The big shoot? and prospects for the future

So I know the work of a menial PA now.

I got back from the Nick Jonas shoot with the feeling I experienced a little bit of an anticlimax. Everything was very professional and everyone there was good at what they did, but it just a very simple shoot and not too exciting. I didn't have to work very hard (which is kinda nice) and it was a pretty short day.

I got to the sound stage at 6am and helped unload the truck and then hung out for a little while. There were two grips and two electricians who did all the rigging and lighting and they did not need any help. So the other PAs and I hit up the breakfast catering. Now that part was exciting - Eggs, bacon, french toast, omelets and a wide assortment of donuts and danishes. At around 9:30 or 10 the camera and lighting was ready to go, so we started the shoot. I don't know if I'm allowed to talk about whats in the video or the details of the shoot, so I will just be vague and give the bare bones of what happened. For the morning we had several actors dressed as a doctor or a firefighter or other characters do a little performance in front of a back drop. There were about 10 of these and each took about 20 minutes. When we got through all those we had lunch. After we ate, Nick arrived and he did his thing. He seemed like a nice enough guy. Young and good looking but nothing too special. I didn't get to actually meet him, but we did the universal man to man head nod, the form of acknowledgment that every guy knows and recognizes. We filmed him for about an hour then broke down the set and left. By the time it was all said and done I was out of there by 5 pm. Good Deal. My job for most of the shoot was to sit at a specific area and not let people walk by or else they would get in the shot. I also got things if needed like chairs or other random things. Easy enough, kind of boring.

I did benefit from this shoot in several ways. Firstly, I will get paid. That is always a benefit. Secondly, I met some people who may potentially help me in my career. One was Mike, he was the Executive Producer and I think he is a head of the production company who was in charge of the shoot, Three Foot Giant. I have a pretty special relationship with him because his kid is in class with my nephew. We actually met for the first time at their holiday recital, so we have that connection. The other persons name was Craig, a producer and the person who called me before the shoot. He is a pretty young guy and we got along well. At the end of everything, as I was leaving, I told him thanks for having me on and that I was interested in getting into the office to start learning all that stuff. He told me he would think about it and see what he could do. He seemed pretty earnest about it, so maybe something will come of that. Fingers crossed.

I've got some more good news. A little while back I applied to an internship with a production company called Aid+Abet Productions and they sent me an email to arrange an interview. SWEET! I had hoped this would come through, but with all the other things I applied for in the past 6 months, I didn't expect too much. The interview is set up for January 6th, which is the day after I get back to LA from the holidays in Houston. I am excited about this, it could be really good experience and a step in the right direction towards my end goal of being a producer.

So I have some good prospects for the future, as long as I play my cards right.


-Things I have learned: The relationships you build will be more important than you know and may come from the strangest of places (my step-nephew's classmate's father?).

-Plans for the future: To go home to Houston for the holidays. But it is not going to be all vacation for me, I am going to prepare for the interview as much as possible and learn as much as I can about the production company to be as ready as I can.

Big man in charge

Those three long nights are behind me and I finally have a film production under my belt. It was a pretty good shoot, we shot a short film that will eventually be a part of a longer film. The script is pretty decent and we got some good stuff, so I am excited to see what the final product will look like.

In my limited experience, I would have to say this was a pretty small shoot, a crew of about 30. I worked as a Grip/Electric (just as I thought...) and was pretty much key role in the grand scheme of things. There were only two of us, me and another guy named Lianto, who were working as G/E so we pretty much made all the lighting needs happen. Lianto was technically the "key" grip but we were pretty much equals. He actually wants to work in the sound departent, but he has experience as a grip and did know a lot about the position, so I was able to learn a great deal from him and we worked well together. The DP would tell us what kind of lighting he wanted for the scene and he would leave it up to us to figure out how to rig it up. It was a lot of hanging lights from the ceiling of a warehouse. Here are some pictures of me on the job -

http://twitpic.com/t64yy
http://twitpic.com/t655y

It was actually really cool to be in the position I was for this shoot because I had some authority on the way things should be. They would send us some PAs and I would tell them what I needed them to do. Then they would come back to me ask what I wanted them to do next. It was really cool! I was basically the one who decided how to rig up all the lights and did most of the handy work while Lianto was the technical knowledge behind it all and the PAs helped us.

It's going to be kinda tough for me to go on a bigger production and be just a lowly grip or even a PA, with no authority, just a work horse that obeys. But this shoot made me realize how important the lower people are, especially how important it is to just listen. I think there were too many people on this shoot who were trying to be "Chiefs" and not enough "Indians". Too many people who were trying to put there two cents in and not listening to the way the people in charge wanted it. Some of the PAs were doing it to me and it definitely made my life more difficult. It was good to see things from that perspective and it will make me a better worker on future shoots.

