Young Lighting Tech Looking For Work

[gridmatrix]

Thanks Techie's

I'm a 50 year dad who DOES volunteer work as LD/ME and whatever else for the past 4 years at a local school.

Before that lit black box in College, ran stage lighting for High School, and plotted Copa for a 3400 seat venue.

Our families moving from Buffalo to Houston in a couple months, and I am looking for a good career in theater electrics...doing much of the same. Thought of starting at the top, like over here, but after reading YOUR POSTINGS, realized their is SO MUCH MORE to remember.

Like asking for the right lamp...can see how ETC S4 could get mixed up with ANSI coded bulbs...or a simple screw, OMG if a techie grabs the wrong one they could strip an expensive moving head fixture.

Besides sending out resumes, I'm going back to look over all the info I felt wasn't important, but really is when you have to make on the spot, correct decisions. BTW never could afford to finish college, but born with the lighting gift discovered when I was 9 years old.

I really thought I could do this stuff in my sleep. YOU GUYS REALLY OPENNED MY EYES. I'm still going for it at my age, with my trusted wrench, DMM, Toner, DMX reader, harness, and tool pouch...but RE LOOKING OVER ALL MY LIGHTING MANUALS TO MAKE SURE, I KNOW BACKWARDS AND FORWARDS, WHAT I DO KNOW, BUT MUCH MORE THROUGHLY.

THANKS AGAIN, I JOINED THIS FORUM JUST TO POST THIS RESPONSE.


BTW~Unless your in a production meeting, everyone loads and strikes~

 

[kimmd]

Dear Wolf and Ship,
This is one of the first post I have read and my very first post. I wanted to thank you for all of your advice. I am going to be going to graduate school in the fall for light and set design. I eventually do want to go on tour and you guys have motivated me even more to do so. I'm ready to work my ass off and go somewhere doing something that I love.

 

[cdub260]

Sorry to bring this back but I think Ship had a few good points, you cant stroll into a shop say I know what I am doing tell the NEWB to throw some 2ks and the hog in the truck and go to the gig.

Basics first, Learn how to pack a truck and more importantly unpack it with out killing your self or your partner. I found that I knew nothing on my first day of work at the shop and on my last knew barely anything. Also knowledge usely comes in a biter pill your pride might be damaged but at least now you know.

Mike I unload turbos like no other Rock

P.S. Next time Im in the area I might have to job shadow you Ship.

Sometimes, even knowledge and experience aren't enough to prepare you for life in this business. I had been working as a tech for 10 years when I took my current job. That first year on the job I found out just how far in over my head I was. The type of work I do at the Pageant is so different than what I had done at any of the other venues and shops I had worked in previously, that I had a very steep learning curve before I became the expert that I am now, 9 years later. I have to deal with a lot more hard electrical here than I ever did freelancing. Fortunately, I was able to learn and adapt.

Sunshine_beach, hopefully, learned a valuable lesson when the other members CB jumped all over him for his post. Most people he will be working with if he continues in this industry do not appreciate the cockiness and attitude that his post seemed to convey. It may be a simple misunderstanding, and certain posters may have been a bit too harsh with him, but there is a fine line between being confident in one's abilities, and having an attitude.

If Sunshine_beach learned the lesson, he will be a better tech. If he didn't? Only time will tell.

 

[Saunier]

My .2 cents:


Im a young lighting director that has been in the bsiness for almost 9 years. Im letting older more experienced people help me and get through this. It's a difficult thing to get on the road. Ship is right, its not what you know its who you know. Make friends that are Ld's and are willing to help out. This summer i was on the road for about 10 weeks getting used to not having the luxery of a nice theatre and having to face the difficult problems you run into.


This isnt packed full of info and advice, im just saying your ot alone.

 

[gafftaper]

First off for those just reading this, pay attention, it's an ancient thread... Sunshine is long gone.

