What the key set PA owns
A feature might carry six to twelve set PAs on a location day. The ADs don't have time to place each of them, so the key set PA does. Before crew call, the key walks the set with the 2nd 2nd AD, looks at where camera will point, and marks every entrance the public or crew might wander through: the stairwell door, the elevator bank, the sidewalk at both ends of the block, the loading dock. Each one gets a PA with a walkie.
The key set PA also owns the department's stuff. That usually means the walkies (charged overnight, counted out on a sign-out sheet with the radio number and the person's name), the surveillance earpieces, the director's chairs, the pop-up tents for holding, the bullhorn, the traffic cones and "Filming in Progress" signs, and the AD cart or kit. When a walkie goes missing at wrap, the sign-out sheet is how the production figures out who had it.
A day on a location show
| Time | Work |
|---|---|
| 5:15 a.m. | First in. Unlocks the walkie case, turns on chargers, sets out cones and signs |
| 5:45 a.m. | Background holding set up with tables, chairs, and a sign-in table for the 2nd 2nd AD |
| 6:15 a.m. | Hands out walkies to arriving crew and logs each one |
| 7:00 a.m. | Crew call. Assigns PA positions for the first setup |
| 7:15 a.m. | First blocking rehearsal. Moves PAs as the camera direction settles |
| 12:30 p.m. | Sends PAs to lunch in two waves so lock-ups stay covered, then eats last |
| 3:00 p.m. | Company move. Sends two PAs ahead to lock the new set |
| 7:00 p.m. | Camera wrap. Collects walkies against the sign-out sheet |
| 8:15 p.m. | Last out after the set, holding, and parking are cleared |
The key set PA is often first in and last out, which on a 12-hour shooting day adds up to a 15-hour day. On productions that pay PAs by the day, make sure the deal memo says how overtime is handled. Our guides to crew time cards and crew deal memos cover what to look for.
Lock-ups in practice
A lock-up means nobody walks through the shot and nobody makes noise during a take. When the 1st AD calls "lock it up" on channel 1, every PA at a post repeats it and politely holds pedestrians. When the AD calls "cut," PAs let people through until the next "rolling."
Say the company is shooting scene 42A, EXT. PARKING GARAGE - LEVEL 3 - NIGHT, with the camera looking down the ramp. The key set PA puts one PA at the top of the ramp from level 4, one at the stairwell door, one at the elevator, one at the ramp from level 2, and one with the background in holding. That's five. With seven set PAs on the day, the key keeps one floating for runs and one at base camp to walk actors to set. When the camera turns around for the reverse, the elevator and stairwell positions are now in frame, so those two PAs move behind the concrete columns and the key adds a PA at the far exit that is now behind camera. The lock-up plan gets redone for every major camera move.
Walkies and channels
The channel plan varies by show, and the key set PA posts it on the walkie case. A common version is channel 1 for production and ADs, channel 2 as a private channel ("go to two"), then channels for camera, electric, grip, and transportation. The key set PA also teaches new PAs the habits that keep channel 1 usable: say "copy" or "copy that" so the sender knows you heard, say "flying in" when you're bringing something, "10-1" for the bathroom, and keep chatter off the main channel. The full list is on walkie channels.
Who the key set PA works with
The key set PA reports to the 2nd 2nd AD, or to the Key 2nd AD on smaller shows that don't carry a 2nd 2nd. They work closely with the location department on parking and neighbors, transportation on crew shuttles and base camp, and craft services on where water goes for PAs standing lock-ups in the sun. The set PAs are theirs to hire (often with the 2nd AD's approval), schedule, and train.
On days with a lot of background, the key set PA helps the 2nd 2nd AD move people from holding to set and back, and on some shows handles background vouchers at wrap. When an AD is short on a small show, the key set PA may cover the 2nd 2nd position for the day.
Paperwork
The key set PA's own paperwork is small but shows up everywhere else: the walkie sign-out sheet, the PA team's start and end times for the production report, a copy of the crew contact list for calling a missing PA, and marked-up call sheets with lock-up positions and PA assignments on the back. They usually carry the day's safety bulletin too, because PAs are the first people a pedestrian or a building manager asks what's going on.
The path from key set PA to 2nd AD
The key set PA job is where the AD department sees whether someone can think like an AD. The common next steps depend on where you work.
For the film and television Qualification Lists run by DGA Contract Administration, PA days don't count. The routes are the DGA Assistant Directors Training Program (400 working days on the West Coast, 350 in New York, graduating as a DGA 2nd AD) or documented days working as a 2nd AD on non-union productions. Many key set PAs take 2nd AD jobs on low budget features, shorts, and music videos to build those days, keeping every call sheet and production report that lists them as the 2nd AD along with proof of pay.
On the commercial side, the DGA/AICP Commercial Qualification List considers PA days. For New York or Southern California, the 2nd AD placement requires 600 days of direct production experience, at least 300 of them doing AD work on commercials or other professional media.
In New York City, the Made in NY Production Assistant Training Program, run by the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment with Brooklyn Workforce Innovations, trains unemployed and low-income city residents for entry-level production jobs, which is how some PAs start out.
Tools
A charged walkie with a surveillance earpiece, a Sharpie, a flashlight, a copy of the call sheet, and a notebook for the sign-out sheet. When the call sheet comes out of Storiara, it lists the location address, the weather forecast, and the hospital the ADs entered, along with the day's scenes and call times, which covers most of what a PA at a far lock-up gets asked.