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How I got my start in film as an extra and PA. There's no one way to get your foot in the door in the film industry. Everyone has a different path it may surprise you to learn I got my big break in the Georgia unemployment office. Is it okay for me to share how I got my start? Awesome, thank you! If we haven't met yet, my name is Michelle Caruso. Welcome to my channel where you learn how to get hired and work in the film industry. If you're new here please be sure to subscribe. I have always enjoyed watching movies and TV, though maybe, at times, I was a bit of a couch potato. In high school I received a writing assignment to research and write about an industry. I chose film. I watched a show's credit roll and paused the VHS repeatedly, so I could write down all the different departments and positions. Then I did some research online. Back then it was probably on Ask Jeeves. Who remembers that website? I was fascinated by how many different types of jobs there were, I had no idea. I was living in South Carolina at the time and choosing between colleges. I was between University of South Carolina for film or College of Charleston for theater. I went to USC where I received my Bachelor of Arts in media arts, which was the film equivalent. I would have majored in Production Design if I had went to the College of Charleston and ironically enough, years into my career, I ended up in the art department. While I was in college I concentrated on writing and directing, though I dabbled a bit in photography and videography. I made films in and outside of the classroom and attended some 48 hour film festivals. Although I had hopes of making something great right out of the gate, all those experiences served as a great training ground. Nothing will teach you how to work under intense pressure like a 48-hour film festival. I also interned and PA'd (or was a production assistant) on some local commercials. The South Carolina Film Commission had a short-film fund and I worked on those projects as well. The first recipient was for a short film called "Civil." Most of the crew was out of LA, but some had graduated from USC, which is why they had roots in South Carolina. We filmed in the winter in a beautiful horse pasture with mountains surrounding it. I remember my first day arriving there before the sun came up, in freezing damp cold temperatures. Some of the college students got to be extras and were dressed in Civil War uniforms. The field was littered with horse droppings and I remember hearing stories of actors as they were falling "dead" into frozen horse poop. I hustled and was anxious to learn anything I could. I even got to shoot a period-appropriate rifle so we could get some clean takes of it echoing in an open space. I think I only worked for two days on "Civil." The final day it snowed (I know snow in South Carolina) but they didn't need as large of a crew and it was probably for the better. Once I got home and rested a bit, I was really sick. In hindsight I was probably sick the whole time because I remember my nose running and being constantly chilled to the bone. I remember having that realization though, that I really wanted to do this...I really wanted to work in film. The second recipient of the film final was a short film called "Saying Goodbye," where I was promoted and got to be a 2nd 2nd Assistant Director. I was in charge of the radios and helped to keep track of first team (or the actors) on set. I helped to place and cue some extras as well. While I was in college, I also attended a PA boot camp, which really helped prepare me for the real working world. In my next video I'll be discussing how to get hired and kill it on your first day as a PA. Between my experience and that workshop, I felt those really helped prepare me to do better than your average, green, inexperienced PA. In December 2009, through an online job posting I found, I was hired as a PA on a reality TV show for VH1 called "Fantasia for Real." It was filmming in Charlotte, North Carolina. I stayed with an actress friend of mine, that had met earlier that year. She had a spare room and had an air mattress. I wanted the credit, I had to be resourceful, and I adjusted to my schedule to make it work. I graduated from college in the summer of 2010. I was entering the workforce with some higher level experience than just the classroom. I really encourage students to intern and PA on as many professional projects as possible. People who hire you want to know can you do the entry-level position, which is being a PA. To be harsh, if you Directed or DP'd your first few shorts, they don't care because they're not hiring you for those positions, they're hiring you as a PA. Lifetime's "Army Wives" TV show was the only studio project that was filming in South Carolina at that time. So I found a cheap place to crash in Charleston South Carolina and landed some day playing days on set. South Carolina did not have a ton of studio projects coming through at that time, so I knew I had to move if I wanted to work in film and the sooner the better so I could get my career started. I moved to