Each month we will showcase an individual who participated in the "Made in NY" PA Training Program. Click here for information on the free, month-long program developed in conjunction with Brooklyn Workforce Innovations and designed to create job opportunities for New Yorkers, connect New Yorkers with employers in the industry, and educate production assistants on how to work collaboratively with the communities in which they shoot. A “Made in NY” PA at work in New York City. Photo courtesy of BWI. “Made in NY” Spotlight of the Month: “Blue Bloods” December 1, 2011 - When the hit CBS series “Blue Bloods” is looking for well-trained and professional production assistants, the show’s crew knows it can turn to the graduates of the “Made in NY” Production Assistant Training Program. “‘Made in NY’ PAs never cease to amaze me!” said Hilary Kehoe, the show’s production coordinator. “It is a credit to the program that they prepare these individuals so well for their careers.” Since the series began in 2010, “Blue Bloods” has hired four staff PAs from the “Made in NY” PA Training Program, including two office PAs, a locations PA and a walkie PA. The show has also hired more than twenty-five additional “Made in NY” PAs as additional PAs. Kehoe, who’s responsible for hiring office PAs, appreciates the training the “Made in NY” PAs receive during four and a half weeks of mock shoots, class instruction and interactive exercises from Brooklyn Workforce Innovations and the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. The program, which prepares unemployed and underemployed New Yorkers for entry level jobs in production, works to help diversify the local film industry. “In my opinion, the superior hands-on training these PAs get in the ‘Made in NY’ program gives them an edge over their competitors,” said Kehoe. “They’re confident on set, on walkie and interacting with other crew members.” What makes a “Made in NY” PA a cut above the rest is that they come to their first job with a unique skill set and knowledge of the set that most new PAs don’t have. “A ‘Made in NY’ PA can truly step onto any set and have a good understanding of what’s going on and how to integrate themselves successfully,” said Rebecca Strickland, one of the 1st Assistant Directors on “Blue Bloods.” Strickland noted that traditionally, additional PA positions are usually filled by a friend of a friend. “It was random and seldom did you feel the new PA wanted to be in the industry or ever do the job again,” she said. “A ‘Made in NY’ PA, on the other hand, not only gives a foot-in-the-door to someone who has been exposed and trained…in the culture of a film set, but also someone who has the willingness to learn, grow and work with diligence.” “There is a natural learning curve that exists on any new job,” she added. “If the PA has graduated from the program, the basics are a given, and it is just a matter of acclimating to the specific show.” Strickland as well as some of the other ADs on “Blue Bloods” – Jono Oliver and Daniela Barbosa – have also served as guest instructors during various cycles of the training program, giving the “Made in NY” PAs the unique opportunity to learn basic set skills from a working Union AD. Barbosa stressed that “Made in NY” PAS come out of the program knowing all of the basics, like how to use a walkie and read a call sheet. “It gives us the ability to give them tasks that can utilize their skill set instead of teaching them ‘how to go to 2,’” she said. “They understand the chain of command [on a set], a very under-acknowledged, yet necessary skill,” said Strickland. “We are guests in all neighborhoods at all times of the day and night,” noted Strickland. “It is very important that any industry reflect the population which it utilizes.” “Diversity in every industry is tantamount to its success, especially in the film and TV industry,” said Kehoe. “PAs who have made a conscious career decision to work in entertainment prove to be a more eager workforce.” Strickland agrees. “There is a commitment and work ethic that is unsurpassed at that level of film production,” she said. “‘Made in NY’ gives people opportunities to enter into the industry without needing to know someone,” said Barbosa. “Our industry is built upon relationships. It's very hard to embark upon any career unless you have contacts. To give someone the support to follow their dreams is the greatest thing that anyone can do. ‘Made in NY’ does just that.” Interested in learning more about the “Made in NY” PA Training Program? Click here. Read more about previous "Made in NY" PAs of the Month here. design by    The City of New York Mayor's Office of Film Theatre & Broadcasting 1697 Broadway Suite 602, New York, New York 10019.
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