code of conduct..professionalism

[rossco]

ok so this isn't quite the thread I origionally thought of ..but hat led me to this:

if we here got some sort of code of conduct put together wouldn't that help us be a more professional group of individuals (not saying we arn't already:))

but you know what I mean,

next stop vj union...god i'm a power craving monkey sometimes:jester:

the reason I say this is i fell foul of being totally unpro, trying to mix parties with business and came a cropper. so 2nd time round...

[deepvisual]

#1 Don't do drugs at work

[asterix]

#1 Don't do drugs at work
ditto.

That and don't get all princessy like the dj's :cool:

[Hexide]

1 No drugs, It shows while you work...

2 TOTALLY no princess attitude.

3 early is on time,
on time is late,
and late is unacceptable.

4 have a good time

[gtz]

1 No drugs, It shows while you work...
4 have a good time

how the hell..? °_O

[deepvisual]

how the hell..? °_O

easy.
heres how it works.

You work all the time. & you take drugs at work = you take drugs all the time.
eventually you'll find out the hard way what people mean when they tell you drugs fuck you up.
lets face it, doing too much of anything is bad for you, doing too many class As is asking for trouble.

if you can't enjoy yourself doing visuals without being blasted, dont mess around, go get a job as a drug dealer - there's one in almost every venue..
but if you want to have a professional approach to your work and you simply have to take drugs, do it on your day off.

[complexvisuals]

If you cant conduct yourself in a professional manner without a set of rules telling you what to do, then maybe its best just to go work for someone else rather than working for yourself. Not aimed personally at OP.

[unjulation]

to all the peeps who preach "dont take drugs"

if you drink or smoke a splif when your at a gig/work then your takeing drugs

to say anything else would be hypocriticall there just drugs that you have lurnt to handel

[deepvisual]

if you drink or smoke a splif when your at a gig/work then your takeing drugs
to say anything else would be hypocritical

I agree.
what's your point?

[vjpixylight]

I agree.
what's your point?

I think he's saying that we all do one drug or another, so to say "it's not professional to do drugs on the job" is hypocritical..

I've done shows completely sober, and I've done shows completely off my head, and it all depends on the show if you ask me...

[devonmiles]

saying "I cant do without" is just as wrong as saying "you have to do without".

[unjulation]

I think he's saying that we all do one drug or another, so to say "it's not professional to do drugs on the job" is hypocritical..


basickly yes pixy -

so unless you do all your gigs stone cold sober you carnt say dont do drugs -

fair play if thats what you do but i reckon its as rare as rocking horse s**t :D

[vjpixylight]

...especially if caffeine and nicotine are a part of the daily diet.
"Don't do Drugs" is complete BS.

[deepvisual]

You kids..

I have bottled water during the show.
the fun starts afterwards.

Sure you can work when you are stoned, but as for professional??
You'll get the sack immediately at my level, even for having a beer.

[devonmiles]

I would dare the guess that pixy is much older than you...
aside from that, I agree as far as it concerns corporate events and big brands with a strict policy. but with clubland there is professionalism just to a certain degree. and then everyone is taking everything they can get hold of. no one cares if you fuck up something because youre boozed, drugged or otherwise derailed. no reason to be the only sober one in the room. I just played a really huge rave and when I entered their office the first thing the manager offered me was a line as long as my forearm.

[deepvisual]

Yeah but the thread isn't about how twatted you can get at work, its about professionalism.!!

[vjpixylight]

I would dare the guess that pixy is much older than you...


Nah, Gary has already lost his hair, and I still have mine:p(making me younger)

[vjpixylight]

Yeah but the thread isn't about how twatted you can get at work, its about professionalism.!!

hmmm, and here I thought to be considered professional, you had to work for MTV:confused:

[USE]

It all depends what level it's at

- if you are doing squat parties it's almost rude not to get a bit messy.

- if your doing clubnights, then beer is on teh rider, you'll prolly be offered a line by your boss (the promoter) so as long as you can pull it off.. go for it. altho i have pushed it too far and had ladder trouble at 6am.

- if your doing festies now and again then yeah, getting fucked when you've been told your working is a pisstake... altho at festies people will always want a hand here and there so chances are if your wasted you might miss a decent work opportunity.

