Throughout my education, nobody had mentioned to me the reality of the film crew work ethic. Film sets are run on 12-hour work days, and six-day work weeks. All of this would be acceptable if work days didn’t go over schedule, and there’s an inherent assumption that overtime is a given. A 14-16 hour work day isn’t an unusual day for the crew of a feature film. It isn’t just the hours included on the call sheet, either. Depending on your job role, there may be hidden hours after a day’s wrap, such as next-day prep, de-rigging or additional admin tasks. The problem with film work is that it’s advertised as being a glamorous job, so people are willing to work all hours for low pay, especially when first starting out. Sadly, this leaves a lot of room for exploitation. After all, there’s no lack of filmmakers in this world, and if you aren’t willing – or able – to do overtime, it’s not hard for you to be replaced.