Whoa! or The Importance of Being on Time

Note: I started this post last night after I got home from work. I promptly fell asleep (as you will soon understand why). So for chronological accuracy pretend like this post actually went up last night.

There are only a handful of paths to attaining immortality. Maybe conquering a Holy Empire. Saving a nation from Civil War, perhaps. Walking on water often does the trick. But one knows he or she has really reached the upper echelon of immortality when he or she has landed his or her (man, I should have just picked a hypothetical gender for "one") name within the comfy confines of computer screen, splashed across IMDb in all its pixelated splendor. Well I finally made it. And it's glorious!

In other news, I got back to NYC, from my restful and relaxing 10-day trip home, about 48 hours ago and what a crazy 48 hours it has been. I got an email from the production office on Wednesday about a "kick off party" that night. I arrived right at 8 (when the party was supposed to start) and I was the first one there. A guy from the props department showed up shortly thereafter and we started talking. A couple then arrived and the guy of the couple turned to me and said, "I don't think we've met yet, I'm David." I turned from my conversation with the prop guy and realized the extended hand was that of the director! I shook his hand, introduced myself, and managed to get in a conversation with him before the place filled up with people. He was a very nice guy, interested in my involvement with the DGA program and that I came to New York from Alabama.

Yesterday was my first day on the job. I was the only set staff PA called in, so I took on a kind of hybrid responsibility that combined all those of each of the individual PAs. I began my day by discussing the production report (PR) with the production accountant. Straightforward enough. But then the 2nd 2nd AD asked me to wait outside for the kids (the movie has kids in it, if I hadn't already made that clear), their parents, and the set teacher (SAG mandates that children have 3hrs of school on schooldays when they're working) to arrive. So I was temporarily switching over to the 1st team PA.

Their van arrived and I took them upstairs to the rehearsal space on the 3rd floor (the production office is on the 4th floor, this detail will be become important soon). I got the kids and the teacher settled into their classroom and made sure the parents were comfortable in the adjacent rooms to the rehearsal space. Jonah, his assistant, and the 2nd 2nd entered the room soon after and Jonah came over to me. "Hey dude, I'm Jonah." Also a very nice guy. Just about 5 hours into my first day on the job, I could tell that this film is going to be a very enjoyable experience. The 2nd 2nd had me hang out on the 3rd floor and be available should anyone need anything from the production office. I set up shop in one of the other empty adjacent rooms and began reading the shooting script that I had picked up earlier in the morning. Through the wall I could hear the rehearsals and hear how they all work and improvise. It was a great learning experience for me and great hilarity could be heard. In the afternoon, I temporarily switched over to walkie PA, took the walkie delivery inventory, and labeled all 100 walkie talkies so they matched up with the inventory.

Though I was split among the work of three different set PAs yesterday, at least they were one after another. Today, I felt like I was balancing four (add background PA) at the same time. We were doing a photo shoot, involving background, so I had to get them started on all their paperwork, take them to wardrobe, and basically make sure they were ready to go when we needed them. After the photo shoot, I continued to prepare the walkies (walkie PA) and the AD kit (paperwork PA), but had to be ready to wrap out background whenever they were wrapped.

Needless to say, I really hit the ground running with this job. But it's what I signed up for. The DGA training program is not going to teach you to do your job, your job is going to teach you your job. It's all on-the-job training, as it has become all too abundantly clear. And I love it. I come home with tired feet, a tired back, and a tired mind, but in the end it's worth it. My brother gave me some great advice tonight. He reminded me that, while I may be getting carried away by the little jobs I have to do, I can't lose sight of the bigger picture. I recall one of the great tenets laid out in the seminar week...GET THE SHOT. As long as the movie is being made, everyone's happy. I will screw up, but as long as filming continues to move forward, everything will be okay.

At the end of the day yesterday, Jonah was walking through the hallway saying his goodbyes to everybody and he saw me at my makeshift desk. "Hey Dixon, have a great weekend! See you next week." Whoa.

