Hello, my name is Elisa and welcome to my blog. I will be covering nationwide outdoor music festivals, Orlando local club gear at concerts, and interviews with people working currently in the film industry.

I encourage questions and comments, so please feel free to email me with anything in regards to my blog.

Let me start by giving a brief background blurb to help understand what led me into my 20-year current career.

I started in the entertainment field in 1991, and credit the reasons for being; I was a huge movie buff, knew every stars name, read almost all bio’s on film legends, and had a lot of luck when I first got started. It all came about when a retail co-worker made an off -handed remark ’why don’t you just go work on movie sets?' (because I couldn’t hold a regular conversation and was a slightly annoying young lady), and it got me thinking, why don’t I work on movie sets? So the very next day I called the local black box theatre and the local PBS television station and left a message asking if they needed any volunteers at both. I told myself that whichever venue called back first would be the career path I would follow.

PBS called me back the very next day and at the same time I never heard from the theatre. So television it was, and on my 1^st day at PBS I met Liz W.  She was only a few years older than me, but was already a producer of a famous cooking show called ‘Gourmet Cooking’ with Earl Peyroux.  Liz took me under her wing and taught me everything about TV production. She taught me that, being a woman was not an easy fit for a male dominated field and she also showed me how to get any job in an all man/tech field (remember it was the early 90’s). I became a camera op for weekly shows, a sports camera operator, a lighting tech, an audio tech, and was also hired to be master control on the weekends for PBS in the course of that following year.

I then started looking for any film productions that came within a 3-hour drive of Pensacola, FL. I asked everyone and anyone how could I get on a movie set. More and more information started to present itself thru publications and rumors, (remember internet wasn’t a normal household thing yet) and after looking and networking constantly I heard a rumor about Under Siege, starring Steven Segal filming in Mobile, AL. I traveled over and found the production office. With my resume in hand I presented to one of the office P.A.’s and was surprised to learn the lesson of ‘out of state’ hires right then and there.

For those of you not familiar with film production, a state gives tax incentives to lure productions to film in their state, and in return the film only hires residents/local from said state. They wouldn’t hire me because I lived in Florida (less than 50 minutes away from Mobile, AL). So I decided to head to the set anyway because it was being filmed on the U.S.S. Alabama and they were allowing onlookers. Still in network mode, I met an actor on set that day, who knew of a low budget director flying in to Mobile on that same day. So I ran over to the hotel were he the production office was set up, changed my tactics and tried to volunteer to get my foot in the door with the production. When you volunteer they don’t ask were you live. I got a job as a PA and was on my first film set the very next week. 

Because the film was a low budget, the electric department was way over their head with intense lighting set-ups and strikes. I started helping right away and hit it off with the grip and electric department.  The Gaffer pulled me aside after the end of the week and asked what field I wanted to go into in regards to production. I told him I had no set discipline I wanted to follow, but truly enjoyed working with the lights and power. So week 2 I started working with the electricians, doing mostly heavy grunt work, but taking the time to learn as much as possible.  I had the advantage of being young and ready to work hard be wrapping cable for days, which I know got my several future gigs.  

I worked for a solid 4 years as an electrician and sometimes grip in the southern states until I got pregnant with my 1^st child in 1996. I decided film work would have to wait until later after my child had gotten older, so I went back to PBS and took on an addition job as a floor manager for a local morning show. In 1999 I moved to Orlando to work at Walt Disney World’s Pleasure Island. At Pleasure Island there were 5 dance clubs and 2 comedy clubs. I started in video because of my heavy programming background at PBS, but had my eye on learning club lighting, because I felt that would be the next natural step.

I started operating/programming on an AVOlite Pearl 2000, then a HOGII, an Insight, an Expression, and then finally a Grand MA. Needless to say this isn’t the best order to learn lighting consoles. While at Mannequins Dance Palace, I had a full HighEnd rig including 20 X.spot xtreme’s, 12 Technobeams, 8 Studio Colors, 18 VL 5’s, 16 Emulators, 70 LED ‘s under the dance floor, 52 LED’s behind the bar, and a 240 par can media matrix wall, with an additional 100 static fixtures peppered thru-out the club. Mannequins boasted the worlds largest rotating dance floor, as well as a 6 tank/jet CO2 system. The club also had multiple moving electrics with scenic pieces and lighting fixtures that moved in both directions.

That was the best job I’ve ever had in terms of electronica music, great gear, the best console, amazing fellow technicians, and complete freedom to run the club as true lighting directors.        

The only thing that was pre-programmed was the 9:30 ‘Light Show’. Mannequins is where I spent the last four years at Pleasure Island between 2004 and 2008 before they decided to close the entire entertainment complex. Nothing hurts a tech more than seeing all his/her toys go bye-bye.

So after Disney closed Pleasure Island I was moved to the only nightclub left on Disney property. At my current work position I have a Whole Hog PC with 8 Martin RoboScan Pro 918, and 6 Mac 250 Krypton/Entour. The club is a top 40 video dance club and not the best place to flex my artistic wings, so I started thinking about an another outlet outside of my regular job. I got a part time job at House of Blues filling in for ‘SIN’ night. Service Industry Night played electronica music and I was back on an AVO Pearl 2000 again, with a rig that has 8 Cybers, 4 Studio spots, 8 Trackspots, and 6 Martin 750’s. I only work there a few days a year so I started thinking I still needed more time on a console and with my music for my career and my soul. The decision to go outside of my jobs seemed the next right fit and with a bunch of new young friends we made a trip to Miami, Fl to check out Ultra Music Festival in 2009.

OK, for those who have never been to a 70,000 people, 8 stages, over 30 acre event, I must warn you now that it is a life changing event.  My heart had found a place to relieve stress, experience large lighting/video/laser rigs, and travel to new cities on purpose. So in 2010 I went back to Ultra again and made plans to go to the largest out door music festival for electronic music. This event is called the Electric Daisy Carnival, held in Los Angeles, CA at the LA coliseum and run by Insomniac Productions.

The production value was thru the roof in regards to stages, video, lighting, vendor support, atmosphere talent, art installations, and world renowned DJ’s. EDC has 20 carnival rides, 40-foot metal statues that fire is used to light them up at night, 6 stages, including the one stage that is the entire coliseum width, and a full night of fireworks. There were stilt walkers, mirror balls in oak trees, a huge Ferris wheel, unlimited free alcohol for VIP, seating and tons gorgeous people.

 As for tech specs, all the stages had GrandMAs except one, in which I am, sure was a HOGIII. I didn’t take too many notes because I was a patron, but will report all tech specs when I go to EDC Orlando and EDC Vegas this year. I have added a few pictures for perspective and for your enjoyment.

At this point I will stop and resume next week with more festivals with pictures as well.

Next week I promise to stop talking about myself and will get into more clubs and festivals from last year.

Please invite friends to follow and have patience with me as I build a comprehensive guide to all things festival and club gear related.

Thanks for your time! More pictures to follow.

The next few photo's compliments of Nick Altavilla.