I have some more news on maybe my next job. Through some good luck and some contacts, I met a guy named Mike, who is a producer of music videos. Big time music videos. We got to talking and I told him about what I've been doing out here in LA and what my career aspirations are. He seemed to take a some interest and asked me about my availability for Tuesday the 15th. I told him I was free. He then asked if I was interested in working that day on a music video, and not just some random person, but a Nick Jonas (as in The Jonas Bros.) music video. Pretty big time. I, of course, said I would do it for sure. So the shoot is supposed to be tomorrow. I don't have the details about it yet (typical), although I did get a conformation call about working on it a couple days ago. So I will eagerly await the details. This could be a big step for me, even though I am most likely just be a work horse PA. Regardless, I am excited.

-Things I've Learned: What its like to work on a film. It's different from a music video, although a grips job is basically the same. I gained a lot of experience in being a problem solver as to how to rig lighting to look the way it needs to, something you can't learn until you actually do it.

-Plans for the Future: Work the next music video. I also have plans to go home to Houston for about 3 weeks for the holidays, so I probably will not be doing a lot of work during that time.

They be callin' me!

It is becoming very apparent that having good contacts pays off.

I got a phone call from a guy named Kirk saying he might have a gig from me. I met Kirk on the Joshua tree camping adventure, he was the sound guy. I guess that experience was more valuable that I originally thought. He said he is working a film this weekend and they are looking for more help. So I got the contact info for the producer and sent her an email saying I was able to work if they needed me. Well, she called me less than an hour after the email was sent and said that I was on the job. Sweet!

It is going to be this Friday, Saturday and Sunday although its not going to be during the day. It is another night shoot, 5 pm to 5 am on each day (ie. night). It's all good. I'm not sure what they'll have me doing, but I'm pretty sure I will end up doing Grip/Electric (at least if I have any say in it...). There's only one bad thing, no pay. It's good they were up front about it and it's OK because this will be the first "Legitimate" film I work on. I will be gaining good experience. And supposedly the script is really good. I am supposed to be getting a copy of it, so I am eager to check it out.

I also got another good phone call a day or two ago. My manager from the internship I worked last spring for SXSW (South by Southwest) called me up and asked if I was willing to come back and help again this year. They called ME! It would mean I would have to drive back to Texas but I would be willing to do that for sure. Last year I got to see tons of films and live music for free. And I got to go to several conferences and talks by industry experts and innovative thinkers. It's like a melting pot of Music, Film, Technology and everything awesome. Here is the website - http://www.sxsw.com. As with a lot of the things I do now-a-days, I'm not sure what they'll have me doing, but I whatever it is, I will rock it. I am really looking forward to this.

So I guess I have been leaving good impressions on the people I work with. I will continue to work hard with everyone I meet and hope that they remember me, even if it means I have to work all through the night....



-Things I've learned: Work hard at everything you do, you never know who will notice and where it will lead you.

-Plans for the future: To work hard on this film this weekend. It will be nice to meet some more new people and work with them. Since this is not payed I can only hope that it will lead to more work.

Getting used to the hard work

I really love working on the crew for movies and music videos, but man, it can be some hard, physical work.

I just got off a two day, or should I say "night", shoot for a music video. It was with a lot of the same crew that I did the Paypa music video with a week or two back. That's actually how I got the gig, so my few connection have already started to pay off.

This time around it was for a Jazzy style artist named Reem and her song "Turn Upside Down". There were two night shoots with crew calls at 4p.m. and supposedly ending 4a.m., but it really ended at around 6a.m. Yea, that's pretty long night, working for just about the whole time. The sun was coming up as I was getting home. But it was all fun, too.

The shoot was again another step up for me, the biggest one I've done yet. It still wasn't a really big budget, but a step none-the-less. I worked as a full grip on this shoot*. On the first day we were at a loft near Marina Del Ray where we got various shots of an actress and actor doing their thing and a few shots with the artist at a piano doing her thing. The second day we went to a roof top in downtown LA and got some really cool shots. The best thing about it was I got to see a crane in action for the first time. We got some swooping shots, high angles and even one where the camera went off the side of the building. It was awesome! The operator was good at his job and made it look really cool. The style of video is going to be a Noir looking, Sin City type of video, where it is all in black and white with accents of red. With the way we set up the lighting, it is going to look classy.

Another first for me was I got to experience catering. We were given a "lunch" with a very welcomed hot meal (it gets cold on a rooftop at night this time of year!). There were also sandwiches and snacks to be eaten whenever there was a rare free moment. I was very grateful for all that food, it definitely kept me going.

One thing that was problematic for this shoot is that it moved along really slow. For some reason it took forever to set up the shots, or at least longer than normal (or at least what I, in my limited professional opinion, consider normal). They ended up looking really slick and artistic but they were shooting as if we had all the time in the world and not only two nights. Another oddity to this music video is that it was shot in small clips as bits and pieces. For all the other videos I have worked there has been several shots where the entire song was played (and got stuck in my head) and the artist performed and there was lots of coverage. But on this shoot I don't think there was one time where I heard the whole song all the way through. I guess the director knew exactly what he wanted for each specific part of the song, but it just didn't seem like he covered the whole thing. Oh well, not my problem.

