It’s a brisk, unfavorably icy Monday morning in Manhattan Beach. Time – 5:15 a.m. Coffee – brewing, and sending a shrill beeping into the sleeping house that it’s most likely already awoken. Keys – nowhere to be found. Purse – also nowhere to be found, and perhaps having a rendezvous with the cell phone that also seems to be running away from me, well aware I’m already late.
Mind – racing.
It’s my first day as a production assistant intern on the 2017 indie comedy Attachments, and I feel as if I’m in the dark about everything. I don’t know what to wear – what do people on film sets wear? All black? Is that a stereotype I should or should not be buying into? Should I be bringing a clipboard, a laptop, a water bottle, a fruit basket of some kind? Should I be in the six a.m. assistant line at Starbucks, ordering a drink for the boss I’ve yet to meet? Am I worrying too much? Am I worrying enough?
I leave the house at 5:35 and arrive in North Hollywood at 6:10. Half an hour early, frazzled and shivering because the heater has decided to break, I sit uneasily in my car, wondering frantically about what the next seven hours of my life will have in store for me.
And at 6:45, I walk on set and end up befriending the most incredible crew I could have ever asked to be a part of. To name a few:
Kris (the production coordinator) – Kris is the first person I meet on set. He’s funny, gracious, understanding, and pretty much everyone’s best friend. It’s amazing the way he’s able to spin stressful situations into light, appreciated moment of comedy. Kris is the type of person who offers to get me coffee, even though I’m supposed to be the one getting coffee for him.
Jessa (the first assistant director) – Jessa, for all intents and purposes, is my boss for the next two weeks, and she has that fresh hipster vibe I was expecting from someone in film. She’s young, spunky, sweet and determined to transform me from an in-the-dark intern into a hireable production assistant. Jessa is the catalyst of the “bow revolution”, which raises awareness and support for diverse women in film. The entire crew – even the men – proudly wore bows every day for the entire two weeks of filming.
Kyra (D.I.T., or digital imaging technician) – Kyra is the kind of person who will open up to you within a minute of conversation. She’s easy to talk to, extremely knowledgeable and incredibly passionate about technology – in fact, she was the DIT on the set of Bones. I learned more about her in two weeks than I’ve learned about people I’ve known for two years.
Jim (production assistant) – Jim taught me everything I needed to know about being a quality production assistant. He’s tremendously talented and well-versed in the film industry, having worked with celebrities like Hugh Jackman, Ryan Gosling, Betty White and Mark Ruffalo. He’s also just a lovely person, the kind that never seems to walk around set without a smile.
Rich (the director) – This man is brilliant. I’ve known Rich for a while now, and I owe everything to him and the opportunities he’s provided for me. I can’t thank him enough for everything he’s done that has allowed me to get my foot in the door of this industry.
Katharine Ross (lead actress) – Katharine Ross from The Graduate, my favorite movie of all time, ever. Enough said.
The first day on set was hazy and disconcerting. I was given a headset that I didn’t know how to work. I was placed in the production office to print out sides, staple them together and cross out the scenes we weren’t filming that day. I was taught how to work the coffee machine, how to make call sheets, how to set up the craft services table, how to move the cameras, and basically how to stay out of the way while still learning as much as I could.
Having never been a production assistant, I had no knowledge of the terms that people in the film industry use daily – and suddenly, these terms were blasting through my headset all day long:
LOCK IT UP – Stand by the door and make sure no one comes in or out, as that could ruin the shot.
QUIET ON SET – Pretty self-explanatory.
SIDES – small, miniature paper booklets of the scenes we are filming that particular day.
CALL SHEET – a piece of paper with information including scenes, weather, the nearest hospital, etc.
COPY YOU – Yes.
AFFIRMATIVE – Yes. Really just answer with any word but yes.
WHAT’S YOUR 20? – Where are you?
Ex. ERIN FOR JIM – This is Erin, and I’m talking to you, Jim.
GO FOR JIM – This is Jim.
ROLLING – We’re filming right now.
Being a production assistant is far from glamorous. The hours are long and the call times are early, and sometimes half of the job is just looking busy, but getting the opportunity to work on a movie set made every day a red carpet experience. This internship gave me the opportunity to make connections and experience film making first hand, but above all, it reaffirmed my decision to head full-force into screenwriting.
Heading back to my car that first day, I was exhausted, worn-out and questioning whether or not I could handle this. Two weeks later, I knew that I could.
