Goran WINS at Cannes! š
Goran is off to France for the Cannes Film Festival! The film he was a DP on has won an award! Heās come a long way in just two years and we couldnāt be happier for him and everything heās accomplishing!
Wesley Works on a Union Set
I was on a rush call today to work on the movie Clifford the Big Red Dog! I had no idea what movie we were shooting until arriving on set! šš¾āāļøšØ It was a rush call and I arrived at 12:30pm.
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I assume that the producer from the Verizon commercial shoot I was on passed on my information! š Today was my first time being on a Union set. After wrap, the Key PA said they might need me again on Sunday š he said heāll let me know!
Can you work in the Film Industry right out of High School?
Anna was a high school graduate who really didnāt want to go to college. She felt lost and depressed before finding Friends in Filmā¦
She is 18 years old and getting on paid on professional shoots! She canāt believe this is her life now!
Friends In Film | AJ’s Review
AJ credits his success in the industry to the FIF Into The Industry Certification Program and talks of the impact Friends In Film has had for him. Just ask AJ if all of this is legit. AJ recently wrapped Oprahās 2020 Vision: Your Life In Focus Tour!
$2800 in 3 days, working on Fashion Shoots!
Goran M is continuously striving to be better: he is always learning, connecting, and appreciating the experiences, opportunities, and people around him.
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The Career Launch Formula got her to work on Handmaidās Tale, Titans, Madam C.J. Walker, and Star Trek in the Costumes Dept!
Below is a BatCave entry from Adriana, who is from Toronto:
Like everyone, I have days when fear rears its head. We all have uncertainty and doubt, but the difference is made in how we approach that kind of uncertainty. Every time I go to a new set, there is a new crew which comes with his or her own uncertainties: Will I connect with them? Will they like my work?
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In those cases, I’ve realized I can do two things: I can listen to what they say and how they act, and figure out what type of personalities they have so I can have a better idea of how to interact with them… or I can show enthusiasm and willingness to help.
I made a wonderful connection on American Gods. The lady was a costume builder on the Stargate SG 1 and Atlantis series. I wanted to get to know her better and she opened up about her work with those shows and found out she was a set supervisor on another show that’s currently shooting. I discussed how much I enjoyed costume making and wanting to learn SFX prosthetics.
The next day, she sent me a text saying she was so impressed with my interest and willingness to learn that she passed on my number to the head of their prosthetics department. It may or may not lead anywhere but it was still really nice of her to do this! I started the day not having known them and left with a great connection.
Engineering to Film Industry!!
She uses the A-list relationship-building and resume-writing techniques from the Immersion Program to become indispensable inside the film industry:
From Apartment Building Maintenance ā Working in Film!
Curtis sending a Want-to-Work Email, getting an reply email, booking the interview, and then getting the job… all in the same day!
A-list Work Study Gets You Work Immediately, even during COVID!
Allyson’s from Detroit and is an actor, choreographer, dance teacher, and mom of 3-year-old twins. She joined us two months ago.
This is what she said!
With this program, I’m most excited about the relationships I’m forging with industry professionals that I NEVER would have made just by being an actor alone. I was expecting to PA for a local production company doing a local corporate shoot and wind up with the DP OF EMPIRE hiring me to PA. The producer of the shoot was also from Chicago, and I built a good relationship with her as well. She works on the marketing side of things for corporations, but she gave me her card and said that if there was ever anything she could do for me, she’d do it in a heartbeat.
From NYU to working at Apple to Production Coordinator
Tandace has done all of the things right and is an extraordinary, high-performance worker with an incredible resume of experiences. She still chooses to join Friends in Film to learn how to pave a career path that will get her consistent work in the film industry, doing what she loves mostā being on set, directing and producing.
Making $1,000 per day as a Producer!
Imagine having tons of professionals as your friendsā¦ How would life change? Bridget explains the ābackdoorā into the film industry and how she became a Producer in only 2 years. We shot her update at one of our A-list parties!
1st in Family to Work in Film! ā¤ļø
Carlton is the first among his family to work in the film industry!
He works on all of the big feature films. He just finished Call of the Wild with Harrison Ford. Heās worked on Veep, American Horror Story, and Law and Order.
You don’t need a degree in film!
Jocelyn reiterates that it’s all work ethic. It’s all relationships. That’s where the work is coming from. And to get the work, you must do the workā on set!
Samuel’s Recent Work
Directing, DP, DIT, Writing, Production Design, Director’s Assistant, and Acting
- Jurassic World
- Fear the Walking Dead, Season 4
- Battle Angel Alita (James Cameron)
- The Long Road Home
- Aloha (Emma Stone)
- Americaās Got Talent
- American Ninja Warrior Seasons 9 & 10
- Ultimate Beastmasters 3
- Ninja vs Ninja
- NFL Honors 2017
- Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (with Zac Efron and Anna Kendrick)
- Adventures in Appletown (with Dylan and Cole Sprouse)
- Blackout
- Deadliest Decade
Erin and Patrick referring each other Work!