All in all it was a good experience, even if I did have to work my ass off in the wee hours of the morning.


-What I have learned: More about what it takes to be a grip. There are a lot of odd names for the equipment that we use and there is a lot of equipment to be used. I have come to like setting up the lights as it is definitely a crucial part of the production, although the long hours and back breaking work makes me want to venture other routes. I don't think I can see myself working as a Grip for the rest of my life. In the end, I think I want to try to be a Producer, so I need to figure out how to learn that job, but I think all this experience on-set will eventually benefit me in the long run. Plus, its fun to be there where all the action happens.

-Plans for the future: Land more work? Maybe get more experience? Yes, I think so.





* I want to clarify what a grip does. We are the ones who are in charge of rigging up stands and other parts for the lights. It's the electricians that are in charge of setting up the lights. It's kind of like the electricians are the ones that bring the lights and the grips are the ones that hold them up. So the hierarchy is: Gaffer- decide where lights go; Best Boy Electric (or just Best Boy)- In charge of lights, Gets the lights in position; Electrician- Helps Best Boy; Key Grip- In charge of Grip equipment (stands, ect.) to support the lights, works with Gaffer; Grip- Helps Key Grip in setting up lights and other necessary stuff. The position I have been doing for most of past work has been G&E (Grip and Electric) which is sort of a combo of both.

Glad I got through it

I guess I will be apart of some good productions and there will some that are bad. The camping adventure in Joshua Tree definitely fits into the latter. Yea....

Preface:
Before I go into detail about my experience, I want to say that I really did end up enjoying working with everyone in the production. They are all good people and fun to work with and fun to be around. I am glad that I went and was part of the film.

That being said...

The production was pretty much a disaster. Well, I shouldn't say disaster. Let's just go with really bad. REALLY bad. The director/writer/editor, Keith, was grossly under-prepared. He is a very creative guy and an awesome editor (he showed us some of his work, he's been doing it for 20+ years), but he was not ready to make this film. To his credit, this was the first thing he ever wrote or directed and the script had only been finished days before we got there. But that begs the question as to why we went though with the thing? Why not push it back a little? Why not be a little more ready? There might have been some reason for the madness, but I can't even guess. Half way through I thought there was no way a complete product would ever come of what we were doing. He kept on forgetting what was in the "script", what we had shot and he didn't have any plans for what we were going to do next. There was no plan or schedule. We had to re-shoot almost everything we shot, some of it three times. It was always "Let just go with this and see how it turns out". Very frustrating.

The writing was pretty amateur, too. The movie was supposed to be along the lines of "Paranormal Activity". I guess they were trying to cash in on that bandwagon. The story was a young married couple just bought a house on some land and the house is haunted by a little girl. The woman gets possessed and some other scary stuff happens too, but overall it was mediocre. I will say that some of the scenes we shot were pretty cool and will end up looking scary. Like I said, Keith is a creative guy, so there will be some good parts, but overall, I'm just not sure.

And the equipment we were using was dreadful. We were shooting on a consumer level High-Def camera that was specifically bought for this shoot. It just wasn't working for us. We tried to get it to do what we wanted, but a lot of the time the picture simply did not look good. We needed something just a little better. The lighting equipment was atrocious. It was basically three flood lights on stands. What can you do with three flood lights on stands? Not much. I tried hard to make it work, but I am just one man. And not a super experienced man. At lighting, that is.

The crew was really small, but that isn't a big problem. They were all good people and were really nice. It was Keith, a sound guy named Kirk, the two main actors Lisa and Jared, a supporting actress, who came for one night, named Alex, and then me. What about all the other positions needed for a film? Aren't there a lot of jobs that need to be done? Yes. There are. And guess who filled in all of those? Yep, me. I was hired on as a Production Assistant but really I was the Gaffer, Grip, Assistant Camera, Script Supervisor, Craft Services, Art Department, Driver, Rigger and probably other positions I can't think of right now or didn't know I was doing. Over worked and under appreciated. But it ain't no thing. I handled it like a champ. I worked really hard and did the best I could. That's the way I would do it, regardless of who I work for. Its just how I do, baby.

There was another guy there, but I'm not sure I can classify him as a part of the crew. His name is Dennis Woodruff. I think he was technically a producer, and he did a little acting, but really all he did was get in the way. He came across as a crazy person. A legitimately crazy person, I kid you not. He would tell us all these odd-ball stories about how he has made 30 movies in the past, how he knows Steven Spielberg and other famous directors and actors, how his dad was a cinematographer for John Ford and other classic directors, how his grandfather built the Hollywood sign and other wacky stuff. It's just hard to believe someone like him when he tells you things like that. Then I looked him up and was shocked. It turns out majority of the stuff he told us is true. The other stuff I couldn't find (or didn't look hard enough...) but it very well could be true too. Google him. You can see how crazy he is and the bizarre past he has. I kind feel privileged to have worked with him, even though he was such a pain in the ass.

