Rigging Newbie

[Riggermortis]

Hey all, I just recently got hired onto a company to learn rigging/electrical work, and have a few questions regarding this field.

First, I was wondering if there are any classes, books, dvds, anything that would teach more about rigging, or at least explain the fundamentals/details? I know there is a popular book on Entertainment Rigging that I've seen on Amazon and some other sites, and it had a lot of great reviews....anyone here read it or recommend it? There was also some certification class I saw online but for hell's sake, it was almost $3000 for only 7 days of training....that's out of my league financially, and I feel like crucial information cannot be taught in just a week...anyways, any helpful info on this would be really appreciated.

Secondly, I would appreciate suggestions for a safety/fall arrest harness. Our company uses them frequently, and I need to eventually pick up my own. I've done research, and I'm seeing a range of $100 for basics all the way to $600 for the SALA and Petzl top-of-the-lines...looking for one that would be comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, but not overkill...we mainly use them for liability reasons in scissor-lifts and booms, etc. but occasionally we do climb with them.

Thanks for any input!

 

[cmckeeman]

does your company only do rigging or do they do rope access stuff as well, i have the yates basic rigging harness and i like it, i can use it for rope access and climbing, but it is kind of expensive if you are just rigging and only need it for fall arrest. i also have read entertainment rigging and it is a great book, i would really suggest buying it.

 

[Riggermortis]

Not much to do with rope access, just required while in lifts/booms, and every so often the need arises to clip on somewhere for climbing.

Great, I think I'll put in an order for the book then, thank you!

 

[derekleffew]

See the thread http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/ldi-2012/29113-sexy-side-rigging.html .

As to harnesses, type "harness" into the search box above and read the results. Here's one: http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/general-advice/18241-buy-my-own-harness.html .

From a previous private conversation:

Is there anything inherently wrong with this harness, which seems significantly less expensive than any of the others? I can see one potential drawback (and I think we even had a thread on the topic): "OSHA said we had to have harnesses. So the employer bought us harnesses, the cheapest harnesses available, but provided no training. We are safe now, right?" Here is that thread. Here's an older, similar thread.

Not a thing wrong with that harness for a majority of applications. The only variables being: rescue plan (required), training, and whether using fall arrest, or fall prevention.

I used these for years before the company upgraded me to our current standard.
Ladies and gentlemen: Rope Access!
Rope Access Services, Training and Equipment | Ropeworks

 

[Riggermortis]

Wow, that was a wealth of info, thanks a bunch!

 

[MPowers]

I also strongly reccommend:

Stage Rigging Handbook, Third Edition by Jay O. Glerum
Amazon.com: Jay Stage Rigging: Books

It deals more with the stage/theatre type of rigging and is a beautiful complement to the Donovan book.

 

[derekleffew]

Hey all, I just recently got hired onto a company to learn rigging/electrical work, and have a few questions regarding this field. ...

It just occurred to me that, being from LA, you may be talking about being a TV/film rigger. This job classification is related to, but very different from, an "Entertainment Rigger": Rigger - Skillset .

Having never worked in Hollywood, the distinctions between rigger, gaffer, grip are not very clear to me. Perhaps one of our members from the TV/film industry can elucidate.

 

[Riggermortis]

Thank you MPowers, I'll look into that one as well!

Derekleffew, we do pretty much everything except theatre rigging...mostly arena/TV/Film as you mentioned, but things get muddled if you want to find out who should be doing what (and called what..rigger? grip? etc). Our main riggers do work that can overlap or be considered a grip, possibly some gaffer work too. My job right now would fall under I guess an Rigging Electrician? I maintain and test all cabling and chain motors, while learning how to create, wrap and secure truss grids to be hoisted up for lighting and A/V and whatnot.

 

[kicknargel]

Up until recently, the main way to learn to be a rigger (hanging things in the air) was to 1) go to the Glerum/Donovan seminar and 2) work under a pro for years. Things are changing now, with Donovan's passing and the rise of the ETCP certification (which still requires the apprentice part).

What you can't do is read a book and dive in. Sorry, but if you want to be a rigger, your education will cost real time and money. It's not med school, but it's not waiting table, either. And even that you can't learn from a book.

