I’m a Los Angeleno, born and raised, and I admired the leisure trade even earlier than I used to be part of it. I’ve been lucky to construct a profitable profession in Los Angeles as a Lighting Designer, contributing to a few of the most enjoyable and high-profile tasks of the previous 35 years. From scripted collection to stay telecasts to actuality competitors reveals, I’ve labored alongside extremely proficient individuals, making magical moments. I really like what I do, the individuals I do it with, and the metropolis we name residence.
For the previous 5 seasons I’ve served as Lighting Designer on the technicolor explosion of artistry and self-expression that’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” which has been proudly made in Los Angeles since 2009. At a time when productions are more and more leaving Los Angeles, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” has remained firmly planted, holding onto its LA roots and a lot of the devoted crew who helped construct the iconic present.
Many people have labored in manufacturing for many years. We’ve come up by the ranks, mentored by veterans who formed this trade and had been lighting phases with carbon arcs and tungsten sources. Our crew consists of gaffers and key grips whose dad and mom, and even grandparents, had been in the trade. We’ve received digicam operators who began out as PAs in the early days of actuality TV, and passionate, younger expertise—many making the transfer to Los Angeles to interrupt into the enterprise— who hope this will likely be the first of many tasks in a lifelong profession. We’re the type of staff who’ve lengthy fashioned the spine of this trade city: generational, expert, and deeply invested in its future.
The work is tough, the tempo is quick, and the expectations are excessive. Every week “RuPaul’s Drag Race” delivers one thing spectacular, whether or not it’s a Broadway-style musical, a scripted appearing problem, a excessive style picture shoot, or a lip sync smackdown for the ages, we’re continually elevating the bar. We’re artists who need to create one thing timeless—a second that folks will bear in mind, and which may even change their lives.
That stage of artistic ambition is made potential due to LA’s unmatched manufacturing ecosystem: the greatest crews in the enterprise, cutting-edge rental homes, skilled collaborators, versatile sound phases, and dependable trade companions. These native, world-class sources permit us to be daring, versatile, and environment friendly.
A lot of the success of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” could be credited to World of Surprise’s dedication to producing the long-running collection in Los Angeles. They’ve confirmed there isn’t any higher place to make award-winning, culturally resonant tv than proper right here at residence. Their continued funding in LA’s manufacturing neighborhood not solely helps maintain jobs and companies, it preserves the legacy of workmanship, collaboration, and artistic excellence that defines this city.
Manufacturing is in LA’s DNA. Let’s hold it that means.