Despite everything, I truly am glad I worked this production. As I have written, a lot of it was awful, but I did get pretty close to the people I worked with and in the end it wasn't so bad. I guess when you go though something like that you have no choice but to come together and make the best of it. Joshua Tree is a very cool place and I am glad that I got to visit it. I think I will come out this a better person. At least I hope so. And I got paid. So that is good. Yea, that definitely helps it not be so bad.

On another good note, I have more work. I got a message from the DP of the music video I worked a week or two ago, saying he was working another one and wanted me to be on it too. He gave me the contact info of the producer and she pretty much told me I have the job. I'll be a PA again. They still have to send me the details, but it's typical to wait till the last minute.

-Things I learned: How not to make a movie. You must be prepared. It is crucial. I did get a chance to figure out how to make it work when there is basically nothing to work with, so I guess when there is the proper equipment I will be able to make it work even better.

-Plans for the future: To work this music video, if they ever let me know whats going on with it...

Response in a timely manner

I heard back from both of my gigs that I potentially have lined up.

I'll start with my camping adventure. The guy in charge is named Keith and he called me this morning to pretty much tell me I had the job and to give me some details. So I guess I need to get a sleeping bag for this weekend! He told me I am basically going to be in charge of food and other stuff for the shoot. Hopefully I can work it so that I do more than hand out sandwiches and granola bars the whole time. Otherwise I am excited to get out there.

I also had my Skype interview. It was pretty cool and work out really well. The only problem we had was I don't think I want to work the job. It would be a 30 mile drive, one way, for 5 days, no pay or gas money. I really want to get a lot of work but I think this might be the line that I draw. I don't want to go too far in the hole to get good experience. Maybe if we were staying out there like my other job I have lined up I would do it, but not if I have to do a whole lot of driving. She mentioned car pool, which would be ok, but we'll have to see... She also said that she is working on a bunch of other stuff so there might be something else I would be able to work.

-Things I learned: You don't have to accept every job that comes your way. If it doesn't fit your schedule or if its something you really don't want to do, then don't do it. Look at the bigger picture.

-Plans for the near future: Buy a sleeping bag. Film low budget indie ghostie film at Joshua Tree.

Does lightning stike twice?

I think so!

Especially on the Empire State Building...

But also for my career in LA.

I got another job offer. And this time it's not a music video. Yes!! I finally get to work on a narrative film. I am going to be a Production Assistant on a low budget ghost film. I applied to it off Mandy.com where the post read "Need a PA to do what PA's do" and that is all. I'm pretty sure I am capable of doing "what PA's do" so I blindly applied for it. This was about a week or so ago. They finally got back to me with this:

Hello

Are you willing to drive to Joshua Tree (2 hrs from LA ) in your car for the dates of 11/28 – 12/1 and possibly 12/2 at $50 a day, bring a sleeping bag (will be "camping" in house) and work as a P.A. (basically food & supplies) for a super low budget indie ghostie film?

Thank You

I was definitely intrigued and being one to not pass up work, let alone a great opportunity and possibly a super fun time, I replied "Yes". This was yesterday and I have not yet heard back from them. I am pretty sure that they are going to give me the job, and I guess I shouldn't expect anything back too soon, seeing as it took them so long to get back to me the first time. Seems to be a common theme in this job. I shall continue to wait...

I also have another job possibly lined up as a Production Assistant again. It's for a project for an American Film Institute student. The reason I'm not sure I have it yet is because I have to interview with the person who is producing it tomorrow, via Skype. I'm not exactly sure how it's going to go down, but I'm willing to give it a try. It is scheduled for tomorrow (Monday) at 10 am. I'll let you know how it goes.

Oh, I got a membership to a gym. Half to keep in shape and half for my sanity. So that I will have something to do on days when I'm not working. At this rate I am going to be in great shape.

-Things I've learned: You just gotta stick with it. There are days where I feel like I am not getting anything accomplished and I'm sure there are going to be many more to come. I guess my overnight success hasn't come yet... Yeah right.

-Plans for the Future: Rock this interview and have two gigs lined up for the future. Work out and get the chiseled body that has always been hiding inside of me.

One down, Many to go

So I finished my first job in LA... Huzzah!

Does anyone say "Huzzah" anymore? Did anyone ever say "Huzzah"?

Just me I guess. Oh well.

Anyway, the whole thing was a real good time. I am very glad I did it. I feel like I got a lot out of it. Except money. But that's ok, I ended up bringing back some packages of bagels. So that more than justifies my time.

I also brought back some good experience. This was the biggest production I had been a part of so far. There was about 15 people total on the crew, two rappers and their entourage of about 10 people who just kinda stood around and got in the way. The video was for the rapper Paypa (like "paper" but more gangsta) who is from Chicago and has sorta has a Kanye West sound. I tired to find some of his stuff online, but I'm not sure if it's him or not. I will post when I find more about him.

