Whether it’s the iPhone, Droid, Palm Pre or Blackberry, smart phones have changed the game for PA’s and all entry level entertainment folk alike. You definitely do not need one to make it in Hollywood, but like my girlfriend’s father says: “If you’ve got it, flaunt it!”

Family Plan Side Bar: Staying on your family plan can be a smart money saver. An iPhone for example will only add on an extra $30 to the family plan (total cost of $40 to you if you’re nice and are paying your parents back) a far cry from the $100+ you’d have to pay on your own. But be careful, after two years of being out here AT&T figured out I wasn’t living in NY anymore and forced me off my parents family plan. I’ve only heard that happen to two other people I know, but keep in mind it can happen and you could be stuck with a huge bill.

10) Flashlight
Yup, that’s right this super simple app made this list. It doesn’t come with your phone and it may be one of the most useful things you can have on it. Most of the time you’ll find yourself standing around while someone else is trying to fix a problem. If they need some light, you’ve got it no need to go searching around for the real thing.

9) Bump
I thought that everyone had this app by now, but apparently that’s not the case. Bump can transfer you name, e-mail and photo and all with the correct spelling! It currently only works with the iPhone and the Droid, but none the less it’s the best way to instantly share info and a great fun way to share you contact info and network.

8 ) Kayak
In my opinion one of the best online travel resources out there…and now in your phone. I love the way this app is put together, I’d use it over heading to my computer. It’s got all the functionality of the site and it’s super fast. Flights, hotels and rental cars all instantly at your fingertips for free.

7) Sunrise & Sunset Lite
I know it sounds stupid, but it’s on every call sheet and the number one question that comes up at the end of the day is always how much sun do we have left. No one has their call sheet at that point, so with the click of a button you can say confidently when the sun is going down. It can be helpful in the office too if you ever get asked to help put together the call sheets. (more…)

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Stress and anxiety are very common in today’s entertainment industry. As a result, here is a list of techniques that a person can use to help manage the daily stresses and anxieties of their profession.

Sometimes, we get stressed when everything happens all at once. When this happens, a person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do for a few minutes to get their mind off of the problem. A person could take a walk, listen to some music, read the newspaper or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things.

When facing a current or upcoming task at your job or business that overwhelms you, divide the task into a series of smaller steps and then complete each of the smaller tasks one at a time. Completing these smaller tasks will make the stress more manageable and increases your chances of success.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make you fearful or depressed, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, you are afraid that if you do not get that job promotion then you will be stuck at your job forever. This depresses you, however your thinking in this situation is unrealistic. The fact of the matter is that there all are kinds of jobs available and just because you don’t get this job promotion doesn’t mean that you will never get one. In addition, people change jobs all the time, and you always have that option of going elsewhere if you are unhappy at your present location.

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More than three months after the Writers Guild of America’s strike, Hollywood is facing a new round of labor negotiations that, should they fail, could spell another potentially long strike for the city (and California as a whole).  As the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) negotiate with AMPTP (the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers), the state is still trying to right itself after the WGA shutdown last November.

Anyone who watches television can clearly see the surface effects of the WGA strike – everything from shows cancelled outright, to production schedules that have been pushed back by months – some even until next year (film production also suffered, but that was mostly in rushed scripts and a lack of rewrites on set).  But in order to appreciate the full magnitude of the three months of work-stoppage, one has to dig deeper, specifically into the economic impact the strike has had on all forms of industry-related professions, and on the state’s fiscal health in general.  A report by the Milken Institute, an independent economic think tank, details the numerous ways in which the strike has had (and will continue to have) a lingering effect.  The information contained in this report is all a result of the strike, and shows the roll it played in harming the already struggling state and local economies.

“Substantial”.  This is the word the report uses to describe the strike’s effect on Los Angeles and California, specifically in job loss and overall economic health.  “The state is projected to show a total loss of 37,700 jobs and $2.1 billion in lost output from the fourth quarter of 2007 through the end of 2008. Total personal income and total wages and salaries are projected to decline by $3.1 billion and $2.3 billion, respectively.”  All of these figures, attributable to the strike.  What’s most amazing about these facts is the vast reach of the strike, hitting not just actors and writers and everyone involved in production (hair and makeup artists, lighting technicians, camera operators, set designers, etc.), but also those peripheral to the industry, such as caterers and hotel staff.  The rippling effect of so many people having to tighten their belts has even caused finance, insurance, construction, and health-care to suffer.

