LA Times: Production assistant is hardly the most glamorous job the movie business has to offer, but a group of workers says a major Hollywood studio has pushed too far.Production assistant is hardly the most glamorous job the movie business has to offer, but a group of workers says a major Hollywood studio has pushed too far.
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At first, I thought that some of these claims may be a little to outrageous to be true, but then I started thinking about how easily some of these could have happened in place like L.A. and such a large studio like Paramount Pictures. What’s scary about this is that I probably know people who have worked in poor conditions like this, however a lot of them, including myself if I ever worked there, wouldn’t say anything during the time because the value of the company on my resume and the connections that I would be making. The extremely unfortunate part is that I would take that job in a heartbeat. It’s a fine line to walk but I’m proud of the 4 production assistants that stood up for themselves, for they did not just believe that it is part of the job, or that it would help them move up the corporate ladder.
Wow, who knew Hollywood would have such a scandal on it's hands. Hollywood is the most glamorous business in the world, isn't it? In all honesty, I hope Paramount executives get their asses handed to them on this. When looking at other lawsuits related to unpaid overtime/poor working conditions, the results have never been positive for the defendants. The 54 million dollar president of Paramount could deal with losing a little bit so that the PA's making their next big whitewashed movie happen in the first place can get the money that is owed to them for their long working hours. The problem with the system is that the PA's are so desperate to have the jobs in the first place, they probably did everything they could just to get those positions. It probably took several of them talking to each other to realize that they finally had to stand up to the people that they begged for their jobs for in the first place.
Like Ben said, I think the scariest thing about this is that I know I would have taken this job if it was offered to me. Working at such a prestigious studio as a production assistant right out of college would be a great opportunity, but not under these conditions. Finding a steady job in the entertainment industry can be hard, and companies know that. They'll work people to death and under disgusting conditions because they know that they can. The problem is that people looking for work sometimes get so scared of loosing their job they won't report these places to a higher authority. Unless people actually take a stand nothing then production assistants will continue to be mistreated. Hopefully the bigger studios will see that something is being done and will improve, or someone else will have the courage to speak up.
At first the claims of this article sounded a bit far fetched, I mean how could a company get away with something like this, especially one as big and visible as Paramount. But then I realized that size and visibility is exactly how they get away with it. If this had been some small unknown theater or production company we’d have heard about it long ago. But since its Paramount people value getting to put that name on their resume and not potential burning bridges with lawsuits. To be completely fair I’d probably keep my mouth shut and not complain in that situation out of a desire for the connections Paramount could offer. But that’s what lets companies keep doing things like this. It’s the same problem as internships that are really just being a full employee at the theater but without the benefit of getting paid. As long as there’s a place that has a name people place value on things like this will continue to happen.
Why can’t we just be decent, civil humans? I just don’t understand who thinks allowing and enforcing this kind of thing is ok. You know that these decisions were discussed in a boardroom somewhere, and that at some point the new guy pointed out that “If we have 12 hour shifts, how do they go to the bathroom?”. And then either everyone laughed and explained to the new guy that poor people don’t pee, or they nefariously rubbed their hands and decided it would be worth saving the couple hundred extra bucks like some Disney villain. Is it really so difficult to hire one extra person who can take over for half an hour so everyone else can eat or use the bathroom? And why are we still paying people nothing for extremely long days of work? Honestly, this article makes me sad, and I hope those production assistants take Paramount for all it’s worth.
Horror stories like this are the reason that entertainment has a reputation as a heartless industry built by crazy people, for crazy people. While I'm sure that adages in film and theater are a bit different, the negligent and utterly blind adherence to a
"the show must go on" mentality can be probably be sourced as a reason for these sorts of slights. As someone whose worked long days in my life, I can tell you that working under a person with that sort of mission statement is exhausting and unrewarding, but the level to which the disregard of simple human welfare was/is taken in cases like this is simply astounding. Even more astounding is the contrast between the lives of the different people on set. After hearing "The Wolf of Wall Street" mentioned in this case, I was treated to the thankfully brief image of Leonardo DiCaprio being forced to take a dump in a bucket in his Maserati, an image all would consider absurd. However,i think it extremely telling that the thought of, say Sarah, the PA, having to do the same in her 93 Toyota Corolla isnotmet with the same reaction.
It really sucks to hear that people in our industry are being treated like this. It surprises me even more that they are being treated poorly by a company as big as Paramount. I honestly can't fathom telling someone that they have no time to use the restroom! I mean come on! What did they expect! This article also makes me wonder how long the workers put up with that treatment and why they stayed as long as they did? If anyone asked me to use my car as a restroom, I would not have lasted an hour! The article also makes me question the sense of the production manager and their explanation of the labor policies they had in place. What would move a person to such misjudgment and cruelty? I would really like to learn more about the situation and hear how the lawsuit turns out!
Wow! It is really sad to hear how these workers have been treated. Being unable to use the restroom to keep a road clear sounds so idiotic to me. I am actually very surprised that a company like Paramount were treated their employees like this. I'm so happy that this lawsuit is getting filed because everyone deserves to have the right to pee. It's kinda like the show Urinetown where no one is allowed to use the bathroom. Sounds horrible right!? Thats exactly what these production assistants are going through and on top of the fact that they don't get paid for their overtime. This situation is definitely one that needs to be examined. I look forward to finding out more about it and I look forward to following the case as it unfolds.
As deeply unsettling as this is, I can't say that I am surprised. People above are talking about "humanity" and "being civil people" and "how could this happen," but I think we all know how it happens. It's absolutely sick and twisted, but people in this industry do whatever they can to produce their work. And production assistants will do whatever they can to keep a good name with the company. We've all been the intern who takes a bit of a hit to maintain good status with the people we're working for, whether that's through a few extra hours or through the fact that we're working an unpaid internship. I am sure that everyone's intentions were a little nasty throughout this process, but I'll say again that I am not surprised. I do hope, however, that Paramount pays the price for what they've done. No one should ever feel so pressured to stay where they are that they cannot go to the bathroom. And those people willing to make sacrifices for the production should always be compensated for it.
Like Kat said, I can't say I'm surprised about this sort of treatment happening behind the scenes. At such a large and well known production company like Paramount Pictures, the sad (and quite frankly, disgusting) truth is that if you're not willing to do sacrifice your breaks and bathroom runs, there are 100 bajillion other people who will gladly defecate and urinate into buckets they store in their cars. It's 2016 and I can't believe things like this still happen, and under giant companies like Paramount! For me, there' is a little bit of cognitive dissonance occurring because many of us "normal folk" associate Paramount Pictures with all of the lovely child hood films we grew up on-- not some place where they don't let their production assistants use the bathroom or eat a meal. It's also wrong to have to be in a position where you have to mentally juggle and battle yourself on whether or not it's right to stay at such a place. I hope that these assistants win the law suit because this is unjust and a violation of their basic human rights and needs!
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