I think this was a good Music Video for me to be a part of because it is a step up from what I have done in the past, but it still wasn't a huge production. Kinda like a baby step. Everyone on the crew was really nice and very helpful and fun to work with. I was officially hired on as a Production Assistant but I wiggled my way into working as a Grip. A Grip works with someone called the Gaffer, who is in charge of all the lighting on the set, a very important job. The hierarchy goes: Gaffer, Key Grip, then Grip. I'll let you figure out what the Key Grip is. These guys make the difference between professional and amateur productions (You're either a Pro or a Noob). So I was working a lot with the lights as a grip and learned a lot about that job.

I also brought back some good contacts. I did my best to leave a good impression on the Gaffer and I'm pretty sure he liked me. He said that he gets a lot of work and implied that he would contact me if there was room on future productions. So that is bad ass. The other crew members in key positions also said they enjoyed working with me, so maybe they will remember me in the future, too. Fingers are crossed.

The video is going to be pretty awesome. Actually, I should say the videos are going to be pretty awesome because we filmed two. The Friday and Saturday we worked on the video for the first song. There were 5 locations total and 10-12 hour days. Most of the time was spent getting the lighting set up perfect or waiting on the talent to arrive. But it was all worth it because we got some really cool stuff. On Sunday we filmed a half day for the second video. The reason being is there was only one location and it was all filmed in one long continuous take. The way they did it should turn out to be really cool.

I am really glad that I got this work because it is good experience, but also because it justifies me moving out here. I was determined to actually do something once I got here and I made it happen, now I just need to make it happen again. At least I know it's possible. So far I can say that it has not been a waste to move out here.

On a lesser note, I got my first parking ticket, too. Welcome to LA, I guess.


Things I've Learned: The work of a Grip. I think this is a skill set that I can develop and become good at. I am going to meet a ton of people in this business. That's cool with me, I like meeting new people. Be more careful about where I park.

Plans for the near future: Make business cards, even if its just a name and number. The Gaffer asked me if I had one and I didn't. He said I should make some. Consider it done. Land some more jobs, however they may come.

First LA gig

Less than a week living here and I'm already a working man.

At least I think so. It all happened yesterday when I was looking online for any kind of work as a Production Assistant. I came across a post on the website Mandy.com that was asking for Production Assistants this weekend for a music video shoot. Being that music videos are pretty much my specialty thus far (I've worked three), I figured I would be a likely candidate. So I sent in my resume and a cover letter and crossed my fingers.

In the afternoon I got a phone call from someone in charge of the shoot. I couldn't really hear the details because my cell phone doesn't get a good signal, but in a nut shell he basically told me I could have the job if I wanted it. Needless to say, I hopped on it! He said he would email me a treatment and outline with the details, but what I know so far is that the shoot is this Friday, 8am-8pm, Saturday, 8am-8pm, and Sunday 6:30am-12:00 noon. I haven't received the any email yet and the way it is probably going to end up happening is I am going to get it sometime around midnight tonight and have to be ready to go bright and early tomorrow morning.

I don't know who the artist is and I'm not even sure if I'm going to get paid, but nonetheless, I am excited to be out working. At the very least they will have to feed me. So that's something. I am going to make a strong effort to get to know everyone I am working with and build some relationships. I moved out here to get my career going and this seems to be a step in the right direction. I will keep you updated on how far I go in that direction.

-Things I've Learned: You can find work from the Internet. This was not the first thing I sent my resume to, but I eventually found something. It can happen and I will definitely peruse it further.

-Goals for the Near Future: To rock it on this music video and make some connections with the people I am working with.

I'm here to take over the city!

Well, I finally arrived. I am now a resident of Los Angeles.

Now it's time to get the career on track. In a day or two I will be settled in and comfortable enough to start working. I think I will start by looking online for listings for Production Assistants and see what I can find. Supposedly you can find lots of opportunities if you put a little effort into your search.

The only thing I still need to figure out is how much I am willing to work for free. It's kind of like a right of passage and something I'm probably going to have to do in order to get started out here. And that's ok. I think the way I am going to play is if I am learning something new or gaining something else besides money, then I'll be willing work for free. I'm not saying I'm going to like it, nevertheless, I think I'll make it. But if it is something I have already done and I'm not really getting anything out of it, then I'm gonna need some compensation. Just a little somthin', you know what I'm sayin'?

I also need to get going on working my contacts. It's time to get out there and meet and greet and schmooze. Gotta work it baby!

Oh, and something I'm going to start doing for every post is writing out the "Things I've Learned" and my "Goals for the Near Future". Hopefully this will help keep me on track and will give you an idea of what I've done and what I plan to do.

So...