Patrick and Erin had the chance to PA together on the Universal Pictures feature, First Man, with Ryan Gosling.
In this group, we always have each other’s back! Erin had passed a gig on to Patrick for the gymnastics tournaments with FloSports a while back, so he helped her out too with this one! We truly are Friends in Film!
Making it in film as a TRANS!
From Emotional and Financial Insecurity to Training with the Celebrities!
Parker talks about life before and after the FIF Into The Industry Certification Program. She was going through a lot of emotional and financial issues, and came to A-list because she saw danger for her life’s trajectory.
Now, she’s in a place where she’s able to train with a personal trainer at a private celebrity fitness gym.
Ariana’s Recent Work
Production, Camera, Art, and Writing.
- Equalizer 2
- Food Quest
- American Ninja Warrior
- Expedition Unknown
- Married at First Sight
Goran’s 1st Paid PA Gig!
I just came back from my very first paid PA gig and it was awesome!
It was a 3 day job. Wow I can’t describe the way that I feel! It was absolutely amazing, I was on a professional shoot and I believe the budget was $200,000.
We were shooting for a history channel commercial with a hi tech robot.
I worked my ass off but let me tell you guys! People were so appreciative I had at least 5 people telling me that I rocked the day (I knew I had the Get-it Factor thanks to Janet!). I was everywhere doing anything that I can to help while the other PA were standing on the side and chit chatting.
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See LessHonestly I wasnāt even sure if I could get on a volunteer jobs when I started the program but your videos and examples of others give me a strength and guided me towards this job! Everything happened so fast and when I got the offer I didnāt even blink I just said yes and had positive thoughts, āYes I can do this.”
Thanks to your confidence training and videos, I became bold enough to go for it. Before Friends in Film, I couldnāt even imagine it and now its REALITY!
- Equalizer 2
- Food Quest
- American Ninja Warrior
- Expedition Unknown
- Married at First Sight
Kira Shows Her Progress in $$$
Kira saw the Career on Fire advertisement in her newsfeed on Facebook and decided to jump in. She always wanted to work in film but didnāt know where to start once she got out of film school. They didnāt teach her how to get a job so the school training wasnāt of any help.
Since day 1 of starting with this program, she did exactly what I told her to do.
Kira recently got 2 checks today from different projects and she’s overwhelmed because she never thought she would be working in the film industry, making money within less than a year!
Ashley’s Recent Work
Acting, Art, and Production
- Grey’s Anatomy, Season 14
- The Librarians (TNT)
- Adidas āJames Hardenā Campaign
- Call to Cosplay
- PBS Kids Summer Camp
- The Artifact
- Credit Sesame
- Microsoft Surface
The Jobs Keep Coming!
Rolan just finished a 30 day Miramax feature, on location in New York. He is working as a 2nd AD.
Rolan used to be a pharmacist! No more florescent lights for him!
His most recent work:
- Dietland (AMC network)
- Villains
- The Hill
When Checks Start Flowing In!
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Jocelyn knows how I like to see the checks so she has attached a pic of most of them that she received in Feb & March!
It really starts to accumulate very soon. She made nearly $5K in 2 months. Not bad!
See LessErin’s Recent Work:
Acting, Production Designer, Editing, and Writing
- NCIS New Orleans
- Bad Moms (Mila Kunis)
- Sleepy Hollow
- Moon and Me (Andrew Davenport)
- First Man (Ryan Gosling)
- Multiple shows for HGTV
- Music videos with Young Thug and Future
- Commercials for Under Armour, Delta, Home Depot, and Lowes
Ashley’s Recent Win:
Last week, I just saw a post about needing a PA. I immediately jumped on that opportunity and I said that I just finished a shoot for a McDonalds commercial a couple of weeks ago.
He quickly replied āHey Ashley, you did that shoot with Fon?ā (Fon was the line producer for the shoot) and I said āYes!ā and he said āOh cool! So you are available Monday then?ā and I said āYes I am.ā
The next day he sent the call sheet and I am on the shoot for 5 days!!!!!
Its so cool to see how everyone is interconnected! Because I worked with someone he knew, I got the job! This program has transformed my life. When you work with great people, you become great!
How to Get into the Film Industry with Absolutely NO Connections:
Lauren had some film experience: studied screenwriting in Vancouver, wrote and directed some short films, did some work on other short films. But she had NO experience in paid film work, and had virtually no professional film connections.
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She got a few jobs from postings that she applied to online right after she started the program, but other than that, not a lot of paid work for the first four months.
Everything came together because she was following Janetās advice in the modules.
