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Production assistant: Ruth

This Case Study belongs to Television production assistant.

Ruth graduated with a degree in business studies.

I didn’t specifically choose TV, it just happened! After moving to London some years ago, I joined a city recruitment agency that sent me to a production company on a temporary basis as a production secretary. Once I had my foot in the door of the features department, I loved it and was determined to make an impression by hard work and keen willingness to learn. This resulted in them offering me a staff position after three months, and I was later employed as a production assistant (PA).

A media qualification or degree is now advantageous as working in TV is a popular choice. Most new PAs come in on work experience or have contacts in the industry and gain work experience that way. I studied business studies which has been relevant to my PA role - particularly the aspects of it where we need good budgeting and negotiating skills. My technical skills, however, were learnt once I started in the industry by in-house training, outside continuity courses and shadowing experienced PAs.

In order to be successful in this job, a PA needs a good head for figures, good organisational skills, attention to detail, and a good memory - especially in continuity. The ability to liaise and communicate with different types of people at all levels is essential, i.e. remaining positive and jolly with a camera crew on location during a long, rainy filming day as well as being respectful and understanding of the artists/actors needs on the same shoot. A sense of humour is a must! You must also have the ability to perform well under pressure and be able to work to tight deadlines.

The role has changed quite significantly over recent years. Tasks vary depending on the size and type of programme you’re working on. Essentially, the location PA is employed at the start of the production getting involved in setting up the shoots, working very closely with the director and typing scripts. Tasks involved could be finding locations, booking artists/props/wardrobe/transport/hotels, preparing and distributing call sheets for crew and scripts for everyone, attending shoots doing continuity for the director (which requires extra training), shot logging and ensuring the day runs smoothly. Other jobs can include preparing notes for the director for his edit, attending the edits, post-production paperwork and the general clearing up of the programme. Other PAs may focus on work in the studio/gallery rather than the external shooting.

The most enjoyable part of the job is the great variety involved. I love going on location filming, which can be very diverse. You can find yourself on interesting, exotic locations or in very grotty areas!! The variety of people the job enables you to meet is vast. I also enjoy the camaraderie of the filming days. The job satisfaction is very fulfilling, especially when the programme is finally completed, and you see your hard work and contribution transmitted on air. The least enjoyable parts of the job are the long, unpredictable hours involved which can be very demanding.

Case Study sourced by Viki Chinn of London School of Economics and Political Science, 06 November 2008.