Ian & Actress Lisa Edelstein on set of "Special Delivery"

First Assistant Director Ian Woolf knew at an early age what he wanted to do with his career. Knowing an AD and being familiarized with exactly what that job entailed (as opposed to having just a rough idea or worse yet, no clue) certainly helped somewhat guarantee satisfaction, but achieving the success was up to him. Read the below profile carefully to find valuable lessons about seeking out insider information, making a good first impression, and COMMITMENT (yes, all caps) to your job.

Current position: I’m the First Assistant Director on “Criminal Minds.”

College & degree: NYU Film School, BA in Fine Arts

First job in the entertainment industry: I was an office PA at a small production company called Magnum Pictures. From there, I moved to being a set PA on a film called VIGILANTE.

Career path: After that job, I took the test to get into the DGA Training program. (Ed. note: A program run by the Director’s Guild of America to provide participants with the education, training, and paid work experience necessary to become an Assistant Director on a set. Look for a future post with more details on this program and assistant directors in general.) I had taken the test in college and hadn’t made it through.

The test is pretty involved. It includes a multiple choice personality test, an essay and 15 minutes each of math and verbal questions. The year I got in, between 2,500 and 3,000 took the test on the east coast. (Ian was in New York. There is an LA version of the test.) They picked 60 people to go to the group phase. This part involves going in front of a panel of psychiatrists in groups of eight. They would ask real life and hypothetical questions to test our reaction to various situations, such as having a life boat that only holds seven people and there are eight of us who need to be saved.

When I made it to this point, I contacted all of the DGA training program grads I knew and asked them what they did in the group phase. As I was told by the grads, I memorized the names of the others being tested and called them by name when I referred to them, and offered to go first whenever they asked for a volunteer. Out of the 60 people, they chose just 7 or 8 to join the program.

I was a trainee from 1982 to 1984. During this time, I did DUNE, CONAN THE DESTROYER, and CAT’S EYE. I got into the DGA as a 2^nd Assistant Director in September of 1984.

Big break: I got my first key 2^nd AD job the summer of 1985 on BLUE VELVET. I got that job because I had a good relationship with director David Lynch when I was a trainee on DUNE. My other big break was making the jump to 1^st AD on a miniseries produced by Raffaela DeLaurentiis (who also produced CONAN THE DESTROYER, which I was a trainee on) called VANISHING SON.

What made you want to be an AD? My sister was good friends with Ralph Singleton, who was an AD (now a producer). He mentored me through getting into the program and becoming an AD.

What made you think you’d be good at it? I knew you needed to be outgoing, and have leadership qualities.

Eureka moment (when you realized you did or did not want to do something or that you should do something differently, etc.): When I made the move from 2^nd AD to 1^st AD, I knew to never look back.

Describe a typical work day in your current position: Since I’m currently in episodic TV, there are two types of day. The first type is during prep, the eight days before you shoot an episode. On the day I get the script, I read through it twice first thing in the morning. Using a program called Movie Magic Scheduling, I break out each scene: what cast, what setting, what vehicles, props, and wardrobe, etc. From that breakdown, I create a schedule by making strips for each scene and arranging them on a board by day based on location and actor availability. I work closely with the director during prep week. There are location scouts, and mini-meetings with props and other departments. Then we have a big tech scout with department heads. We run through all the locations and have a final production meeting where everyone can get their outstanding questions answered.

On a typical shooting day, the days are 12-14 hours. The crew call is at 7 a.m., unless we have night exteriors, in which case, we do a split call starting at noon. I show up before the crew and have breakfast, usually a burrito. At crew call, I bring the director, key crew, and all of the actors to the set and they read through the lines for the scene. We’re not even blocking yet, just reading the scene. After that, I keep everyone quiet while the director blocks the scene and then the cinematographer lights the first shot and we shoot it. Over & over. Six hours in, we break for lunch. Over the course of the day, there are also problems that need to be solved and suggestions made to the director on how to do things most efficiently and economically. But that’s generally how a shooting day goes.

Ian (at left) on Criminal Minds jet set

Worst job (or day) in entertainment industry: Worst day for an AD is when actors are late for their call. When they don’t show up on time, it has a domino effect for the entire day. Or when we lose a location at the last minute and have to scramble.

Best job (or day) in entertainment industry: Best time I ever had (where I couldn’t believe they were paying me to do this) was on an aerial unit on CONGO in Costa Rico. We flew around shooting all the footage for a river rafting sequence.

Best thing about your current job: The best thing about “Criminal Minds” is that its been steady work for five seasons. I get to be at home and spend time with my family.

Worst thing about your current job: I don’t know if it’s the worst thing, but there are so many personalities and you can’t please everyone. The AD has to crack the whip to keep the crew moving because you’re the one who is responsible for getting the day of work done.

Brush with greatness: Having the opportunity to work with Jack Cardiff (the DP from THE AFRICAN QUEEN), a legend, on a couple of movies.

Secret of your success/advice to the newbie: Perseverance, not letting rejection get me down, and prioritizing my job. I’ve never missed a day of work or been late since 1980. My family has had to pay the price, which I’m not happy about, but it allowed me to provide for them.

Next move: Hopefully, I’ll move up to UPM, the next step on the ladder. In addition to that, I’m trying to get some projects started on my own as a producer. We came close two years ago but the writer’s strike kind of ended it for us.

I am one of the leaders of the army that is a film or TV crew. I command with a walkie talkie and sometimes a megaphone. I make sure that everyone is where they are supposed to be, that people are fed and wrapped for the day when they are supposed to be, and that, in the best of times, come rain or shine, we get all of the shots we have scheduled for the day. I sometimes say “Action” and “Cut,” but I am not the director.

I am the Assistant Director, or AD.

Photos by: JannieT and Michael_McDonough.