Dan Joseph

Depends on your situation. In Atlanta, I have Comcast internet only, with a data cap for $30 @ 30/10. Every year I call them and tell them I can cutting service and switching to ATT (which is not available in my part of town) unless they honor the $30 introductory price. I win every time. I have Amazon Prime for the 2-Day shipping, so the video is a bonus, so let's take that off the bill. Netflix is $10. I have the luxury of parents that have a cable subscription, so I use their login for HBO/NBC/etc. So my situation is $40. I now pay for unlimited data for $35 extra a month, because COMCAST. So $75 all in. The best TV package from Comcast is $145+ in my area for real channels and real sports. The 13 channel basic cable package is $75 alone. My friend in NYC is in a FIOS neighborhood. 1200 Channels, 120/50 internet, phone for $120/mo. I am in a ATL Google Fiber zone, so I will switch when it is live. TV/Internet/Cell phone packages are like credit card companies. It is set up so you can not and will not win

For content I use Netflix, HBO Go, Amazon Prime, and Youtube. For TV Shows NBC/Fox/Fx/ABC/ESPN/CC/History/AMC have new episodes or live tv through their Roku app same day. Reddit.com/r/NHLStreams for live NHL games; someone usually puts up a live Youtube link which I play on my phone and send it to the Chromecast. And torrents... Sling is $20/mo? I think everyone uses it for ESPN.

I am non-union, so I might be wrong on this - Not every local has a required number of training hours. In Atlanta, there are very few non-union members and there are plenty of working union sound people who do non-union work almost exclusively. Also GA is a right to work state. Entertainment Unions are not a promise of work. When I get called by Sound Supervisors for suggestions, the first thing they want is someone with a great attitude, demeanor, and work ethic. Technical skills come second. Doesn't 52 have like a 9 year waiting list? And you need to have a Rabbi or the same last name as a member who has passed away? Like Tom, one of my best friends is a fourth (of 6) generation Local 3 IBEW Elevator mechanic in NYC. He has a guaranteed work contract because it is a labor union and because of his last name. And by work I mean drinking coffee in his work truck for 4 hours a day and getting double time for every hour that starts and ends with a digit between 1 and 12. I digress.. If your struggling for work or fair wage, ask others in your industry how you can improve both socially, technically, and emotionally. Network, make a few friends, and those friends will hire and drop your name. JWSound Group and the Freelance Sound Mixer FB page a great place to start!

I moved from NYC to Atlanta like 3 months ago. There is a lot of work in the Atlanta and neighboring states (Louisiana, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas), and the list of reality and features is pretty big. Big tax incentives and state government funding film jobs/training/etc. If you want to further your career in a large growing market, check out ATL. There are more jobs then mixers i have found. Everyone is local 479 and nice people -- it is not cut throat at all. I lived in NYC my entire life, so I can relate on the weather and atmosphere. There are seasons in Georgia. As a Northeaster I have yet to turn my heat on this winter -- Southerners do not know the meaning of cold. Members of the local help each other with everything - jobs, gear, etc. Cost of living is cheaper -- I pay half as much in rent for 3x the space in the yuppie part of town. And you can always land jobs in LA, NYC, or anywhere that is a flight away. I suggest to work at least a gig or two in the city before you decide if you want to work/live there.

I hope so.

We have red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, white, clear, black, gray, and glow in the dark at Gotham. We make right turns on red in America. I assume you can make a left on red in Europe.

ERX cables are padded on the TC end to reduce bleed - hence why they are custom cables and not off the shelf. Also the BMCC has a balanced audio input, so TRS is needed. 1/8" TRS to Dual 1/4" TRS Balanced with a -10 dB pad for TC - a custom cable anywhere.

TC may need a -10 pad.

Hi, I am surprised to see this on JW. I was under the impression this was in the process of being resolved. Please give me a call anytime. Thanks Dan

Shoulder, Arm, & Core strength training. Proper fitting shoes, yoga at least twice a month, massage once a month, acupuncture every few months. Your body is your work tool.

The move to wideband receivers and transmitters by manufacturers (i.e. Zaxcom) is at least a attempt to future proof your investment for when we loose 600Mhz.

Content not quality. In the age of the modern internet it's about who has it first.

