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Las Vegas local ENG sound mixer needed 10/5 through 10/7/12


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"Pay's not the greatest" ?

How about downright damaging and abusive... Am I the only one who is seeing this as the new norms? Is everyone blind and dumb?

The constant bottom feeding is killing us all, slowly.... just killing us.... STOP accepting this SH&# before it's too late... PLEASE, I am begging you all...

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"Pay's not the greatest" ?

How about downright damaging and abusive... Am I the only one who is seeing this as the new norms? Is everyone blind and dumb?

The constant bottom feeding is killing us all, slowly.... just killing us.... STOP accepting this SH&# before it's too late... PLEASE, I am begging you all...

You're preaching to the choir here, yet I know of a number of mixers who would jump at the chance to pick up $1200 cash for 3 days work to keep the wolf from the door.

Eric

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The "in Jest setting" is now set to OFF...

A student is one thing, a beginner, well OK.... maybe... but to ask working professionals? and to say " CASH" like getting actual money is a plus.... really, how pathetic..

Those "number of mixers" should be tarred and feathered... Shame on them....

You know, it's really i think like this, If you cannot support yourself as a professional sound mixer, and you need to start reducing the amount you work for in half or more to keep the wolf from your door, GET ANOTHER JOB. YOU CAN'T COMPETE!!!! You have probably flooded your market and tried to squeeze in where the amount of work was not enough to sustain everyone. Realize that and find something else to do.... NORMAL BUSINESS... But to drag UP the expectations of working producers, having them now think that this is becoming the new norm, and drag down our payscale by almost 50% is, well... Bull%$#@... and you will in turn drag down the entire ship.... Am I really the only idiot whos sees this?

I had some guy call me last week for a job with 5 radios a boom and a one man bag rig for $500 a day!! He said what are you laughing at? I replied, the insanity of it all... I said 25 thousand in gear and my time for 500 bucks.... No thank you.... see how easy...

I then had a guy call me and say he was doing a continuation job of a larger job I just finished, for half the pay after giving me a "hey, we're both CAS speech, followed by a "I've been at this for 14 years" and then a how did you do the job.... I replied by, your destroying our payscale, WTF, and then a figure it out on your own.... I am growing tired of this crap.... It's getting old, and fast.

I can say we are at saturation level regarding persons in this field... simple enough...

I personally would mow lawns before I did that to OUR BUSINESS>>> I would get another job before I did that to me, our craft and all of YOU!!!!

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It's hard times out there and there are people who would kill for a job that pays $400-$500 a week never mind a day. Perhaps you have enough work where you can afford to say no to the $4-500 a day offers, many can't. I know of one person who took a 7 day reality gig for $350/10 labor only, gear supplied by production and was happy to be working because he has a family to support. It's a "me first" mentality that keeps people accepting those rates. Altruisim is an alien concept.

Eric

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It's hard times out there and there are people who would kill for a job that pays $400-$500 a week never mind a day. Perhaps you have enough work where you can afford to say no to the $4-500 a day offers, many can't. I know of one person who took a 7 day reality gig for $350/10 labor only, gear supplied by production and was happy to be working because he has a family to support. It's a "me first" mentality that keeps people accepting those rates. Altruisim is an alien concept.

Eric

And what do you think the Producer will offer the next time, on ANY show? Exactly.... So for all the people squabbling about the latest and greatest new SD or ZAX recorder and all the nifty Radio mic options offered at 3200 a piece... What are any of you supposed to buy that stuff with?... So you take, 350 a day, use some on mort. or rent, some for food, some for fuel, some for vehicle, some for medical on and on.... whats left for this gear I keep reading about?... I'll tell you, NONE.... We should all be terrified about this, manufacturers , and Sound sales businesses included... It's a game ender... People better start feeling the breeze of Altruism on their backside and fast....

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Thanks for ripping the general low-no budget principal and not me personally, gentlemen, for you're singing to the preacher here. I'm just the messenger on this one and like Eric said, someone might want a shot at a few extra bucks to keep the lights on (or maybe for the craps table?)

No matter how strongly you hold the bar for pride or fraternal integrity sake, if you're driven under by maintaining said ethic it all becomes moot. The biggest problem I see is that other sound folks (who? I don't know. Maybe newbie trustafarians needing credits more than money?) have driven prices down so low on the indie/reality/desposable TV scene that more times than not when I get a call from a potential new client and quote my bar-standard rate, it becomes a very short phone call. OTOH, we all do have to eat. I myself have taken on other "normal business" to subsidize my sound work while relocating to a different market for I have long held to the belief that you're either part of the problem or the solution and I don't want to contribute to the former. And yes, I think my old market was becoming so saturated with new sound people that it wasn't sustainable. I'd rather work gratis for a friend with a worthy cause or altogether move than to get shafted and demoralized by some unknown producer type just because he/she thinks it can be done.

just my .02

EB

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Also, FWIW, I have yet to receive any PMs regarding this job so maybe happy days are here again...or the early bird only works for premium worms? Let's see what happens when the Saturday night partiers wake up mid day. Oh, maybe that's it...some people work for beer money, not gear money!