Atlanta, Georgia around August 2010. It was super scary because the film industry is not what it is today. I had no connections and I had never even been to Atlanta until I was looking for an apartment with my Mom, who was of course, freaking out...understandably. I did ask around to my South Carolina connections where they thought film may be on the rise in the Southeast and thank goodness it worked out in my favor. By memory I'd say there was only a handful of feature films and a couple of TV series throughout the first few years I was here. Most of the crew were veterans and had been living and working here for years, but I stayed informed through the local entertainment publications what was filming at the time, and I dug further to look up the crew and find their contact information. I left no stone left unturned. A producer who was a part of the PA boot camp I had attended, was in town filming an ABC TV movie, "Christmas Cupid." I either had her contact info from the workshop or I hunted it down. I let her know I graduated from her boot camp and was in town looking for work as a PA. She did send my resume off to one of the ADs. He responded, but he wasn't hiring. I was getting desperate for work. So I applied to be an extra on that show. I was casted and due to set the next day. To this day I'm not sure how my resume ended up into the hands of one of the ADs on Universal Pictures "The Change-Up, but it did. I got interviewed and was hired as an additional PA. This was by far the biggest project I hadn't worked on. It starred Ryan Reynolds Jason Bateman Leslie Mann and Olivia Wilde. I assisted sound for a couple days on set. I remember the Boom Operator had to run 10-1 (which means going to the bathroom) and asked me to hold the boom over Ryan if there is another take. I remember being super freaked out and feeling super scared. I'm sure Ryan could tell and he was very polite and introduced himself, "Hi, I'm Ryan." I shook his hand but what I really wanted to say is, "I know who you are, but it's me you don't know." Fortunately the boom operator made it back in time and I stopped making a fool of myself. I'd like to say I was off to the races and working consistently after that, but it was not the case. I worked with some well-known local production companies on some commercials. I worked with a Production Coordinator and Set Decorator who later transitioned to film and TV themselves. We kept in touch and I landed some jobs down the road from those connections. The nice thing about working in commercials, is I made the same amount in a week as I did in a month on longer-term gigs. So FYI you can make more bank on commercials. To keep earning some money and continue building my resume, I worked on a documentary and a casting call for "America's Got Talent." I met many other PAs during the casting call and learned how to direct a lot of people, which served me well for wrangling large groups of extras. You have to learn how to control a crowd and be decisive and clear in your direction. I also helped with a large open casting call for an extras casting company who was looking for some fresh faces. I learned I really liked working with background talent and was good at keeping them quietly entertained while they waited. As well as creating a structured workflow. After that, I worked on VH1's "Single Ladies" as an additional background PA. But believe it or not my big break came in the Georgia unemployment office. I was hitting rock bottom and my parents were super close to having me move in with them back to South Carolina, but I refused to give up! In early 2011, I was filing for unemployment. They called my name up, then a gentleman in the crowd asked, "You're Michelle Caruso?" I didn't recognize him and I was very confused. I said, "Yes," wondering how he knew my name. He realized I didn't know him and introduced himself. I instantly recognized his name because he was an AD I had previously looked up and knew he consistently worked in Atlanta. When I was working on a commercial I made friends with the grip who knew I wanted to work on studio projects. He had previously worked with this AD and the grip was kind enough to send me the ADs contact and information so I could send him my resume. He didn't contact me at the time, but he remembered me and I knew him through my research. So quick lesson: learn names and make friends with everyone on set. You never know how things will circle back. Sure enough, he interviewed me right then and there in the Georgia unemployment office. He was there to hold him over between gigs, which is really common in film. He started on Sony's "Drop Dead Diva," season 3 and shortly after that I was hired in March 2011. I started off as day player and was eventually promoted to staff and working full-time! During that time I also day played on the 2nd Unit of Walt Disney's "The odd Life of Timothy Green." The 2nd unit was a lot of fun! It was summertime and the Greensman had to bring in a lot of fall foliage to make it look season season appropriate. They had these big ole fans to blow the leaves around and rigged ropes in the trees to make it look like they were blowing in