Month: May 2017

I always make a point of learning the names of the laborers on any show that I work on.  Many Propmakers, which is what they call the carpenters in my union, look down on, and even speak down to the Utility Craftspeople, commonly referred to as “Labes” or Laborers.  While I disagree with that attitude on a humanitarian level, I have a more practical reason for my behavior.  On a TV or movie set the Laborers control both the movement of materials, and often, access to equipment and tools.  I have always found that my efforts to be friendly with the labor crew are rewarded with whatever assistance I need during the course of the work day.  If I am consistently friendly to them, and treat them as a valuable part of the team, they usually go out of their way to get me what I need and help however they can.

Every business that I have been involved in has a hierarchy, a structure of responsibility, based on seniority, or position, or pay scale.  Maybe it is human nature, particularly in a competitive field, to feel superior, or look down on those you might consider below you by one type of measurement or another. But I have found that treating everyone well not only increases my enjoyment of the work day, but also my standing within that environment.  When people notice you interacting easily with all of your coworkers it builds trust, and admiration, I believe.

BE ON TIME, AND GET ALONG
I met my cousin for coffee this week.   He has worked his way up from Production Assistant to Vice President of a major sports network. I told him about the subject of this blog post, and he said “That’s what happened with me. I just kept showing up, and was nice to everyone”.

In my business, I have always said that the two basic, essential rules for success: Be on time, and Get Along. The first is a given. You just have to do it. Being on time shows respect for your employer, your coworkers, and repect for yourself.  I would say it is easy, as well, even in LA traffic.  You should always allow for the unexpected, but with traffic alerts and directions on our phones now there are not many good excuses left.  A few years into my career I worked on the last season of Picket Fences, which filmed at Fox studios, with locations in Monrovia.  When I started on the show I was the extra guy.  If they had a big set to build I would be the first one hired to help the core crew.  I would also be the last one layed off when the set was finished.  After that I would go back to the lot maintenance department, where we would do repairs and remodels.  At one point, while working on the show, a friend of mine who was one of the four regulars suggested I come in a little early to ‘hang out’ with the guys.  Shorly after I started drinking coffee and playing dominoes before starting time one of the regulars left to work on a feature film.  I took his spot, and it turned into six years of work.  I am not always very early, but I am never late, and I have seen the benefit of that.

The second part of my motto, Get Along, is the most important.  I’m sure it is the same in any business, but in film, since we work such long hours, everyone wants to be around people that they, at least, get along with, and hopefully, enjoy being around.  And really, I don’t think it is that hard to be friendly to other people.  It is a combination respecting the space and rights of others while of standing up for your own rights. This make others comfortable because they know where they stand with you.  I have a friend, a coworker, who is an excellent craftsman, probably better than me.  He is smart, and very devoted to his work.  However, several times when a foreman has asked the crew if they know anyone who is not working I have mentioned his name. This is always followed by audible groans, “Not that guy” they say.  His difficulty,  as I see it, is that he does not respect the space of others.  He gets so into his work that he loses sight of his surroundings.  Because of that people avoid him, which does not help in getting along at work.  I really believe that getting along is the most important aspect of being successful at work.

I am reviving this blog after a five year hiatus. The original entries were lost somewhere in the cyber world. During that time I worked a lot, wrote three drafts of a screenplay, endured the worst fifteen months of my marriage, suffered a business failure, and, somehow, through it all, managed to strengthen my faith. I originally focused the posts on my career as a below the line (not earning personal residuals) worker in the film and TV industry, including all of the crap that I go through to get work. Realizing that my career is just one part of my life, I expanded my focus to include faith, family, and my demons. I will continue with that approach, and hopefully discover even more about myself as I go along.

I first came to Los Angeles to study Drama at UCLA in 1983. I left after one year to follow a girl back up north. Two years later I moved back by myself to pursue an acting career. Like most self funded aspiring actors I worked in a variety of jobs to pay the bills: solar installation, toner room sales rep (con artist), and law clerk, to name a few. I had an interview for an assistant zoo keeper job at what turned out to be the Playboy mansion, but I did not get that position.

Near the beginning of my career in Hollywood I met a beautiful, ambitious actress. She had her SAG card, and played the casting director game well. Unfortunately for me, she refused to get a real job to support herself. Actually, when we met she was doing club lingerie modeling to pay her bills. I told her I didn’t want her to do that anymore, so I suppose I created the opening for that, and can only blame myself. That arrangement persisted for almost seven years until we split up. She reappeared in my life a few years later, after I had married, to say that she wanted joint custody of the dog we had gotten before we separated. I agreed to that, and she would pick up Moki every other Wednesday, and drop her off on Sunday. It was fun for our runt Golden Retriever because Cherise spoiled her with attention. Unfortunately Moki ended up at the vet during one of her visits. She had surgery for cancer, and my daughter and I visited her the next day. She looked healthy, and happy to see us. Thenext day she had a blood clot, and died. The following week Cherise invited us to the funeral, at the Calabasas pet cemetery, which you can see from the 101 Ventura freeway. When we arrived Moki was in an open casket. It sounds weird, but she had been on ice, I guess, and it looked like she was sleeping. I read the poem Rainbow Bridge, which always chokes me up, and the kids got to pet her one last time. After the viewing we headed out for the burial. Cherises’s new boyfriend took me aside to ask if I would be willing to split the cost of an $800 head stone. I told him no, that I didn’t think Moki needed a head stone, so I don’t know if she has one or not.

I started building sets for TV and movies during my time with Cherise because it offered the most reliable paycheck, even though it is a freelance, ‘temporary’ job. Also, it keeps me connected to the industry that drew me to this town. Now, almost thirty years later, I still work in that field. There have been several detours, attempts to redirect my career path, but I have always returned to set building.
Through this blog I will share my journey in the world of Hollywood production, and include my own personal development that that environment has aided and necesitated.