Having a sense of humour has proved a vital survival tool in some of the worst possible scenarios! Whist absolutely not downplaying the seriousness of a global pandemic, Jacky Fregonese of French lighting and visual rental and production company Loctambule, based near Strasbourg, has put smiles on faces with a series of very amusing product and business tutorials … that have gained a large fan following on social media.
With all events and shows cancelled and the industry closing down with the French Covid-19 lockdown, Jacky, who heads the company with his wife Catherine Saint-Georges, wanted to do something creative to boost morale while so many usually busy companies and talented technicians, designers, production managers, event organisers, etc., all push through until events can re-start.
Jacky is well known amongst his friends – and now his growing fanbase – for his wacky sense of humour and intellectual wit!
He was originally inspired to start the funny tutorials into products Loctambule has in rental stock, which includes Robe MegaPointes, ESPRITES, BMFL Blades and PixelPATTs, all of which have featured and generated interest amongst technicians and others.
In addition to lighting, the company provides LED screens and related infrastructure and works across several sectors, from corporate presentations and experientials to music events and festivals.
“I really just wanted to make people laugh during this difficult time,” commented Jacky, “that was the initial motivation for the tutorials … then it all started getting really popular, much to my surprise!”
Each tutorial lasts around 2 or 3 minutes, and Jacky keeps it snappy, interspersing each one with user-tips about the products … with heaps of humour and some ridiculous things that you would never actually do in reality but to keep the amusement factor high!
In addition to all the Robe tutorials, he has covered other moving light products, consoles, and other useful business topics like administrative tips … and even how to properly clean an office or the warehouse in line with additional Covid-19 regulations coming onstream.
After recording the tutorials, Jacky shares them with his IT manager via WhatsApp, who edits if necessary and then shares on the Robe France Facebook channel.
Jacky adds with a large grin, “From the feedback, some people clearly think the more silly things that I might be doing during the tutorials are actually true … but either way … they seem to like the crazy side of me!”
He intends to keep going as long as he is still enjoying it and can find meaningful subjects and topics to talk about! In the meantime, he – like everyone – is hoping that business will start to re-energise in the coming months so they can start getting cashflow going!
Loctambule started investing in Robe products five years ago as they started becoming an industry-standard on so many riders and specs, but his first association with the brand pre-dates that … and in fact it goes back to when Robe was an OEM manufacturer!
He likes Robe for the robust construction, excellent engineering, and reliability. “We can have the products out on the most demanding projects for many days and they keep working and working!”
He enjoys a strong and close working relationship with Bruno Garros and the team at Robe France and comments, “I love the family atmosphere of the operation Team in Paris and this is also the same at the HQ in the Czech Republic from what I can see. People matter which I respect and it’s also the way I like to work!”
Photos courtesy Loctambule
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