A/V Design

A/V Designer:
Able “to navigate the vast array of products out there and select the combination that will best achieve the desired end result within the budget…Put the job out to Bid, evaluate the bids…and oversee the installation”. From Creating Immersive Audio Environments by Steven J Thorton, PE in the Sept/Oct 2007 edition of Exhibit Builder.

I thought the definition was interesting – while we don’t have A/V design (projections tend to fall under lighting not sound if a projection designer isn’t involved), I wonder if it will eventually come into theatre. It seems like the design elements become more and more merged into each other. Historically, we used to have production design as opposed to element design (meaning sets, costumes, lights etc.). Many other places outside of the US still tend to design productions as a whole following the historical model. It makes sense in some ways – costumes and scenery are the first areas, then lighting, then other pieces. Sound, as always underrated, is historically there but not considered a design element (though other elements where there prior to being a designed element also as they were actor provided). Any way – I digress, my point really is that I wonder if we will come full circle and start to look more at production design as a whole instead of individual elements.