Category Archives: Finding a Job

Job Offer I Don’t Want

Posted on May 20, 2013 by | 2 Comments

A Canadian reader wrote in–

I recently moved to a big city in Canada to work in the film/tv industry. I graduated from uni last year and I thought I wanted to do editing. Then I did editing at a small company in my hometown and realized that it was not what I dreamed it would be. So I moved to the big city and joined the Guild (paid the fee) to be an apprentice AD. I have yet to be called into work on set, but I had a very promising interview, with a followup scheduled this week, for a reality TV editing job. Full time gig. But it’s not really what I want to do.

If I get the editing job, do I take it and postpone my set dreams another year or do I turn it down and keep working at a well-known coffee company and putting myself on availability lists for the guild? City life ain’t cheap, but I don’t want to shoot myself in the foot career-wise/get sucked into a black hole of job hate. Any advice?

First, I should say I am not familiar with Canada at all. I cannot tell you what the odds are of getting a job through the guild. You seem to be describing a traditional union, like the UAW, or the second season of The Wire.

Say what you will, I LIKED the second season.

Seniority sucks.

Here in America, film unions are more like loose associations that give you insurance when you pay your dues. There’s no guild hall where everyone hangs out, waiting for their next gig.

That being said, my general inclination is to take the job you’re offered. You never know when/if you’ll get another offer that you want. Remember, an interview is not a job.

And heck, maybe you just had a bad experience. Not everyone’s first job is all hugs and puppies.

Yeah, I found this picture on a PTSD forum. What of it?

Or puppy hugs.

Sometimes your first job involves cleaning dildos.

But that was one job. Maybe you’ll love editing at this next place. Also, who knows what opportunities it will open up in the future? Reality shows are very fluid. Maybe you can transition into a production role.

Having goals is great, but don’t ignore the present while hoping for a brighter future.

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Posted in Finding a Job, On the Job

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The Right Title

Posted on May 10, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Alex writes:

I got my first big PA job! A friend in the camera dept. put a good name in for me. I’m a 3D Camera PA for [REDACTED]. I was just curious how I should put that on my resume. Do I specify what kind of PA I am or just put Set PA again like the other ones? Right now it reads:

3D Camera PA Movie Title Movie Prods, LLC

First of all, as I tweeted recently, you should list the studio, not the movie’s LLC. You want the name of the biggest company involved, which means somebody whose logo will be at the beginning of the company. If this were a TV show, you’d most likely use the name of the network.

But as to your actual question, you should make two versions of your resume. If you’re applying to a job in the camera department, use “3D Camera PA;” that’s a pretty cool title. If, however, you’re applying to production, change it to “Set PA.”

This goes for basically any low-level job. If you worked in casting, but you’re applying for a job in the office, put “Office PA.” I mean, they’re in an office, right?

This doesn’t work for the serious, skilled crew positions. Don’t claim you were a grip when you were an electric. But PA skills are highly transferable. The main difference is who’s yelling at you for letting their coffee get cold.

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From Extra to PA

Posted on May 9, 2013 by | 6 Comments

Kate writes in:

What do you think about someone who works as an extra (background) to network with crew? I laughingly find it easy to get a job as an extra (they call me pretty often), but harder to get a job as a PA, since that’s a “who you know” job versus a “what you look like” job.

The first couple of times on set, I wondered how I could network toward this goal, but felt awkward going about it. Recently, I was an extra on a miniseries for half a day, and I was wondering if it would be weird to call the production office and ask whether they needed a PA/day playing PA.

Basically: Is it weird to go from background extra to crew?

It’s unusual, but not totally weird.

Don’t think of it as “networking;” instead, think of “making friends.” So, don’t call out of the blue. Only call if you’ve already made friends.

Also, bring your PA resume with you whenever you go out on a background gig. At the end of the day, check with the 2nd AD or key PA that you’re now friends with: “If you ever need a day-player, keep me in mind. I already know everybody’s name! Here’s my resume, just in case.”

That’s actually good advice for everyone, always. Just keep a copy of your resume in your car. If you’re ever in a situation where someone might consider hiring you, you can hand it to them right away.

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Posted in Finding a Job

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Should I Call When They Ask Me To Call?

Posted on April 30, 2013 by | 5 Comments

A reader whose name I will withhold for obvious reasons writes–

I’m a recent film graduate, and will be moving to LA soon. Not too long ago, a casting producer of [Big Time Reality Show] came to my school to give a presentation on reality TV. After the presentation, I introduced myself and told her what I see myself doing. Long story short, we exchanged contact info and she told me to contact her once I’m in LA. Is this standard Hollywood talk or did she really mean for me to contact her once I’m in LA?

Someone speaking at a school should know better than to give her number out to students, unless she really does want you to call.

People do often say, “Call me” without really meaning it. But I figure that’s there fault for being a fake Hollywood person.

