Day in the life

A day in the life : Lighting Director

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09:00
First thing is to adjust lights, direction and levels, with electricians on the floor and lighting console operator in the gallery. We cant do this before the final studio props and dressing has been put in place on the set. (The lights have previously been set approximately by the electricians)

10:00
Now in rehearse/record mode. We further adjust lights as the action and mood dictates. We have to make a few compromises, and work fast to keep to the hectic schedule.

13:00
Break Have a quick meeting with the director and designer re this afternoon’s changes

14:00
Afternoon is as hectic as the morning, but thankfully experience comes in to play and a few old tricks with soft lights get us around some position changes. Continue to rehearse/record until show is completed. The ‘cold’ feel we wanted has worked and I can do some more work on developing this when we do the next studio shoot.

18:30
WRAP!

Career details: Lighting Director

What you do: The range of the job.

Attend technical planning meetings with the director to gauge the requirements of the show. Design a lighting plan for the studio, in conjunction with the designer and discuss it with the director. ON the studio day, set the lights with the team of electricians, and lighting console operators.

Qualities: What you need to be able to do the job

A lot of experience of TV production in Studios and/or location, depending on your chosen area, A strong eye and an understanding of flexible approaches to lighting to allow for the inevitable changes that always occur.

Career path: How you start and where you can go with it.

Often through cameras, or sometimes other studio operations, or theatre lighting. The lighting director is of course creative, but also the most important technical person in the studio. You’ve made it!

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