Production Meetings
Kara writes in: I have been talking to an AD for a TV show about getting a job as a Set PA for their upcoming season. He has contacted me about setting up an interview, but this happened a couple of weeks ago and I haven’t heard from him since. Thanks to social media, I […]
When to Lie in an Interview
I interviewed recently to be the assistant to an EP on a network TV show. My interview philosophy has changed over the last few years. When I first started out, I lied my way through nearly every question in an interview. When they’d ask what I wanted to do in Hollywood for the rest of […]
Hollywood: Land of a Thousand Promises
A few years ago, I directed a web series that got a little bit of heat with an amazing sizzle reel. We got a producer attached, and the sizzle reel found its way to Kevin Reilly, and he said, “This made me laugh out loud, and very few things make me laugh out loud.” I […]
Do I Stand a Chance?
Miruna writes: In november I’ve quit my job… The main reason I’ve quit my last job is that I desperately want to go back and work in the movie industry, it’s the perfect work place for me, I love it, I love everything about it. The thing is, I would love to work for real movies, […]
PA Rate
A reader who didn’t sign her email and has an incomprehensible list of letters and numbers for an address (at netscape.net, of all domain names) asks: I’m currently working as an Office PA on a […] film which I have been told is trying to keep things cheap, and was a little shocked that I […]
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 […]
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 […]
Ask Questions
As I’ve said before, I don’t do PA work for the money. I get paid, sure, but the pay is so ridiculously low that if that was my only reason, I’d quit and become a stock boy. The hours are better, and I’d actually have insurance. No, the reason to be a PA is to […]
Reflections on the Oscars
Don’t worry, this won’t be as long as Ken Levine’s. (Nor probably as funny.) My main thought is about Sandra Bullock. I haven’t seen The Blind Side. (My mom recommended it, which kinda pushes it down on my Netflix queue.) Anyway, the general consensus is that she won not so much for this particular performance, […]
Picky Picky
Whether you’re on set or in the office, lunch is always provided (unless you work on a cheap-ass reality show; then all bets are off). Of course, if you’re somewhere else, as I am right now,{{*}} you might miss out on the food. If you’re lucky, someone will remember to set aside a plate for […]
Mistakes Will be Made
Yesterday, Shawn commented on a grammatical mistake I made (now corrected): “Kids my age so comfortable and lazy that we can’t even muster the energy to leave the house, much less protest.” Or even do a simple grammar check. It’s true, I made a mistake, and it’s true that I often mock others for similar […]
Holding Back
Many people seem to be under the misapprehension that we in the office like to hold on to things. Several times a day, I get calls asking if a prelim callsheet has been published, or if a package has arrived, or if the latest draft of the script is out. You know what? No. If […]