getting ready
Interpretive Patching
I have started to talk with Hal about patching. A large part of my theatre video work up to this point has utilized patches that themselves form some sort of symbol or relevant shape to the piece. In europe and at the wooster group, I have worked utlizing an organic process; often I try to mimic or reflect the shape of the set (or something else related to the piece) or the narrative of the piece in my physical and virtual video patches. A good patch should look like the piece that it's a part of.
For me this kind of patching serves two very practical psychological functions. 1)it makes the video elements an unquestionable integral part and 2) it helps the video designer and operator remember how the patch looks, what it is for and where it is going....
So far the video system in Oh What War has been like a system scavenged off dead bodies- a part of the makeshift character of our old set for Culturemart... a bit of an anti-system, a series of tvs, projectors and monitors and one camera that was not centrally controlled nor completely interconnected.
I am looking for the best ways right now to clump the equipment together into organ-like entities and then figure out how they relate to eachother. I am looking for a closed system that will be the shape from which all our necessary video gestures will be possible/ attainable.
I think the shape of this patch will be disturbing like a buried octopus.
z
- Mallory Catlett and Zbigniew Bzymek's blog
- Login or register to post comments
- Printer-friendly version
Cables
It's a really interesting philosophy to design, and I think fairly unique. While I've talked about doing as show where the entire stage is just a jumble of wires, I generally take a much more boring approach myself.
A) what do I have.
what do I have with me right now.
what do I have access to for free
and what can I afford if needed.
and
B) what will make the most adaptable setup, with built in backups.
Generally what I end up with is a big snarl of wire.
and Admittedly A and B are at odds with each other.
But in the end putting together a video system for stage is an organic process rather than just drafting up a system spec before you even start. This is both because it grows as ideas come and go, and because you can't afford to spec it and then go out an buy all new equipment for the most part.
I find the organic system quite satisfying and next time I start I'll see if I can have it mimic the style of the piece, even if it gets hidden before the audience comes in most of the time.
Hal Eagar
DPI Director
Hiding wires
I find that the things that are hidden in the piece are the things that are most likely to 'come out'. Secrets are always under a certain pressure- whether they are technical or not. So if I'm hiding a snarl, it better be a meaningful snarl that adds to the complexity of the piece.
I was considering putting barbs on my cables...
Zbigniew
DPI resident