Part Time

 I find myself in the not-too-unpleasant position of a two or three day a week fill in dolly grip. This is a phenomenon that often arises for dolly grips who are between shows during a relatively busy time. Television has cranked up and I'm getting calls to do a lot of double up days and 2nd units, as both A and B camera, for tv shows as well as filling in for guys who just want a day off. If you can time it right, this results in staying employed basically three or so days a week with the rest off. In the last month, I've worked on four different shows, thanks to a friend of mine who shoved some of his calls to me. I've also been able to reconnect with a lot of people I haven't seen in a long time. That's another good thing. I really dislike coming in cold to a crew I've never met, but so far I've seen at least a couple of old acquaintances on each set. The grip crews on each of these shows have been very welcoming and top notch professionals. I have four days this coming week on two different shows, then, hopefully, the cycle will start over and a new batch of double up days will start as new episodes begin. I'm certainly not getting rich, but I'm keeping the wolf away from the door. And there's always an opportunity to learn something new from people you've never worked with. It would be nice for a big feature to come along about now, but if it doesn't for a while it's ok. As long as I can keep going like this I can pay the bills and not dip into savings. Anyway, I hope you are all staying busy. Don't be strangers.