- and if you get to a professional or corporate level, then absolutely not.

it's horses for courses, what deepv is saying i think is it depends how far you want to take it. bottom line is if the clubnight promoter who you did a line with bumps into his corporate friend, he's not going to recommend you cos it makes him look bad.

it's like anything - you determine your own level of participation. personally i have got down to caffeine, gaurana and if it's dull a sneeky joint. unless it's a banging clubnight in which case i'll get on it. some of my best sets have been on mdma, and that's not me loving myself, that's crowd feedback.

but if we're getting back on track, you can extrapolate levels of professionalism from the above case-in-points. for example i have lost wicked club gigs by sending proper invoices, and being too pro. its knowing the appropriate responses.

but i would say absolutely fundamental to pro-ness at any level is:

decent public liability insurance
proper flame proofing and risk assessment docs so if anyone asks they'll fuck off sharpish
organise your pricing structure so it's clear and adaptable
be friendly, polite and interested in your client (good customer service)
have a business card and a website
label your stuff
don't touch anyone else's kit without a chat
and at the very least turn up sober (cant believe i've had to write that, but seen vjs turn up steaming at like 7pm. fail)

and some other stuff i cant remember. distracted by women, d'oh!

[spork]

. . . don't get caught unplugging the mirror ball ! :rolleyes:

[rossco]

of course the more experienced here will have seen it all, as for professionalism, drugs should be an obvious no no. Me I learned a valuable lesson, but then as it was a personal experience it only applies to me.

some of us here me included have been down that route - but in a forum thread about being responsible professional it's not great being here talking about what we all know is the personal intakes we may have done - ok so I sound like a preacher and I'm not really just wanted to get some ideas about what people had in mind about do's and don'ts...

:o

btw honesty of the self is a great thing, but letting the kids that may use the foriums here know that drugs is a part of the work aint so good for anyone - in fact I think its terrible:confused:

[tdog]

Bill Ham ( we who follow are not worthy ) and the guys at the reddog saloon practically invented hippiedom, psychedelia and " sound and light shows" all to the tune of "LSD"
These druggies "off their heads" ideas and inventions ( Bill designed and built the first sound to light machine!) started the ball rolling - through the sixties and seventies the hippy counter-culture was the bedrock of psychedelic ( for want of a bettter word ) audio/visual art - in whose steps the "VJ" follows. As Timothy Leary said - LSD opens "the doors of perception" - Now, I am not saying you have to take drugs, or that you should; BUT.............

[deepvisual]

lets try again.
this thread was about professionalism.

taking drugs is fun
taking drugs at work is fun
working all the time and taking drugs at work day in and day out, will eventually end in tears.

if you can't do your job well without being off your head, then you really can't be very good at what you are doing.

[unjulation]

as pixy said do you, deep, drink coffee or smoke tobaco day in day out?

if you do then you take drugs every day so therfore the baseis of your argument is fundurmentaly flawed and you shouldnt have made such a sweeping statement

but like i said if you dont drink coffee or smoke then fair play and from your perspective one shouldnt take drugs

thats all im saying :)

[deepvisual]

as pixy said do you, deep, drink coffee or smoke tobaco day in day out?

no
at the same time, drinking a bottle of whisky is going to affect your ability to climb a ladder far more than having a cappuchino.

In 20+ years of working in the seedy side of showbiz I've seen many decent people become addicted to cocaine through regular use at work and end up as nasty spiteful junkies.

I realised a long time back that I can talk bollocks and be obnoxious without having to give all my money to the CIA.

drugs is fun, but if you can't face a load out without having to do a gram of gak, then what's the point??

[bridd]

as pixy said do you, deep, drink coffee or smoke tobaco day in day out?

if you do then you take drugs every day so therfore the baseis of your argument is fundurmentaly flawed and you shouldnt have made such a sweeping statement

but like i said if you dont drink coffee or smoke then fair play and from your perspective one shouldnt take drugs

thats all im saying :)

"Why trust one drug more than another? That's politics..."

In a lot of ways I really do agree, fundamentally you can't be "anti-drugs" and a smoker or drinker or coffee drinker without being a hypocrite.

But then, unless you've drank shit-loads, coffee doesn't alter your eyesight/perceptions in the same way as some of the other substances. Are you going to trust the guy who's drunk to go up the ladder and rig a beamer, more or less than the guy who's had a cup of coffee?

[sleepytom]

I realised a long time back that I can talk bollocks and be obnoxious without having to give all my money to the CIA.