A Long Time Coming

The title of this entry has less to do with what's going on in my life and more to do with the fact that this entry has been a long time coming. I'm getting to that first wall in blog-writing. The initial luster of writing a blog about a new chapter in one's life is starting to wear because, to be honest, this chapter doesn't feel so new anymore. There haven't been too many new improvements on the apartment—though I did have a house warming party. That was actually very fun, because a) I learned how to cook a bunch of things, 2) I've conquered the fear of having people over, and d) having people over reminded me how awesome our apartment is. The wow factor was back!

Job-wise, I've still been putting in days on "Premium Rush," though this week marked the end of their shooting action scenes so they don't really need additional PAs anymore. I had a bit of a close call on Thursday. At the end of the day, the Key PA asked if I wanted to work Friday. I'm pretty sure I have something to do tomorrow, I thought. But I can't remember what it is and I've been living and breathing Premium Rush all week, so...

"Sure," I said.

As soon as I got home, I suddenly realized that I had made arrangements to go into the production office for "The Sitter" on Friday. I texted the Key, "Hey I feel really terrible about this but I just realized I had made an arrangement to visit the production office of my first DGA assignment. I can help find a replacement if you want." I was kind of expecting him to say, "I'll just hire someone I know and trust." Instead, nothing. So I figured I better deliver on a replacement. Only problem is, I don't know anyone who's been a PA before. But I called up a friend, who I had recently met up with for coffee to discuss the film industry. She had a genuine interest in film, but no real gateway to the biz. I texted the Key, "I found someone. She's never worked on Premium Rush before, but she's a go-getter." "Book her," was his response. Phew. As it turned out, she had a great time working on the movie. Of course, how could you not have a great time when you're shooting in Central Park. It's like touristing and working, wrapped into one.

With my "day off," I went into the office for "The Sitter." It was in a very inconspicuous building, in an even more inconspicuous office. But when I got there, everyone was very nice and welcoming. They knew who I was and got me some crew information paperwork to start filling out. I was then led into the office of the 2nd AD, who couldn't have been nicer. There was still a lot to be done, so she didn't give me too many specifics, but it was definitely comforting to put a face with a name and get a better idea of who I'll be working with. She said the 1st AD was in a scheduling meeting with the producers and that I probably wouldn't get to meet him, but sure enough, the meeting let out and I met the 1st AD, the Line Producer, and one of the Producers. The 1st AD actually introduced me to the Line Producer, saying, "Harvard meet Cornell." "Oh, when'd you get out of there?" the Big Red LP asked. "May," I replied. "Oh! Well, welcome!" Then he introduced me to the producer, "Harvard meet Dartmouth." It felt a little awkward, but it was cool to see other Ivy Leaguers with obviously very successful careers in the film industry—outside of the typical writer/agent mold.

I met up with a couple of friends, one of whom was the girl who I "booked" for Premium Rush, and we strolled along Madison Avenue for the kick-off to Fashion Week. All the ritzy stores were open late, serving complimentary champagne (and one place had bourbon-filled chocolate truffles, very fancy). Even looked very, for lack of a better word, fashionable. I actually texted my friend who orchestrated the whole thing, "What's the attire?" "It's a mix, but safe bet would be no jeans or sneakers." I looked down; jeans and sneakers. So I made a quick change, scraping together the only decent clothes I have. It's tough when you work in an industry where you can wear shorts and a t-shirt to work. The high point of the evening was seeing Serena Williams at the David Yurman store.

Saturday, I went to a PA/AD party—ended up being more production assistants than actual assistant directors, but still very fun. There were a lot of Premium Rush people. I started to talking to a group of them and they said, "Oh, you're [name redacted]'s friend." Wait, what? She's my friend! Only one day on the job and she already had more friends than I did. But it pleased me to feel like I had helped someone "break in."

From that party, I went to the Ainsworth, a bar in Chelsea, to watch the Alabama-Penn State game with probably two- or three-hundred other Alabama fans. Apparently the Alabama alumni in New York (UANY) group organizes watch parties every Saturday, so I figured this was as good a game as any to check it out. The game ended up being a wash, but the crowd was great and I met a lot of nice people, including the guy who I sat next to at the National Championship Game last year.

