Demo Reel
Jordan recently commented on an old post about cover letters: Is it presumptuous to include a demo reel link in a resume if it is relevant? “If it is relevant,” I don’t imagine it would be presumptuous, but I can’t imagine a circumstance when it would be, at least for a production assistant. (Maybe you […]
Single Parents
Ki recently commented on an older post: I know that PA have long work hours. Do you think that it a single parent could handle this job? I’m not sure how to address this question with my usual sardonic wit. Being a single parent is difficult in ways I probably can’t imagine, and there’s nothing really […]
90% of success
Script Goddess had a fun post last week about filling as an AD on a commercial. This passage in particular caught my attention: Day 3 Exterior House. My first time directing trucks and production vehicles. As I was arriving at the location My key P.A. called in and said he’d be late. How late I […]
Don’t Be a Doormat
Something I neglected to mention in yesterday’s post— There must be, unfortunately, a limit to a PA’s kindness. Certain departments (I’m just gonna come right out and say it’s usually costumes) like to take advantage of friendly production assistants, if you’re not careful. For instance, sometimes mail gets delivered to the production office, rather than the department […]
Focus
Jared commented on yesterday’s post: I generally pick favorites and cater to them. There’s just no way i’m going to make everyone happy, so why try? When lunch is in my hands I cater to my bosses (POC, APOC,) and the ADs wants and needs. Those are the people who hire PAs in the future […]
Lunch “Break”
I’m a people pleaser, which is why ordering lunch is very stressful for me. On most shows, the office will eat off the catering truck, like the rest of the crew. But that only works if the company is on stage, and shooting daylight hours. If the crew is shooting a split day, you can’t […]
The Factory Floor
Rachel writes: First off I love your blog! It’s comforting to hear that another PA is dealing with the same stuff I deal with. 🙂 I have been working as a PA for the past year on different reality shows. My resume is obviously OK (or at least decent) otherwise I wouldn’t be getting any work, […]
We Were Driving, Driving in Your Car
Colin commented on the bus story: I’ve been living & working in LA for almost 2 years now, car-less… Yes it can be more complicated, but as a working cinematographer/director on small projects, I find people either give me transportation, (or you fly to another city) or I’m on a 2-day shoot and then editing […]
PA vs. Intern
Haley commented recently: Thanks for your Blog of awesomeness! So, I just got an interview to be an Art Dept. intern on a new Showtime series (yay!), and I had two questions for you. 1) What is the difference between a PA and an Intern on set? Legally, it means you can’t work. No, really. […]
It’s Not All About You
Not long ago, I was working casting on a reality show. It’s very different from (read: “less professional than“) a scripted show. In scripted, the actors have scheduled appointments; they have scenes that they’re supposed to have prepared; they’re polite, but focused on the task at hand. For reality shows, it’s basically a cattle call. These […]
Other People Work Hard, Too
I saw this video on a couple friends’ Facebook pages recently: I can definitely sympathize with the coordinator in this video. All day long, the only thing we in the office hear from the ADs are stupid requests for things they already have, or things we don’t even have yet. Of course, from their perspective, […]
The Bus Story
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. There’s this PA, right? He just fell off the turnip truck, doesn’t know anything about the Industry, but he seems to be a nice enough guy and a hard worker, so the coordinator hires him. On his first day, his boss sends him out on a run, […]