Bam! Lauren went from hardly any paid work to paying my bills by freelancing as a PA so fast!
In March, she worked for ONE DAY in film. In April, she worked ELEVEN PAID DAYS and SIX volunteering days in film. Since then, Lauren has been working consistently. It can all come together that fast!
So Many Gigs coming in, she can’t fit them all in!
Here are the job offers Crystal received in the last 15 days. Not shown here are 2 job offers that just came in! Most of them, she had to turn down because she’s already booked. š
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Crystal was afraid to jump into the FIF Into The Industry Certification Program at first because she never thought about working project to project. Not being guaranteed of future paychecks was scary!
BUT she knew her life would stay mundane and nothing extraordinary would happen towards my dreams if she stayed in a semi-comfortable life and took no action towards a film life.
So she signed up for A-list in January of 2017. On March 25, 2017, she quit her day job when she was offered a 3-month job as a PA on a TV show.
Those 3 months came and wentā¦ and she was diving into another show immediately after that! Then another show after that! Her resume grew… her contact list got bigger…
Crystal is now always super high in-demand and she feels great! š
Can you succeed if youāre from another country?
Lera makes $4-5,000 in the film industry (pays for the program) and gets professional acting roles WITHOUT auditioning!
Lera’s Recent Work
Acting, wardrobe, production, and casting
- Lady Bird
- The Greatest Showman
- The Post
- The Irishman
- The Punisher
- The Joker
- Worked with Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese
- The Maniac (Netflix, with Emma Stone and Jonah Hill)
Getting inside the London film industry without film school!
Pro-tip: Find like-minded people who are also in the program in your city is so important! Andy has a peer group in London who has been in the training for longer, and it has helped him tremendously.
Brandon Gets The Work!
Brandon started A-list DURING COVID. Just a few months in and he’s on a shoot anyway! Here’s an update from him :)
Becoming In-Demand!
Crystal went to film school and realized that her degree was not going to help her get into the professional industry. After A-list, she’s constantly in demand and has to turn down work because she’s booked!
Crystal Works with Big Stars
So itās a good thing I havenāt read the books yet to watch the show (my preference) or I wouldāve had to hold back from being a star-googling fan! Pretty cool working on a large set with big stars attached, much higher level in quality work!
Leaving a Corporate Job for Film (with 2 kids!)
Jocelyn had gone to school for film and acting, and like what happens to so many of us, she got sucked into a regular job she had no interest in. Now she also has two kids to take care of. Yet, she always kept that š„ burning for what the film industry.
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As more time went by, it seemed like it was almost a ridiculous notion to leave a good-paying job for an unknown film career:
What if people didnāt accept her? What if she was too old? What if she didnāt have the skills? Basically, what if she made a fool of herself? Well, she finally decided to give herself permission to go after the film life she always wanted. And look where she is now.
See LessAlex’s Recent Work
- Doctor Strange
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
- Feed The Beast (Clyde Phillips)
- Madam Secretary (Morgan Freeman, Barbara Hall)
- Street Justice: The Bronx
- The Blacklist (NBC)
- The Last O.G. (TBS)
- Project Runway
Production Design Assistanting in the Hollywood Hills
Matt is currently on-set in the Hollywood Hills working as a production design assistant, shooting a short that has plans to be adapted into an episodic. He says the project has “amazing views and an even better crew”. Matt has also landed an internal gig with a film festival working as a marketing assistant.
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Alex Working Together with Berthile
Always makes me so happy whenever I get pictures of our people get to work together as PEERS on set! š It’s just so heartwarming! š
From A Career in Psychology to Becoming a Production Manager!
Jesse was working in psychology when he tried to get into film for years, working on student films. He even worked as an assistant to a celebrity. But it just wasnāt working out the way he wanted it to. He was tired and not getting any closer inside. Now, heās a PRODUCTION MANAGER. He HIRES FIF Into The Industry Certification Program people! Heās just worked with Ben Affleck on Torrance. He also worked on the 2016 Ghostbusters.
Parker’s Recent Work
Acting, Director Assistant, Coordinator, Camera, and VTR
- Americas Got Talent, Season 12
- So You Think You Can Dance
- Bug Juice (Disney)
- Nailed It! (Nicole Byer)
- Popular Opinion (Facebook)
- Various Events for Despicable Me 3 (Willis Tower)
- Watson (AFI)
- Environmental Media Awards 2017
- Jokerās Wild, Season 2
- Masters of Illusion, Season 5
- According to Chrisley, Season 1
- Finding Fido, Season 2
- Elton Johnās Oscar Viewing Party
Working on The Worldās Best
Below is a BatCave entry from Kelsey:
Back in October, I worked on a show called The Worldās Best and itās premiering tonight immediately after the Super Bowl! I worked as a PA and this was probably one of the most physically demanding sets Iāve ever worked on, but it was also really rewarding. š„ I love the people I got the opportunity to work with, and I think itās going to be a really good show!