I'm heading home tomorrow to get one last good dose of R&R and quality lake time before I start working ridiculous hours nonstop till December.

I Got a Job!

Hard to believe, two posts in one day. But such a groundbreaking step in this blog's plot warrants the day's second entry. The day started off innocent enough. I woke up later than I expected, finally rolled out of bed even later. I knew it wasn't going to be quite as active as yesterday (though the weather today couldn't have been better). But everything started to pick up when I finally decided to venture out of the apartment to run some errands at around 4pm.

First I discovered on the kitchen counter a paycheck (yesterday's mail) for the day I worked on Premium Rush two weeks ago. Then I checked today's mail and in it was my paycheck for the commercial I did two weeks ago. Then to top it all off, as I headed to the bank to deposit the aforementioned checks, I got a call from the DGA program administrator.

"Get out a pen and paper," she started. "Cause I've got a job for you!"

It was music to my ears.

But wait, what could it be? She had been saying for awhile that it might be Law and Order: Criminal Intent.

"And it's not Criminal Intent," she continued.

Phew, I was kind of hoping for something more fresh, more new.

"It's a movie."

Woah! A movie! But the first three trainees got assigned to TV shows. Can I really handle the big leagues?

"It's called The Sitter."

Hmm, ok?

"And it stars everyone's favorite, Jonah Hill."

YES!

"Oh great," I calmly replied.

She proceeded to give me all the details about who I'd be working with, when I'd be working, and what I should expect. Apparently the 1st AD on The Sitter is good friends with the 2nd AD on Premium Rush, and the 2nd AD was the one who asked if I could continue working as a PA after my week of shadowing. So hopefully I can get a good recommendation from her. Needless to say, I am psyched to start my new job. I won't be starting until late September, but in the meantime, I've been given the ok to continue moonlighting on Premium Rush.

All told, though the day started out slow, it was a banner day in the life of me. I got paid, I got a job, and I barely had to get off the couch (which is finally losing its new couch smell and starting to feel like home).

Rain, Rain, Go Away

So I was released from work yet again yesterday because of the change of the schedule. And because of the change of schedule yesterday, I didn't even have to go in today. I made the most of the opportunity yesterday. Having taken a lot of flack for not having rain gear, I was dead set on getting some. But, as it was still raining, I didn't want to be searching for a place in the middle of the rain. Thankfully, for New Yorkers on a rainy day, there's a place to go: Museum Mile.

I had heard about this exhibit going on at the Guggenheim that was supposed to be pretty cool. "Haunted: Contemporary Photography/Video/Performance." So I trekked up to 5th Avenue between 88th and 90th and was immediately aware of the swarms of people flooding in and out of the Guggenheim. I walked in and there was a long queue line for admissions snaking through across the ground floor. I looked at the admission price (General Admission $18, Students $15). Wait, I thought every New York museum was $15 general admission and $10 students. Oh right, this is the Guggenheim Museum. I panned the expansive ground floor and followed the spiraling ramp up with my eyes. Then it hit me, this place is way too crowded, I'm not THAT excited about this exhibit, entry is a little too expensive for my tight budget, and besides the main reason to go to the Guggenheim is to see the building. So I took in my surrounding for a little longer, visited the museum shop (which had customized Lego sets of the Guggenheim and Frank Lloyd Wright's other famous work, Falling Water), and then headed a few blocks north.

Poised pretty much smack dab in the middle of Museum Mile, the Smithsonian Institute's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum is, in my very biased opinion, the greatest museum I've ever been to. First of all, there was no line. Secondly, they accepted my expired student ID, so it was only $10 to enter. Plus they had a free iPod touch tour guide thing. The museum's currently featuring an exhibition called "Why Design Now?" which highlights new aesthetic technologies that are sustainable and eco-friendly. It was amazing to see the wide range of ideas—from a wooden radio made of local materials to the car-free, carbon neutral, zero waste city on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi.

