The Anonymous Production Assistant

What Is a Hollywood Assistant?

Dwight Assistant Regional Manager

I frequently get emails from new readers who are confused about what an assistant in Hollywood actually is.There are a lot of jobs in Hollywood with the word “assistant” in the title, which can be very misleading to someone new to the Industry. These seem like entry-level positions, but many of them are not; in […]

How Long Will This Scene Take?

There’s an old joke in Hollywood– “Cleopatra enters, 1/8th of a page.” That’s it. That’s the whole joke. If you’re new to the industry, that may not make much sense. First, you have to have seen Cleopatra, or at least be familiar with the massively expensive (and time consuming) entrance Elizabeth Taylor makes in the […]

Working as a PA in Austin, TX

texas flag

Hey there TAPA readers! This post comes from a fellow PA to discuss navigating the film industry in the lovely city of Austin, Texas! It seems to jive a bit differently than other major film cities. Relatively speaking, Austin’s film scene is small. We used to have a vibrant film community because of the tax […]

How Not To Approach a Production Office

Angie writes in about how to approach a production office: I have a friend who’s well connected in the local industry (not Hollywood, but there are noteworthy productions around) They have kindly provided me with the phone numbers and addresses of the production offices for those shows. Understandably, they do not want me sharing how […]

How Prevalent is Sexual Harassment in Hollywood?

Reader Jess wrote in response to this blog post on sexual harassment: Obviously each department is its own animal, but having worked the majority of my life on skeleton crew indies (with the exception of one major TV show when I was in school) I’m worried that getting any deeper into things is going to […]

How to Schedule a Meeting

As an assistant, you’re often going to be called on to schedule meetings between many busy people. Heck, you’ll probably have to coordinate with these busy people’s assistants, but that just adds a layer of confusion. For the longest time, I’d do this the old fashioned way– I’d call each person in turn, and ask […]

How Fast Do You Type?

As an office PA, you’re going to do a lot of typing. Like, a lot. Emails, lunch reports, wrap reports, production reports, call sheets. (Those last two aren’t technically your responsibility, but trust me, you’re going to have to modify them, anyway.) Typing fast gives you an advantage, as long as it’s accurate. Double check […]