Done anything fun lately?

phil000

Active Member
<After one of my usual lengthy absences>:rolleyes:

I realize I ask this to just about everyone I see (professionally) and I think it could make a good sticky thread on here.

Either post something fun you've learned lately...or some really fun project you've worked on.

The last cool show I got to do had like 20 mac 2Ks (which was fun to play with) and I got to run the opener and crew sup the show.

Fun thing I learned TODAY: How not to post online stupid things I've learned :(

I know you guys have some really cool shows going on, and probably learning some ridiculously awesome things...so SHARE!

And please feel free to share as little as you want about the details, per D-Funk's privacy statement dealy.

Phil
 
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<

Fun thing I learned TODAY: How not to post online stupid things I've learned :(

Phil

<deleted per user request>

Somebody edited my cranky old fart post.....

Glad you had fun on the other projects.

SB
 
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I did it right, just forgot to mention it.

Anyway, I'd appreciate if y'all just unquoted what you've got quoted and we can move on...this is off to a brilliant start...

:/
 
I just got done designing lights for The Women of Lockerbie at my college. It was a lot of fun! We might be moving the show to the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) in January, and I am going to be working an intership at the Festival most likely working a couple of the shows and doing load-in and load-out. I might even present my Lighting Design for the show at the Festival and could possibly get an award. It would be really cool if I did but I'm still shaky...I don't know if I want to enter my design, I don't feel like I could compete with everyone else who is entering.
 
Do it!!!!!

What's the worst that could happen? If you're proud of your design, I really thinkg you should do it. Or maybe do a dry-run presentation to us?
 
I posted pictures and the plot of the show in the Sticky in the top of the forum. You're welcome to take a look at it.

Link Here: http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...d-share-pictures-our-shows-21.html#post112630

http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...d-share-pictures-our-shows-62.html#post112630

Put it in, your pics looked good. Don't worry about the paperwork, worry about what they show looked like and WHY it looked the way that did. Too much we get bogged down in paperwork. You had a good looking show (don't know if it fit with the script) and it looked like it meshed well with the rest of the design concept of the show. Put it in.
 
I am working on a big christmas show that is circus ole style. They have girls sliding down ropes and swinging from the catwalk. There is one part in which a girl wraps herself up in a sheet of material, then hangs completely vertical and then slides down from the catwalk about 20 feet then catches herself and begins to swing around. I will try to get pics, but it is one of the most over the top productions i have done as far as people flying and the style.

Our little lighting rig is composed of about 90 conventional fixtures, and about 40 movers all ran off of a jands vista.
 
Well, while enjoy working in the theatre, my fun has just begun now that the ski areas are opening up for the winter!

We open The Light in the Piazza tomorrow night and it has been a great show to work on. So life is pretty good, and the fact that tech is finally over is awesome!
 
First off in reference to the KCACTF question. Having done it many times, having a plot and sectional are things that they look for/expect. They understand not having sectionals on display (although they usually still bring it up at least), but a plot has always been expected. Otherwise, they don't really care so long as you SHOW RESEARCH, renderings if applicable, productions shots (LARGE! Don't print off standard pics), and a plot.

As far as doing anything fun, designed Swan Lake on a whim after the designer flaked out...and also reset the entire sound system while the house was open because the console, amps, and speakers all got put away somehow. Always fun on opening night. They choreographers were in tears too because it is their final senior creative project. They sure have had a rough few days between the LD never doing a thing and the sound dissapearing.

I also found out what my two thesis designs are going to be next year for my MFA. Hamlet, and most likely (pending no delays in it's release) The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. We have it on real high authority through connections with our head of acting/directing that we will be one of, if not the first, public performances.
 
I don't remember what fun is :(
 
most likely (pending no delays in it's release) The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. We have it on real high authority through connections with our head of acting/directing that we will be one of, if not the first, public performances.
One of the first few, possibly.
But not the first.....
We opened July 17th under an exclusive agreement.

proxy.php

© 2008 French Woods
Photo Credit: Michael Knauf
 
I just got done designing lights for The Women of Lockerbie at my college. It was a lot of fun! We might be moving the show to the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) in January, and I am going to be working an intership at the Festival most likely working a couple of the shows and doing load-in and load-out. I might even present my Lighting Design for the show at the Festival and could possibly get an award. It would be really cool if I did but I'm still shaky...I don't know if I want to enter my design, I don't feel like I could compete with everyone else who is entering.

Hey, I don't mind a bit of competition. I have a design of Magaret Edson's Wit entered. It was actually on this show that I got to play around a bit. There are several fun scenes in it from a lighting prospective. One is a scene in which three medical tests take place (an Xray, an upper GI exam, and a CT scan), which are all done with light and sound. The highlight of that was the CT scan, which was done with a Chauvet Q-Spot 575 and 11 cues all timed to syncronize with a sound cue. Loads of fun. Another was the ending scene where the main character walks into a bright light, which ended up being 3kw total draw. So, that was my fun. I am more than happy to share details on request, or stop by my display at the Region 3 KCACTF. ;)(sorry, shameless plug)
 
I hope you're being sarcastic when you say little lighting rig.:neutral:

I do have to say, the 40 movers are impressive (not to mention the Vista :grin:), but compared to a show with over 300 conventionals, 90 isn't too bad.
 
