Blog

Blog

Hang Tapes

At long last! In this much-requested video, I walk you though the basics of how to create position hang tapes using Vectorworks without the need for plugins or special tools.

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Eos & Followspot Control

Multiple spots, multiple cuelists, oh my! In today’s post, I talk all about what I’ve learned over the years when it comes to board-controlled followspots.

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Vor – Production Documentation

For the past few months, you’ve probably seen me posting about Vor – a new tool from Borealis Solutions that has quickly become an essential part of my lighting design tool kit. As I’ve used it more, I’ve found countless use cases beyond just the obvious ones – and today’s post is a deep dive on all of it! In this post, I’ll walk you through how I set it up, how I use it, and the future plans I have for it.

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LD-At-Large Podcast

Mike was honored to be the guest on the LD-At-Large podcast with Chris Lose

On this episode, we discuss how to maintain living rates post-pandemic, how far we should be willing to compromise, how transparent we need to be about our rates, having difficult conversations about what we make among trusted companions, the idea of a transparent open-source database of pay rates, if it is ever okay to work for free, using union wages as a barometer, collective bargaining, and the notion of paying your dues.

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MIXBOOK Unboxing & Review

In this video, I talk about how the Rosco Mixbook works and how I use it as a valuable tool in my production toolbox. Pay attention at the end for how you can win your own Mixbook in my giveaway!

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LiveDesign: 31 Days of Plots

To reflect on the creative, innovative moments of 2020 and to welcome the hope that the New Year brings, Live Design is conducting 31 Days Of Plots. Every day during the month of December 2020, we will highlight a different lighting design, from across theatre, concert tours, corporate events, and more.

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2019 Economic Impact

Originally inspired by an instagram post by Fireplay’s Nick Whitehouse, I thought I’d take a few minutes to add up some numbers from 2019. Financial figures on just how much money I spent directly and estimates of how much money I had a part in contributing to the US Economy in 2019. 

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Top Priorities for Entertainment Workers in Subsequent COVID-19 Legislation

Congress has begun to pursue additional federal legislation in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The entertainment industry will continue to be disproportionately impacted by this health crisis and we need to ensure that that subsequent COVID-19 legislation puts workers first. We must act now and urge our representatives to include the following priorities in any subsequent legislation.

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Vectorworks

At the time of this writing, there are two DMX universes worth of people (1024) who have signed a Change.Org petition calling on Vectorworks to discount their pricing during the COVID-19 crisis.

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FAQs

How did you get your start? What advice do you have for students? Can I work with you? Answers to all these frequently asked questions and more can be found here!

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Backstage Perspectives Interview

Early in COVID-Quarantine, I was interviewed by Hans Pregler from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater’s Young Auditorium! I chat a little bit about my process, the tools I use to create a show, and more!

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Essential Workflow Tools

Every month or so on instagram, I do a Q&A session where I invite any and all questions about the world of lighting – everything from the basics of design to day to day life in the industry. Some of the most frequent questions that I get are related to general workflow tips and tricks. In today’s blog post, I’m going to outline what I consider to be some of the most valuable tools that I use daily in my work that have little to nothing to do with actual lighting!

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Stamp in the Tech Rehearsal Process

Stamp is an incredibly powerful and useful tool in the production process. It allows the design team to take notes more efficiently and accurately, and streamlines their implementation. In today’s blog post, Mike writes about his workflow in Stamp and the various pieces of hardware he uses to make up his system.

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Analog Patch System

There are many ways to interconnect control systems – but how do you wire all the various ports together? How do you make changes quickly? See my solution here!

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Magic Sheets

Magic sheets are one of the most important pieces of lighting paperwork – but what’s the best way to make them? What information should be included and what information should be left out? Find out here!

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The Producers in the Park 2018

It takes a lot of time, energy, and people to transform an empty field into a fully functioning theatre space! Check out this week’s post for a behind-the-scenes look at the making of The Producers in the Park

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Webinars & Classes

April 19, 2020
Upcoming Classes

Webinar #6 – Team Workflow

Thursday, April 30th @ 6:00pm Eastern/NYC - I'll be joined by Abby May and Dalton Hamilton, talking about our process. We'll chat about how we...

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April 19, 2020
Upcoming Classes

Mike’s Vectorworks Workflow – Take 2

Thursday, April 23rd @ 6:00pm Eastern/NYC - Back by popular demand, Join me on YouTube Live as I walk you through my Vectorworks and Lightwright...

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April 2, 2020
Past Classes

Webinar #5 – Production Photography for LDs

Thursday, 09 April 2020 @ 6:00p ET - In this session, Mike will share some tips and tricks for capturing photos of your work...

