What kind of workshop facilities do you need as a VJ?

[gpvillamil]

I am discussing an idea with some friends. Basically, a collective of audio/video/electronics creative types that all need a shared workspace.

There is a lot of stuff that we could all use, but which is expensive to purchase individually.

So we were thinking of setting up a shared workspace, to be funded by a variety of daily/monthly/yearly memberships, which would house some useful shared infrastructure and give us a practice/performance space.

Stuff we were thinking of putting in:

1) Projector
2) Screen
3) Sound system
4) Audio mixer
5) Video mixer
6) Broadband connection (100 mbps - welcome to Japan)
7) Wired/wireless LAN
8) Shared fileserver
9) Protools (music) studio setup
10) Video editing workstation
11) Electronics workbench
12) Refrigerator
13) Hot tub

I'm assuming that people would have their own laptops and equipment that would go to gigs. The benefit over your typical equipment rental company is that you would have access to the equipment all the time for practice & preparation.

Any thoughts on other stuff that should be included? Thoughts on pricing?

I'm thinking in terms of stuff YOU would find useful, and how much you would pay to have access to such a facility.

[alangeering]

lighting, backdrops, tripod/dolly

Just a corner of a room would do, but it's so useful to be able to have a well set up mini-studio for photography.

Alan

[DrEskaton]

it f you have space a small bluescreen or greensreen would be useful. either a cloth backdrop or a painted wall or movable wall section.

if've been amazed that even with crappy lighting and folds all over my bluescreen cloth I can get a usable key from a V-4.

curious how will you get around the issue that all the vj's will want the gear booked for big nights (new years eve, holiday weekends) etc.

[gpvillamil]

Originally posted by DrEskaton
curious how will you get around the issue that all the vj's will want the gear booked for big nights (new years eve, holiday weekends) etc.

Our thinking was to not let the equipment out for gigs. It's more a way of allowing people access to equipment to prepare for gigs. For the gigs themselves, they should rent or purchase their own gear. Don't really want to get into issues of taking apart the installation, insurance, dealing with damage.

Do you think letting the gear out for gigs is important?

[akira_k]

I think that it's a nice idea to have some "playing grounds" to practice your stuff or get used to equipment, and I wouldn't find it recommendable to unset all that and taking it out to gigs. But that's something you would have to define.

[gpvillamil]

So how much would you be willing to pay for access to such a facility?

$100/month? $300/month? more or less?

What sorts of things would be absolute must-haves? For example, for musicians a ProTools studio setup is pretty much standard. I was thinking a well-equipped video editing suite?

Of course the community aspect is key as well. Was thinking of it as an "artist's collective" type of thing.

[PilotX]

Originally posted by gpvillamil
Do you think letting the gear out for gigs is important?
not if there are established a/v hire companies that do it already.

I wonder if DrEskaton meant that in the run-up to big nights more people would want to be using the equipment to create/practise and how you would deal with that rise in demand?

I definately agree with having a small blue/green screen and studio lighting arrangement, in fact I would see this as being more beneficial than a projector/screen.. you can see what you are doing on a monitor and although it will look different on a projector I think this is enough.

tom

[DrEskaton]

Originally posted by gpvillamil
So how much would you be willing to pay for access to such a facility?

$100/month? $300/month? more or less?

What sorts of things would be absolute must-haves? For example, for musicians a ProTools studio setup is pretty much standard. I was thinking a well-equipped video editing suite?

Of course the community aspect is key as well. Was thinking of it as an "artist's collective" type of thing.

I like the idea of a "VJ lounge" with permanently set up facilities for trying out out ideas and studio space for making content. I'd pay for such a space if it was here in Sydney.

yeah I thought you would rent out some of the gear not keep it in house.

won't the fees have to either be per hour or more like $500 a month to afford all the gear you are talking about plus just rent must be pretty hefty in japan?

for an edit suite, an emac with final cut express would be dirt cheap and pretty good for most vj editing jobs.

I'd add a 3CCD DV camera to the list of equipment.

Personally I would find the studio space/production gear most useful as a space to work on content that I can't make easily with my own kit.

