LOCATIONS AND TRANSPORTATION

Job Overview

The transportation office coordinator is responsible for every piece of accounting paperwork for the transportation department, including purchase orders, check requests, and driver time cards. The office coordinator reports to the transportation coordinator, and generally works in the production office.

Special Skills

Organized, detail-oriented, personable, and problem solving skills are all attributes that make for a good transportation office coordinator. “I think being a people person has helped me,” says coordinator Kris Golashesky. “A lot of times people will forgive your mistakes because they like you. If you have a good demeanor and are good with people, it takes you to another level.”

Advice for Someone Seeking This Job

Although the film industry is tough to get into, Golashesky suggests, “The best thing that anyone can do is contact their local or state film office and volunteer your time to the office of a production company. There are lots of opportunities once you get in, but you have to wait your turn to get there. Nobody starts out as a producer.”

Professional Profile: Kris Golashesky, Transportation Office Coordinator and Location Scout

After the sports marketing firm that employed Kris Golashesky for 10 years folded, she took a position in events planning with Special Olympics, but soon discovered the job was less about events and more about fundraising. Through a friend she became familiar with opportunities in film and television production and decided to make a career change.

Hired as transportation office coordinator on the feature Girl, Interrupted, Golashesky learned the tasks quickly. She went on to work in the same capacity on The Contender.

Having become friendly with the staff at the Virginia Film Office, they hired her to do some location scouting for them, leading to work for location manager Charlie Baxter on the film The Replacements.

She went on to work on Lucky Numbers, serving as a personal assistant (driver) for actress Lisa Kudrow. After Lucky Numbers, she went to work on the film Hannibal. In addition to being the transportation office coordinator on the picture, she also worked for Charlie Baxter as a location scout.

“The director, Ridley Scott, had a keen eye for what he wanted and the location manager was concerned at not being able to find exactly what he was looking for. I went out for a month, shooting various locations in and outside the city of Richmond, knocking on a lot of doors and asking a lot of people I had never met before if I could come in their house and take photographs. I had to find Clarissa Starling's apartment, the cottage, and a chemistry laboratory.”

Golasheskey followed up with the film Hearts in Atlantis, and is currently at work in the transportation department of the series pilot DC.