But let me say a fabulous thread that I've never seen before. This is some great vintage Ship, Wolf, and Jojo material. I've posted the raw messages from the start of this post HERE as a collaborative article. It needs a bunch of editing to clean it all up into one nice thread that isn't 100 miles long. I'll do it myself, but if you've got some time and some writing skills you can help edit too.

 

[What Rigger?]

Thank God for Gaff. I knew this guy/gal was a douche. I just didn't have time to get warmed up and chime in.

'Cause....y'know....I got somethin' to say 'bout everything.

 

[CenterSpot]

Wow! If this was 1974 and not 2009, I would have considered this to be a freaking gold mine of thought and info. (how late was your dinner?)

And his post is what, 6 years old?

Great job. Yes, a little caustic, but practical and useful.

I like his style and now I better understand why so many, for so long desribed me as "condescending".

As I always replied, "Well, that's just too bad. Do I really have to define 'bad' ?".

 

[CenterSpot]

I guess my personality is just different. I would have responded to the original poster by saying "Thats great! You should start out by finding an internship or apprenticeship program in lighting. What type of training do you have? A good overall resource for finding apprenticeships, and jobs is www.backstagejobs.com." This person doesn' need a 10 page rant on the details of the business, the type of knowledge will be required, or how difficult life will be. They will learn that all by their own experience, as I am sure you all did. Believe it or not people that are interested in joining our industry do not just show up at the door knowing every little detail about every lighting fixture, piece of rigging, or sound equipment. They need to learn and be given the opportunity to learn by doing. School is great but it doesnt compare to practical real World experience. And if we as those employers don't give the young the opportunity we are shooting ourselves in the foot when we run out of trained personel in 10 years.

I agree. And, disagree.
In his position, sunshine is not entitled to select what he gets back in a response.

What he is entitled to do is, as I was ADVISED back in the day, act like a sponge that's been thrown into a full sink; absorb ALL that you can.

The brief critique of his approach was far outweighed by the wealth of "insight" into the business he probably had NO concept of and the technical lingo and detail are certain CLUES into things that, if he had never heard of them before, were darn sure pointers to INFO he'd best learn more about.


But then, I'm a condescending primadonna, too.

 

[CenterSpot]

No all of ya, biking_ollie was right to some extent. I did go way too far in posting as normal to me. Granted what I if I'm refered to in response is my own opinion and in posting it I thought useful it, it still was very long and very possibly intimidated the questioner into not responding. This is the problem with being thorough yet still being able to answer the question at least as I see it. Thanks for the imput on my response. I sometimes fail to realize that this is a forum and not hey, Brian what do you think type thing to which I do easily write a 4,000 word response. Much less perhaps at times me answering in full my opion is not always of most use. While I would hope such things I cited are of use, it was long and in my case perhaps best said with a lot more editing much less info posted.

Keep the reality going biking_ollie, help also as you can, this is all of our place and no advice or statement is less important or of value than anyone else's.

Brian, is it?
Are you still around here?
I just got here.

Anyway, wordy? Maybe?
Worthy? fo-sho.

If the poster was that easily intimidated, how well would he deal with the stress of doing his job, or yours, were he you, and dealing with some of the personalities of the LD's, or PM's or others we have all faced in this business?

You have to have some "moxie" or "cajones", especially if you claim to have ANY experience with handling not just the stress of a deadline, the road, the crew or the many extraneous details of set/strike repititions, but all the "suits" or others that can, and do, complicate your life.

If he can't take a little 'grief' from a fellow, anonymous tech in text format over the internet, how the heck will he handle it in the middle of a load-in and setup?

Breakdown and call his mom to beat you up?

 

[gafftaper]

Brian, is it?
Are you still around here?
I just got here.

Yes Ship's real name is Brian. He was something like the 100th member of CB and I believe the first pro to join what was originally a group of high school students. It's doubtful that CB would be much of anything today if it wasn't for Ship over the years. He's still here working behind the scenes as part of the "Senior Team". After getting married last year he spends a little less time in the forums and his posts are shorter... although he still can still get worked out put out a Russian Novel of a post now and then.