When I finally emerged after three hours in the museum, the rain had finally stopped. The rain had cooled things down, so I decided I'd walk along Central Park until I got tired, then hop on the subway to get to the sporting goods store in Union Square where I'd find some quality rain gear. I kept walking and walking and walking, passing by all the 5th Avenue landmarks—Saks 5th Avenue, the Rockefeller Center, eventually making it down to the Empire State Building and the Flatiron District. Next thing I knew, I was in Union Square. That's right, I walked almost 80 New York City blocks (apparently the rule of thumb is that 20 north-south blocks equals a mile, so 4 miles!). I got my rain gear and headed home to rest my feet. It was nice to finally make something of a day off, rather than lie sluggishly at home.

Only in New York

Work today was "cancelled" due to rain. I feel like I'm in an esteemed group, reserved for professional athletes and film crews, that I can say that. I still showed up at 6am, and I still moved some traffic cones to close off three lanes of Columbus Ave., but as the rain picked up, a large group of PAs were told we could leave as the crew would be shooting interior scenes in a studio in Brooklyn. So with all this newfound time, I figured I might as well update my blog.

The past couple of days have been fairly uneventful. It's frustrating that I have my entire week free (when all of my friends, with their 9-to-5 jobs are busy) and then I'm busy on the weekends when my friends want to go out. Hopefully my first DGA trainee job will have a more conventional production week (especially with the football season fast approaching!). Yesterday was more of the same: locking up one of a number of New York City blocks while Joseph Gordon-Levitt rode his bike through stunt traffic with the PursuitCar close behind. The high point of the day was when this guy...

...rolled through set, blasting Snoop Dogg. Apparently, David Koepp, the writer-director of the film, was thoroughly impressed with the guy so hopefully we'll see him in the movie. Other than that, not a lot's happened. The apartment's pretty much broken in and I'm acclimating myself to waking up at ungodly hours of the morning. Now I just need to slowly introduce sightseeing into my daily schedule. If the weather's cooperative tomorrow, I may try to go to a beach or Coney Island tomorrow while everyone else I know wastes away at their desks.

Settling In

So a lot has happened at home since the last time I updated. I mistakenly referred to my apartment as "my room" today when I was talking to my girlfriend. She rightfully called me out on it, "You're not in college anymore, that place is a home. You've got a kitchen, bathroom, living room, dining space, and laundry." The real lynchpin of the whole process was the sofa, which finally arrived two weekends ago. Funny story behind that actually. It was Saturday. "Premium Rush" has a shooting week from Wednesday to Sunday, so I was on my penultimate day of my shadowing. It was the only catered lunch of the week, staged in a school gymnasium near our set in Harlem. My phone rang and I stepped outside to take the call. It was the furniture store arranging for a delivery later in the day. While I was in a heated conversation about how I was at work and they needed to contact my non-brother roommate, Joseph Gordon-Levitt exited the gymnasium right in front of me. Realizing I had to do something in acknowledgement, I gave him a casual head up-nod without missing a step on the phone call. Joe quickly returned the nod then went on his way. My confidence restored, I negotiated the terms of our sofa's delivery.

So with the sofa in place, our living room certainly feels more homey. We've added bar stools and a rug—courtesy of my parents, a handmade Greek rug they got like 30 years ago. Plus, the Zelda Fitzgerald paintings have finally been matted, framed, and hung.

There are a couple more prints on the other side of the room. They all help to give the room some much needed dimension. We went with some "natural" pairings. We figured that the Washington Square one could pass off as Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza, so we paired it with the Brooklyn Bridge. Times Square and Grand Central comprise the 42nd St. duo. Central Park and 5th Avenue seemed to make sense together. And then Grant's tomb is in a league of its own by the kitchen.

