I love my job, but I also love not HAVING to be there. So far, I’ve only taken one day off of a shoot (funeral), but I adore the idea of getting to do it for a fun reason. So let’s focus on getting to take time off doing something great when I say:
Make your show file something others can understand.
But how to do this? I feel like there are two main things that work, regardless of what kind of a programmer you are. (If it’s helpful, I find the two main kinds of programmers are “number-based” and “I don’t care what number it is, I care where it is on the screen”.) What are the two main values? Consistency and Views.
Quick note- I’m obviously an Eos programmer, but I don’t think I’ve included anything here that can’t be translated to other consoles.
Consistency
I’m a number-based programmer, which I memorize easily. So everything in my template is numerical. Want 3200 CCT? Color Palette 3200. Want 5600 CCT? Color Palette 5600. The programmer in my chair should find it a bit key-intensive, but super literal and easy to follow. The same goes for Groups. On a soundstage rig, the lowest channel number of any lighting system is also the group number. In effects, I use numbers to separate effects by effect type. Intensity effects, Color Effects, Pan and Tilt Effects are all separated by hundreds. I also use a lot of decimals on effect numbers.
My thought is that the main number is a default, in this case 2 for a down flick, and then each decimal is related to the original, but a slight variation. I’m certainly not saying my system here is the end-all-be-all, but it works.
But this system all falls apart for a person filling in for me when we get to my “trip through the rainbow at full, 75%, 50% and 25% saturation” color palettes. I know (because I’m a number nerd) that Red in my template is color palette 5001. 75% saturation is 5002, 50% is 5003, etc. Orange is color palette 5011, 75% saturation is 5012, etc. It literally took me a year to memorize these numbers. (And there is a story behind why it is the way that it is, but it’s long and not terribly entertaining.) So how do we deal with this? With the other main principle…
Views
Views are the single best way you can help someone navigate your template. They tell the guest programmer what is important to you and how you intend to use your system. To start the ball rolling, here are a couple screen shots from my template. First- my default.
I have my Live Table on the left with Active Channels Flexi chosen so you only see channels that are outputting right now. On the right, I have CCT color palettes that I don’t need, but I know make it easier for others. Below those are custom colors my gaffers call for- those I do need, since I’ve not yet organized those in a way that makes them easy to memorize. There are also empty color palettes and one Preset for you to record new data to. Down below is the current cue that is playing and what is on each fader for the current fader page. Simple and hopefully helpful. This view is labeled “Default”.
The tricky color palettes? It’s part of another view that uses a magic sheet I originally made for live entertainment, but have always found helpful.
This is a tabbed interface. On the left are tabs that replace the current view with my effects, sorted by category of what the effect controls. The color palettes are obvious. The groups are above that and are pre-programmed to show their labels. The items below the color palettes are Presets also ready to show labels. Below that are a LOT of Beam palettes. To the right are intensity commands. This view is labeled “Color+ Magic Sheet”.
I have other views, but I kind of feel most things are covered by these two. Related to the concept of good hosting- if you make idiosyncratic views on the regular, maybe find a clear way to label they aren’t for general purpose? Maybe that’s overkill. Not sure. I don’t have many views that are recorded. When I need something that breaks “the usual work flow”, I just open another tab to get what I need and then I restore my default view.
To wrap up- remember that getting permission to not be on set is at the discretion of your Gaffer and therefor you NEED your sub to do well for them. Go the extra mile and help them help you get a day off. Hopefully, to see a really awesome concert or time with someone you adore.
Was there anything I missed? Hit me in the comments. There’s always room to improve, and even though I write a lot of stuff, I love to learn from others.
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Mark LaPierre is a programmer in film and television based out of Albuquerque. He grew up in live entertainment and has been a designer/programmer for musicals, concert dance, live music, circus and corporate. Mark is a proud member of IATSE, an ETC Eos trainer and an enthusiastic trainer of many other platforms and subjects. If you enjoy his content, please consider commenting on his posts on the website to appease the Algorithm.