You think you have long working hours?

The Unglamorous, Punishing Hours of Working on a Hollywood Set

 You think you have long working hours? Shooting a movie or TV show can mean you spend the majority of your time -and the vast majority of your waking hours- at work. Gavin Polone has first-hand experience.

A week and a half ago we had an unusually long shooting day on the show I’m currently producing, Jane by Design. The crew call time was at 7 a.m. and we wrapped at 10:46 p.m. — fourteen hours and 45 minutes after subtracting our one-hour lunch break. And some had an even longer day: Our actors, including guest star Teri Hatcher, showed up for hair and makeup at 5 am, which meant that hairstylists and makeup artists, as well as someone from the transportation department and the set production assistant, also showed up to meet them and were there until wrap, giving them a total of sixteen hours and 45 minutes. Many of you who are less familiar with the culture of filmmaking may find these hours to be pretty crazy, but those of us who regularly work on sets know there was nothing out of the ordinary about this day — and it wasn’t even that extreme compared to other movies and TV series, which often go beyond the standard schedule of a twelve-hour day.

Stars get paid well for those hours, but the many others on the crew are just making a living, and they rarely complain. Polone talked with different workers about how they view their work schedules in an article at Vulture.