Gel and Color

[Toffee]

Ok is it just our old TD and I that get annoyed when people call color, gel?

Gel isn't made any more, thus why would you call it gel? The reason it was called gel was because it was actually gel and my old TD used to play jokes on new electricians and say it was dirty and to go wash it and it would fall apart.

In todays world we use color, not gels.

So is it just us or do you guys get annoyed by it too?

[Footer]

Really, it would annoy me more if people called it color. You can drop color, but its gel, period. And the go wash the gel thing has been going on for years, and will continue. Its gel. Now if you called it colour, that might annoy me more.

[DarSax]

I've always called it gel, I've always heard it referred to as gel. Except for once, when I heard the term "dropping color" from my theater friend at UMD. We all thought she was nuts. (Though it seems we were just out of the loop on that one. Irregardless.)

FWIW, do you also get mad when people call ERS' lekos? Lekos haven't been used for many years. (Or socapex, which I have no doubt in a lot of cases is actually just multipin and not brand-name?)

[Toffee]

No, we don't.

We only get mad that it's called gel. Because technically it's not, but I guess it's just us.

[stantonsound]

I went to the websites of the major "color" or "gel" companies to see what they call it. I found the word gel used sparingly at Rosco and Gam, but not Lee. (I know that there are more, but I feel that these three are the bigger companies). The word gel also appears in most of the text books that I had as a student and the newer books that I now have on my shelf as references. I think that the terms are interchangeable, with one exception. When I go to the supply house to purchase this material, I call it gel. I would feel stupid walking in and asking for color. Color is not something that can be owned, it is a descriptive word. It would be like asking for a box of happy or cool. I ask for gel.

In the walls of the theater, there are many things that have multiple names....and this is just another example. I recently went to a venue across the country for an event and they didn't know what I was talking about when I referred to my gobo rotator (they call it a double spinner) and had never heard the term socapex cable, they jest call it multicable. Oh ya, and short pieces of stage pin cable were stingers.

[Footer]

Originally Posted by Toffee

No, we don't.
We only get mad that it's called gel. Because technically it's not, but I guess it's just us.

But it is... would you rather call it extruded colored polyester? OR I guess ECP for short? People call things all kinds of crazy stuff, and there are numerous threads about this, http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/s...ghlight=Golden is one of my personal favorite. The second you tell me to call something different because "thats the way it is", even though thats what I have been calling it and what other people call it for years before you have stepped foot in a theater is the day that you are labeled "that guy". Not to be rude, but this is an industry where things are called all kinds of screwy things, and depending where you are what things are called changes. I can give you 3 or 4 different names for nearly everything in a theatre (socapex, multi, bull)(ERS, ellipsoidal, leko, profile)... and the list goes on. So in other words, just because you don't call it that, doesn't mean others don't.

[gafftaper]

Yeah in this corner of the country you generally only hear the word color used in the phrase "drop color". Occasionally I hear "Color Filter"... which seems to be Rosco's chosen term. But most of the time, it's just gel.

Then there's the old debate: Gaff Tape, Gaffa Tape, Gaffer tape, Gaffer's tape. (My vote is just Gaff by the way)

It's just regional differences.

[soundlight]

Yup, it's almost always "gel" here, and we too only use the term "color" when we say "drop color". When we say color we usually mean what color we want the light to be when we gel it, just describing in in terms like "what color do you think that one should be? Well, I think it should be a saturated lavender." Gel is usually used when talking about a specific color, say, in that case, "Pull some R-357 out of the gel cart." Actually, we usually never actually say gel, it's just kinda "let's use R357 in that one" or "pull some R-357." Kinda interesting. Yes, we do call it "gel" when talking about it, but usually we're referring to a specific color and don't use the word "gel" or "color" in the sentence.

[Van]

Originally Posted by gafftaper

.....
Then there's the old debate: Gaff Tape, Gaffa Tape, Gaffer tape, Gaffer's tape. (My vote is just Gaff by the way)

It's just regional differences.

Well there you hit one of mine. I've seen several people here use "Gaffa", to which I can only respond, " where do you get Gaffa out of Gaffers" it's Gaffers tape tape to be used by Gaffers. Gaff or gaffers or just plain tape.

Ok back the question of the thread, No it's Gel it's always been gel it always will be gel. You can gad mad if you want but it's sort of like the time I told my dad, " Dad, I hate Traffic !" to which he responded, " VJ, traffic doesn't care."
As long as your'e tilting at windmills why don't you start getting mad at people for calling them Crescent wrenches when they are really open-end adjustable wrenches ?

[soundlight]

Originally Posted by Van

As long as your'e tilting at windmills why don't you start getting mad at people for calling them Crescent wrenches when they are really open-end adjustable wrenches?

Funny thing, that naming, I've always called them Adjustable wrenches, and didn't hear crescent until I saw it written on the side of one...a real Crescent wrench. Kinda like calling an ellipsoidal a Leko. Leko is specific to Strand lighting, and Crescent is the actual name of a tool company.