Itās so cool to be able to watch what we helped createā I love the collaboration in this business, and what we get to do everyday!
Below, Kelsey talks about working on a Netflix feature with Robert Redford and Jane Fonda, as well as an indie feature, music videos, and HGTV gigs:
Sparkman works on a $40 million Feature Film
An ex-cocktail waitress, Sparkman now works with all of the big players, like Rebel Wilson and Liam Hemsworth, and has been taken under the wing of one of the executive producers of It.
She’s also got a full-time gig on Blacklist!
How Friends in Film gets you what you can’t get in film school
The main difference is Friends in Film teaches you actually HOW to get on set! Where to go. How to make others want to hire you again and again. When Crystal first started PA-ing on set, people had thought she had already been doing this for months.
Lily went from a Netflix Feature to a Marvel Feature to a TNT TV series!
The paychecks are coming in! š Iāve been on shoots on my days off from work and today is the first day Iāve had off in more than a month!
Staci got bumped to Associate Producer!
Staci has worked as a PROPS ASSISTANT for the well-known propmaster, Martin Lasowitz, who did School of Rock, Hitch, Birdman, and The Dictator.
Jana’s Recent Work!
Acting, Directing, Camera, Sound, and Production!
- The Deuce (HBO)
- Shades of Blue
- Gotham
- The Greatest Showman
- The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
- Elementary
- The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
- Luke Cage
- Top Photographer with Nigel Barker
Crystal’s first feature film!
Crystal just wrapped her first feature film, Old Man and a Gun with Robert Redford and Casey Affleck!! (Crystal told me she was completely starstruck when she saw Caseyās girlfriend (whoās an actress on Supergirl).
Isabel’s Recent Work!
Acting, Producer Assistant, Camera, Casting, Coordinating, Editing, SFX Make-up, and Writing.
- Jurassic World
- Fear the Walking Dead, Season 4
- Battle Angel Alita (James Cameron)
- The Long Road Home
- Aloha (Emma Stone)
- Americaās Got Talent
- American Ninja Warrior Seasons 9 & 10
- Ultimate Beastmasters 3
- Ninja vs Ninja
- NFL Honors 2017
- Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (Zac Efron, Anna Kendrick)
- Adventures in Appletown (Dylan and Cole Sprouse)
- Blackout
- Deadliest Decade
Clara’s Updates (in the š¬š§)!
Clara recently wrapped up a feature she was PA-ing that got her Ā£2000 for a month (she also got to act in it!). Then she got a small acting gig in her hometown Barcelona (that was ā¬200/day).
So she flew all the way to Spain and stayed there for a week with her family. She’s doing other castings for commercials (she used to have an agency there and they kept sending her cool casting commercials).
These are her shots from Dover and Brighton, UK:
The Friends in Film š¦šŗ Community!
This pic was sent to us from Kennedy L, one of our Friends in Film A-listers who’s part of the our growing community in Australia! š
Quitting Your Day Job
This is naturally what happens next when you start becoming high in-demand.
Mike’s Grand Finish of the FIF Into The Industry Certification Program!
Mike just finished the last module of the Program!
He never has been on a real set in his life before A-list, and is now woring his way into the art department side of things and is making more money than he ever has made in his life! š
You donāt have to struggle anymore!
Before signing up to the FIF Into The Industry Certification Program, Patrick did everything he felt he can do to get people to notice his work: he applied to postings, emailed his resume, and called people. But it was going too slow and he wasn’t landing enough jobs. When he moved to Atlanta to pursue film work, he had no contacts. After A-list, he immediately was able to land a gig at Paramount studios.
Amy’s Recent Work
- Blade Runner 2049
- The Exorcist (Fox)
- Alex Inc (ABC)
Amy works in Camera and Production!
Getting Paid for What You Love
Erin: Every week I get a check from a production company and NOT a restaurant! It feels so good to work hard in the industry I LOVE. Thanks to everyone here to supported me and cheered me on.
Have the confidence to make your career what youāve always wanted!
Trent was stuck working in TV news. He wanted to get on bigger projects but wasnāt sure how to do it.
After joining A-list, heās able to move out to LA and is working as a camera operator on all kinds of projects. Heās come a long way!
Getting to be a part of Stranger Things and The Walking Dead!
urlBelow is a BatCave entry from Patrick:
I worked on two back-to-back feature films for two straight months. š
Two HUGE dreams came true ā I appeared on an episode of Stranger Things and The Walking Dead.
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First thing in the morning, Iām in the trailer, having makeup applied, and in walks Winona Ryder.
Then, in the first scene, I turn my head ā Paul Reiser is sitting next to me!
The next scene rolls around, and Sean Astin comes walking into the room!