ESTA Foundation Announces eSet App for iOS

The ēSET (Essential Skills for the Entertainment Technician) body of knowledge developed and vetted by industry professionals has now been released as an iOS app available for download in the iTunes store.

The body of knowledge has been available on the ESTA Foundation site but ēSET committee member Dana Taylor thought it needed to be even more mobile so he decided to work to make it an iOS app.

The creation of the ēSET program was born of the realization that many current entry-level entertainment technicians lack fundamental knowledge and skills related to the industry. The resulting goal of ēSET is to provide technicians with the knowledge and skills they will need to function effectively across all fields of the live entertainment industry and a tool to organize and guide their learning.

The user of the ēSET program will be able to focus on self-selected topics utilizing a sequential approach to learning drawn from a database of textual and graphical content related to entertainment technology. Further, ēSET provides tools to better assist the user in organizing selected materials in a meaningful fashion, enhancing the learning experience and providing a ready reference to important data.

• For educators, the availability of in-depth materials and the ability to organize them for students will better enable them to assist and engage student learning while providing the student with the most up to date information available.
• Facility managers will be able to collect venue-specific information to better assist in the training of their workforce.
• Employers will have a new and powerful tool to identify employee skills and readiness for work and a mechanism to support further training of their staffs.
• Individuals will have a vast source of technical support materials literally at their fingertips.

The 99 cent ēSET app offers educators, managers, employers and individuals an on the go tool by which they can teach, learn and prosper within the industry. You can download the ēSET app from the iTunes App Store.

ESTA Foundation Announces 2011 Holiday Card Student Design Contest

Behind the Scenes announces the second annual Holiday Card Student Design Contest and seeks prize donations for the 8th annual Long Reach Long Rider/Behind the Scenes raffle at the USITT Conference & Stage Expo in Charlotte, NC in March.

Behind the Scenes is seeking raffle prizes for its ever-popular raffle at USITT, co-sponsored by the Long Reach Long Riders. Their co-founder, Bill Sapsis, will conduct the raffle on the last day of the USITT Stage Expo. The event always draws a large crowd and considerable press coverage, so donating a prize is an excellent way to promote your company. Donors will also be featured in press releases, articles, and on the website. To donate a product, service, or gift certificate, please send an email before February 5, 2011 to raffle@estafoundation.org with the name of the item, the item’s market value and the name of the company making the donation. Ten traditional and one grand prize will be chosen from all submitted prizes to be offered at the raffle.

Please help us spread the word to schools in your area about the Behind the Scenes Holiday Card Student Design Contest. Students who participate in the contest will have their work seen by prominent industry designers including Beowulf Boritt, Christine Jones, and Bruce Rodgers, and the winner’s design will be produced for sale along with designs created for Behind the Scenes by some of the industry’s top designers. The contest is open to full-time lighting, set, video, or costume design students. Original designs must be submitted by March 30.

Guidelines and cards from previous years can be viewed at www.estafoundation.org.

Long Reach Long Riders Ride Again in July

The Long Reach Long Riders are happy to announce the dates and route for their 8th annual charity motorcycle ride. The 2011 ride will begin on July 1 in Billings, Montana and wind through some of the wildest landscapes in the United States before finishing back in Billings on July 9th. Along the way the group will visit a number of National Parks including Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Craters of the Moon and Glacier. Old Faithful and Mammoth Hot Springs are two of the many sites to be visited, and the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway and The Highway to the Sun are a couple of the many magnificent roads that will be ridden during the 2011 ride.

What was supposed to be a one time event in 2004 has become an eagerly anticipated annual trip. The ride supports two charities: Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and The ESTA Foundation’s Behind the Scenes Program. To date the LRLR have raised over $250,000.0.

Greg Williams, who shares 2011 Ride Marshal duties with his wife Alice Neff noted, “Last year’s ride was spectacular. The Sierra Nevada Mountains are incredibly beautiful and the ride up the Pacific Coast Highway was breathtaking. Loren Shreiber set a very high bar with last year’s ride but I do believe this year’s route will be even better.”

For more information about the Long Reach Long Riders, to join the ride or make a donation, please visit www.lrlr.org.

Last Chance to Order Behind the Scenes Holiday Cards

This is your last chance, you only have a couple of days left in August to order your Behind the Scenes Holiday Cards.  With the purchase of these cards you are doing to great things. 1, supporting our injured brothers and sisters in the industry and 2,showing your friends, relatives and colleague that you care about them during the holiday season.

Head over the the ESTA Foundations website NOW and order your holiday cards. All proceeds go to Behind the Scenes, a charity providing financial support to entertainment technology professionals who are ill or injured.

HURRY, orders close September 1, 2010!