[seex]

Great idea but i sense a bug,

Not renting out, means that your facility wuld be mostly of interest to vj-s who have their own eqipment or who have someone providing eqipment. If thats the case than your facility wuld not be interesting to them, since they already have all you can offer. (most of what you listed)

Personaly i preffer the non rental concept with permanently set up gear (always know whats there). But from what you listed i dont find anything that wuld atract me (exept the vibe),

Id be mostley interested in the studio (lights with spots, honeycombes, difusors, color filters, diferent colour bacgrounds, a 3ccd camera, a trypod that alowes panning) a powerfull computer with after effects and some basic editing softwere. Thats what i believe wuld atract vj-s to produce their own materials, and wuld also be interesting for vj-s who already have the basic performance kit.

And i wuld pay a resonable amount for acess to a simple video studio.

Good luck

[gpvillamil]

Thanks! This is all very helpful!

How interesting is the whole community angle? Having a shared loopserver, joint events, promotion, collaboration with musicians/photographers, etc.

[sleepytom]

thats the *whole* point - gear is gear is gear anyone can buy more stuff all you need is the money.

but a collaberative workspace is something money cannot buy - the possabilitys of sharing both finnished work and ideas for new projects will improve the standard of production for everyone involoved in the space.

if you are to be sharing with strangers it will be worth drawing up a contract that sets out the ownership of collaberativly produced work.

[seex]

The vibe of a colaborative visuals production group is something im striving for. Recently had a workshop and meet with a few people who are inteested, and at the moment working on a theme with one of them.

Visuals produced especialy for on event is the qality mark that we shuld strive for as vj-s. In my experience Promotors do look at our screens ad they do care whats being shown. It happened that i was asked to explain what is the subject matter of my visuals, the promotor was dissapointed with the last vj and wanted to know a bit before buying.

I beleve that the future is in customly produced visulas for a individual show, and the colaborative workspace is a great idea in that regard. Its inproving the qality and the economy, i charge 2x for custom made visuals, sometimes even more depends what the promotor has in mind. Producing is the element that is missing in our trade, just sampling seems as a too easy job (with nowdays tehnology)

[Lara]

I have been dreaming about this for the last 6 months Gpvillamil.... when I realised that it would cost me at least ?150 a day for any warehouse style location and ?350 for a greenscreen studio (bartered down from ?2000).

It would be so good to have a facility like this.... check this thread where Portal mentions media production societies:

http://www.vjforums.com/showthread.php?threadid=5944

They are not for profit groups that work together with shared studios and equipment.

[Optrix]

We setup a studio in New Zealand. Got out side sponsorship to pay for rent, and critical hardware (Expensive stuff).

I found a couple of 21' CRT Monitors. for NZ$300ea.

The Team was about 5people strong. The Facilities could have handled more people too.

For the sponsors it worked out cheaper for them to pay for our creation/testing space. than to pay for us one off every gig.

Other items we got sponsored:
Two Shuttle Boxes with P4 2.8 Intel's
Proper video Monitor, for colour correction or mixing
V-4
50 miniDV tapes
3CCD Camera
2 KVM Switches
Mitsibushi DLP Projector (Expensive!)

At one stage we had five computers, three CTR monitors.
Was really great lauch pad. Was able to optain trail software rights to a few great programs: XYNth and Mojoworld.

However things have changed abit now... I decided i needed to take the creation to the world (this apears to be the only way to get respect at home). So i closed the studio and have got into micro sizing things.

Now adays i travel with Shuttle, Micro 3CCD Panasonic, CD Wallet.

The space still exists with one of the VJ's living there "hold the fort" when ever im in town i crash there.
We are lucky to have such good support. For anyone trying to get this kind of project underway i would suggest some things:

1st make everyone know its only for a short period of time(6mnths)
2nd. Find suitable space and rent it yourself.
3rd get all the gear you can, working or not into the space.
4th RECRUIT RECRUIT RECRUIT!!!!

Its all about the people!

[littlecatalyst]

havee some room(s) for residencies!!!