During on’ time, working on a prototype to a 2.4Kw Mars light - Cop Light Gumball globe revolving fixture that as opposed to normally putting out 35,000 CBCP per dual lamp, will put out either 160,000 or 600,000 Candlepower in a MFL beam spread dependant on budget at 40 to 50 RPM. Making it from scratch as the various mirror ball and MARs light companies chickened out of making it for me. Doing stuff like gear ratios, fabricating parts, qouting out red roundels and figuring out how to make the whole Franken Fixture II fit together. The first version of a franken fixture had much less lead time and happend about two years ago by way of dual 90w low pressure sodium vapor DMX doused wash light which went spectacular, got to rehearsals, tried once in creating that black and white effect than sent home in never being used again. Love inventing lighting fixtures even if a good portion of the time they get cut from the show after done. These Mars lights would I hope at least as concept out-punch the moving lights on the show. But still a question of A) design working and not having to make expensive changes at the last minute. B) us even getting the show meaning that would mean a two week lead time at best and it would take 2-4 weeks to get the lenses I need. C) Either somehow mounting roundels to the lamps by way of how I design the mounting for the lamp brackets or somehow coloring the 18" clear globes that would surround the assembly above that might or might not get here on time and than the playing with how to color them red. D) no guts, no glory in something I don't have any experience in making but what the heck, I'm learning a lot now in how to make them if not for this project... for next time and often next time does happen again at least a few years later. Them above LPS wash lights almost got used this past year. Almost but than got put back into the storage trailer - too powerful. R&D for the MARs lights was outfitting 250w/28v #4596 lamps into the normal PAR 36 30w/12v fixture. Looked good in putting out about a hundred more CBCP but once we put on the red lens, it got dim and dark. Time to go larger than life in lamp size and output. Still though, also learned a MARS light globe won't melt down with a hugely powerful ACL lamp. Or at least will take a few minutes to do so which given that note my fixture will be force fan cooled.

And finding a quality screw based stringer light assembly (think pepper lamp string
ers across a campsite but in this case for medium screw lamps) that’s UL listed as a completed assembly and 18" on center plus able to take over 25w... but that I don’t need to buy 3,000 pcs at 100' of to get the one 40' piece I need. Wouldn’t believe how difficult such a thing is to find, but of my weblinks list I’m up to the “H” links now, perhaps somewhere behind that I’ll find a source.

Off hours as posted and more interesting, antique fixture rewireing and fabrication of parts for them. They are for a perspective in the bid show but even if not will be done as it were in ready to use. Further challenge for the show would be re-basing my Kliegl Dyna Beam to outfit a different lamp such as a 2Kw CYX instead of the original incandescent 3Kw lamp that cannot be replaced. Three screws removed and a spacer plate of some type added and it should be four hours work than done in making old fixture new.

Beyond that I have a small three phase 30a distro to 120/208v portable distro to make for the WisiWig room and a few power stips to make for LED land. This plus somewhere over a thousand lamps to inspect at like five minutes per lamp after inspecting and logging into the computer is done. Good news is works giving me a lap top so I can take the lamps home. Bad news is I’ll have to start working on inspecting the last four months worth of “bad” lamps once I no longer have that excuse.
 
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Yup, mine is pretty lame, but I got to play around with a cyc and color mixing for the first time. It was pretty cool and useful tool... I can't wait to do it again!

Told you it was lame...:rolleyes::(
 
YAY!!!!

I'm glad to hear that people are having fun. It always makes me sad to hear about people not liking their jobs (Van).

And those pictures look really beautiful. Competition is always good.

Today I got to work on some really cool stuff with VL and Strand bringing their demos to our theatre, and I volunteered on the Load-in. I love working with smart people, especially when they show you consideration, respect and like to have fun.

Tomorrow I'm going to get a refresher on the MA, iPC, and getting to touch a palette for the first time ever, WOOO.
 
YAY!!!!

I'm glad to hear that people are having fun. It always makes me sad to hear about people not liking their jobs (Van).

And those pictures look really beautiful. Competition is always good.

Today I got to work on some really cool stuff with VL and Strand bringing their demos to our theatre, and I volunteered on the Load-in. I love working with smart people, especially when they show you consideration, respect and like to have fun.

Tomorrow I'm going to get a refresher on the MA, iPC, and getting to touch a palette for the first time ever, WOOO.

Don't know who edited Van's post, wasn't me but "grumpy" is different than not having fun or at least fulfillment in one's career. Talk to me before like two hours after we start for the day or while working on like three or four projects at once at the same time and I might seem grumpy also at least that I now have something else to do but in reality it's not the case, just the circumstance.

What's learned sometimes is cool, sometimes its something that rides on you over the long run also which is noted today, put asside later for now but than builds up later. Not my case but have noted it with others in having a bit less freedom overall.
 
Hey, I don't mind a bit of competition. I have a design of Magaret Edson's Wit entered. It was actually on this show that I got to play around a bit. There are several fun scenes in it from a lighting prospective. One is a scene in which three medical tests take place (an Xray, an upper GI exam, and a CT scan), which are all done with light and sound. The highlight of that was the CT scan, which was done with a Chauvet Q-Spot 575 and 11 cues all timed to syncronize with a sound cue. Loads of fun. Another was the ending scene where the main character walks into a bright light, which ended up being 3kw total draw. So, that was my fun. I am more than happy to share details on request, or stop by my display at the Region 3 KCACTF. ;)(sorry, shameless plug)

I'm Region 1 I think, I don't think we'll be near each other any time soon. Unless you're coming to Fitchburg, MA for your Regionals.
 

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