Coming In on the Sly

I recently started a new job, which is amazing in itself considering all the shit that has been hitting the American flag lately. What is even more amazing is that this job is the job I wanted: It’s an assistant to the Executive Producer of this really cool kids show, “The Electric Company.” (www.pbskidsgo.org) It’s produced at Sesame Workshop, which means I get to spend my days walking through the brightly colored, stuffed animal clad hallways of Sesame. Of course being an assistant means all of organizing someone else’s life – but my boss is so cool and zany that I am really into it!

I’m on week two of my job. Last week was nothing but fast paced and exciting. From a writing stand point, also really inspiring. I was not only asked to read a few short scripts and give my boss my notes on them, but I was allowed to sit in on a script meeting! I am trying to let everyone in the office know that I am and want to be a writer and am good at it – without being a dick about it. I have fared well so far:

One thing I learned from being in the Dramatic Writing program at NYU is that if you’re the newbie in a room full of people who have been working on a show, you have to keep your mouth shut. No one wants the new person to be cocky or loud mouthed, because everyone else in the room does know more than you do. I failed a little and said three things total during the script meeting. Interestingly, the script coordinator, who is the official note taker of the meeting, wouldn’t even write down what I said. That is, until the third time when the head writer told her to.

We were done reading this first draft, and the script supervisor was going page through page, asking who had notes. We came to page 10 and I asked a question, “I was wondering why x wasn’t in the script,” (which is a better tactic instead of saying, “this is wrong but I know how to change it”). Everyone paused and told me to go on with my thought. I did, and the head writer said, “That’s really smart. Put it in the notes!”

So wahoo! I got my note in the page of notes to be given to the writer, which he’ll use to revise. Of course, who knows if he’ll do anything with it – but being called smart by the head writer was totally a thrill! Now the next hurdle would be to be invited back to the meeting. I don’t want to seem too entitled and assume I get to go back. But I would love recognition that I have smart things to say, and that I could be of use to the show. Because I would be! But who knows…