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LD at Large Podcast

The Future of Stage Lighting – with Bob Bonniol

Designer Studio at NAMMLIVE, a live taping of the PLSN LD-At-Large podcast with Bob Bonniol

The Future of Stage Lighting:

Where will we go next? Is the future full of drones, lasers, augmented reality or minimalism?

Things we discuss:

  1. People using their phones
  2. Augmented Reality
  3. Automation
  4. Drones
  5. Holograms
  6. Artistic vision scale
  7. Virtual Reality
  8. Minimalism

The Ethics of Lighting, Programming and Creativity – with Aron Altmark.

Designer Studio at NAMMLIVE, a live taping of the PLSN LD-At-Large podcast with Aron Altmark

The ethics of lighting, programming and creativity with Aron Altmark. 

Liars, Cheats and Thieves

We discuss:

  1. Stealing macros
  2. Sharing Macros
  3. Bragging about your resume.
  4. Stealing a show file and asking for less money
  5. Walking away with a show file after non-payment.
  6. Locking your user profile
  7. Sharing knowledge for free
  8. Full disclosure of your abilities
  9. Full disclosure of your resume
  10. Festival Show files
  11. Stealing a show file.
  12. Cheating your programming.

Theater Builders of Tomorrow – Listen Up!

While touring the world, I have spent far too many hours sitting at FOH, wondering who in the world designs some of these venues. I decided that I should put my two cents in writing instead of stewing in my own disgust of poor forethought.

Straight Outta Comp Tix

“It doesn’t hurt to ask.” Taken literally, this well-known phrase implies we should always ask for what we want. However, if you’re a professional and/or over the age of seven, you should know that if you ask the wrong way, it could damage your reputation and limit your ability to ever ask the same question again.

The Matrix Is Now! Four Tips to Help Wash Down That Red Pill

In science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke’s famed “Three Laws,” written in Profiles of the Future, a book-length collection of essays that was first published in 1962, the third law stated: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

He must have foreseen today’s dizzying array of live event gear advancements, because the lighting rigs that I have been working on as of late have been reinforcing this law on a daily basis. We have entered the days of fully immersive lighting environments, 200-plus universe rigs, wireless DMX, instant downloads and truss spots that aren’t on the truss. We have clearly taken the red pill and fallen down the rabbit hole of technology. Like Neo, we need to embrace this world and prepare for the next level.

Here are four tips to making yourself at home in today’s lighting design matrix.

Rules For Free Labor

Everybody who has a valuable skill, or even motivation, will be asked to donate time and effort at one juncture in time. The entertainment biz is no exception.

Seven Rules of a Successful Lighting Director

As a touring lighting director, I often get asked what it takes to get to where I am. Here are seven tips of a successful lighting director.

Q: What’s the difference between a Lighting Designer and a Lighting Director?

A: About $20,000…