Memo making the most of your giant debt ball and chain

Transcription

1 The Student PIRGs Student Debt Alert Campaign Memo making the most of your giant debt ball and chain So you have a giant debt ball and chain heading your way. How will you make the most of it? Here, the University of Southern Maine holds a press event with the ball and chain prop... This memo should answer that question, from detailing how to inflate and deflate your prop, where to find a generator, what kind of generator you ll need and even what are the best camera angles to maximize your prop s looks during photo shoots. For your convenience this memo is organized into the following areas of prop management: 1. Shipping- receiving your prop 2. Finding a Location 3. The Generator (powering your prop) 4. Inflation- rising but not as fast as student debt 5. Deflation 6. The Photo Shoot 7. Shipping it out Overarching principal: The prop is cool so you should make the most of it. If you have any questions about prop use/management or the debt ball and chain events contact Laura Deehan ext 305, or or at laura@calpirgstudents.org. You can also contact Chris Lindstrom at ; is chris.lindstrom@pirg.org. 1. Shipping-Receiving your prop This part is fairly easy. Check with Laura/Chris about who used the prop before you and confirm that they will request through UPS that someone ship the giant inflatable ball and chain to your office. Laura or the sender will notify you of the estimated time of arrival and provide a tracking number. Just make sure that someone is there to receive it. Try not to ruin the packaging when opening it so that you can easily pack it back up again to send it on to the next place after your event.

2 2. Finding the Location You need to have the location finalized one week before the event at the latest. Great locations for events must always first and foremost be places where media can easily go. Reporters won t drive more than minutes to an event, unless there s some major news, which our events aren t. Otherwise, events should be places where it s ok to inflate the prop, where there s some thematic link to the issue, and ideally where there s something visual for cameras in addition to the prop. Good ideas are: college campuses, busy shopping areas or government buildings. Be sure to actually visit the location once to make sure it s ok. Permit Some locations will require a permit. Often we won t, but if there s an obvious authority that might give us problems at the event (campus police, etc.), then we should contact them 1-2 weeks out to get permission. Pitfalls here are starting too late, not scouting the location in person, not really having a space for the prop, and being in a location that s a pain for media to get to but is cool, like a campus far away from everything else. Special Notes: The ball and chain is large- about 10 feet in diameter with an attached chain and shackle. Make sure there is enough space for the prop, especially if there are trees, power lines, or a roof overhead. Measure the location to ensure that it is big enough. To ensure that media are willing to attend your event, make sure the location is easily accessible. You may need a permit to hold an event at your chosen location. Be aware of permit fees. Some locations may be quite pricey! The location must be dry since you ll be using electrical power. If the event is going to be held outdoors, ensure there is somewhere sheltered that the ball and chain and attendees can go to avoid rain. The location should be relatively level. There has to be a place for a photographer to shoot the prop from, ideally straight on from the side or a little bit to the front of that. They ll need to be able to stand back pretty far, at least 20 feet or even more, to fit everything in the picture. It looks great if there s something near the prop for comparison, either a house, a car, some people, or a small tree. But no trees too close! 3. The Generator- Powering your Prop! In order to blow up your prop you need to rent a 2500 watt generator. You can find one of these at most Home Depots, under Generator or Rentals in the yellow pages. The link below takes you to the home depot store locator page. VIGATION&MID=9876&com.broadvision.session.new=Yes&CNTKEY=locator%2find ex.jsp Reserve one in advance and pick it up at least the day before the event.

3 VERY IMPORTANT: Get the people at the store to show you how to operate the generator before you leave. This will ensure it works too. You will need a credit card to pay for the generator. 4. Inflation You need to do a test inflate the day before your event. This will prevent 90% of the potential problems on the actual day of the event since you ll catch any issues while you have time to remedy them. 1. Pick a flat a spot with a couple of things that you can tie it to in case there is a gust of wind. 2. Zip up the holes, one on the ball, one at the end of the chain (on the inside of what goes on your foot) 3. Plug it in. 4. Watch in inflate. To be safe allow for at least an hour to inflate prop and set up press event. 5. Deflation Unplug the generator, let the ball and chain deflate. Gently squish it until it has shrunk down and then carefully place back in shipping box. Assume it will take half an hour to take down and put away. 6. The Photo Shoot Since you have this giant inflatable prop you want to make the most of it at your event. The symbol of a giant ball and chain is a powerful one and it evokes the real misery many young people feel upon graduating; of being chained to certain careers or to limited life choices due to the massive debt burden they incurred while being educated. The metaphor will be lost though if the prop is not shown at its best. There isn t much symbolism to be taken from a big black blob squashed against something for example. Also the giant shackle is not so impressive standing alone, however as soon as a handful of students are caught inside, the message is clear- young people are being trapped in the shackle of debt.

4 Here are a few photos to help you envision the prop: :

5 Pointers for making the most of the prop: 1. Make sure there is not too much stuff around it- trees, overhangs and other large objects close by are real distractions and risk harming prop too. 2. Use the Student Debt Alert banner to make the visual connection between the ball and chain and the metaphor of students chained down with debt. 3. Have young people climb inside the shackle. 4. Set your prop up where you can see different angles. 5. Avoid placing the prop under overhangs or in areas where it will be hidden. 7. Shipping It Out You must ship the prop to the next event/city. Every city has its own plan for shipping/ handing over something of this size to the next city. Make sure you know yours. And make sure to request the pickup in plenty of time so the prop isn t late arriving for the person who is counting on it for the next event. Know your deadlines! If you are planning on using UPS, they will need to know the size of the prop while packed: it weighs 70 pounds and is approximately 3 x3 x3 in size. This size package will need to be shipped via ground shipping service; the package will actually take between 3 and 5 days to arrive. You can book this service by calling Pick-UPS or online at Laura has set up an account for this purpose so ask her if you have any questions. In general the package cannot be shipped later than 5pm to arrive at the destination within 3 days, and you should contact UPS to have the prop picked up two hours before you actually want them to get it.