对于许多有电影头脑的大学毕业生来说，在电影行业找到工作是一个梦想成真, 但是，当你刚开始从事自由职业者的工作时，你可能会感到畏惧. However, 扎实的基础知识和聪明的求职技巧会让一切变得不同. Film Production MFA 毕业生路易斯·布朗(Louis Brown)将专业精神和人际关系放在首位，在真人秀电视和剧本制作中都找到了稳定的工作.

路易斯在斯帕坦堡的伍福德学院(Wofford College)读本科时修了一门电影课程，之后他决定攻读电影方面的高级学位, South Carolina. Full Sail’s Film Production MFA program was a perfect fit; he particularly enjoyed his Film Assembly course with instructor Bill Benton. Bill taught Louis a great deal about dub stages and the post-production audio process; he also helped Louis’ class win a student regional Emmy award. 该项目强调专业和沟通，这帮助路易斯找到了很多毕业后的工作.

“沟通是我们在《十大菠菜台子》片场学到的一件事，同时也要把自我放在门外, being a professional,” he says. “这真的帮助了我，因为有人告诉我，我是一个很好的员工……我不是来偷懒的。, we’re here to work.”

Louis has worked on a number of sets since he graduated in 2019. He was a Location Management Assistant for Disney+’s The Right Stuff, a Production Assistant for an episode of Soledad O Brien’s show Disrupt & Dismantle, and a Production Assistant for Digital Addiction on A&E, among other roles. 最近，路易斯是第二季的制作助理 Street Outlaws: America’s List on the Discovery Channel. 街头赛车真人秀有独特的需求，需要大量的工作人员和快速的思维.

“When you’re on set [for Street Outlaws你是制作办公室和其他工作人员之间的联络人. The crew on this show was about 70 people; we had about 10 PAs. There was an A crew, a B crew, and a C crew. You had camera guys down the racetrack, 你一整天都在协助制片办公室的工作人员,” Louis explains.

这可能意味着在拍摄过程中与录音人员交换磁带, providing new batteries and labeling tapes for the camera crew, picking up heaters and other supplies, completing administrative tasks in the production office, and more. 路易斯在真人秀节目上的工作与他在剧本制作上的工作非常不同. For example, 他作为米拉麦克斯独立电影的第一团队制作助理，与一小群工作人员一起工作 Harvest Moon starring Paul Bettany.

“它完全不同，因为那部电影是sag下属的工会制作的. So, you’re really only doing one position day in and day out, 而一个非工会的拍摄，你可以做很多事情，每天都在变化. [On Harvest Moon] I was mainly working with the talent, the second and first assistant directors, getting the first team ready for each take. Making sure they’re wired, 确保他们在需要的时候换上下一套服装, making sure their hair and makeup’s good to go for each take. 我只是在整个制作过程中与第一个团队合作，”他说.

路易斯通过了解片场的其他工作人员，在电影行业找到了稳定的演出机会. 一旦一项工作完成，他就会给生产协调员发电子邮件表示感谢. 下次当他的工作安排有空的时候，他就会拿着一份新的简历，问他们是否需要更多的帮助. 他还定期与南卡罗莱纳电影委员会联系，寻找空缺职位，并与过去合作过的剧组成员保持联系.

“Everyone's in the same boat. We're all trying to help each other out. If someone's in a higher up position, they've been in your shoes before, and if you have the hard work ethic and determination, they're willing to help you get the next job. And that's what I try to focus on every time I work. How hard can I work? What can I do better each day? 然后，一旦工作完成，我如何与这些人保持联系并重新联系他们?”

Those tactics are working well for Louis: A crew member from Harvest Moon 帮助他在迪士尼即将翻拍的《十大菠菜台子》的广告部门找到了一个额外的布景制作助理的角色 The Haunted Mansion另一名工作人员提交了他的第三季简历 The Righteous Gemstones on HBO. 他一直在关注制作工作，这样他就可以在片场工作，从而获得美国导演协会的会员资格, 这会让他离成为助理局长的最终目标更近一步吗. 他还利用自己的社交策略，争取到与顶级导演和人才合作的更大项目.

“It's always about how you can promote yourself, project to project, 你如何在每个项目中与你正在合作的人建立联系，你如何通过这种方式获得下一个演出,” Louis says. “Because it's mainly through networking you're going to get work. 除非他们认识你，否则你不一定会因为别人给你打电话而得到工作.”