The future and things

AdminServer called me over a week ago and told me I could still have business analyst position that I earlier turned down due to the scheduling conflict with my filmmaking internship. It seems I had called their bluff on the "now or never" ultimatum they originally gave me because it turns out they are fine with a start date of July 31 after all.

Although I haven't signed any papers yet, I did verbally agree to take the job. I feel the need to justify this decision to you because as you all know the internship is going well. It's clear I enjoy working on movies, but just because someone enjoys golf doesn't mean they can realistically run off and join the PGA Tour. Here are my reasons for accepting the job:

1) AdminServer gave me an attractive offer: my own laptop, an on-site gym, profit-sharing bonuses, an annual company-wide cruise. I was even able to negotiate a slightly higher salary, making the offer just a little bit sweeter. If this was my only reason, then you could say I sold out, but there's more.

2) The work might not be that bad. This is not mainframe programming we are talking about anymore. I'm going to get some exposure to XML and Java, and some increased interaction with users will help improve my communication skills. Also appealing is the fact that the company has a very casual environment with a lot of people my own age employed. I'd like to try working at such a place.

3) I don't have anything else lined up. The D.P. did say he would like take me on for jobs with pay after the internship is over, but that would be only part-time work at best. When I do work, it would include nights and weekends, and it would involve a lot of travel. The crew is based out of Bel Air, Maryland and works mostly in Baltimore and D.C.. In the filmmaking business, they call starting with a crew "joining the circus." That doesn't sound right for me at this stage in life. Maybe I can help with some weekend shoots if they need me, but otherwise I'm looking forward to more stability and a regular schedule.

4) I can still add my internship / grip work to my resume. Who knows what will come up in the future. The biggest sacrifice I'll be making by working for AdminServer is just losing the time and energy that I could otherwise spend looking for alternate jobs. I probably won't continue trying to break into the world of independent filmmaking, but that was never my goal in the first place. I've been looking for a corporate desk job all along; the thing is I want one in a creative environment. I'd like to be on the end that develops the ideas, maybe writes a script, and hires out the freelance film crew. My internship might give me an edge in the running for a job like that. If I don't like my new job, there's no reason I can't continue looking for something more along those lines at ad agencies or whatever.

5) The Minnesota connection with AdminServer is nice. There's a good chance I will be assigned to some Securian projects, which means I would be working with some old friends from back home over the phone and taking business trips back there. Also, if R and I decide to move back to Minnesota in the future, I would be a shoe-in for a job at Securian since I will have helped develop the software that they are learning.

Let me debunk an assumption some of you might otherwise make. I am not accepting this job due to pressure from my wife. She is very supportive of me following my dreams, even if it means I never earn another dime. In fact I think she liked telling people she was married to a filmmaker or a starving artist. Accepting the offer was my decision. This very well might be the path to fulfilling my dreams.

If you remember, I almost passed up my internship all-together to work at AdminServer back when I received their original offer. Now I'm getting the chance to do both. I would be feeling a lot of regret if I hadn't worked on the movie, but I did, and it was great. There are five days of filming left, and after that it will be a lot easier moving on.