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