Immigrants: We Get the TV Job Done! (PT56)

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Alex and Nick share stories about being immigrants in the US and working in the TV industry as foreigners.

Should you move directly to Los Angeles or first get experience somewhere else like New York or Vancouver? When would a show hire you if you’re not a US citizen? What are cultural differences and initial difficulties to watch out for when moving countries? What is the visa and green card process for TV writers? What are some unique setbacks of being an immigrant in the TV industry?

Plus, we talk about Shonda Rhimes’ move to Netflix.

The Paper Team migrates…

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Shonda Rhimes moving to Netflix (00:45)
1 – Before arriving in the US (05:36)
2 – First months in Los Angeles (14:05)
3 – Cultural differences and expectations as an immigrant (19:14)
4 – Getting settled: driver’s license, credit score, social security (29:18)
5 – Staying and working in America: visas, green card and citizenship (35:47)
6 – Representing our home countries (50:39)
Resources and Next Week On (53:54)

Links

“Netflix signs Shonda Rhimes in counterpunch to ABC and Disney” – New York Times
“Moving to Los Angeles (and Things We Wish We Knew)” (PT01)
“How to Meet People in LA (When You Don’t Know Anyone)” (PT03)
“Managing Finances as an Assistant & Staff Writer” (PT16)
J-1 Visa
E-3 Visa
O Visa
US Diversity Visa Lottery

Resources

ImmigrationPortal Forum
Australians in LA (Facebook Group)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: ask@paperteam.co