Absolutely buy and devour the Donovan and Glerum books, but that doesn't mean you're there. And on reading them, it should become clear (as it did you me) how much there still is to learn.

Derek, is that a new signature quote? Nice pull.

 

[Gern]

First, sorry, I only know about rigging classes presented by the Hollywood Union Locals 728 & 80.
On the job training is what I did in entertainment, until I got in the union & started attending the classes.
I have a long history with harnesses throughout my life; but, at this point in my life, I haven't used my personal climbing gear on the job for over 10 years. I would NOT use it now since it has sat in a cupboard all this time. Sport climbing harnesses, by the way are NOT appropriate for production work. When I do need one at work, it is always provided by production, and thoroughly inspected by me. Several friends & coworkers have purchased their own, and if I wasn't an LCP, and still on follow spots I would buy my own as well. I began sport climbing in the 1970's, did most of my technical climbs in the 1980's (including Half Dome, & Fire Service training), entering concert rigging in the late 80's. Back then, I didn't see anyone wearing a harness on tours or in Hollywood when I started working here. I was one of the first people to wear harnesses when rigging sets. I was nicknamed "Gern the Wall Walker, "Monkey boy" and a few other unmentionables in my early non-union days. It came naturally for me to scramble up to something. The crews didn't mind, but, I learned later on that it isn't the correct way to work. Using a harness really came in handy countless times! I bought Petzl brand harnesses, and really liked them. Todays' harnesses that my friends buy look REALLY comfortable.
I did always buy the best gear available for life protection. It is my life on the line, so why not, I figured. I have never regretted that expenditure!
Sorry for the rambling...

Before Local 728 there was Local 37, a Hollywood super local that embraced all the backlot crafts. When some members of Local 37 (dubbed the "37 White Rats") grew restive and launched a rebellion against mob control of the IATSE, the International broke up Local 37 and in 1939 created Locals 728, 727, 80 and 44.
Local 728 is the only I.A.T.S.E. Local dedicated to Set Lighting.
To give a little of the Hollywood crafts terminology, I'll explain a little.
CLT = Chief Lighting Technician = Gaffer = Head of the set lighting department. Works with the DP - Dir. of Photography to light the set.
ACLT = Assistant Chief Lighting Technician = Best Boy = 2nd in command, in charge of personnel & equipment and paperwork.
Rigger = Usually works “off production” to place gear in the desired locations per the CLT’s & ACLT’s notes. In Hollywood, there is no distinction to where a rigger works like the floor or the perms.
RCLT = Rigging Chief Lighting Technician. Most shows have a RCLT & RACLT who will run the rigging crews.
Key Grip = head of the Grip dept.
Best Boy Grip = 2nd in command, in charge of personnel & equipment and paperwork.
‘The Key’ Grip is in charge of all safety on the set. They are the final call on all safety issues on set. Period. Unless the Studio Safety Personnel show up... Then THEY could take command. On some ‘famous’ lots, they are the final word!
If you cross them, they can have you removed from the lot in mere seconds.
Rigging is used in a few ways. Rigging plainly means putting something in place. You could ‘rig’ a light in a phone booth, or a car for example. Most shows have Rigging crews that pre rig the sets & locations and then wrap them when shooting is done. So a ‘rigger’ could be in the lighting or grip dept. Example: The rigging crew is going to rig the set on Thursday, then wrap it out Tuesday. I have used a harness the vast majority of the times on the rigging crew. Ah, good memories!
‘High Rigging’ or ‘Working up High’ would be working in the Perms of the stage. The Grips ‘go high’ in the perms and set ‘points’ for all the chain motors, greenbeds, frames, pipes, truss, trapezes and everything else needed.
Set Lighting, Local 728, riggers would be running the power. Local 80, Grips, place the majority of points for lighting. Lighting then rigs the light, grips will raise it, lighting focuses the light. Then the Grips will blackwrap the lights and use flags if necessary. Truss, condor mounts, greenbed hardware, nail on plates, ropes from the perms for lights are all installed by the Grip dept. 728 is NOT allowed to go off the perms catwalks into the "ozone" beams to do any work, that is only permitted to be Local 80.
Local 33 on the other hand does all stage craft work and they are interchangeable. They rig high points hang lights, lay the floor, etc.

 

[Footer]

....against mob control of the IATSE.....

