Jane writes in:
I sent in a resume to a job posting and was emailed by a First AD thanking me for my interest in the shoot and told me “to expect an email in 3 weeks.”
Should I send a follow-up e-mail/call in two weeks (etc)? What’s protocol to following up a job possibility if they expressed interest first?
I know the common wisdom says “don’t bug them” but I didn’t follow up a job possibility on a film set last time and was never given an interview.
Following up in two weeks is a good rule of thumb, except when they specifically say three weeks.
If you were to reply in two weeks, they may not notice. Or, they might glance at the email chain to orient themselves, and notice, again, they specifically said three weeks.
Following directions is probably the biggest part of being a PA. Don’t fuck that up in an email before you really have a job.
I would wait three weeks and one day:
Hey, [AD’s name],
I just wanted to check in with you about [show]. I’d love to be a part of the team. When do you start shooting?
Thanks,
Jane
In and out. Don’t waste a lot of text on this. You just want them to see your name and remember that they liked your resume.
There’s any number of reasons why they haven’t gotten back to you, and very few of them have anything to do with you. Don’t freak out and email/call/text every couple of days. That will bug them, and then it will be your fault you didn’t get the job.