That being said, don’t go searching for someone’s phone number in a union directory or something and call them out of the blue. You’ll come across as a creepy stalker, at best.

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If You Didn’t Get Credit, Does It Still Go On Your Resume?

Posted on April 8, 2013 by | 3 Comments

Melissa asks:

A few months ago, I helped a director on his low-budget film for about 4 weeks. It ended up being a huge mistake (he took advantage of my inexperience), and I didn’t receive any credit for it on IMDb. Can I still put it on my resume?

Yes, you can!

An illegal immigrant exercising her second ammendment rights. I'm not sure which side of the political spectrum will get more upset.

Rosita Adelita

It doesn’t matter if you were credited in the film. It sure as hell doesn’t matter if you get credited on IMDb. You worked on it, it goes on your resume.

IMDb has this weird rule that you can’t get credited on something until it’s been released, which means my IMDb page is always somewhere between six months and two years behind. Even if the show has been on the air for six years, if you started in season seven, no Database for your Internet Movie until the premiere.

Don’t trust IMDb to be your resume. Make your own resume. (Or have me make it, whatever.) I advise people to add as many credits as they can, even if you only worked on a show for a day.

Reader Chris suggested adding “(temp)” behind those types of credits, but I think “(day player)” sounds better, and utilizes the lingo (which is always impressive). If you have a mix of long-term and day-playing jobs, put the longer ones higher up, to emphasize you have been fully employed at one time or another.

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Posted in Finding a Job

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Immigrant Workers

Posted on April 3, 2013 by | 1 Comment

Reader Luciana writes:

I’m writing to you from the other side of the world, Buenos Aires, Argentina. (Nowadays mostly known as the country of the new Pope.)

As an experienced media producer, I’m  considering the possibility of going to the US and trying to get a job in the TV/film industry over there, since in my country, the job offerings in the industry are almost non-existent.

So, I wanna ask you two things: first of all, if there is any chance a company would hire a foreign professional… I mean, have you met coworkers from another countries or are they all Americans?

And secondly…do all the jobs involve work permits/legal papers? I mean, is there freelance work who doesn’t require it or something like that? Since getting papers from Argentina is definitely impossible (because you require a job offer, which obviously you are not gonna get from here if no one knows you in the US right?).

You’re in a tough spot. TV industry or otherwise, no one is allowed to work in the United States without the proper permits and visas. It’s not the employers who demand it; it’s the government.

I have worked with foreigners on several shows, but they were almost always department heads. They built their careers outside of America, and were then brought here because their skills were unique and in-demand. As a producer, you might be able to follow this route, although I don’t know how you’d go about looking for work like that.

For most of my readers, who are PAs or otherwise low on the totem pole, there’s a -0% chance you’ll secure a job before coming to America. I’ve already said they’re not going to hire a PA from out-of-state, when there’s thousands of perfectly good PAs right here in Los Angeles. Adding visa complications just makes you an even bigger headache.

The few non-department head foreigners I’ve met all got their visas through other means, either coming here as students and getting a job while still in school, or by marriage.

I recommend OK Cupid.

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A Random Collection of Resume Tips

Posted on March 13, 2013 by | 8 Comments

After helping over a hundred people with my resume service, I’ve noticed certain mistakes seem to crop up repeatedly. So, here’s some tips in no particular order:

  • Don’t include “social media proficiency” or something like that under your “skills.” Old people read that as “spends all day on Facebook.” Or possibly Myspace. Because, you know, they’re old.
  • If you have absolutely no professional experience, then it’s okay to include your student films. But don’t only include things where you were the director or producer; you look like a jackass. Include below-the-line positions, too, like grip or even PA. That way, you look like you’re willing to start at the bottom. As soon as you start working in the real world, move these items down on the list, or off altogether.
  • Make sure the name on your email address matches the name on your resume.
  • Don’t use your university’s email. A .edu address makes you look like you’re still in school.
  • A production office is not an office at a production company. A “PA” is not a personal assistant. Make sure your resume accurately reflects the jobs you’ve done.
  • References go in your cover letter, not your resume.

And, once you get the job, here’s a bonus tip from reader Eric:

I found that a wine case with dividers held coffee cups perfectly, even letting me double stack cups.

Man, an office where they buy you coffee and wine? That sounds awesome.

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Should You Intern?

Posted on March 4, 2013 by | 3 Comments

In the past week, many people have been talking about the Black Swan intern lawsuit, including The Business, Scriptnotes, and the Hollywood Reporter. Since I was an intern not terribly long ago, I figured I should weigh in.1

Internships are either a great way to meet people and learn about the business, or the exploitation of people who are too young and ignorant to know any better. Actually, scratch the “either.” They’re both.

Big budget movies and network shows will absolutely not hire interns who aren’t students. It’s a rather strange law. “You’re not allowed to work for free. Oh, you’re paying $21,000 a year to go to school? Then, yeah, sure, go work for negative money. Just not free.”

