What’s Taking So Long?
Different types of shows have their own rhythms. Multi-camera shows build slowly, from a simple table read and maybe a rehearsal on day one, all the way up to the full-0n craziness of a 16 hour shoot night. Single-camera comedies can be a grind, because something is always going on, whether it’s a tech scout or […]
Wrap Binders, Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying And Love Wasting Paper
If you don’t know what wrap binders are, take a moment to bask in the beautiful bliss that is your ignorance. Your world is a magical one, but it is one I can be a part of no longer. Wrap binders might just be the biggest waste of time, space, and paper in a business […]
Upward Mobility
As we approach the end of the televsion season, Jason writes in about moving onward and upward to other shows: I work on a tv show right now as a PA, but really I do more personal assistant type work for one of the shows producers. It’s not that the job isn’t a good one, […]
What to Claim on Your W-4
Christoph writes in: Since last fall, my gigs have been getting more and more frequent, and I have even been lucky enough to land some longer jobs. However, I have been noticing that as a job gets longer, there seems to be a larger percentage of my paycheck being taken out by taxes. I have […]
There’s Lazy, And Then There’s This
It’s been a while since I complained about ADs, so how’s about I do that right now? We had a [glossary]tech scout[/glossary] on yesterday. When the party bus{{1}} returned, the 1st AD called the office and asked for a PA to come down and gather the stuff that people had left behind. Now, our production […]
How to Schedule a Meeting
After Sunday’s get-together, I received a few emails like the following{{1}}– Hi, APA! I met a lot of people on Sunday but I don’t know a polite way to continue the connection. Do I just call them out of the blue? Email? Text? Several of them are PAs (like me) and work 60+ hours a […]
Out Times
Marvin asks: What is the process of getting “out times” from the working trucks? One of the more important aspects of the [glossary slug=’production-report’]PR[/glossary] is recording the times every member of the crew started and ended their day, along with any meal penalties, NDBs, and stuff like that. As I’ve explained before, each department is […]
Some Writers Are Oblivious
If you’ve never been on a multicamera series, it’s a lot like being on a play that has a one-night engagement. There’s a lot of set up and rehearsal and honing everything down to the last detail, so you can perform it for a singular audience. You only get one shot at it,{{1}} and thus […]
Your Driving Record
Andrew writes in: I just got offered a potential PA job pending a drivers license check, and I was wondering what the requirements are that production companies look for regarding license checks. Most of the time, they just want to make sure that you have a license (and insurance), so they can send you on runs. […]
What’s the Biggest Lie on Set?
“One more.” Never, ever, ever believe a director when he says this. It is never, ever, ever true. Usually, he’ll say this when he realizes the cast and crew have run out of patience, when it’s the 9th take on 12th setup of a scene about two people talking at the dinner table. He wants […]
There Are More Accountants Than You Think
Today’s topic is… ACCOUNTING! Seriously, though, people seem to be confused about accounting. Maybe it’s because most of the crew doesn’t see the accountants every day like I do. At most, you’ll see one of the accountants on Thursdays. But, like most departments, accounting{{1}} is divided up among specialties. There’s usually a head accountant (or […]
Can I Be an Office And a Set PA?
Janice writes in: I just landed an office PA job for a pilot that has a good chance of going to series. But all of the jobs I’ve had so far have been on set. I’m nervous; I don’t want to be stuck in the relatively small office and never see set, or be just […]