According to the report, the strike was one of many factors that helped push California into a recession this year.  As a result, the strike “will continue to resonate over time, causing direct impact on employment, output, and wages and salaries, in turn affecting retail sales and causing ripples through other industries.”  There are also other lingering concerns, for instance a decline in television viewership; people had three months to kill, after all, and ended up turning to alternate sources of entertainment.  Bringing these viewers back into the fold is imperative, for the studios as well as for the advertisers who provide their revenue; however, as mentioned above, television executives are still having difficulties arranging their schedules to bring them back to normal levels.  Until they do, advertisers will remain wary.

This is just a basic overview on the negative effects the strike has had on our economy.  The good news, however, is that “[these effects] will gradually diminish over time; by the beginning of 2009, its effect on most industries will finally drop to a barely noticeable level.”  Unfortunately, this will happen only if SAG and AFTRA can settle their differences and coordinate their negotiations with AMPTP; otherwise, their current contract will expire today, and the unions may call a strike.  If that happens, the impact of the WGA strike will not be replaced, it will in fact be magnified.  We will then be faced with two distinct work-stoppages in less than a year, a frightening prospect for a state that thrives on the entertainment industry flowing smoothly.

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I’ve seen more and more articles recently decrying “runaway film production” – film and TV shows leaving our city and our state, and heading toward more tax-friendly environs.  I have heard for years about Canada, for instance, offering a way out to productions seeking to trim costs… their streets and their locations serve well as a substitute for American locales, but at lower prices (for both location use as well as crews).  But I didn’t know why, in the past year, the issue had ballooned.  So I decided to do some research, to discover what moves the “competition” had made, and what (if anything) our state had done in the past few years to halt this trend.

One article I found dated back to November of 2006.  It talked about the need to retain film production in Los Angeles, and was written by our own mayor, Antonio R. Villaraigosa.  He was writing the piece in response to an editorial in the LA Times, which criticized closing the 105 in order to film a scene for “Live Free or Die Hard”; he stated in simple yet concise tones the need for our legislators to do all they can to keep these productions from heading elsewhere.  He writes: “Today, only 11% of all feature films are being made in California, and we cannot afford to cede this integral industry to other cities, especially as competition grows more fierce.”  He then goes on to cite that competition, pointing out that “14 states [have] passed new tax incentives or improved existing incentives for film productions,” and the “troubling, long-term implications to that trend.”  Finally, he rounds out his opinion piece by mentioning his support AB 777, a bill which could provide tax incentives for productions to stay in California. 

Sounds good to me.  So, this being a year-and-a-half ago, I did some research to find out what happened to “Assembly Bill 777 – Motion Picture Production Tax Incentives for California”.  While some criticism was levied against it with respect to its effectiveness, or the cost to California taxpayers, overall the bill seemed to be a good start.  The only problem is, this bill seems to have disappeared.  The most recent reference I could find to AB 777 was dated February of 2007, and talked about cruelty to elephants.  Obviously, the bill had had a makeover.

Searching for similar bills led me to an article from June of 2007.  One line in particular caught my eye, because of its familiarity:  “We will not sit idly by and watch this homegrown industry disappear because other states are being more aggressive.” This from Majority Leader Karen Bass, of Los Angeles.  Very similar to Villaraigosa’s stance, and yet again, I can find no follow-up article discussing a bill being passed.  It seems this push, too, had stalled.

I did, however, find an article from April of this year, which discusses the New York State legislature’s plan to triple their film and TV tax credits for productions within its borders.  The article goes on to say how “New York City [in particular] also offers a 5% credit, so city shoots can reap a total of 35%.”  And what was the reasoning for these increased credits?  Was the legislature responding to some move made by California’s lawmakers, a sort of tit-for-tat?  Was it trying to break the west coast’s hold on film and TV production?  No, these incentives were done “in a bid to regain an edge over [New York’s] credit-happy neighbors Connecticut, New Jersey and Massachusetts.”  That’s right – not to counter any moves that California or Hollywood had made, but to beat the moves made by other states.

Which finally led me to this article, from May 2008, in which Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger calls for legislative action, saying “California must increase tax incentives to movie and television studios as a way to keep them from moving their productions out of state.”  These comments came days after ABC Studios said it was moving production of ”Ugly Betty” from Los Angeles to New York – meaning the siphoning has extended to include not just individual shoots, but entire productions as well.  The article adds that Schwarzenegger has been pushing for such legislation for four years, but so far has found no success.

That is our loss – and this loss extends beyond the revenue generated by the productions themselves.  It seems simple to say, but keeping these shoots in Los Angeles and California in general can only have a positive impact, especially on tourism.  Because what else are we primarily known for, if not being the entertainment capital of the world?  Take away our film and TV shoots, and you take a major part of our identity.

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