The Anonymous Production Assistant

Can I Take My Computer In There With Me?

Sometimes, a PA task requires you to go into another room and work all by yourself. Prepping wrap gifts and proofreading the script and making ID badges have all sent me to production office exile. I could not – in a million years – dream of asking, “Can I take my computer in there with […]

“In the Next Day or Two…”

As my unemployment comes to a temporary respite, I was thinking about a phrase I’ve heard  a lot lately: Expect a call in the next day or two. Usually, it’s a friend of mine who calls to tell me about a job opening. He (or she) gives me the preliminary info and tells me that […]

Turning Down Work

On my last show, I was bumped up to Production Secretary during wrap. The bump was largely nominal (although I did also receive a raise), since I was performing essentially the same duties I had already been performing. As we were winding down, I was told, “TAPA, you shouldn’t have to PA again. After this, […]

First Day Jitters

I’ve spent my fair share of time in production offices. From sea to shining sea. Well… from Brentwood to Burbank. And in all of those offices, I’ve experienced the same emotion on my first day: Nervousness. There’s no good reason for me to be anxious. Relatively little is expected of a PA on their first […]

PA Rate… and Raises

I’ve talked before about PA rate in a blog post appropriately titled… “PA Rate.” Everything there still applies, but I wanted to talk for a moment about negotiating for a higher rate. On every PA interview I’ve been on, the coordinator will ask either “What’s your rate?” or “What did they pay you on your […]

See You on the Next One…

The standard “goodbye” on a film set or production office is “See you on the next one.” It’s not as harsh as goodbye. It’s a little more definitive than a simple see you later. It acknowledges that this is the life we’ve chosen, moving from job to job like itinerant circus performers. But let’s get […]

Parkinson’s Law of Wrap

On almost every show I’ve been on, someone has remarked during production that we’ve been allotted an ungodly amount of time for wrap. You’ll hear, “Can you believe the studio is giving us five weeks for wrap? What are we going to do with all that time?!” Or you might get, “I once had to […]

Production Yak

I’ve talked before about Coordinators 411, which – as you know – is a Google group that includes all of the production coordinators, APOCs, secretaries, and eager PAs working in Hollywood today. It’s a great resource when you need to find an animal trainer before tomorrow morning’s 7am call time or need to unload all […]

You’re Fired

Shawn writes: Great “Goldilocks” blog entry and a fine job as always. How often is it that people get fired over such contradictions, especially for infractions like ordering too much food. (I mean, who doesn’t like leftovers?) In my experience, very few people actually get fired. That includes people who deserve to be fired. I […]

Just Because It’s Free…

…doesn’t mean you have to eat it (ALL). I’ve gained twelve pounds on this show. Considering my size, that’s put me over the edge into the “overweight” territory. I’m not someone who obsesses over their weight, but the last thing I need is to be catching heat for being the tubby PA. The PA lifestyle […]

Good Enough

On my first show, I was copying blue crew lists, and the corner of page two kept curling in the copier, resulting in a tiny black smudge appeared on everybody’s crew lists. The secretary flipped through a handful of them, then gave them all back to me. “Do them again,” he said. “Figure out a […]