....With some locals that is still true to a degree....

Thanks for all the info, I'm still confused as hell but I'm sure it makes sense to someone.

 

[Riggermortis]

@Kicknargel I've just started reading up on the whole ETCP process, didn't know all these things existed for it, but I'm not naive enough to just think a book will replace actual hands-on experience, especially for this line of work (after what I've done and seen so far, the thought of letting someone rig up truss after only reading about it makes me shudder)...I just asked mainly because I love to read in general, and when I want to learn more about something I usually try to find a book on it. I retain knowledge best though hands-on, so I'd actually prefer that over a book or any kind of classroom teaching, and would imagine that's the smartest way to start out in this field.

@Gern Exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks for the clarifications of ranks and terminology. As far as harnesses, I've done my research and know a full-body harness is what is required..unfortunately, the local shops around here tend to just carry the typical waist harnesses for rock climbing and such, but there's one in Burbank that carries Yates and Petzl harnesses. And as far as the price goes, I don't mind splurging for something that is responsible for keeping me alive...I tend to follow the quote "you get what you pay for", so I'd consider a Petzl or similar. The Sala/DBA's though are a little overkill IMO, my father is issued them for his work (power lineman), but that's a whole other ballgame. Quite simply, one that is absolutely positively 100% reliable and won't chafe the hell out of me would be awesome haha.

How exactly do you get involved with the IATSE Locals? I mean I know how via their site information, but are the Locals something I should look into getting in touch with now, or after I've had some experience under my belt first? On that note, I know many have "opinions" about IATSE, is it worth joining at all? haha.

 

[Gern]

There is probably no need to call the locals until you have accrued your 30 days, in a calendar year, of eligibility. To join the union locals you must either:
1. Be on a non union show that, ‘goes union’ and worked for at least 30 days(either producer willingly or through a strike for better work conditions),
2. Work as a permit on union shows, or,
3. Be a ‘producer hire’. Employer retains authority to hire any persons. I only know of 1 person hired this way.
Permits explained: The Locals call steward will maintain a list of union members out of work, looking for work called “The Books”. When a best boy or a union shop call for a member to be sent to them, and there is nobody “on the books” to send out, the call steward will ‘release’ the call, meaning the hiring person is ‘permitted’ to hire a non union worker. If you get hired this way and are lucky enough to work for 30 days, as a ‘permit’, you may pay your initiation fee and join the union. Many people have joined Local 728 as an out of town permit, when productions are out of LA on location.
As you read on the Local 728 website:
'You must work 30 days as a "permit" for a signatory producer in order to join IATSE Local 728. To obtain work as a permit, call the Set Lighting departments of the major studios each day at 6AM and ask if they are hiring permits.'

Likewise, the more union best boys you know, the better, as they too can hire when we are into permits. It really is like being in the right spot at the right time. I came to Hollywood after doing concert work and worked on a free-be movie, where the gaffer liked my work. He called a non union stage and gave them my name. They called me a few weeks later, and I became the house best boy in short time. I worked with union & nonunion crews on a variety of different shows, and was not really planning on joining the union. I worked for 6 years non union, when the movie I was on struck for better working conditions. I voted in solidarity with my coworkers, again thinking I wouldn't join the local. Then, 1 month after that show wrapped, I was offered a 2nd unit BB job at Universal. I took the job, joined the union and consider getting my card a benefit I would not change. At first, I just thought of it as 'getting a card' that meant I could accept all job offers; non union & union alike. I prefer to not get too political, but I have grown to appreciate what benefits I have received from being in the union. I feel it has absolutely been worth it to join the union, not only financially, but educationally as well as the satisfaction of working on some great artistic pieces in history. Very often, I acknowledge how lucky I am to be employed doing what I truly love to do! YMMV.

 

[gafftaper]

Doing some research online.

I don't see any sign of Jay Glerum doing any training other than at LDI currently. Which is kind of sad. Gone are the days when everyone in the country was trained in the old Glerum/Donovan seminars.

Sapsis does rigging seminars. It sounds like it's more of a custom on site training than a class you sign up for but drop them a message and see what's available.

Tomcat offers training workshops which look good.