EB

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Also, FWIW, I have yet to receive any PMs regarding this job so maybe happy days are here again...or the early bird only works for premium worms? Let's see what happens when the Saturday night partiers wake up mid day. Oh, maybe that's it...some people work for beer money, not gear money!

EB

Nice posts and a good mindset EB....

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EB is a STAND UP guy and an old friend with the right stuff in his head. I know this for sure.

However, it is not good to downgrade rates, period. However, as EB says, it's the new bunch, who are probably so green that their output is also the same color.

Maybe we should all join together and start a fast food chain! How about a good name for this? MacVibe? Oh man...

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One of my mixers friend son just got into the business last year. We use him for utility and eng mixer. The boy is showing a lot dedication and skills. I would not have problem with him taking the gig. I imagine it is an amateur dslr stuff.

Like the senator says: you get what you pay for.

In no time the boy will advance and bump his rate. Then somebody else will be on the bottom...

nothing wrong with that...

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One of my mixers friend son just got into the business last year. We use him for utility and eng mixer. The boy is showing a lot dedication and skills. I would not have problem with him taking the gig. I imagine it is an amateur dslr stuff.

Like the senator says: you get what you pay for.

In no time the boy will advance and bump his rate. Then somebody else will be on the bottom...

nothing wrong with that...

No, untill there are 20 people in LV all charging 400 for everything.... Now what Rado? I'll tell you what, your rate is now $400 for everything for 12, or you don't work...

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Everybody is not worth the same rate.

Tell that to the producers....

Don't forget he is the son of a working sound mixer and have access to gear. Not everybody can afford to do it.

I would not feel comfortable sending him to a regular shoot. So gaining experience while making $1200 will be good for him and will have no impact on me or my future.

Rado,

Keep drinking the Koolaide.... It's not so much from his side of the equation, but from the side of the producer who now has re-set the going rate.... They think, Hummm, $400 will get it done in LV...the new going rate in YOUR area.... This is not a one time affair, it is happening more and more...

So he will tell the producer, oh by the way, i've done this a few times and can get my hands on the gear... I am not a working professional, but my dad is a sound dude.... i also stayed at a Holiday Inn express last night...

Someone can always fill the seat, that's not the issue here...

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Don't forget he is the son of a working sound mixer and have access to gear. Not everybody can afford to do it.

I would not feel comfortable sending him to a regular shoot. So gaining experience while making $1200 will be good for him and will have no impact on me or my future.

That's the part you're not getting, Rado. There are so many newbies logging on here and asking for basic advice so they can get just enough chops to go out and sell themselves cheap that what AFMY said is true. It's becoming "The New Normal," as more and more fledgling producers realize there is always someone who'll take the job cheaper.

It demeans our craft and it undermines the rates we all make. It's the erosion over time that will take its toll on everyone.

Everybody is not worth the same rate.

No, but "low" and "lower" does not bode for a bright future. The difference in rates should be "normal" and "higher."

Unfortunately, we have a new generation of beginners that haven't learned this and, by the time they do, it'll be too late for many of them.

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Remember on R.A.M.P.S. how there was a post every January as a reminder to bump your rates to adjust for cost of living? I don't remember who usually started that, but is it weird I have not seen anything similar in years? My cable bill, natural gas, water, electric all go up every year, but somehow day rates don't. I'm not even bringing in the volatile price of gasoline. If politicians, most government employees, people on salary, whomever can get a cost of living increase, we are AT LEAST entitled to that. I feel like I have to fight to keep the same rate, and constantly pass on low rate jobs.

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As I've said before, are we contributing to the problem by giving too much advice on this forum to newbies? We are teaching them how to solve problems that took us years of experience to work through. We are giving them the answers to the test. Somethings take personal experience to solve but we have shown them which fork in the path to take when the problem arises. Are we not part of the problem ourselves?

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As I've said before, are we contributing to the problem by giving too much advice on this forum to newbies? We are teaching them how to solve problems that took us years of experience to work through. We are giving them the answers to the test. Somethings take personal experience to solve but we have shown them which fork in the path to take when the problem arises. Are we not part of the problem ourselves?

Yes... I for one am done with bringing in people and teaching... i have done enough and more than my share... i have been a good teacher, friend and mentor... We have reached total saturation... The amount of persons that are currently flooding the market dictates this, not my will to be helpful or non helpful. It is sad but true... I always want to help, but the time at least for me has come.

So... what should the rate be then, given there's no details on this particular shoot? I'm curious...

As the Senator always says, That depends... but I CAN say, not $400 for gear and a qualified person to do the job.... At LEAST $350 for a tiny gig gear wise... and then the human, depends on the market again, but at LEAST $450, some would say a bit lower, or higher, but I would think non union, OUT OF LARGE MARKET, this would be at least a fair offer... That 400 is fair for the gear alone, unless it was a boom into the video camera.... but these days that's seldom the deal...

Again, it's important to keep the eye on the ball.... always seperate gear and engineer rate during the discussion, never throw them together, ever. The producers will minimize the importance on either that way... So, to say $400, my first thought would be, OK, what about the rate for the Mixer?... "you mean thats for everything? ", very shocked and surprised. Make them FEEL the stupidity of the request... Make them aware that is NOT normal or acceptable, and it will not be accepted or tolerated, at least by you...

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