I've used this in a cramped studio, like 15' by 6' room. It did make the mix sound cleaner but not accurate. It basically rolled off most of the low end and boosted mids. I wouldn't use it for professional work, but for a project studio with a tight budget - maybe.

I use Name, "Title", Email. I stopped giving out my phone number since there is no paper record of my conversation with production over the phone. My voicemail is email me; I do not check voice mail. (I do, though they do not need to know that) I use moo.com - high quality and great customer service; the printing robot did a misprint and they overnight-ed me new cards and a 75% off on next purchase. I've been handed the same graphic from a Vista-Prints template at least 10 times by different mixers and engineers. Find someone or pay someone to make a custom card, you won't regret it.

Recently used a cheap boom pole with a K Tek L bar. Could also go with a fiberglass painters pole.

I had a company owe me a decent amount, and the entire crew for that matter, for 3 days work. No one was paid for 4 months. Each of us sent one email a day and called twice a day. The cam op would show up at the office asking for a check every week as well. The entire crew got the same phone call every week of "the check is in the mail" or "the check must of gotten lost in the mail." When has anyone's mail gotten lost? I heard through the grapevine that the production company was changing names and forming an new business entity to avoid collectors and unpaid invoices. This is something they did once before, and are trying to do again. I immediately sent an intent to sue letter and got paid within a week. The rest of the crew formed a group to take them to small claims but were all paid in cash before the court date. Since then the company did change entities and puts all their freelancers on NET 60. The only crew that works for them now are all low-rate and college student "interns" Full Disclosure: the unpaid crew, including myself, were all on staff 6 months earlier. Then our paychecks bounced one day and we all walked out. If you are not compensated for your time and skill on a job and do nothing about it. You let them win and leave them open to doing to someone else.

I ordered one from Amazon after they were out of stock. I got shipping confirmation today, so maybe second run stock is in. I am going to test if I can put one on a Black Magic HDMI to SDI box and run into a Tricaster & into an Intensity.

EDIT: Found it!

On "lower" budgets/indie/internet content jobs, I find more often then not the director/producer will want a video editor to also be the sound editor. Same thing in corporate jobs I have worked, they would rather pay one person to do it all because, at least on the internet jobs, "It's content, not quality."

Endorsements are the equivalent of Facebook "likes". Press a button with no thought or context needed; it does not mean anything in the grand scheme of things. The only Job listings on linkedin I see for our industry is Video Editor/Post staff/contracted positions. With that said it is good to have a updated profile and barely use it then not have one. Networking with certain people led to a job popping up that led to more networking. I keep my facebook personal and Linkedin/Twitter for work. Having worked for a internet based company its worth having because web start-ups are learning that there is money in video content and can turn that into a revenue generating product. I've had coordinators tweet jobs and get a immediate response.

Thunderbolt is Intel's Lightpeak technology; Intel licenses it out and its not cheap. Black Magic is having a lot of success with it in post. Audio companies are slow to adopt, and create hardware.

As a Pro Tools user since version 7, I like Pro Tools. I do not like Avid though. Ever since they released PT10 less than 12 months after then announced PT9, I felt like the coped out and went the "Apple" yearly revision route. Which is fine for consumer goods, not professionals. I could see Avid tanking and Adobe/Apple buying assets and I.P.'s to boost their market share or go into a new market; i.e. Adobe buys Pro Tools. I've seen some houses switch to FCX recently due to it being updated to support professionals, but its just not there yet, and may never be. The post house I worked for went to Premiere and really helped streamline their workflow, and produce professional level content efficiently. Avid would sell off MC before it sells PT. But I would like to see Adobe buy PT and integrate it into their ecosystem. .

You could find a college with a stellar production/audio program and contact the department chair. Talk about your project and see if they could suggest the "best" students, both technically and craft-wise. There are over-achievers out there who are passionate about working on something, and money is a bonus at the college level. When I was in college there were a group of audio and film students (15 of us total out of about 2000 students) who actually planned on working in the industry and not just wasting there money on tuition and partying. We all got hired at mid-senior level positions while in our senior semesters at high end production houses and recording studios. So its possible to find someone, maybe, but for $1000 you really get what you pay for.

If your sitting down all day, spend the money. Or use a standing desk! It does wonders for your posture and back. Use a bar mat if your having problems with your feet. Or use both and switch it up all day. Standing desks encourage you to walk away when you need to and do push-ups during renders!