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March 28, 2020
Past Classes

Webinar #4: Lighting in a Pinch

Thursday, 02 April 2020 @ 6:00p ET - In this session, Mike will talk about how to implement the best design possible when dealing...

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March 28, 2020
Past Classes

Webinar #3: The Basics of Color

Tuesday, 31 March 2020 @ 6:00p ET - In this session, Mike will go over the basics of color for lighting. We'll examine additive...

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March 22, 2020
Paperwork , Past Classes

Mike’s Vectorworks Workflow

Thursday, 26 March 2020 @ 6:00p ET - I'll be showing the basic components of how I lay out my base Vectorworks file and...

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March 22, 2020
Paperwork , Past Classes

Webinar #2: Lighting Plots & Paperwork

Tuesday, 24 March 2020 @ 6:00p ET - In this webinar, participants will get an in-depth look at the various pieces of lighting paperwork...

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March 22, 2020
FileMaker Past , Paperwork , Past Classes , PMP

Live Demo: Paperwork Management Portal (FileMaker)

Sunday, 22 March 2020 @ 2:00p ET - I'll be doing a live demo of how my FileMaker-based lighting paperwork tool works. 

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March 20, 2020
Past Classes

Webinar #1: Stage Lighting: The Art, The Science, The Profession

In this workshop, participants will get an overview of theatrical lighting technology and design including the science, the art, and the profession of being...

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FileMaker Sessions

FileMaker #2.1

Thursday, July 23rd 2020 @ 6:00p – In this session, we will expand on our solution from Chapter 1, this time starting to focus more on the improvements that we can make on the instrument data side of things.

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FileMaker #2.2

Tuesday, July 28th 2020 @ 2:00p – In this session, we will keep working on expanding the instrument side of our solution, adding color, position, and accessory tables in preparation for creating detailed paperwork/reports. We’ll also create a script to do your LW import automatically with the click of a button.

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FileMaker #2.3

Thursday, July 30th 2020 @ 2:00p – In this session, we will create several different pieces of lighting paperwork, including Instrument Schedules, Channel Hookups, Gobo Orders, and more.

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FileMaker #2.4

Monday, August 17, 2020 @ 1:00p – In today’s session, we’ll work on adding focus chart documentation to our solution, including adding a mobile focus photo insertion tool.

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FileMaker #2.5

Tuesday, August 18, 2020 @ 1:00p -Today’s session is all about labels – how to format them, how to create them, different options for printing them, and more!

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FileMaker #2.6

Wednesday, August 26, 2020 @ 12:00p -In this session, we will connect our solution to EOS using MBS plugins to send UDP strings to EOS.

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FileMaker #1.5

Tuesday, July 21st 2020 @ 6:00p – This will be a wrap-up session for Chapter 1, covering a few advanced topics and other miscellaneous tips and tricks.

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FileMaker #1.4

Thursday, July 9th 2020 @ 6:00p – In this session, we’ll add a mobile layout (iOS only) to add and update worknotes from your iPhones and iPads (requires network connection.)

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FileMaker #1.3

Wednesday, July 8th 2020 @ 6:00p – In this session, we’ll keep building our basic worknotes database, focusing on creating and distributing worknote reports.

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FileMaker #1.2

Tuesday, July 7th 2020 @ 6:00p – In this session, we’ll keep building our basic worknotes database, exploring some basic layout tools and scripts for the first time.

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FileMaker #1.1

Monday, July 6th 2020 @ 6:00p – In this first session, we will start out by creating a basic work note database, linking instrument records to worknotes and vice-versa.

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FileMaker #3.3

Wednesday, November 25, 2020 @ 1:00p – Today, we’ll wrap up any loose ends and explore data aggregation, including tracking pension/health contributions, union dues, and more.

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FileMaker #3.2

Tuesday, November 24, 2020 @ 1:00p – Today, we’ll add more contract types to our database. We’ll also explore creating automatic emails and we’ll start diving into how useful having a centralized data location is for financial planning.

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FileMaker #3.1

Monday, November 23, 2020 @ 1:00p – The start of chapter 3! We’re going to go in a slightly different direction for a little while. This chapter is going to cover creating a personalized contract management solution. We’ll be focusing specifically on United Scenic Artist Contracts/Cover Sheets, but the lessons contained within could easily be modified to fit non-union needs as well. 

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FileMaker #4.2

Friday, February 19, 2021 @ 1:00p – Capturing focus images with text and graphic annotations!

In this session, we will build upon the capture device options that we set up in the previous session.

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FileMaker #4.1

Friday, February 12, 2021 @ 1:00p – It’s time for Chapter Four!

Adding media capture devices to your FileMaker Solution

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