and Tomorrowland. Over the years, one region that has been of serious interest to Backbone International has been the UAE and more recently the KSA. The entry point for Joosen and the wider Backbone family had been via Sensation – the world’s leading dance event. “By 2014, we had produced Sensation shows in over 30 countries in five continents,” began Joosen. “For us it was a great next step to produce a show in Dubai.” The
MD explained how most EDM events across the globe have high production standards, but Sensation “brings that to a whole new level.” He elaborated. “The level of details in the set, technically and aesthetically are phenomenal. Bringing Sensation to the UAE meant we had to get involved with local suppliers and their teams. Together we worked on the complex technical production of the first outdoor edition of Sensation.” Joosen explained how during the first 2014 project, the local Dubai crews who were working on the project showed great interest in the production, especially in the way Backbone International approached dealing with technical
