One of the joys of working near the holidays.

Two weeks off.

But no pay.

Thank God for unemployment.

I'm enjoying the silence at work while I can.

Boss man has about four projects brewing at the moment.

The Feature which starts filming in Jan.  We are in the beginning stages of pre-production right now.  I'm not sure of my exact function yet - although I was told to up my cellphone plan as I will be using it non-stop.

The TV Show which starts pre-production in January - filming in February.  The staff writer I was assisting is becoming a writer/producer.  This may require the hiring of a new staff writer and their own dedicated assistant instead of me.  I personally hope they don't hire their own assistant as the majority of my work on the show was work for the staff writer.

The Re-Make which shoots primarily in Asia but will have a small bit shot in our area.  The producer on this feature wanted my boss to work on this as well, but he has too many kettles on the stove to take it on.  So he's voluntered my services to assist in any way possible.  Lucky me.  Especially as I don't get paid extra for the work.  Boss man wants to stay on this producer's good side so he can work on this guy's next feature which will shoot exclusively around here next Fall.

The long-form commercial.  I know little about this project other than it starts filming around the same time as the Feature.

So come January I should be the proverbial chicken without a head.

I'm employed.

I'm employed.

Happy joyous news.

Just sucked it up late yesterday afternoon.

Went into his office and asked him what my status was after Friday.

He's having me start on the movie and then will probably move me over to the tv show once that starts up.

There is a two and a half month overlap between the two - during that time - depending on the demands on his time - he may hire a second assistant to work the movie while I work the tv show.

Hasn't figured that part out yet.

In the meantime, I will have two weeks off starting this Friday.

My last time off unti next summer!

I better start planning now.

I guess its now or never.

My boss hasn't come in yet today. Still don't know if he will be in or not today.

I sent him an email with his messages, asking if he needs me to help him with anything today and also asking what my status was after this week as Friday is the last day I'm officially on payroll.

As of three weeks ago, he said he was still deciding what he would do with me after that.

As Friday is quietly looming upon us, I figure now would be a god time to find out.

I wanted to ask him in person, but he wasn't in last Friday, yesterday and so far today.

He wrote me back "Everyone is off payroll on Friday."

Great but what about after that.

Am I coming back for the feature?

Am I coming back for next season on the tv show?

So I wrote him back. "Okay. Is there a return date for me for working with you?"

I'm waiting to hear what the answer will be.

Does this make me look like more or less of a dumbass.

I just realized who that person was who called for my boss.

I called him myself yesterday. He's on the list of potential accountants for the feature. I left him a message to get his resume and check his availability.

So why did he call back for my boss?

And better yet, why can't I get my freaking mind to work better? I'm not so busy that I shouldn't remember these details.

I took the message back from my boss.

Ugh.

I left my cellphone at home this morning. Luckily for me, my sunshine took pity on me and drove to my office to drop it off for me.

My boss called in, his partner hollered out that he wanted to talk to him once I was done. I finished my conversation with him and told his partner he was on line two. He hollered back, okay thanks.

I got another call - from my sunshine to say he found my erstwhile cell phone - and never double checked to make sure the line was picked up.

Apparently my boss was left hanging there indefinately and finally hung up.

Also apparently one of his pet peeves.

He said his partner knows better, but I also should have kept on top of the blinking line on my phone.

Then he got a call and while I normally ask what the call is in regards to, I didn't this time. God knows why - I just didn't.

So now he's upset - understandably so - because he has a message from somone he doesn't know and he got left hanging on the phone for however long.

Its like I can't do this job - the stupid simple tasks - when its so slow. My brain just won't function right. I forget the basic etiquette of being an assistant. This is especially bad as I feel like I'm on probation - waiting for my boss to decide what he's doing with me - these minor fuck-ups might be the make or break for my longevity with this guy.

So why can't I get things right?

I think my stock just went up.

I was left alone to man the phones and anything else until about 3P today.

I helped with misc. tasks as doled out by the Unit Production Manager.

I assisted the director as he needed it.

It wasn't alot of work.

But being here and doing the basics - made a good impression.

The UPM thanked me for all my help.

I love days where I feel useful.

Boss man is out on an insert shoot for a movie with most of the rest of the skeleton staff in the office. Its another fun-filled day of surfing the internet for me.

The singular office production assistant left about five minutes after I arrived to drop off a power cord for the Unit Production Manager - that would be over 3 hours ago and the UPM was only a 10 minute drive at best away. And the office pa, I can only assume, has turned his cell off as it keeps going to voicemail.

This has left me to answer the phones. Not a problem at all. I'm glad for the task. Happy to be able to interact with people and not just my computer. But the real problem is I need to use the facilities and there's no one to cover the phones for me. Not a single soul. If I knew how to check the voicemail - it wouldn't be as big an issue.

When we were still shooting the television show, I was in the office once every two months at best. I don't answer the phones here. The front office staff takes care of that and I pitch in when they get crazed. So I was never shown the voicemail system. Heck I don't even have the ability to intercom the other offices on my phone. Every time someone calls today, I have to physically track the party they are looking for down or just holler it out and hope someone hollers back.

I'm hoping this guy, our office P.A., returns soon.

He told me when I arrived, he didn't expect anyone to be in today. Then the director of the feature showed up with his new assistant. My boss knew he was coming. But did he impart this knowledge onto me, no.

Yet again either making me or him or both look like dumbasses.

Sigh.

My boss isn't in today, but I made certain to offer my assistance once I arrived at the office.

