The Anonymous Production Assistant

Thank You for Smoking

I make fun of and complain about actors a lot on this blog, but they’re not the only ones who are egotistical and disconnected from reality. A friend of mine recently got a job on a big, huge show.  It’s one you’ve heard of, trust me. He was telling me all about their sets and […]

Where’s My Script?

A friend related a story to me recently about a well-known prima donna actor.  Naturally, I loved it. Because it’s hearsay, I probably shouldn’t name names, so I’ll just say my friend was working on an unspecified Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin off, and I’ll call the actor, oh, “Bavid Doreanaz.” So, a new script […]

Keeping People Happy

EastSt said: Um, they are getting paid FAR more then you… Pizza and your gas money is a SMALL price to pay to keep them happy. I really don’t understand this logic. At all. Isn’t the fact that she’s getting paid more in a day than I get in a week supposed to keep her […]

Delivery

The other day, one of our actresses decided she really, really, really wanted a pizza. Naturally, my boss sent me out to the nearest CPK to pick up some hideous Ninja Turtles-style concoction with goat cheese and spinach and who knows what else. Driving back, my car smelling like a culinary nightmare, I wondered to […]

Distro

One of the basic tasks of a PA is distributing paperwork that no one wants to read.  (With good reason, usually; more than a few times, I’ve passed out a memo regarding the fact that the elevators in our building would be shut down… on Saturday.  When no one was going to be there.) As […]

How to Move Up from Reality TV to Real TV

Reader Kelly writes: I love your blog, just wanted to say that.  Thanks for writing it. Awwww.  Well, that’s it for today! …Oh, wait, no. She also had a question: I have been working more and more in production, specifically most recently in reality.  How do I get into being a P.A. in features or […]

Sociopathy

Another part of Robert’s comment stuck in my head: The director is obviously doing what makes him happy…putting down caring souls such as yourself. I think this is a mistake people frequently make. Putting me down doesn’t make him happy. For that to make him happy, he’d have to care what I think. But he […]

Whoooooo are you? Who, who? Who, who?

It’s virtually impossible to tell, by eye, an office PA from a young producer. Unstylish clothing, disheveled hair, four-day beard growth. (Of course, you’ll know immediately if you see them getting out of their car.) But if you see me on the set without a walkie or a pair of gloves on my belt, I […]