a storm. We had some scenes with extras for b-roll, but none were the principal actors. The location was far and it was the first time I got to be put up in a hotel. It was the perfect opportunity for some fun movie magic moments and learn without a lot of pressure in the day. People were recognizing me from past projects and I felt like I really solidified my foothold in the industry. During August and September 2011, I was working on Lionsgate's "What to Expect When You're Expecting." This project was jam-packed with some great talent. I got to meet Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Anna Kendrick, Chris Rock, and many more. We filmed at Piedmont Park at night and as we were getting off work people were just going out for their morning jogs or walking their dogs, it was very surreal. We filmed fake snow in the summer, which was a bizarre and cool experience. We filmed in the Georgia Aquarium where I escorted JLo and her team to set, where we got to walk above the tanks. So not a view you get just by visiting. While I was getting some great experience and getting consistent work, I realized I didn't want to stay in Production and work for years as a PA and then become an AD or Assistant Director. The Art Department attracted my eye, so I started letting my connections know that's what I was interested in. By word of mouth I got an interview and got hired onto Paramount Pictures, "Flight," directed by Robert Zemeckis. Um, hello Director of the American classic Forrest Gump, and also starred Denzel Washington. I was extremely fortunate to work on a high-profile show that early on. I worked on it September 2011 through January 2012. That's a year and a half into my career. That's crazy! If I chose to live in LA or New York I highly doubt I would have worked on as many studio projects, with known talent as I did in Atlanta. Not to mention the more affordable cost of living. After "Flight," I worked on another season of "Drop Dead Diva" as an Art PA in 2012. Then Atlanta's film industry really started blowing up! I was recommended and offered the role as an Art Department Coordinator on an indie film called "The Spectacular Now." Starring Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, and Brie Larson. We had a very skeleton crew and I got to learn how to do my role along with others because we didn't have a full staff. The Production Designer was really great at training me up, despite me accidentally spilling coffee on her keyboard...on my first day. We really got along and I couldn't have to ask for a better project to start coordinating on. Fast forward to September 2016 where I was the Art Department Coordinator on Season 2 of Netflix's "Stranger Things." Funny enough I had gotten the call for Season 1, but I was hit up for Edgar Wright's "Baby Driver" at the same time. Not knowing "Stranger Things" was going to be a hit, I went with a feature film and for a chance to work with a Director I really admired. Within 6 years of the film industry, I was working on the hottest show on Netflix! I'm continuing to work in the art department, though sparingly. Ultimately I got in this crazy industry to Write and Direct. I'm working on focusing on those efforts so I can level up. I come with years of experience as working below the line crew and I intend to transition to above the line. Now there's so much content and opportunity for emerging filmmakers, I intend to take advantage of that. There are times where I feel like I'm scaling a mountain that I can't see the top of. I've already come so far and learned so much I'm not giving up now. Film is one of those industries that will really test your resiliency. I could have given up when I was running out of money and began to wonder if there was a place for me in this industry. It took me a minute to find a position I enjoyed and allowed me to grow. I've also experienced crew members and bosses with some big egos they will try to make you feel small and unimportant at the end of the day. I strongly believe that everything I've experienced up to this point will empower me for the days ahead. Recently I watch an IG live video from CB Acting Studio where the host was explaining the importance of defining your own success as an artist. If I waited to define myself as a Director until I directed a studio produced movie, I would A) feel like a failure, B) not identify as a director, and C) feel stalled in moving forward on such a big goal. People who aren't artists or met you at your start, may also have a hard time seeing you the way you want to be seen. Often they have the world's definition of what success in that role should look like. Be sure to celebrate your wins along the way. Progress is growth and movement towards your goals, don't discount it! Thank you for allowing me to share my story. These were, of course, the highlights and the bigger moments that led me towards working more consistently. Let me know in the comments below what resonated with you and any nuggets you were able to learn. I look forward to seeing you next time where I gave you tips on starting your own film journey. So be sure to subscribe and I'll see you next time.