-Things I've Learned: Traffic in LA is crazy. There are lots of cars and everyone drives fast. Just something I'm going to have to get used to. And parking is crazy, too. I've only been here for a day or two, so the only thing I've had a chance to learn is about driving around. I promise this will be more informative in the future. Until then, every time I get in my car it's a new adventure.

-Goals for the Near Future: To settle into my new environment, research where to find work via the internet, get in touch with some industry contacts.

Taking the dive

So I have made the decision, I am moving to Los Angeles.

Yep. I feel like if I am ever going to do it, now is the time. I'm young and I got nothing to lose and nothing holding me back. It almost surprises me that I didn't make this move earlier.

I just feel like I've going backwards while living in Houston. I worked really hard in college and got a lot of experience and felt pretty good about my prospects. Then I graduated and moved back home and did nothing. Well I shouldn't say I did nothing... lets just say I was able to keep myself from teetering of the tall, steep cliff of terrorizing apathy. At least I had a chance to do some good reading. Oh, I started running, too... yea, that's how bad it got...

Hopefully that will all change out in LA. And I'm moving into a pretty good situation too, I'm going to live with some family out there. My step-sister (Christy) is pursuing her acting career out there, so I'm going to live with her, her husband (Jim) and their 5 year old (Reese). I'm gonna get my own room and everything! So sweet! I also have some contacts out there, so I'm pretty sure that I can get some work.

So hopefully this blog will get a little more interesting after I make the move. Maybe I will actually be doing some stuff that is worthy of writing in here. And I promise it will not be another month before I update. I've been too busy watching TV and sucking at golf. Living a retired bachelor lifestyle while living with my parents. Dream life anyone?? Man, I've been such a slacker. But that's about to change (although I do plan on continuing to run, its really good for you!).

Get ready for a new route in this wild ride!!

Short film and Promising leads

I haven't had a whole lot to do lately, as there hasn't been any work in a while, so I was surfing the web again and came across another one of the projects I worked on. It is a short film called "John the Angry Mover". I was a Production Assistant for one of the days when they went back and shot some pick up shots. I am supposed to get an IMDb credit for doing it, so we will see if that happens. You can see a preview of the film here: http://www.myspace.com/johntheangrymover. It's pretty funny.

Even though the work isn't really coming fast right now, I am working hard at trying to find some gigs. I probably called 20 production companies today. Most of them told me to call back later as they were not getting the crews together yet. Some of them had already started filming and others just didn't answer. But there was one who did answer and who was getting the crews together. And that's all I needed, just one. The movie is called "Flying Lessons".

But there was one problem. When I talked to the guy, he said they were filming in Santa Barbara, CA. This is kind of a problem, because if I moved to California I would be staying with my step-family in Los Angeles (West Hollywood to be exact) and those two cities are a little ways away. I am pretty determined to get some work, so I told the guy if I found a place to stay out there, I would give him a call back. But Santa Barbara? How am I going to find anywhere to stay out there?

Eventually I told my Step-dad, Skip, the story. He got kinda excited and proceeded to inform me that I have a great uncle who lives out there. He said that Uncle George would probably be really happy to have me stay with him. I got back on the phone and tried to call the Flying Lessons guy again, but he didn't answer. I left him a voice mail and I'm gonna try him again tomorrow. This could end up being the beginning of something great...

Skip also told me he had been talking to Susan (our producer friend) about me, and that she is going to try and get me some work too. It would be really awesome if she did.

I just wish there was more that I could do to get things going. I guess you just have to be Persistent and Patient and Proactive. Follow your Promising leads. And if that doesn't work, Plead to God. And mind your Ps and Qs. And take care of any other "P" words that might be out there too.*





*Sorry, that was kinda dumb...

Paul Wall Video

I had a random idea to look if the any of the projects I help work on had made it on the internet and I stumbled across this one. This is the Paul Wall music video that I spent an afternoon helping on.

My contribution was on the shots where he is on the streets of Houston rapping into the camera. I was holding a reflecting white board that was bouncing a fill light onto Paul's face. I am squatting just to the left of Paul, just off screen. This is also the gig where I sat for about an hour watching a steady cam sit in a box on the streets of Houston. I was super excited to see it in action and was pretty let down that we didn't use it. But no, I will not hold a grudge...

I think it turned out pretty good as I'm pretty sure it was low budget. They couldn't even pay me, so it had to be low budget, right?

Check it:

Saturate the Market - Job Sites

So I just finished applying to 7 or 8 jobs across the US. Some more appealing than others but pretty much everything from Registration Director with the Austin Film Festival to Crowd Control for Jerry Springer. I would love to get a job, but at this point I would be happy with just a call back and interview.

Here are some of the websites that I check periodically:
General Electric

Disney

Time Warner

Fox

MTV

602 Communications

The link will take you directly to the job search page for each company and you can input your criteria and they will show you what openings there are.

Good luck in your job search although I guess if you check those sites it makes us competition. (But good luck anyway)

Demo Reel

Good things come to those who are patient.