LOL :)

I think the drugs thing comes under a wider banner of acting appropriately. More to the point IF you take drugs whilst working you need to be 110% sure that your able to do your job well and still communicate appropriately with other people including the client and members of the public. These things can be hard enough when your totally straight and if you fuck up and people know you were out of it at the time the chances of getting more work are drastically reduced.

But there are bigger issues with the way a lot of VJs work.

Communication with other departments is perhaps the biggest issue for most video people. Often the video crew have a seeming easier job than the sound and lighting crews, rather than dealing with literally tons of speakers or hundreds of lights we turn up with a couple of projectors and a tables worth of playback gear. This can mean that the video crew are not even in the venue when important decisions are being made about the lighting plot or stage layout. If your around to be involved in these discussions then tweaking the layout so that the screens a projectors are best positioned is not normally an issue. But turning up a few hours into a build and then demanding that everything be changed to accommodate your screens is not going to win you any friends. Gigs involve a lot of waiting around (hurry up and wait) and you can make everyones life easier by being there at the right moments to get your kit into place without disrupting the flow of the build. If you really have nothing to do for a hour or so then rather than standing around getting in the lampies way go and get them all a coffee, it will make your life loads easier during the gig ;).

Even if your just doing a set on prerigged gear you still need to be there before the event is open. You should always make sure you have seen your output on the screens before the gig has started as once the punters are in it is too late to sort out some issues (I've seen VJs miss gigs because they could not plug their VGA computer into the video system. Had they arrived in advance a VGA cable could of been rigged to the projector).

Take everything that you might need for the gig. Have your own tool kit. Bring your own tape and cable ties. If you do borrow anything then make sure you return it.

If your flying projectors or screens then speak to the lighting company IN ADVANCE to confirm truss positions and weights. Assuming that they will be able to accommodate you on the day is foolish and will make your gig much less enjoyable than sorting it out in advance. At the same time you can ask them about anything else you might be unable to bring on the day, its better to arrange things in advance than to just assume that they will be sorted out by magic!

Tidy up at the end, don't leave loads of rubbish for someone else to throw away.

It all sounds pretty obvious when written down but the number of gigs where I've seen these things ignored is staggering. Video crews generally have a hard time of it, largely because a lot of vidiots are very unprofessional and expect other departments to help them out rather than being able to do their job independently.

[tdog]

sleepytom - "need to be 110% sure"

just thought i would point out - there is only 100% - and before anyone mentions scaling to 200%, what you actually end up with is 100% of twice as much!

pedantdog.

[devonmiles]

we shouldnt overestimate that drug thing, really, the biggest enemy of professionalism are the current budget cuts due to recession. quite some people were injured or died because organizers failed to invest in a safe environment. as far as I know noone died because a drugged VJ showed a bluescreen during a show...

[evomedia]

I think the drugs thing comes under a wider banner of acting appropriately. More to the point IF you take drugs whilst working you need to be 110% sure that your able to do your job well and still communicate appropriately with other people including the client and members of the public. These things can be hard enough when your totally straight and if you fuck up and people know you were out of it at the time the chances of getting more work are drastically reduced.

By my experience trying to find a club promoter able to talk by the end of the night would make a nice change lol, but at least when the promoters f**ked I often get paid more. (mostly because he has trouble working out what the bits of paper in his hand are... let alone being able to count them out...)

we shouldnt overestimate that drug thing, really, the biggest enemy of professionalism are the current budget cuts due to recession.

Lol that sounds like your professionalism is failing because recession is making it hard to afford drugs

[vjpixylight]

Okay, I think we have split this all between professionalism and drug taking, when it really isn't the drug taking we should be focused on.
It more about being professional in a responsible way.
Most here should know their limits when it comes down to overdoing drugs/alcohol/ or what ever would render them incompacitated. If your a functioning drunk, and can still do what is expected of you, then who is too question your work on a professional basis?
If your not, then it will be obvious that you shouldn't be working the gig.
The question then is, what constitutes professionalism?
An example of being a professional, yet acting like a total prick might be the character of Dr. House on the tele..
Dr. House is about as unprofessional as it comes in his demeanor, yet is the top of his field. This is because the responsibility he takes on for his patients out weighs the fact that he treats them like shite. If he was considered unprofessional, no one would ever seek him out for diagnosis.

Lastly, a forum is not the place to set rules on individual performance.
This place is not an ethic's and standards body that can hand out fines for not being a professional. it is what it is. Personal responsibility for your craft will always go a lot further towards being a professional than peeps saying that taking drugs during a show is bad..

