Wednesday, March 18, 2020
COVID-19: The Entertainment Industry Reacts With Training Options
Live Design: It may seem like the worst of times: Many of us are confined to our homes, while others are facing loss of jobs or temporary layoffs as the entertainment business goes into COVID-19-forced hibernation. Or isolation. But the industry has responded in a very positive manner. Here are a few of the resources people can take advantage of while waiting it all out…and for educators looking for online options while classrooms are off-limits.
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I think it is really amazing of theatrical software companies to provide free training of their services to teachers and students during the outbreak and subsequent quarantines. Many of these companies are facing shortfalls in revenue anyway as not many people are buying online products; however, it is a fantastic idea to use the quarantine time that many people face to promote their materials and help theater students in their studies as well. Though most of these promotions end in a month or so, it is still a great thing. It is interesting that many of these software’s (at least in the article) are from lighting console programming companies for theater. It seems that there will be many lighting designers and programmers in the future of theater soon. Or at the very least, that is what the companies are hoping for. I myself will probably take advantage of the QLab Pro Bundle in order to familiarize myself with its various functions and settings.
I have to agree that it is awesome that these companies are offering so much for people affected by this situation. To be honest at times it can be overwhelming how much there is being offered, and it is important not to overload oneself. I have personally been setting time aside during my day to go through both LinkedIn Learning and other online sources, and have created a list of topics I want to pursue. Again, there is so much out there it is impossible to cover it all (and it can seem impossible to know where to start), but remember that all of this is here to make the time go by a lot easier. There ultimately is no substitute for experience and there are things you just cannot learn from a computer or books, but this is an opportunity to explore topics that haven't been covered in our curriculum. Who knows, maybe this will lead to more input for the curricular review about what we SHOULD be covering in our coursework. I will recommend keeping an eye on your screen time, and making sure to get outside even though that may seem difficult. This is also a great time to catch up on reading to take our eyes off our screens for a while. As wacky of a situation this is, I'm glad to see this community coming together to help make the time more bearable.
It's encouraging that so many companies and groups are making things free right now. As bad as it is in the industry during the pandemic, there's some sort of dim brightside that it's a good time to learn some new skills, brush up on some old ones, and do some maintainence that maybe should have been routine, but hasn't been. It certainly isn't easy for anyone right now, especially those that have been recently laid off or had their shows shuttered. It's an incredibly anxiety inducing time for many entertainment professionals, but at least nobody has to sit on their hands and wait it out; there's still plenty of productive things to do. That won't pay the bills, but it might keep us all from losing our minds while we're stuck in quarantine feeling powerless. The small things matter here, and allowing easier access to educational tools and resources can go a long way for helping the industry rebound when the worst is over.
Ever since my little sister was handed a tablet for her classwork at school, I have often thought about the possibility of all learning being digitized. I have never been a fan for obvious reasons (personal interaction, staring at screens, hands on learning, reliance on tech), but I also doubted the possibility that society could handle a conversion of this scale. It seems I was gravely underestimating the preparedness of all kinds of industries. It is refreshing to see my cynicism proved wrong as I watch all of these entertainment companies display a kind of camaraderie to bring learning to a quarantined population. I hope that educators and students alike will take advantage of this flood of resources, all of which are normally way out of budget. Gain some skills while locked in your house! Learn a new thing for free! Fill all that empty time with something to give you a boost once all of this is over!
It is amazing how people give when times get tough. Each person asked what they could do and they did it. It seems like every company that is surviving in this mess has made an offer to the community for some service or relief. This situation can act as an opportunity to get a break in the high-stress life of a theatre professional and an opportunity to work on their skills. I also think it is amazing how many of these types of lists there are. There are more specific ones like playbills list of places to watch theatre; there is the USITT’s google doc which is very comprehensive (and a link to a great cover of I will survive); of course this article. I am a little wary of some of the free software and because I think it will be a challenge to give that up when the time comes.
The past couple of weeks have been wrought with very quick, very large-scale change especially, it feels like, in our industry. It is so wonderful to see the industry jumping back at all of the challenges that our world (and, yes, COVID-19) has thrown at everyone. I know that this period of being homebound is not “free time” but perhaps there is, in fact, more time to learn a new system or software or way of going about things. That, in this time of uncertainty, industry leaders would turn to teaching is very comforting to me. Instead of “stockpiling” knowledge and experience as people have done with toilet paper and pasta, they have chosen to share it (often free of charge) to help improve the world at large as well as individual quality of life. For me, as I hope for others, actions such as these prove to be a very welcome light in a tunnel which, as of yet, seemingly has no end.
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