So not a lot to report at the moment. I looked up movies that are about to start into production and e-mailed and faxed my resume to a couple production companies, but no returns so far. I am going to look into more and keep trying. Gotta be persistent.

Also, I made a demo reel of the work that I did in College. Check it:



I'll keep updating it and making it better, this is just a start so that I have something to send if a reel is requested.

A friend that I graduated with that is Mass Comm with me asked me a favor the other day. She wants to audition for the host of a travel website and needs to make a one minute video and she asked me to help her make it. I said I would and we had a meeting today to figure out what all was going to be in the video. We're going to be pretty ambitious and try to make an awesome video. Maybe I will get some good shots to add to my demo reel. Plus, she said that if she gets the job she'll pay me $1000. So needless to say, I have a lot to benefit from doing a bad ass job at making this audition tape.

Other than that, gonna keep looking for some work. Till next time....

Tryin' to make it happen

You can live for the day, but you always have to plan for the future.

I met with an old college buddy (not really "old" as I just graduated a month ago) named Toby and we talked about some ideas for the future. We both have similar goals and he has some ideas and contacts that could be really good for him, and maybe me. In fact, Toby started his own small production company and has made a few commercials. Slowly but surely, he is getting on his way.

Well, Toby was contacted by another college friend who apparently knows someone who pitched a show to the Travel Channel. They gave him the go ahead to shoot a pilot episode and he was looking for a production company to work with. When they asked Toby if he wanted in, he said yes, then asked if I wanted to be a part. I, of course, said yes. This could be a fast track to getting a job with the Travel Channel or even the Discovery Channel and if not that I will at least have the experience. The show will have something to do with micro-brewerys and they were talking about shooting the pilot at the Shiner brewery. As of right now, the wheels aren't moving, but hopefully there will be a meeting set up sometime soon to figure out what it will be about.

Toby also told me about a short film that he was working on writing and asked if I would take a part in that too. I agreed and am waiting for a preliminary script.

I have also decided to try a new tact for getting work on a feature film. I researched films that are in preproduction on IMDbPro and are going to start filming in the next month or two. Then I found the production company that is in charge and got a phone number for their office to see if they are putting the crew together. I am going to try calling some of the better prospects tomorrow and see if I can't get a job. We'll see if it works...

Workin' Hard - I guess...

I am glad that I am getting some experience. Even if it's just a little and it doesn't really seem like I am doing much. At least I am meeting people.

So, I did finally get a hold of Mikel. I had to call him, as he never sent the e-mail, and he just told me the cross streets of where to meet in downtown Houston and to be there by 6:30 pm. I left plenty early and after getting lost I made it there and got to meet him. He is a cool guy and was very willing to help me. Sort of.

I helped him move some stuff around and he told me what shots we were getting. It was going to be really cool shoot. They arranged for a steady cam operator to come in and lead Paul Wall around the streets of Houston. It would be a really cool effect and I was excited because I had never seen a steady cam before and I wanted to learn how it worked. Well, the guy was running late with the steady cam, so we decided to get some static shots with Paul Wall in the mean time.

It was all going fine and we were getting some good stuff, but the steady cam still had not arrived. We just made due with what we had. Then, as we were about to go a new location, the steady cam guy arrived. Apparently he got held later than he thought on an earlier shoot. But when he got to where we were, all the stuff was pretty much moved and they didn't want to carry the steady cam all the way to the new location. So they told me to stay with it and pretty much "babysit" it until they could get back. Well, about an hour later, all our sunlight was gone and the shoot was wrapped for the day. I had been sitting on the street of Houston with a boxed up steady cam the whole time and did not get to see majority of the shooting and I did not get to see how the steady cam worked. Pretty much a bust.

But not all was completely lost. It turns out that the next day Mikel was also re-shooting some scenes from a short film that he had been working on and invited me to come out. He said that the film was going to festivals and I would be able to get an IMDb credit, so I hopped on the opportunity. It was also another item to put on my resume. So, the next day, I left my house early in the morning to make it to the other side of Houston by 9:00 am. Half way there Mikel called me and asked if I could stop along the way and pick up his wife at the airport. She is a flight attendant, got the day off, had no other way home, as he was on the shoot, and it was on my way so I agreed to get her. Besides, if I hadn't, how would it be working with him all day?

So, I got his wife and eventually made my way to where the short film was being re-shot. It was fine enough and I got a chance to do some work. They were re-shooting a pretty funny scene where one of the main characters has his shit explode through his pants and splatter all over a garage door. We ended up doing the scene at least five times because they could not get the mixture of beans, cream of mushroom soup and other random stuff together to make a realistic looking shit explosion all over the garage. And in between takes, guess who got to clean up the bean splatter on the garage door. Yep, me. It was so hot that the beans dried and crusted to the garage with in minutes. But it wasn't too bad and they helped me out. And it was cool to see the little cannon they used to shoot out the concoction.