Has anyone heard about Rig Star Rigging School? They have a training center in Northampton, Ma, $2000 for a 5 day 60 hour course, $2900 for a 7 day 82 hour course. The website is very impressive looking, it looks like a fantastic training facility, but I've never heard of them before.

Then there's "Stage Rigging a Freeman Company" located in Redwood City, Ca. They offer 6 courses, which are presented in a once per month cycle, 4 hours, $50 each. Again haven't heard of them, and it's clearly not as impressive as the one above, but it sounds like a great deal for people in Ca to get some extra training.

 

[DuckJordan]

our facility is looking into doing a Sapsis seminar, we had Donovan out before, (less than ideal). From how it sounds the Glerum/Donovan Seminars were fairly useless for us, donovan told us he couldn't teach us anything since nothing was wrong with our facility. (did not finish the course on good terms with our company). Our rig was done by Sapsis but we are looking at getting another course setup.

 

[Riggermortis]

Thanks for the suggestions Gafftaper, I'll look into those as well. Rig Star was the one I mentioned before that was completely out of my price range though haha...at least for 5 days' worth...I feel like I would retain about 50% of what I was taught after just only a week; that should be tuition more for a few weeks IMO. But I know there's more affordable seminars/classes that are still great quality.

 

[rochem]

I cannot say enough good things about Mountain Productions' Annual Hoist School, in Wilkes-Barre, PA. I took the class a few years ago and learned a TON. The class is split into two main segments - a rigging portion and a chain hoist repair portion. The rigging portion was traditionally taught by Sapsis, but I know Eric Rouse from PSU taught it for at least one year in the recent past. The rigging portion is spread over 1.5 days and has a ton of information mostly dealing with the mathematics and forces behind rigging, as opposed to "here's how to properly orient a shackle" - although they cover that as well. It's a very challenging course, but there's plenty of time spent asking questions and applying knowledge to real-world rigging scenarios, and the best part is that you can get up and walk through Mountain's shop and put the stuff you've just learned into practical use. The chain hoist portion is also 1.5 days and has a rep from CM who teaches you how to maintain and repair CM chain hoists, and at the conclusion of the course, you take a written test and if you pass, you become a CM-Certified Chain Hoist Repair Technician (great resume credit, plus very useful). You also spend about half a day in seminars with Tomcat, Motion Labs, Rose Brand, Mountain themselves (they'll take you all around their facility and show you how they operate - they do some pretty incredible stuff down there), and I'm sure a few others I'm forgetting. The best part is that the fee includes EVERYTHING - hotel, transportation to and from the warehouse each day, food, plus evening activities. You also walk away literally weighed down with swag, in the form of a GIANT duffel that can't even zip closed because it's too stuffed with t-shirts and brochures and hats and bags and the like. The current early price is $850, which is a steal for all that you'll get out of it. I'd highly recommend it. Feel free to ask me any questions if you'd like to know more.

 

[Riggermortis]

I will check into that Rochem, thank you! That sounds very doable, especially financially, and I like that they offer the CM Tech Cert...my first learning experience after being hired on was servicing the CM's, I know them (electrically) inside and out, but a Cert. would be cool!

Also, I ended up finally picking up a harness today! I got the Protecta Pro series harness with the QuickConnect buckles (they seem a lot more reliable than the buckle-thru(?) type). I wore one of our warehouse stock harnesses (that has seen better days), and that thing chafed the hell out of my neck and uh..other areas..so I went to a local rigging supply shop, got fitted, and got one that will be comfortable for all-day use, with a Pelican hook lanyard. If anyone wants to check this harness out it's here Tried on the Yates and Petzl's just for kicks, they felt wonderful but just a little overkill for what I need; this one does just fine, reliable, wallet-friendly, and comfortable where it needs to be. Plus got a free gear bag with it! Really great customer service too, they will be my new go-to for any rig supplies.

 

[ruinexplorer]

Make sure you store your harness properly. Don't just shove it in a bag, it needs to hang (not in direct sunlight). My last harness lasted until it's retirement (generally five years past manufacture date).

 

[Riggermortis]

Thanks for the tip Ruinexplorer, right now I've got it hanging but was thinking about making some sort of "rigger kit" bag though...most of our guys use duffels, would that be alright if it's laid in there nicely? I take it you mean don't just stuff it in there like a crumpled mess? Definitely wouldn't do that after the money I put out on it!