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#2 in a Series |
Getting To Know You
Our Guild is getting so big that the Newsletter is starting a column introducing ordinary members - not award winners, just the regular rank-and-file. In this issue, meet a maintenance engineer.
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Ran sound for bad bands in the late 70's. Built and installed sound systems for amusement parks. Worked on and did a few installs of IMAX and OMNIMAX systems. Went into post production (sound).
Rather than getting to know me, how 'bout we figure out what the heck is this Maintenance Engineer category. Classed as Y-4 (as in "why for" doesn't this work), we're the folks who take care of those "little details". The life of an on-call engineer goes from the mundane (stage set-ups etc.) to panic (dub stage down with producer "X" there) within the course of a few minutes. This is what we like to call "variety".
Most of the engineers I know love what they do. Face it, we get to play with all the new stuff, but don't get beaten up by the client on a day to day basis. Instead we get beaten up by our co-workers. We also have freedom to interact with all areas of a given facility and its personnel. The only down side of the job can be that the only time you're called is when there's a problem, as in "hey get that guy off the stage, whenever he's in here there's always a problem." And however much we feel like the elite heroes of post production, to much of management, we're just plain overhead.
The future holds much change for our end of the business. Since 1980 when I started, there's been constant evolution. In the last several years it's become more of a revolution. The "Film Business" had traditionally been 10 to 20 years behind the rest of the audio industry, technology-wise. That gap is closing quickly as we embrace, instead of fear, the new tools available to us. The only place that I think we should draw the line is when a new tool compromises the quality. Comparing some of the wonderful recordings in the late 50's and the early 60's with some of the work done in the 70's illustrates this point. A little critical listening goes a long way in this area.
Oh yeah, my hobbies are sportbikes and audio (the good stuff - electrostatic speakers, tube electronics, etc.) What would a bio piece be without "hobbies"?
Reprinted from
The Motion Picture Editors Guild Newsletter
Vol. 19, No. 5 - September/October 1998
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