Ross, I know what your on about, and I hear you, but then everyone is different when it comes to taking drugs during a show.. It's something you can't nail down with a one size fits all approach.

[evomedia]

Like the phrase there pixy... If your a functioning drunk

[vjpixylight]

Like the phrase there pixy...

here (http://ezinearticles.com/?An-Uncommon-Drunk--Revelations-of-a-High-Functioning-Alcoholic-by-Jeff-Herten,-MD--Book-Review&id=512416) is a read that recaps my last post much better than I could ever do, off my head or not:)

[ShaKinDa]

It's something you can't nail down with a one size fits all approach.

i agree this forum is full of a rich diversity of vj life, so we are never going to agree on this one...

i agree with tom's points that the earlier you show up the more chance you have of getting input on issues of layout etc. but i fundamentally see two different jobs in your description tom, doing the whole video production side of things is a separate job, vjing is all about what you perform onto the screens etc during the show.

I would rather work months in advance with the design team over email, have the production company put everything where its meant to me and just run the right connection to my stage position.

During a performance I think a vj should try to construct unique compositions that respond to each phase of music, build, break down, and cut, combined with communicating a narrative etc. If I have been up and down trusses, running cable, calibrating projectors etc all day ill probably just bang a few loops on.

A 4 hour set with no rigging completely wrecks me, so if I do video production there is a very real likelyhood that my vj performance will suffer.

So vj professionalism for me means sleeping, eating and preping right so that from the moment i fade up to the end of my set i give it everything within me to blow the crowds mind. And the best way I can do that is have a production company i know and trust to take care of the rest...

[asterix]

if you drink or smoke a splif when your at a gig/work then your takeing drugs


Coffee etc... Hmmm yeah but I can't remember the last time I went to a pub for a pint of drugs. Food is a drug. Love is a drug. Breath is drug but we do not refer to it as such and we all know what 'drugs' means at a gig.

Perhaps to re-phrase - DONT GET OFF YOUR FACE AT WORK.

[Donnie Darko]

Lol, I think I only ever did one gig where I drank.. crashed at the promoters place.. usually I drive in sober, work sober all night, drive home sober, keep working on school stuff the next morning

I don't trust myself on "substance" even when I want to have a good time, let alone working with expensive equipment.. am I getting old? :scared:

[ristuuk]

been there seen it done it.
along time ago lost a few gigs because of it.
if u r off your face you may think u r 100% competent...but u r not.
seen accidents happen with drugged up crew members...seen people never work again in this industry.
If u do clubs or whatever in your spare time then its your choice i suppose.And your own fault when fuck ups happen.And they will.

Working in the corporate world taught me alot...no drink no drugs..not even the night before (you can still smell a couple of pints on your breath the next morning)
So it depends on what level you want to work on....if you are full time in this industry then a fuck up can cost u your mortgage..think about it.
Nowadays on a club event I will only have a couple of pints and then a big BOTTLE of coke to take me through the night.
Ive seen many big name dj's fuck up and lose bookings...seen them fall asleep on the decks even!
You wouldnt drink or take drugs in a normal Job ...instant dismissal !
This is an Industry like any other so be wise about it.

[sleepytom]

so this is the state of VJ professionalism?

people unable to discus anything beyond drugs? In all the years that I've been involved in events I've seen drugs cause people some problems, but I've also seen some of the people at the very top of this game doing shows on loads of drugs, and still do a good show, possibly a better show than they would of done if they were sober. Really i don't see who anyone thinks they are telling other people what the can and cannot put in their bodies? We all know what the deal is with drugs so it's pointless discussing it. There are many many much more serious issues about professional behaviour than peoples personal drugs habits. I'd far rather work with someone who turns up on time and is capable of doing the job even if they have had a line or two, than someone who is incompetent, late but sober.

In another thread here someone asks about PAT testing. The initial reply show what is wrong with the VJ scene and its attitude to professionalism.
I don't know any VJs who do PAT testing, I reckon most are like me...

If it works its good
If it doesn't its broken
If it shoots sparks, it looks cool but probably ain't safe
So we have a respected forum member telling people (in public) that VJs generally just ignore the law on electrical safety testing...

