The Office vs. The Set

Well hello friends. Sorry for the extended absence. Life has been quite busy--I spent a couple months as a director's assistant for Alloy Entertainment's digital division during the pre-production of a rather large scale webseries, and then during production acted as script supervisor. The crew was great and I really am looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Now I am just pondering my next big move. I have long since heard that going the agency route is a wonderful way to learn about the industry, as well as to get to know future power players in the film world. The big agencies seem to be at the center of this industry, with scripts, actors, filmmakers coming into them and packages flowing out of them. Producers have told me over and over again that it is a great first stepping stone to take after getting out of film school.

At this time, I have an opportunity for a job at one of the big agencies. However, in spite of all the advantages, I am a little leery. Taking long term jobs is scary. So far everything I have done has been freelance....which is nice, because even if the gig sucks, you are done with it after several weeks and can go on to something else.

I guess the big decision right now, is the office vs. the set. I love being on set, but the freelance lifestyle can get a bit stressful--never knowing where your next paycheck will come from. However, on set, I get to perform a job that has a bit more prestige than being someone's assistant. As script supervisor on set, I have people bringing me coffee; as an assistant in an office, I will be bringing other people coffee. I am fine with that, but it is definitely something to think about.

Here is how it breaks down:

Agency (The Office):

• Great opportunity to network
• Fabulous learning experience that teaches you about all phases of the industry
• Rigorous, but really prepares you for any job you get afterwards
• Opens doors to many other career opportunities, thru the people you meet
• Many studio execs, agents, managers, and producers have started in the mailrooms at big agencies
• Consistant Pay
• Job security & consistency--knowledge of exactly where you are going to work each day and at what time
• Long hours but less than on set
• Low hourly rate (9-10/hour in mailroom, small bump once you become an assistant on a desk)
• Administrative work that does not have much of a creative component
• Possibility of interacting with difficult personalities and being subjected to subhuman treatment (not a guarantee, but one does hear stories....)

Production (The Set):

• Exciting and exhilarating atmosphere
• Getting to be an important part of a film and having a direct impact on the outcome of the film
• Opportunity to work hard for several weeks and then take time for yourself....can book appointments during the day and get things done on your off periods
• Each project brings with it new people to meet and contacts to be made
• Better hourly rate than most office-based assistant positions + lots of money for overtime
• There is a good chance of extended time periods with no work
• Very long hours (12+ hours a day)
• Being a key player on set right out of college is great, but there is not much upward mobility since Script Supervisors are the only ones in their department - so the experience does not lend itself to other jobs

LA or Elsewhere?

I've decided that I'm going to start writing to women in film who have careers I'd like to emulate or who I think I could learn something from.

One script supervisor wrote me a nice note in response to my email about working in Dallas vs. LA (she is based out of Dallas).

Thanks for the compliments.

You've asked a tricky question. This industry tends to be very cyclic: one
place is the hotspot now, but two years later, it's somewhere else. Things
happen like union strikes and film incentive programs that cause work to
migrate to certain areas. Sometimes Texas is a happening place; sometimes
not. Since Texas is so big, you might live in Dallas and miss out on
everything going to Austin or vice versa.

Two places you can ALWAYS count on film work are NY and LA. However, that's
where the competition is most fierce. Plus, they're union towns, and the
cost of living there is very high. I don't know your personal situation,
but you might want to consider marrying and raising a family there vs.
Texas. I've known a lot of people that started off in Texas, moved to LA to
work on the big stuff, then moved back to Texas to raise a family.

Last year, I worked pretty steadily until August, then I didn't work again
until March (when I accepted a job on a TV series as a logger for a PA
rate). I didn't work again until July, when I did 2 movies back to back.
I've had to turn one down in Louisiana and I've got another one that
hopefully will start in mid-October. So now I'm busy again. It's always like
this, and I've been freelancing for almost 20 years. It's always feast or
famine.

So consider these factors in making your decision:
One of a handful of scriptys vying for a handful of movies (Texas) or one of
a thousand scriptys vying for one of a thousand movies (LA).
Quality of life
Family and personal connections

You can always work for a while in one place, and then move if things don't
work out or you want to change things up. No decision is forever. If you're
in LA already, you have a place to stay and friends and contacts--what about
trying to start your career there? You can always come back home and stay
with your family to regroup in Austin, but if you come back to Austin you
may find it hard to go back and start over in LA.

Good luck to you!

Eve