iPod and my costuming life

I have never been a person to go out and buy the latest gadgets. I received the iPod Touch for a Christmas gift last year and it has completely changed my life as a costumer. I used to have to carry around folders of sketches, notes, and scripts and now I have it all handy on one device.

Currently, I am designing The Last Days of Judas Iscariot for John Jay College. I am also designing two productions at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. All three of these shows have over twenty cast members, and I need to keep organized in order for it all to get done in an efficient, timely manner.

I have discovered many applications and services (often free) through my iPod Touch that have made my life so much more efficient, and not to mention “greener”. (Something we are all trying to do nowadays).

Using my MobileMe account in conjunction with the free MobileFiles application I have uploaded the PDF version of my script for Last Days. I have all of my measurement charts and costume plots on my iPod using the MobileFiles App. You can also upload sketches and research .jpgs if needed. Because I have 35 cast members in Last Days, I have photographed them all to keep them straight. I uploaded those pictures onto the iPod via iPhoto and now have a visual reference of them at all times. I can sync up my iCal application with my iPod, so I can keep all of my appointments, meetings and technical rehearsals straight, and it will give me a notice of things coming up with an alarm function.

I ordered some shirts from Thailand yesterday for Last Days, and I will be able to track them through TrackerLite. If I am not sure what the address of a store might be or how to get there – there are applications for that. I use white pages, GoogleMaps and HopStop, but I know there are several free and paid applications to do this. I use ShopShop for simple shopping lists. I am playing with MobileFiles Pro to see if I can update my budgets and large shopping lists that way – stay tuned.

There are several applications I can use as a freelancer. I now carry my reel and portfolio with me at all times. I can give my business card to new contacts using BeamMe. I am pretty consistently able to keep up with my email, Facebook, and tweets.

As I find more applications and functions that will make our lives easier, I will tweet or write about them. I am in love with the idea of not carrying around all of these charts and scripts around on paper anymore. When you are a costumer in NYC, and need to carry your world around with you on your shoulder all day, anything to make that load lighter is amazing. I am looking forward to the day when I can have a completely electronic and very mobile Costuming Bible with me at all times.