Any thus we start to see the issue with VJs. VJs don't see themselves in the same way that sound or lighting companies do. They kind of think that for some reason (usually put down to the pressures of "live performance" - err OK whatever) they can ignore all of the relevant laws that govern their place of work. So we see VJs rigging projectors over peoples heads using things which were never designed for the purpose (I've got horror stories about people hanging projectors up in string shopping bags, and even using a cardboard box with a little hole cutout for the lens instead of a cradle) when challenged these people often claim poverty as an excuse ("i would of got a cradle but it was £150 so i got a cardboard box and a new midi controller instead").

:confused:

So we have a very long way to catch up with the rest of the industry if we want to be seen as professional. drugs really are the last of our worries.

[deepvisual]

Yup.
there was a fatality a few years back. some big festival in scotland.
crew had been up for 3 days doing gak and the forklift driver reversed over someone's head while he was attaching a rope to the forklift to tow a vehicle out of the mud.

instead of taking the blame, he ran off and it took years to establish what had actually happened.

like I said, do that kind of thing on your day off.

[deepvisual]

well, tom, I would say H&S is a given.
its required by law and regularly enforced.

[evomedia]

In another thread here someone asks about PAT testing. The initial reply show what is wrong with the VJ scene and its attitude to professionalism.

Quote:
I don't know any VJs who do PAT testing, I reckon most are like me...

If it works its good
If it doesn't its broken
If it shoots sparks, it looks cool but probably ain't safe


Sense of humour missing this morning? it was a joke, god its hard sometimes lol, I hardly think people have so little common sense that they take that as serious advice lol

telling people (in public) VJs generally just ignore the law on electrical safety testing

Seriously though tom, most people have second hand ebay kit, and I don't know a single VJ who has spent out on PAT testing, I'd hardly say its common practice... yes they probably should, but for VJ's getting paid travel expenses only, doing gigs in their local clubs they just don't pay out for this. Again probably should but they don't...

So yes VJ's do generally ignore this law... I seriously doubt most members here have paid for PAT testing

I would say though that to lay this on me...

they can ignore all of the relevant laws that govern their place of work

is a little odd compared to your stance on copyright violation :)

I'm very professional about my clients and my work, I correctly ensure everything is rigged correctly these days, treat clients as I would in my day to day job, have insurance, don't break copyright at all any more, and am always early to my gigs. Always drive to my gigs so dont drink and dont do drugs when playing any more... I'm a loose cannon me lol

[ristuuk]

GROSS MISCONDUCT

Gross Misconduct includes offences such as major wilful damage, incapacity due to drugs or drink, fighting, theft, fraud, harassment or discrimination due to age, sexual orientation or race, bullying, misappropriation of Company property, use of internet without permission, use of personal mobile whilst on duty, use of Company’s telephone without reason or permission, disclosure of confidential information to a third party, any criminal act or similar conduct.

yep it is important.

[jimmyogenic]

I don't know a single VJ who has spent out on PAT testing

you do now! i had about 20 items tested for around £60, small price to pay really.

The drugs thing is a hard one.. i used to have a dabble when i was running nights and was the vj/promoter, but now stay clear, especially if i'm rigging/have responsibility for others..

i got picked up (rightly so) for having a smoke at a gig when i should have know better by a sometimes poster on this forum. Taught me a valuable lesson, and although my attitude at the time was a bit narky, thinking what right have they got to tell me what i can and can't do. They were bang on the money. What you do after the gig is entirely your choice...

I guess it comes down to context.. if your playing a gig to 50 mates in a back room of a pub, then do what you want.. once your being paid to provide a service (rigging or doing a set) then its a very different matter. BUT if something does go wrong and you get sued, whats the chances that your insurance will pay out if your twatted?

[ristuuk]

...and the venue can lose its licience.

[sleepytom]

Sense of humour missing this morning? it was a joke, god its hard sometimes lol, I hardly think people have so little common sense that they take that as serious advice lol

I'd hope that people would see that it was a joke, but given that what you go on to say is largely true then joke or not it sums up how many VJs treat their kit.


Seriously though tom, most people have second hand ebay kit, and I don't know a single VJ who has spent out on PAT testing, I'd hardly say its common practice... yes they probably should, but for VJ's getting paid travel expenses only, doing gigs in their local clubs they just don't pay out for this. Again probably should but they don't...

That IS the problem really, lack of professionalism = low prices. Sound and lighting companies get paid for the professional services they provide because they are professional, insured and competent. Whilst VJs can claim to be more of a performer than installer it doesn't change the fact that if your rigging projectors and screens then there are basic levels of safety which need to be met.