My persistence paid off and he's had me do some work for him.

It might be only a few phone calls here and there, but this small tidbit of work has me feeling useful again.

The director hired an assistant.

He didn't go with any of the people my boss and the others interviewed.

He went with someone his sister recommended.

The majority of the time, it is all about who ya know - whose cock you suck in this biz - but I've been lucky.

I got this job without any political jockeying.

I got my jobs on two major tv shows and two major studios all on my own.

Not that I haven't gotten jobs through the political loop-de-loop.

The production coordinator on one of the shows I worked got me my next job on a pilot, the post supervisor on that pilot brought me with him to the next pilot he was working on. My jobs at two other NYC based shows were due to the same person - a former college chum.

So I'd say its about split down the middle. I like knowing though that in this difficult industry - I don't always have to rely on others to keep myself employed.

Nice.

I just saw the preliminary crew list for this feature on my boss's desk.

Decided to take a look at it.

Lists the director, the producers, and the few other misc. crew that have been hired as of this moment.

There's even a section for assistants.

Is my name there?

No.

The only assistant listed is the one for the executive producer/co-president of the production company.

My name isn't fucking on there.

If he's not having me work this stupid fucking movie - why can't he have the decent common fucking courtesy to tell me?

I mean am I out of a job forever with this guy come the end of September or what?

Livid is the best way to describe my mood right now.

I'm just meant to look like an idiot today.

First there's the email snafu.

Then it turns out the script I have for the feature my boss is producing is not current. The draft my boss gave me is out of date. Not a problem if it was only in my possession. But it is this out-dated copy I've been giving to people like the location manager, assistant directors, etc at the request of my boss.

Its not until today, when the location manager is in with the director who also happens to be the writer that this mistake comes to light.

Now the director's brother - who is also the editor - is here to see my boss. But I don't know this. The office production assistant comes to me and simply says the guy's name. What he normally does when someone is on the phone for my boss. So I go and tell my boss - X is on the phone. But there's no LINE BLINKING. Which means he isn't on the phone.

I go up front and sure enough - he's standing there pacing. I bring him back and show him to my boss's office.

Can I just be the proverbial ostrich and shove my head in the ground - five seconds will suffice.

I mean it isn't like the executive producer/co-president of the production company is here to witness all these snafus.

Oh wait! She is.

Ughhhh......

That email my boss had pre-written in his head for me to send.

Apparently I fucked it up.

I wrote everything down as he dictated it to me.

I repeated it back to him to make sure I got it right.

But I got one of the meetings wrong.

He initially told me 2:30P with himself and Colleen. I assumed he meant the only Colleen in our office - Colleen the POC (Production Coordinator).

Then he changed it to 2P - same players.

Turns out the meetings is at 2:30P and with a different Colleen. The executive producer/co-president of the production company. The one I didn't know was flying out until after this email was typed up and sent out.

Cause of course I'm supposed to be omniscient and have known he meant someone who works 3,000 plus miles away. Who I had no idea would be in the office.

Or that he meant a different time.

Regardless, I can't help but feel/know that ultimately it was my responsibility to print out the email and have him approve it prior to sending it.

The one task he's given me all week and I manage to muck it up.

Sigh.

The director's meetings tomorrow were set up by my boss.

I would have expected to call all these people for him.

All I did was send an email my boss already had pre-written in his head out to the director, himself and the executive producer about who was meeting with who and when.

I can't help but think that is odd behavior.

The executive producer/co-president of the production company is coming into the office tomorrow.

Her flight lands bright and early at 6:20A.

My eavesdroping paid off. Woohoo!

The director of the feature comes in tomorrow. He's meeting with the production designer, the location manager & the costume designer.

Thankfully the director seems to be a genuinely nice person. Although I'm still working on my radar that distinguishes between those who act like your friend and those that really are your friend. The dang gremlins keep mucking up the radar's mechanics.

The girls being interveiwed for the director's assistant are coming in today. I really don't understand this whole process.

You'd think I'd be in the loop that my boss was meeting with these people today, but that is not the case.

If I didn't eavesdrop, I'd never know anything.

My boss is in today. Miracle of miracles. If I'm lucky he'll give me some work to do.

Right now he's in with the UPM and Production Supervisor going over resumes for director assistants.

I've never worked a feature before. In fact I'm not sure I'm even going to be working on this feature my boss is working on.

But I never knew these guys had their hands in deciding who helps out the director. I'm wondering when the actual director is called in to help decide who will be his right hand man.

I'm not sure how my own boss picked me out.

I sent my resume in blindly. My former employer was moving to follow a promotion he'd been granted. I was more than welcome to come - as long as I paid my own way and didn't expect a raise.

I declined this generous offer and stayed behind.

I decided I wanted to get back into production and out of the corporate world I'd been slaving in the last eight months. So I sought out the few shows still hiring.

I faxed my resume in. I followed up with a few phone calls. The production coordinator liked me enough to strategically place my resume in the pile on my soon to be boss's desk. I was called in for an interview, it went well, and here I am.

He comes from post-production as do I. He likes go-getters and when he found out I wasn't being recommended by anyone - well that sent him over the top and around the bend.

We finished filming middle of August. I spent three weeks wrapping out my work on the show and waiting for word on whether I was being kept around for this feature and further still if I was being brought back for next season on the show.

As of last Thursday, the day before my supposed last day, I was told I would be kept on till the end of the month.

Past that he still doesn't know.

At least I have a job, but I'd like to know if I should start stocking up on mac & cheese now or later.