Day Jobs

What do you guys do for a day job? or do you work full time in film? do you find it demanding sometimes and hard to get out to work on writing or film? I'm asking because I do. I mean I'm young I just graduated high school and I've jumped right into the automation industry without schooling so I've had to put a lot of time in but with that comes less time to work on what I really want, but money is money I guess
 
100% freelance here.

I worked fulltime in TV many moons ago, then had a fulltime job with freelance on the side for 14 years. Because, y’know, bills and health insurance. But I when back to full freelance a few years ago, and thankfully my wife’s salary and benefits cover the basics and then some.

The benefit to keeping employment, and filmmaking on the side, is that your living expenses are (hopefully) covered, and you can use your evenings and weekends to work on what you want to work on. The downside is that your time availability for freelancing or working on your award-winning feature is really limited and not exactly under your control.

The challenge with being self-employed, whether freelancing or starting your own production co., is that you have a to run it like a small business. And when you enter that world, you have to build that business from the ground up. And to do that, you basically plan to sink all your revenue - including tax refunds - back into the business for the first 5 years before you can figure out if you’re finally making a livable profit. It changes how you file your taxes (itemize them with a Schedule C). And of course you don’t have benefits or retirement built in, so you have to figure those out on your own if you don’t have coverage through a spouse.

Being self-employed means being your own boss, which isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. You still have to appease your clients if you want continued business. And you have to take on the paid work wherever you can in order to have time and money to work on your own stuff. But you do still get a little more control over your work schedule. And being able to edit at home with beer in the fridge and without having to put on pants is one of the positive side benefits.

There’s always a tradeoff.
 
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AcousticAI brings up some good points. I've done the freelance thing too and in a way I prefer it over my current situation. The problem with "working in the industry" is that you're working on other people's projects, making their vision happen. For me it sucks a lot of the fun and creativity out of something I enjoy.
 
Yeah I guess its really just about taking the leap from the security of my job. that or just finding a better balance between my job and working on projects of my own.
 
Working around 25 hours on Videocore a week as a editor and documentrymaker. The rest is dedicated to being a parent. Hope too increase it to 35 or 40 soon. I'm now at the point that more money comes in then goes out.
 
I did the waitress thing. I did the movie usher thing. Once I stared making films, I fought for every job I could get and eventually landed some freelance PA jobs. I still do some freelance, but mostly try to get my own work moving!
 
Let's see… In the past I have:

Been the mate on a charter fishing boat.

Worked in a plastics factory.

Pumped gas (long before self-serve).

Food service - waiting tables, food prep, etc.

Started at a small corp. as a TSR (Telephone Service Rep). Worked my way up to operations/projects manager in
three years, held that position for another three.

Office manager and session manager/producer for a Broadcast Music company.

Retail sales at a two music stores; ended up as department manager at the first, operations manager at the second.

Toss in lots of temp stuff in between and after all of those.


Remember that while working the above jobs I was still working as a musician or recording studio engineer. Lots of 90 hour weeks.
 
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