His minor in general social science was the result of all the political
science and sociology courses he had taken before changing career paths.
Kemp immediately took a
job working in set construction
at De Laurentiis Studios in
Wilmington, North Carolina,
just to get his foot in the indus-
try door. In less than six
months he worked on three
different films. During that
time, he also picked up work
on nonunion projects, often in
the lighting department. A
half-year spent working as a
cameraman at a Richmond
television station convinced
Kemp that this was not a
career path he was interested
in continuing. Instead he
pursued freelance work, serving as a grip, electrician, and dolly grip on
commercials and industrials. "Someone recognized I had an aptitude for
gripping electric, and that's where I landed."
Just a couple years out of college, Kemp was hired as an electrician/
lamp operator on the NBC miniseries Gore Vidal's Lincoln. His work on
the film impressed gaffer Joey Clayton, who would later hire Kemp for
several more television projects.
After being hired in the late 1980s as an electrician on the film Crazy
People, Kemp focused primarily on electrician work on features, including
True Colors, What About Bob?, Fried Green Tomatoes, Dave, Washington
Square, and The Jackal. By the early 1990s, he was working regularly as a
best boy electrician or rigging gaffer, on films such as Arlington Road and
Trading Mom, followed by Murder at 1600, Hush, Cherry Falls, Along Came a
Spider, Hearts in Atlantis, and Gods & Generals. Beginning in the mid-1990s,
Kemp was also being hired as a gaffer on features such as First Kid, Blair
Witch 2, The Contender, and Mickey, and the television series D.C.
When not working on feature projects, Kemp studies cameras, lenses,
and filtration to hone his skills as a director of photography, with plans to
shoot small independent projects.
"One of the
biggest things that has
made me successful are
the people that surround
me."--Jay Kemp
"I think it is possible to have a success-
ful career outside of the major markets."
--Jay Kemp
"Try not to get discouraged, because
if you stick it out, things will happen for
you."--Jay Kemp
CAREER TIPS
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