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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 21, 1995)
Production assistants gofer it BY KAREN BRAD DOM Pm<»to in Bono S* mw ar i/, Ohm a vs Si mi l MR DR1 AM Of WORKING s|I >1 W\ side with Martin Scorsese? ( an vou imagine Quentin larantino asking your advice on whether to leave in the ear-slicing scene? Would you be willing to risk an ulcer to give stardom a chance? It you re one of the risk takers, chances are you're heading toward sour first position: production assistant a.k.a the glorified, underpaid, under appreciated, catch-all position that thousands of college students and recent gratis pour into each year. Pt»b*« Anonymous \i the bottom of the totem pole, PAs often find themselves working 16-hour daw, making average pay and submitting to a lot of psychological abuse •\l! the pressure trukles down to the PAs saw Sarajanc Bos. a graduate of NXcstem Michigan t and a PA f»»i V/tghry \iorphtn Pour? Ritn^r, Iht Movu It vou don’t have thick skm, you'll never survive Rubbing elbows with Hollywood moguls for a using sounds like tun. but not when you’re every one % krej>cf (jetting actors on the set at the right time is easier said than done NX hen the actors wouldn’t listen to me telling them they were needed on the set I d get teamed. Bov saw Brad lev Row, a graduate of the l of M oioui i who hat PA cd on the »rt» of On IhjJh (tround. Matfrn k and l.ttiU (tuntt va> v he didn't like being r reared like 4 subhuman tpecics “I almost got fired once for not checking to see if there was M>uf cream on one of the luiuhcs 1 was vent to pk k up ” New York l him student jordan Montmim who has s|>cfu a few semesterv Mfarina b« thm wind tyanunth n Powsr Rnngor'a hair? Bo a production nmmlmtnnt. .» *"■ iumi i ii, ( I'Huumim j nit \c* eral undent film,. remember, driving more than jn hour to a location to find he wa, the only one there I he new hadn i bo! he red m tell me that the, wouldn't be filming that da, he vav, ' There , no place tor pride in the PA floormn I denning the ,et down to the U,t cigarette butt i, ju»t jnothcr demeaning r , pencmc tor PA». but it , 4 blc,»ing compared with other tuk, Tve known I'A, who have hud to ccarc.h tot hour, tor a terrain kind ot cigarette. and one who wa, ordered b, -in 4, tor to buy eondotm. Roe, ,av, I he high, arc re4l high but the low, arc real low tor PA,, ,4,, Donald < 4gei II 4 graduate ot the 1 ot Southern ( alitornu who ha, PA ed tor Hag iiuiiii 1 iiuhu I ilrm and recently worked ori the tel ot the lifKoming 11,0,1c Aye b.u jn Aye l ager recall, one ot hi, wont day, a, 4 P \ \ two ton generator that took 12 men to push it around rolled onto the tip of my big toe I tanked mv tool awa, fun in time but Intified around the ret ot the da, I low do PA, ,oi>e with the piViholoeiial wai fare "No nutter what somebody eke veik ai you about, vou uimoi *uy anything batk. uv* Hoi, who onu wa* attuved «*f lying to the fust 4»vi*f4ftt dlfCvtor jnu would say nothing in her dr feme "It help* to have a team t*t PA* to vent to, vhc say* W hen we .ill tame together at the end of the dav to wait tor the ()K to go home, it would i|oukiv turn into a l’ \ sup port group NX tfhout other I*A* to i on voir him, Ron agree*. "1 fuvt had to nick it up “ A lose-wln situation? Despite the grunt work and humiliation of the humbling. pav vou r- dues position, being a l*A does expose you to ti»c action v nwc wncn me I owe? K-mgrn were ifunKinp ptvk up vhotv tor ihcir movie Box uu. 'I got to wave 4 pieve of eardhxiarii lo vfratr J breeze m out ol the Ranger v luu Hie highlight of Kmi lireer 41 4 I’A wav being on the vet ol little itututi with ctctllllvf pitk!tlicf Steven Spicllxrg \fter watvhing him give difcvltnn in the movie. Row wav determined to vpeak to him I avkrd him it he wanted 4 watri He vaid no Row vUVV In between my I’A dunev I onve got to lung out with Sug4i R41 I eoiutd > von, who lud inum pained htv l4thet to the vri lot 4 home video boxing game lommeuul. t aget uo Rid from Kid n I’lay unit over to one ol mv Iriendv and Kilted tapping with him. vjw I mi Kellv. 4 ’f** graduate of the l of Southern i alilut tiu who luv on vet experience working fot lulavv i dniv and lot undent production* \ month into it anil you re no longer vtat viruv-k " Milk lafontarit. 4 gtaduate of Mulligan State I who wantv to wine feature him*, paid hiv duev working iv a I’A fot Renhe '>11 lhr pain o worth the prue. tayx I al oiuailt 't'ulcw von have other v mntci lionv tlnv iv reallv the onlv wav into the entertainment induvtrv Dear Abby t ithertnc Nshwcnn. 4 l'. ot \nt0114 gtiducte who wnrLed 4% 4 I’A tor the movie i()4ml is now 411 4ssisunt to (hr executive producer on rhe set ol Hirth of 4 f fjti'rr. Ii4i veto l’A» trying on the set Besides nor enduring the prevvutc. Ircrn 4II you t4ii bv rbitirbmg everything everybody tell* you. Sthwenn edvivev like vour job venouvlv, no ni4iier how dcmcining it tv Kim un " There 4Hr thomjndv ot I’Av out there with attitudes, vo you luvc to auto iti4titallv prove viuirvelt Double end triple ihe»k people's lunch orders because that s your cm Hern e " l ve the 10b 41 4 vtepping stone.” I 4I ontattt says Which 0 rvaetls whit he did Hv the etui ot I 4I oittint * three veer vtmt 41 Utuur ‘>11 running tor bagels turned into producing the vevond lull til the segments cited on television Working is 4 !' \ does get you on ihc sets ot major motion pictutcs, but 11 isn 1 4s glamorous as n mis seem You luvc to st4tt 4t tlse tidi ttwwi end ot tisr Hol it wood food v him before you get to tulc tbc jungle Ko'tn H'.uLiof j Vi ft.t4u.ur ot no.irr.iH ( olUyr 01 .Ve*e fork* t si uU kt it far 4 f'irhr ftmtuon 01 /Iv pukirihiny indutin