Hopefully more work will find its way to me. I am going to make a new resume dedicated to production and update my Texas Production Directory profile. I am also going to make a profile for the Houston and Austin and Louisiana Production Directories. Gotta put yourself out there!

Another gig - Back for round two

The old saying is true: It's all about who you know.

I got a text from my Step-dad asking if I had received a phone call from Susan. This was out of the blue and I hadn't gotten the call, but I couldn't help but to be curious. I asked him about it the next day and he said that she might have some work for me. There is a guy that she knows that has a project coming up and he could use a PA. Needless to say I was excited and eager to find out what the work was.

A few days later I got a call from a guy named Mikel. He said he is shooting a music video in Houston next week and was told I am a good candidate for a PA. I hopped on the opportunity to get more experience and told him I was the man for the job. The work would be on an "internship basis" (i.e. I don't get paid), but it will be a good chance to make more contacts. So I am looking forward to it.

The video will be for another Houston rapper, although this one is a little more prominent. His name is Paul Wall and he is with Swisha House. I think that part of the video is filmed already and it will only be a half day. By the time I am done with this I am going to be an expert in making rap music videos.

So, anyway, I gave Mikel my e-mail address and I am now waiting for him to send me the details of where everything is going down. I think I learned my lesson about waiting to get info on these shoots because on my first gig I didn't get a call until 9 o'clock the night before, telling me where to go. And that was after I had called and said that I hadn't gotten any info yet. But maybe this one will be different. Regardless, I am still playing the waiting game...

First gig - the journey begins

Every great journey begins with one step.

I worked my first job in the industry. It was as a Production Assistant for a music video that was shot in Houston. It was for a small time local rapper named Mayalino. The song was decent enough and the production should be really good, but the experience was the real draw for me.

I think this was a good project for me to start on because it was relatively small but the production value seemed like it will be good. The production company that was working this project is called Full Fledge Entertainment and director/owner who was in charge of the shoot is named Anthony Oyedeji. He is a really cool guy who seemed well prepared and knew what he was doing. I'm excited to see the finished project.

I definitely worked my butt off on this first job. I wanted to leave a good impression. The day started at 8 am and went till 9 pm, and most of the day spent outside in the hot sun. Loading and unloading and setting up equipment for the shoot. Then repeat. This seems like the life of a PA. Setting up and breaking down. Move it around. Set it up and break it down. Pretty hard work. But it was worth it. Anthony said that he would stay in contact with me and will recommend me to other projects. That was my goal for working this project, so I think the day was a success for me. Hopefully this will lead to more work.

I should mention that I had the hook up for this shoot. Anthony is a friend of my step-brother, so through him I got to work on this video.

Speaking of hook up, I think that I am going to have a chance to work on a movie that is filming in Louisiana towards the end of the summer. This hook up is though my step-dad who some how knows the woman, Susan Fowler, who is producing the movie. I have met her a few times and she tells me that I should get work as a PA on the movie. If so, that would be awesome. I think that they have the budget, and are starting to put the cast and key creative crew together now.

Also, another step that I am taking to try and get more work is registering with the Texas Production Directory. This was advised from Susan during one of the times I met her. She said that when out-of-state producers come to Texas, they look for crew in the Texas Production Directory. Maybe this will lead to more work, and thus more experience and that is the goal right now.

Fingers are crossed, the future is starting to look better than bleak....

Introduction - Starting at the bottom

Life ain't easy. No one said it would be. It especially isn't easy when you've got to start at the bottom and work your way up. That's about where I am in life.

Let me introduce myself. My name is John Nemec. I am a 22 year old college graduate who is starting out looking for work after school. I graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos. It only took me 4 years but I now have a degree in Mass Communication. I still have an apartment in San Marcos, but I go back and forth between there and Houston, where I am originally from. My lease on my apartment is up towards the end of the summer, so I pretty much have until then to figure out what I am going to do.

Thus, here I am. In that weird limbo between finishing school and finding a job. But what do I really want to do? That is a good question. And how am I going get to where I want to be? Another good question. Well, I have a pretty good idea of what I want to do. I would love to be a movie director. I am a creative person and I have ideas that I think would be great. If being a director doesn't work out, I would love to work for the Discovery Channel. I think they are the best network out there and I want to make shows for them. Its just the second question that is the hard part. How am I going to get where I want to be? This is my challenge. I cannot just jump into those positions. I have to work my way there, starting at the bottom.

I admit, I don't have the experience needed to be an expert director. And I know that the Discovery Channel doesn't hire any old chump off the street. It takes lots of knowledge to succeed in these positions and I'm not too arrogant or naive to admit that I'm not ready. But I am ready to work toward getting there. I'm not afraid of hard work, and I am determined to get to the top.

So, this blog is dedicated to the journey of my career. Here I am, starting at the beginning. Hopefully this will lead to somewhere, but only time will tell. Untill then, join me on my ride to the top.