If you go to an expensive place to get kit PAT tested then it can cost as much as £5 per item to get it tested. Even at this price then any VJ working at any level can afford to get their rig tested for less than they charge for a single gig. (how many people doing gigs for £50 have more than 10 items of kit they use for such a gig?)

is a little odd compared to your stance on copyright violation :)
Nobody has ever died from copyright violation. Anyway I've never suggested that people break copyright when making professional footage, I've mearly said that copyright violation can be part of a creative, artisticly valid show.

[deepvisual]

brendan@insightlighting.co.uk has a PAT tester should anyone feel the urge.

[devonmiles]

That IS the problem really, lack of professionalism = low prices.

I would say: low prices = loss of professionalism.
economic fallback had hit all areas of the event business. promoters start to urge av rentals to outbid each other. result: noone knows till last minute who is supplying the equipement.
some expamples from recent gigs ( 5000+ people)
soundsystem turned out to be crap. sound guy frantically phoning the office 3 hours before the event, nothing could be done.
promoter brought their own light guy. imagine a very pissed person, who had presumably toyed with a cracked copy of martin lightjokey for a few hours, now sitting in front of a wholehog 3. panic and insults.
speakers not fixed by safeties fell onto my gear, advc and dv recorder broken. company went bankrupt, never saw a compensation for the stuff.
two years ago there was a budget for location checkups weeks in advance. nowadays you got just shoddy fotos and a floor plan, at best.
phone calls from another av rental: we need an upscaler, urgently.
more then often I look for a fire extinguisher but theres none.
deco stuff hangs around, looks like its from auntie marge and definately not fireproofed.

thus said, the least thing we can do is caring for safety as far as it regards our own stuff and being as helpful as possible in case we notice a potential risk.

[vdmoKstaTi]

What was the initial question anyway? I think the subject went sideways a bit.

Professional approach is the only approach. Yet at the same time,- not all events are alike and not everyday have to be boring same. Each event can bring its differences and so you behave at each one accordingly...

In this social commentary its positive to acknowledge that everyone comes from different background and so the response takes on the previous baggage and understanding of your local and own environments that everyone would be familiar with. I think some of the things that USE said previously on page 2 I would have to agree with though.

And from personal experience... Once you end up playing week in and week out at all sort of events and festivals for months on end, you'd want to keep your head clean so you can make it through till next week show and to be in your best form.

[vjpixylight]

the problem with blaming incompetence on drug use, is that it uses drugs as an excuse to be half ass, and unprofessional.
Devon points out that drug use has nothing to do with low quality or low pay situations that will often lead to problems with a show.
Me, well if I'm going to get buggered up on a night, I make sure it is well after all the show is setup and working well...

[gtz]

c'mon people. hwo the hell are you supposed to stand through a six hour set of harsch noise, industrial, etc... being sober AND having fun? there's no way anyone could do this. seriously.

[evomedia]

c'mon people. how the hell are you supposed to stand through a six hour set of harsch noise, industrial, etc... being sober AND having fun? there's no way anyone could do this. seriously.



You only play 6 hours? ...part timer :)

[devonmiles]

I think Gary meant those corporate gigs not the usual clubnight. corporate gigs arent fun but still pay quite well. if theres no fun, theres no reason to take drugs, especially when you are responsible for a team, say, cam ops, cam mixers, scheduled video. you wont have the time to do a line anyway, since youre troubleshooting, watching the schedule etc. often the companies have their own fotographers who take pictures of each and every part to document the event for the big bosses and you dont want to look like a gaked twat.
as for clubnights, do whatever makes you happy, as long as theres a nice mix on the screens.
in general Tom and shakinda almost covered it all. have your adapters, four plugs, humm eliminator, proper projector cradle, tape, a leatherman tool. it all fits in a single box and will cost perhaps 200 bucks. you wont feel more "professional" but you will enjoy the relief of being able to setup fast and accurat. the faster you setup, the earlier you will be back home to take a catnap. when the night starts get boozed, wasted, munted, whatever.

[VJLotteZ]

I agree on the 'don't do drugs'-thing.
It does nothing to your creativity, but it does so much for wrecking your credibility.

