Busy, but good!

I am Assistant Directing a new short film. This is a project produced by some of my Austin Movie Show compadres, and I’m taking some vacation days to help make it happen. We are shooting for about 6 days spread over three weeks, and our first two days were Tuesday and Wednesday. I loved it. Every experience I have like this just affirms how much I love this field of work. Even when I was doing Production Assistant work (which people say is the lowliest, “pay your dues” kind of work on a set), I loved every minute of it. I always thought that my next professional step behind the camera would as an Assistant Director, and this is my first chance to add that credit to my resume (though I have directed my own short films, of course).
Many people wonder why I would possibly want to be an A.D. when they are usually one of the most hated people on the set apparently because they are the ones who have to crack the whip and keep things moving and on schedule, so consequently they have to kind of push everyone. Many people firmly believe you can’t be a good A.D. without being an asshole. I am determined to prove this wrong. I always thought I would be good at it because I think I’m good at motivating people and getting things done, but keeping things fun and still being friendly and diplomatic. Sure, I have the ability to be a more of a slave driver if that’s necessary, but I believe that overall I can get things done and still leave the crew liking me when it’s all over. I felt very at home during our first two shoot days. In addition to the AMS people I’ve already raved about, I’ve met even more incredibly fun, cool, and talented people on this film. Austin is jam packed with them!
Now if I could only find a way to do this all the time and get paid for it.