Speaking of the kitchen, I feel like I'm starting to settle in with the routine of feeding myself everyday. Tonight was the first time that I felt I had done an adequate job of replicating my usual evening routine when home in Alabama. Earlier in the day, I had turned some frozen ripe bananas into banana bread. So that, combined with some crackers and cheese and a glass of wine gave me the comfort foods I had desperately been craving. Plus when it came to dinner, I managed to time everything so it was all freshly warm when I set my plate on the table. Yes, it's easy when I'm free all day, and yes, it'll all change once I'm working regularly, but it's nice to realize my capabilities of living independently.

Martini, Shaken Not Stirred

No, I didn't get assigned to the next installment of the Bond franchise. And no, I haven't been shaken by my work so far as to put my entire life (starting with this blog) on hold. At least not yet. Martini is the designated name in film speak for the last shot for the day. Seeing as I have finished my first week (or two), I figured it was appropriate to update those still reading my blog on my latest.

Upon returning from my trip home, I began my shadowing on the film "Premium Rush"—starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Day 1, I felt like I went from 0-60. I figured I had learned all I needed to learn, and that I would be able to put it in cruise control for the rest of the week. How wrong I was! First of all, I was initially signed onto this shadowing gig as a shadow of a second-year trainee, who's running 1st team stunts. If you were paying attention to my earlier blog posts, you'll know that 1st team involves handling all the needs of the principal talent. So 1st team stunts handles the needs of all the principal stunt talent. You know when you're watching a movie and a character's running through a crowd of people? Stunt people. Or through a busy intersection? Stunt drivers.

So for the most part, I was helping out with that—the bulk of my day came at the beginning and end of the day when I had to assure that the stunt people's walkie-talkies were checked out and checked back in (because all the stunt people need to be kept in the loop for obvious reasons). But when I wasn't doing that, I tried my best to avail myself to the rest of the crew. I perfected the art of being actively-passive. I didn't want to get in the way, but I wanted to be there when someone needed something. As such, Day 2 took me from 60-120, Day 3 to 180, and so on. Needless to say, I'm moving pretty quickly right now and just hoping I'm hanging onto everything I've learned.

At the conclusion of my shadowing week, I found out that I had been hired by a two-day Converse commercial shoot. The assignment didn't compromise my #4 spot for a big project, which is good, but it gave me my first opportunity to be out on my own. The commercial was shot by Antoine Fuqua—who directed, among other things, "Training Day"—and starred Dr. J and Jim Jones. Day 1, I was asked to stock the talent's campers with sodas and such. While in Jim Jones's camper, one of the fridge door shelves somehow came loose under the weight of some seltzer waters and one exploded upon contact with the ground. Stifling the urge to say something loud and obscene at the catastrophic flood I had inadvertently unleashed upon the camper floor, I sprung for the roll of paper towels I had also brought for stocking. On my first pass at mopping up the mess, I leapt up quickly to discard the waterlogged ball of Bounty and smashed the back of my head into the underside of the camper table. This time the urge was too great. "S***!" I was convinced Jones was going to materialize at that point to see me simultaneously mopping seltzer water from his floor and blood from my head. But fortunately my head wasn't bleeding, the seltzer water got cleaned up, the fridge got stocked, and I got the hell out of there just as Jones and his entourage rolled onto set.

Once we were set up, the 2nd AD called for a safety meeting and then called me on the walkie talkie. "Ok, Dixon," he said. "For the PR, safety meeting was called at 6:25. Make a note." Hunh? PR? I know I've been trained for this, but I was under the impression they already had someone to do paperwork. I thought I was just hired as an extra hand. "...Noted," I replied and tucked it in the new expansion of my throbbing head. I finally tracked down a copy of the PR (production report, b-t-dub), made a note of 6:25 safety meeting, and went about confirming all the personnel on the shoot. The PR ended up being way more straightforward than I had been led to believe from the training seminar. I was assured that that's because it was a commercial and not a TV show or a movie, but still, I think I may actually be able to do this.

After the commercial wrapped on Day 2, I found out that the 2nd AD on "Premium Rush" wanted me to come back. So while I'm still awaiting my fate for my first project, I'm able to get some invaluable set experience on a well-run machine of a film. As of yet, things couldn't be better.