Breaking into the film industry is notoriously difficult. It requires grit, thick skin, and the willingness to work grueling hours for little to no pay just to get your foot in the door. Most parents of aspiring artists know that when their kid lands a legit opportunity to gain on-set experience, you support them, buy them comfortable shoes, and keep the coffee coming. However, one dad on Reddit decided that his convenience was more important than his daughter’s resume, and he single-handedly torpedoed her first big break because he got bored waiting in the parking lot.
The OP (Original Poster) is a fifty-five-year-old father to a seventeen-year-old daughter who has been homeschooled for the last five years. This teenager isn’t just watching movies; she is making them. She writes scripts, directs short films, and is dead set on attending film school. She managed to secure a volunteer position as a production assistant for a full-length movie being run by students at a major university in their city. This is the holy grail for a high schooler: real experience on a real set for two weeks.
The trouble began with the logistics. Despite being seventeen and having her permit since she was fifteen, the daughter doesn’t have her license yet. The OP and his wife aren’t comfortable with her driving to “unknown locations,” so the OP took on the role of chauffeur. He dropped her off on day one, expecting a standard nine-to-five situation. He was in for a rude awakening.
The film industry does not run on banker’s hours. On the first day, the daughter didn’t wrap until 8 PM, clocking nearly twelve hours. The second day was the same. By the third day, she started at 7 AM and didn’t call for a ride until nearly 11 PM. For anyone in production, this is a standard Tuesday. For the OP, this was a violation of his patience and, in his mind, “some labor law somewhere.”
The OP was furious. He claims his anger stems from the “ridiculous” amount of time she was working, but the real reason quickly surfaces in his retelling. Because he didn’t want to drive back and forth or leave her alone waiting at night, he decided to stay in that part of town for the entire shift. This means for three straight days, he and his eleven-year-old son were aimlessly driving around the city for twelve to fourteen hours, trying to “burn time.”
Instead of going home, going to a coffee shop, or finding literally anything else to do, he turned himself into a martyr. After the third night, he snapped. He picked her up and told her that what the production was doing was unacceptable and unfair. He didn’t offer a discussion; he issued a command. He forced her to email the team right then and there to quit.
The daughter tried to explain that twelve-to-fourteen-hour days are normal in the film world. She was absolutely correct. If she wants to work in movies, this is the reality. By making her quit, he didn’t save her from exploitation; he taught her that he doesn’t respect the industry she loves. He embarrassed her professionally before her career even started. Quitting three days into a two-week shoot because your dad is grumpy is a surefire way to burn bridges.
The OP says his decision “made sense” because it was unfair to him and his son. But let’s be honest: the unfair part was his refusal to let a seventeen-year-old navigate a pickup spot or just drive home and come back later. He punished her ambition because he was inconvenienced.
Now the daughter is sulking, and rightly so. She had a taste of her dream, and her dad snatched it away because he didn’t want to sit in the car anymore. If he thinks film school is going to be any different, he is in for a shock.
So, is the OP the ahole? Yes. He prioritized his schedule over his daughter’s future. He had a chance to support her passion, but instead, he pulled the plug the moment it required a little extra effort from him.
What would you do if your teen had a demanding internship? Would you suck it up and support them, or would you make them quit to save your own sanity? Let us know in the comments if you think this dad needs to learn how Hollywood works!
I’d be giving her taxi money !!!