Two all-star rock ‘n roll shows, more than 200 panelist check-ins, flights from all over the world to DC and half a dozen cocktail parties have earned me the honorary title of “cog” here in FMC’s office. After punching in as the events assistant on the last two Policy Summits, I’ve transitioned to the communications side of FMC life. Since I won’t be stuck backstage this year (hey now actually watching programming!), I’m ridiculously pumped for all of the fun stuff: the perks and parties of Policy Summit ‘11.

(Oh, and my pick for can’t miss programming? The debut of Bluebrain’s documentary Music for Landscapes: The Making of Listen to the Light on Monday. DC represent!)

Sunday, October 2

Movie Screening: 3 - 5 pm. Who doesn’t love a Sunday afternoon movie? Join us for a screening of one of Brendan Canty (drummer, Fugazi) and Christoph Green’s Burn to Shine film series. These films present an intimate and unvarnished look at a local music scene…topped off with a conflagration. Filmmaker Christoph Green will be here to answer questions.

Pho Dinner: 6 - 8 pm. What would a Summit be without our traditional, boisterous Pho dinner? Join us at Nam Viet for a cheap but tasty meal with other attendees at our kickoff dinner.

Local Music Showcase: Co-hosted by FMC, ReverbNation and Listen Local First DC, join us at 8 pm for a free local music showcase just down the street at IOTA Club & Café featuring four talented artists from the surrounding DC/VA/MD communities. It wouldn’t be an FMC event without great live music.

Monday, October 3

In addition to a ton of kickass programming from 9 am- 6 pm, make time for:

Networking! You asked for it, you got it - a space to mix and mingle. On Monday and Tuesday, take a break from programming, grab some coffee, recharge your gadget from all that tweeting and chat with attendees and panelists in our networking space.

Mentoring sessions: Can we help you? From 12 - 2 pm in our networking space on both Monday and Tuesday, make a date with one of our experts and get some one-on-one advice about licensing, touring, twitter, health insurance, accounting, marketing or legal issues. 

Cocktail par-tay: Co-hosted by Gibson Guitar’s Washington, DC Showroom from 6:30 - 8:30 pm. Thanks to our generous host, we’ll have an open bar, soundtrack provided by Steven Swann of local DJ collective Fatback, snacks and a beautiful, unique space for this shindig. Note that there’s limited capacity at this venue, so head on over right after panels end to be sure you get in! Throw $2 and your name in a hat for a chance to win a Gibson SG Faded in cherry, donated by Washington Music Center, or a Play:3 and Bridge, donated by Sonos! Winners will be announced during the party.

Tuesday, October 4

Programming from - 9 am - 6 pm. Plus…

The Band As a Business Workshop: Attorney/Musicians Paul Rapp and Marcy Rauer Wagman - two of our favorite people - are presenting a practical primer on the business of being in a band: trademarks, copyrights, performing rights organizations, digital aggregators, forming business entities, and much more during lunch.

More cocktails! If we haven’t worn you out entirely, join us for a finale cocktail party from 6:30 - 8:30 pm at Eighteenth Street Lounge. There’ll be some sweet tunes and happy hour drink specials for the survivors!

Rock on. We’ll see you in October.

There are still limited number of tickets available for Policy Summit 2011. On-site registration will also be available.