[SML] Classes in college.

[June Abernathy]

On Sep 13, 2014, at 5:06 PM, Paul Schreiner <paulschreiner42 at gmail.com> wrote:

>> On Sep 12, 2014, at 11:34 AM, Richard wrote:
>> 
>>> The most significant lapse I have found in the education of recent job
>>> applicants I have interviewed, is the lack of training to provide
>>> accurate cost estimates to produce or rent scenery, costumes,
>>> lighting, or other aspect of a show
> 
> <snip>
> 
>> Donna Dickerson added:
>> 
>>> Skills could include: time management, efficient planning of workflow, team
>>> work, and coaching.   So often it's the soft skills that will make or break
>>> a project.
>>> 
>>> these are skills that cross into other disciplines as well.
>>> 
>>> Donna Dickerson
>> 
June added:

>> I agree with both of these, heartily. Even if they aren't taught how to deal with cost estimates to the point that they can cost out the whole thing the way Richard would like, it would be awesome if ANY attention to cost and time management were taught in school.
> 
Paul replied:
> I agree as well, except for the fact that these aren't skills that I'd
> teach in either a basic stagecraft class or a class geared towards
> students crewing a situation similar to one described by the OP.
> These are more for a course in technical direction and production
> management, which (unfortunately) are few and far between.  Indeed,
> with the pressures on departments and faculty, administrations are
> unlikely to approve courses at that level for regular rotation unless
> you're dealing with a *large* department.  In fact, the University of
> Alabama is about the only one I've worked at that had such a course in
> its catalog at all...everyone else would end up trying to shoehorn a
> candidate or two in an independent study or special topics one-off
> course for a couple of extremely qualified and interested students.

I agree Paul, it's probably not within the scope of a class like the one the OP needs to put together. But I don't think such concepts need to be reserved for courses in Technical Direction or Production Management. Anyone studying to be a designer needs to learn, as part of what they need to know to be a designer, that they need to consider all the parameters of a space when they are putting a design together. Reality affects what it is possible to design and get accomplished. Physical things like the size and shape of the space, and available material resources, and soft limitations, like time, money, and labor resources. Learning to consider such things is part of learning to be a designer. Or a TD, Production Manager, Master Electrician, or Master Carpenter. It needs to be part of the conversation at the undergraduate level - not necessarily a separate course, but part of existing design and advance tech classes.


June Abernathy
IATSE #321 (Tampa, FL)
FOH Electrician
The Lion King National Tour