Professional Lighting & Production - Fall 2017 | Page 29

End Systems for its ability to handle lighting and video
elements. More traditional lighting fixtures would in-
clude pars and sunstrips. As for movers, I’m impressed by
a lot of the new spot fixtures, including the VL4000s and
the new Robe fixture that is coming out in September.”
LOOKING
BACK…
TSN’s
SportsCentre
Spring 2014
RICHARD SCHICK
Schick Shiner & Associates
Shawnigan Lake, BC
Started Out: In 1967 as a high-school audio tech be-
fore going on to stage management, technical direction,
production management, and general management
and production. Became a theatre consultant in 1993.
“I was lucky in many ways. When I started out there
was not a lot of competition for jobs, so I went from
being a lighting tech in a TV studio to being the produc-
tion manager in the largest regional theatres in Canada
in five years. You couldn’t do that today.”
Favourite Gear: “I know it will sound funny, but I fell
in love with the old Strand Patt 23; it was a wonderful
fixture. I also love the light from a Fresnel, and I fear they
are going out of fashion.”
HOWARD UNGERLEIDER
Production Design International
Markham, ON
TSN’s flagship sporting
news program Sports-
Centre has undergone
many changes since its
debut as SportsDesk in
1984. One of the more
significant was the
substantial overhaul of
its set that was unveiled
on Dec. 19 th , 2013,
during the early edition
of the show hosted by
golden-voiced on-air per-
sonality Rod Smith. The
project first got rolling
in 2012 with the goal of
refreshing SportsCentre’s
set while retaining key
elements that set the
iconic brand apart from
others. The original and
now famous desk remains
a key element, but an
additional standing
desk – used for segments
that feature commen-
tary from insiders and
experts or those where
the host is introducing
a lot of video content
– was created. A variety
of video screens, digital
background boards, and
backlit paneling was also
added to the area.
Started Out: As an avant-garde, self-taught multi-
instrumentalist. Cutting his teeth in New York City in
the 1960s, Ungerleider sought out a recording contract.
Ultimately, he became an agent for Action Talents Inc.
in NYC, which brought him into contact with Rush, for
whom he’s worked first as tour manager and then LD
since the mid-‘70s. Over time, he’s also worked with
a variety of international acts including Rod Stewart,
Van Halen, and Queensryche among many others and
considers his background as a musician a key to his
success in later years. Currently runs Production Design
International with his partner, Brian Beggs.
Favourite Gear: “Too numerous to mention,” he says,
but references a variety of pieces, including the Vari-Lite
VL4000 Beam Wash, Ayrton Magicrings and Magic-
blades; Robe products including the BFML WashBeam;
and Clay Paky’s Mythos and Sharpys.
TOOLS & TECHNOLOGY
While lighting technology has generally become more
powerful, capable, and effective, it has also become
more complex – along with its subsequent workflows.
As a result, many of our panelists express a fondness for
the past. Frankly, they say, there are some things they
miss from back in the day.
For Schick, it’s not a matter of the gear itself; it’s the
fact that, as a consultant, he has less contact with actu-
ally running shows. “I miss the half hour before the show
where everything is ready,” he says. “There’s a pause, a
deep breath, and then the start.” He also misses locking
up the venue after a show as a stage manager and PM.
“I believe that the energy of the performers and the
audience was still present in the theatre and I could feel
it as I walked alone across the stage.”
Constable offers up an observation about how
her work has changed as well, not because of how her
career has progressed, but because of the way she and
her peers communicate and the impact that has on the
sheer amount of time spent in the venue. “I miss hav-
ing time to actually design on a project. I think the world
of immediate communication, be it via email, mobile
phone, or Skype, makes all of our working lives tougher
and less considered and I miss having time in the room
to make good work.”
“I started out just on the cusp of the whole moving
light revolution,” puts in Paquette, “so in the beginning, I
was putting together and operating purely conventional
rigs – just par cans and ACLs. You really had to put a lot
of thought into the design, gel selection, and focus of
Fall 2017 | 29