Independent movies will ignore this law. Every other job posting on Craig’s List is for an “intern-PA.” It basically means you are doing the work of a PA without being paid. It’s not training, it’s not educational. You’re doing a job that otherwise the production would have to pay someone for. You’re putting someone out of work by taking “interning” this way.

I can’t really begrudge you, though. Everyone has worked for free, either to get experience or a better title or to make new connections. Just make sure you’re getting something out of the free job.

The Black Swan interns don’t seem to think they got anything out of it. I find that unlikely. I think the more likely story is that someone told them they have a legal case to sue Fox.2 (Which, again, they definitely do, even though this is not uncommon in Hollywood.)

I’m more surprised that the producers put themselves in this position in the first place. With a $13,000,000 budget, Black Swan wasn’t a big-budget movie, but it wasn’t exactly small, either. Certainly it was a union show. I’ve worked on Fox series before, and they never had unpaid interns. I suspect someone who was used to small-budget, non-union shows brought them in without realizing it was a problem.

In case you’re wondering, I don’t think suing Fox was a good idea, unless they never plan on working in Hollywood ever again. Which, considering how thin their skin obviously is, is probably for the best.

Footnotes    (↩ returns to text)
  1. Which I have before, but that was a while ago, and not everyone’s read that article.↩
  2. As Craig Mazin pointed out on the Scriptnotes podcast (and as I’ve pointed out myself), studios and networks create individual production companies for each show/movie. There’s a lot of legal reasons for it, one of which is so that when interns sue you, they can’t also sue all of Fox.

    From my understanding, part of this case is determining whether Fox can actually shield themselves from lawsuits this way. Whether or not the jury finds in favor of the plaintiffs, I hope the judge decides Fox is a legitimate defendant. These kinds of legal fictions annoy the crap out of me.↩

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Posted in Finding a Job, On the Job, The Industry

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Self-Serving Blog Post (That Might Help You, Too)

Posted on March 1, 2013 by | Leave a comment

It’s been awhile since I’ve updated you on the state of the blog, so here goes.

In the last week, since I’ve started blogging again, I’ve received over 2,000 readers every day. Tuesday and Wednesday, over 2,400, which is nearly a record. So, if you’re sharing the blog with your friends, it seems to be working. Thanks!

As of this writing, I have 968 Twitter followers. I’m not sure what happens when I cross over to 1,000, but I’m sure it’s magical. If you don’t follow me, please do. I’ll follow you right back. Also, that’s where I let everyone know if I’ve uploaded a new joblist. If you want to hear about it right away, following is a good idea.

My Facebook page, on the other hand, is way behind with only 615 likes. More people use Facebook than Twitter, right? What’s the deal there? Don’t you like me?

But as much as having more readers/followers/likers will boost my ego, there’s another reason you should share TAPA with more people. Specifically, your boss.

I created a page to list job notices a while back. It’s been a rather sad affair, with updates only every few weeks. I think the problem is that most of my readers are, like me, PAs.

If those of you who are working shared this blog with your bosses (and other department heads you’re friendly with), you could be a great help to those who are currently jobless.

There are new jobs opening up around Hollywood every single day. If I only knew what those jobs were, I could tell you, dear reader, all about them.

One more thing, while I’m being self-serving: see those text ads on the left-hand column? That’s what keeps TAPA online. Wouldn’t hurt if you clicked them once in a while. :)

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Posted in About Me, Finding a Job

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Commitment

Posted on March 1, 2013 by | 3 Comments

Matthew asks:

I was wondering how do you deal with a company asking for a 1-2 year commitment. Of course I’m going to say yes if they’re asking for commitment. Are they just trying to scare the non-committed away? What are the consequences of leaving for a better job? Is it right for me to accept a job, thinking I may want to leave in a few months because a job I’ve been waiting for might open up?

I assume you’re asking about jobs on the UTA Joblist, or something you found on Entertainment Careers. Those are much more like regular jobs in the real world than production. There, changing jobs every few months makes you look flakey and unreliable. In production, working more than six months on a given show is as much a matter of luck as anything else.

Leaving in less than a year will burn your bridges. If you’re just looking for a paycheck to carry you until your next show, fine, whatever. But if you’re genuinely trying to build your career and make connections with the suits, don’t take the job unless you really plan on committing.

There’s an opportunity cost to everything that you do.1 Yes, taking this job might mean passing up another job later. But not taking this job might mean starving if you don’t get that other job later. You have to weigh all of these factors when you consider accepting a position.

One last piece of advice– don’t count on being offered a better job later. This business is way too fickle. In Hollywood, a bird in the hand is worth at least a dozen in the bush.2

Footnotes    (↩ returns to text)
  1. Writing this blog means I’m not working on my script right now.↩
  2. I tried googling “a bird in the hand” for a nice picture to wrap up this post. Instead, I got these confusingly NSFW pictures. Rule 34 strikes again.↩

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