One in a million.
Speaking of registration, don’t forget yours.
Daily Business
UCLA’s TFT has some kind of “Showrunner program” up its sleeve and they seem to be very secretive about that, really secretive.
So I tried to dig up some information.
First, I tried to contact TFT.
After 3 e-mails or so, I only had a handful of information on that mysterious program.
Then I googled, I yahooed, I searched everywhere and, finally, I had found something more about the program. Not much, but something.
What I found was actually TFT’s “strategic plan” for 2005–2010. Actually, I found a cache of the plan (the original having been deleted I suppose).
Now I won’t talk much about the document but what I will talk about here are the infos I gathered about this “TV Writer-Producer program” AKA “Showrunner program”.
The first thing I learned was that this program is currently in its second year, that means that it began only a year ago, during the Academic Year 2007–2008, so it is extremely recent (hence, possibly, the lack of feedback around it).
I also learned that, like other TFT programs, only a handful (read 20ish) of people are selected each year. So as usual, very competitive.
The strategic plan focused around 10 projects that are to be completed by 2010; the 10th project being the creation of this collaborative program between the MFA Producing Program and the MFA Screenwriting Program, therefore making a “Creative Producing and Writing for Television” program.
Here is an excerpt from the plan talking about that project:
Proposal: TFT is committed to establishing a cross-programmatic MFA specialization that trains the next generation of writer/producers for television. Serving a nationally recruited cohort of twenty new students, the Creative Producing for Television Program will put TFT at the forefront of a highly competitive field of enormous social and
economic importance.Analysis: This program is a strategic curricular priority. Unlike the film industry which is a director’s medium, television’s central creative force is the writer/producer or show-runner. A new academic program can have dramatically transformative effect on the art form. Proposed offerings will bring together two of TFT’s most successful and prestigious programs: screenwriting and producing. It is broadly recognized that based on the career of its graduates the Screenwriting Program is the national leader in its field.
TFT has the competitive advantage of being able to turn to television industry leaders and members of our Executive Board for influential and knowledgeable adjunct faculty.Resources: Because writing and producing are neither equipment nor space intensive, only relatively modest resources are required to establish an excellent program. Professionals drawn from the entertainment industry will be available to teach on a pro-bono basis. Major instructional and administrative costs will be covered by Enrollment Initiative funding. Discussed and approved in principle at TFT’s last budget meeting, the use of enrollment initiative funding to support MFA growth has the added advantage of enhancing TFT’s financial stability through the generation of professional fees. Finally, a program of this stature will attract significant support from the television industry.
Funding for one of the courses is already in place from a private donor and so too is full salary and benefits for an Administrative Coordinator who will be required during the program’s first formative year (see http://www.tft.ucla.edu/producers/start.htm).
Everything is pretty vague but still pretty interesting.
The focus of this program I was told is to write your own show that you would ultimately produce, pretty ambitious.
I wondered how one would apply to such a program as there is basically on the TFT website about it, and I was told that to apply, you needed to go through the Screenwriting application procedure. But, again, there’s nothing on the website to clarify your intention of joining this “TV Writer-Producer program”.
TFT is currently “gathering information” to post on the website.
The only thing we can do now I guess is wait, and see.
Devon DeLapp posted a while ago a technique he used to land a job on a TV Show even though he was a “complete stranger to the entertainment industry”.
Although certainly not a miracle solution, I’ve heard that it indeed worked for some people. So even though it takes a lot of patience and mindless typing to get through it, if it works…
He’s also posted a nice tool to help you cope with the numbers and names you get during the process.
I bet it can also be used for other stuff!
Anyway, there’s also a key thing to keep in mind when applying for a PA job Devon says:
Appear willing to do anything.
He also says that a reasonable ratio before being offered a position is 4 to 8 interviews. So if you don’t get offered one after that, revise yourself!
Good luck in your hunt.
Now that we’ve seen Non-immigrant Visas, time for the Green Card ones.
Again, all that you see here is from my own research. I am not an immigration lawyer, so if you’re seriously considering any of these options do your own research, don’t hold my word for it! That said, I’m not going to start inventing facts as I’m in the same situation anyway.
B) Green Cards
Probably the goal for everyone wanting to live in the U.S., Green Cards are next to impossible to obtain without U.S. relatives, really strong jobs or lots of luck.
All the green cards basically entitle you to unlimited stay in the U.S. as well as the ability to work there.
There are 3 main categories of Green Cards:
- Family/Marriage
- Work
- Green Card Lottery AKA Diversity Visa Program
I will not talk about the family/marriage one because I’m pretty sure that if you had an American mother or wife you wouldn’t be here right now.
Now let’s get down to business with the Employment Green Cards (or Visa).
This category can be broke down in 5 visa types (from E1 to E5), although only the first 2 really apply to us.
Employment Visas are given based on the “preference”, that is the number next to the E. The lower it is, the better chance you have of getting it (as long as your file is very strong).
Employment First Preference (E1):
Basically an O1 visa but with stricter conditions.
