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Will Working on a Christian Movie Hurt My Career?

Will writes in:

I’ve had a decent PA career in Atlanta, working on several movies and TV series. But I’m moving to Los Angeles soon, because I really want to write.

One of the movies I worked on was an explicitly Christian film.  I have no idea if this credit might work against me once I move out to LA. I have PA experience through non-religious companies but I wanted to know if I should shoot for a PA position in LA or maybe something higher up?

I wouldn’t worry about it, for several reasons.

While religiosity isn’t as common here as in other parts of the country, it’s not quite the Hollywood Babylon you might be imagining. There are still plenty of people who go to church on Sunday (or temple on Saturday, or whathaveyou). And just because someone doesn’t do those things, doesn’t mean they’re prejudiced against those who do.

“Christian film” is a pretty broad category, too. I have a hard time imagining someone having a problem with a movie about a fireman with marital trouble, or even that movie about the kid who came back from heaven (or whatever the hell that was).

Now, if there’s a movie called “Gay Teens Are Going to Hell” on your resume, you might be in for an awkward conversation. But here’s the other thing– everyone knows that, as a PA, you have no control over the final product.

You do not determine whether a movie is good or bad (in any sense of those words). PAing is a job, and you take the jobs you can get.

Of course, Leni Riefenstahl could use the same excuse.{{1}} You have to decide for yourself if you’re okay working on a pro-choice movie, or a pro-Gamergate webseries, or whatever your personal bugbear is.

But it’s probably not a good idea to try and predict what someone else’s bugbear might be. Almost any movie is offensive to somebody; you’ll never get anywhere worrying about them.

[[1]]Apologies to Godwin.[[1]]

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One Response

  1. I would be more likely to hire someone who worked on a movie they found distasteful, actually.
    More on the creative side the better of course. Shows they’re not above tackling a rough subject.
    That’s just me though, and I’m not movie but literary. Just saying if I was asked to put together a documentary on Coke union abuses or Dole’s role in the formation of ‘banana republics’, I’d pick the pro-choice woman that helped work on a pro-life film, or the anti-gamer that worked on the GG film..

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