[vdmoKstaTi]

c'mon people. hwo the hell are you supposed to stand through a six hour set of harsch noise, industrial, etc... being sober AND having fun? there's no way anyone could do this. seriously.


hahaha... I do this every week....lol
6 hours is a small shift though... try 9 or 10 :)

[sleepytom]

9 or 10 what? hours???
try 9 months touring then you'll know what a gig is...
;)

[gtz]

seriously. noone can put up with more than 6 hours unstructured, erratic noise. honestly.

[evomedia]

seriously. noone can put up with more than 6 hours unstructured, erratic noise. honestly.

Depends on the music and atmosphere, I've quiet happily spent a full 24 hours working in a club before.

If 6 hours music is too much for you, are you sure visuals is the right job for you lol

[gtz]

as is sayd: music = erratic harsh noise void of any structure whatsoever.

[bleep]

professionalism changes everything

[Meierhans]

as is sead: music = erratic harsh noise void of any structure whatsoever

Well then maybe you should choose another genre? Or take so much more for a while that you get used to it irreversible... then again... yeah.. it might limit your corp gig softskills... well.. :scream:

I´m gonna try to sum up what has been said and what I think about this topic. It is based on my limited personal experience.

I think beeing a "Pro" is mostly defined by knowing what you are doing. Also a basic knowledge about what going on around you helps to act as pro. But since this is very different in every situation and mostly based on experience there is no recipe. In general beeing prepared is not that bad at all. Think about what you want to do and what you need for it. In detail, on paper and early enough. Thats most important. If possible get a floor plan and some pictures of the place, it helps to see problems in advance.

Communicate what will be organized by others and what by you. Recheck on this - with people who are responsible! Write the results down in short and send them by mail so you have evidence for them (and your own repression after the gig.) Don't let their position and acting fool you into thinking you where not responsible yourself anymore for anything unless you really know them. Because in the end you always are, even if you had no chance to fix it and it had nothing to do with you. So tread every pixel as your baby and take care of every step it takes from harddisk to screen. Tread everything that is not 100 % cleared as unsolved problem, dont rely on faith, if possible have a plan B. A second cable can be worth gold once the show started. If you outsourced something a short call to AV company in advance makes sure they get all your points and no information is lost in the process. Saves you dangerous rigging.

Once you are in place - early enuff - say HELLO to the people. Don't be a queen, don't annoy people or keep them of working, but well.. act as pro. Smile, listen and nod. Share your knowledge, try to be helpful, fill your role. All (hopefully) have the goal to deliver a superior experience and there is no place for egomanics in this game beside.. yeah... after finding out who is the chef and the other guy who has the overview - and getting their mobile numbers for emergency - the lighting guys are those you really want to talk to. (Sorry..) Because they are simply stronger than us. For more info on these methods simply watch Scrubs.

So after you convinced the DMXlers that their gobos do not add a unique flavor to your visuals you set up your gear, and test the whole chain. Then you test again because you never know, humans after all.

Now as everything is up and running and hopefully every human and every pixel is your friend - while the evil demons named hum, noise and defective contacts has been treaded with the proper medicines you might think if there are substances that enhance yours and the audience travel. In general things that make you very tired, confused or that happy that you start loving your loops so too much that you leave them running for half an hour or so: They are not so suitable. Really! Larger amounts of the other two - or just too much booze - might let you loose contact to floor as well, which then leads to a behaviour that makes the lighting guys shoot your screen by purpose. I think "Drugged-out-Asshole" was the scientific term for that. And no, since all the flying is an illusion it does not help you rig down anything from up there, nor does it soften your fall. The opposite is true, sadly. Then again, this all again depends alot on circumstances. And its nothing VJ specific, so its a bit OT. A basic rule says: If its a really small freak place make sure not to puke or fall over while on stage. If its a larger one don't even think about it. If its for a corp gig don't even think about thinking about it. Not even the day before!

So take whatever you can take or need for working, its your choice. As always. Enuff of the drug talk. Take care!

Last but not least what you put on the screen counts in. Unbelievable but true. And please don't rely on technics or knowledge here - but faith! Because its humans after all.
:shrug:

[deepvisual]

How you do your job is one thing.
how you approach it is another.

if you act like a window cleaner, people will ask you to clean their windows, which is fine if that's all you want to do.
There are some great work opportunities out there, but you wont get them if you are assumed to be one of life's window cleaners.

[gtz]

Well then maybe you should choose another genre?

i actually do a lot of different genres. some of wich idon't even have to get drunk to last through the night.