E1 Visas are for “priority workers” only, that means “persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics”.
You must indeed have a strong (read national or international) carreer, and acclaim, behind you before trying to apply for an E1 Visa.
The good news is that this is basically the only work visa that you can file on your own: you do not need to have a job offer in the U.S. before you apply.
Employment Second Preference (E2)
You need to be a “person with exceptional ability in the arts, sciences, or business”. Notice the difference between an E1 Visa where you had to be “extraordinary”.
This time around though you need an employer to file a petition on your behalf: you need a job offer before applying.
There is one exception though: National Interest Waiver. To obtain this waiver, you must prove that the exemption would be of the national interest. This little site is quite helpful listing all the different proofs you need and how to obtain them.
Now time for the Diversity Visa Program.
I will probably go over this one in more details around October (the time when the DV-2010 Lottery opens).
Basically between October and December the lottery opens and you fill out a form to apply for the lottery (free).
Hundreds of countries are allowed in, while others are not.
That means millions of forms, and a very slim chance for you, as basically 50 000 Diversity Visas are awarded each year.
As always, if you have questions please feel free to email me or post a comment.
Here is the concise visa breakdown.
The hypothesis that will be used in the breakdown is that you are “a writer in Europe or Canada who wants to be able to work as a writer in the U.S.A. and has no immediate relative there”.
I will probably dedicate posts for a couple of these different visas as time goes by, but for now I wanted to give an overall guide to the various options.
All that you see here is from my own research. I am not an immigration lawyer, so if you’re seriously considering any of these options do your own research, don’t hold my word for it! That said, I’m not going to start inventing facts as I’m in the same situation anyway.
Two main categories of Visas can be distinguished:
A) Temporary Visas (or non-immigrant)
B) Green Cards (or immigrant)
In this post I will talk about the Temporary AKA Non-immigrant Visas.
A) Non-immigrant Visas
For work-related visas, your stay in the US on a non-immigrant visa will primarily be dependant on your job (or lack of).
Basically you have to have a job offer before even going to the U.S. which is difficult, to say the least, in our field of work. Your employer must fill tons of forms proving that you are the only one that can be able to do the task at hand instead of one of the other 300+ million Americans. The reason for all that is to show that you won’t become a “burden” to the U.S.
The duration of your visa is also dependant on the duration of your job, with each visa having a limitation.
The most used and known about work visa is the H-1B visa.
Duration of stay: 3 years, extendible to 6 max. A few (complicated) exceptions give an extended year or three at best.
What it is about: This visa allows a U.S. employer to employ foreign workers skilled in specialty occupations, but only when qualified U.S. citizens or residents are not available.
What’s the problem?: The main point here is that you need a specific job offer from an employer willing to give time to help with the visa process.
Not so easy if you want to be a PA right?
You must also have at least a bachelor’s degree and if a miracle happens and you get your H-1B visa, you are basically tied to your current job.
A rare visa to obtain (only if you already have somewhat of a carreer) is the O-1 visa.
Duration of stay: As long as your job lasts.
What it is about: You need to have “extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, or extraordinary achievements in the motion picture and television field”. This is mostly proven by “sustained national or international acclaim”. Also, you need a job in the US.
What’s the problem?: Again, you need a job before applying for the visa. Not to mention the “international acclaim” thingy.
If you indeed have a strong carreer (and acclaim), and intend to move to the U.S., you should look over to the E1/E2 Green Card (cf my next post on the Green Cards).
For Canadians and Mexicans only, there is also the TN-1 visa.
I haven’t done much research on this one since I’m neither Canadian nor Mexican but what I know is this:
Duration of stay: 1 year, extensible indefinitely as long as the job is alive
What it is about: Basically same as a H-1B visa, but with a better “duration of stay” (as long as you have the job).
What’s the problem?: Your job must be among those in this list. Also, same as H-1B, you must have a job offer and everything before applying.
There is also another common one, although not work-related. I am talking of the F-1 visa, or student visa. If I get accepted in one of my colleges, I will most probably be applying for one.
Duration of stay: It goes without saying that this visa is tied to your education, therefore the duration of an F-1 visa will depend on the duration of your enrolment.
What it is about: A student-only visa given through academic institutions. That means that you must first be accepted by a school/college (where you’ll then receive special forms) before applying for an F-1. This visa is only for academic studies (or language training), not for vocational eduction (that is an M visa).
What’s the problem?: The main problem is that you are not allowed to work, save for “practical training” (meaning mainly internships) and sometime college work. For this kind of work you need a prior authorization from the USCIS, extra headache. You also can’t apply for Social Security (although this depends on your work-status) nor Medicare.
You could go to a community college (therefore have an F-1 visa) and whilst you are “over there” start looking for work that could fit an H-1B or TN-1 visa, although I’m not sure how useful that would be ultimately.
There are tons of other non-immigrant visas out there but those I thought were the main ones regarding the “writing field” were put here.
Next up tommorow: Green Cards.
If you have questions please feel free to email me or post a comment.