PRODUCTION PET PEEVES

Check the market size of the station you're applying for. Nothing is worse than having a person from a #95 ADI applying for a non-managment position in a #189 ADI. It wastes our time and your money.

FOR PRODUCTION JOB SEEKERS JUST OUT OF COLLEGE

1) Face it, unless you are extremely lucky or have a dynamite resume tape, your first job is going to be with a small-market station or production company in a small city. Most stations base their beginning salaries on their market size and will not play around with starting salaries. What the manager says the position pays is probably all he or she can afford. So if you hold out for a $30-thousand dollar position, you're not getting the job.

2) Education is nice, but experience counts. There's been many a time I've seen a resume of someone who's got a master's in communication, but no experience. That doesn't cut it for me.

3) Please type a label for your resume tape. Place your address and telephone number on it.

4) With many of the federal regulations regarding equal opportunity hiring, a job position may be open for quite a while or it may seem forever for an employer to make a decision. Don't let this stop your job search. A general guideline would be if you don't hear from an employer three weeks after they received your application, they are probably not interested in you. Remember, an employer doesn't have to talk with everybody who applies. Please be patient.

5) The competition is rough. We had a recent opening in our production department and received more than 120 tapes. Put only your best stuff on your reel. Put your best work first. I usually make up my mind about a candidate in the first 30 seconds of that reel.

6) Enough of the music videos. I hire commerical producers. I expect to see commercials or public service announcements. I don't want to see news stories. In other words, make sure your reel reflects the position you're applying for.

7) If you're about ready to graduate have a heart-to-heart with your professor about your work. Projects that may have gotten you an "A" in class won't cut it in the real world. You should be getting your reel started a year before you graduate. Set up an appointment with a local television station or production house and have them review your work and give you hints way in advance of your graduation. Start your job search about a month or two before you graduate.

8) Don't expect your tape back unless you include a self- addressed stamped envelope. Also remember, all expenses you incur while looking for a job are usually tax-deductible.

9) Treat internships like they were a real job. Many of our jobs have been filled by interns who have demonstrated a desire to learn and have shown professionalism.

10) Please don't feel a part-time production assistant job at a local station is beneath you. Many stations promote from within. If you're hired, show interest in other positions. In smaller markets the turnaround in full-time jobs is constant.

11) And finally, enough of the ego. You're applying for a job in a small market -- it's not New York!

Dan McClintock
KJCT TV-8
Creative Services Dir.

Having been on both sides of the coin, my comments can be taken by both empoyer and applicant.

Arrogance kills: Not often, but some news directors & management are so arrogant they forget they once were involved in the same process not long ago. It is hair raising for applicants. Time and understanding are hard to give due to constraints of the job, but an effort is required to help these people learn from the experience in a positive way! BE CONSTRUCTIVE NOT DESTRUCTIVE IN YOUR COMMENTS! Don't be so shallow in your thoughts that an over sight such as color bars on a resume tape or not putting your "title" on the cover letter lets an excellent talent slip away. We all have and do make mistakes! Take a look at some of the typos on this pet peeves page alone!

Applicants, don't tell your perspective empolyer you are the one for the job and to stop looking for other applicants out of what you have read in a help wanted ad! Confidence is one thing, but don't be a used car salesman, or should I say salesperson. Also do not apply for jobs that ask for experience you may not have yet. In time your experience will come. Save you and the empolyers' time and money. Keep in mind people in news rooms are on extremely tight schedules, under heavy pressure, and are often overworked. If they are advertising to fill a position they may be short staffed on top of the above! Reading and viewing resumes and tapes, and getting a reply out to the (literally) 100's of applicants is enogh work in itself! Throw all that on top of their regular duties of running a busy news department, and you can understand why many applicants don't hear anything back. Choose wisely where you send your tape if it is important to you. Good Luck!

Patrick Breen
CAP Productions
Executive Producer pbreen@k-online.com