Get a job at a movie theater

“Imagine you work in a beautiful movie theater. The interior is painted with elegant old Hollywood buildings. The curtain in front of the movie screen shows a romantic planetary scene, and when the movie begins, a shooting star goes across the ceiling. It’s a perfect place to take that special someone on a special occasion. Doesn’t that sound like a good place to work?
This magical place is the Pacific Crest in Westwood. If you want to work there, you’ll probably meet manager Jocerina Diosana, who has been working for Pacific Theatres for 11 years. I found her sweet and charming, but strict at the same time. If you work for her, you can’t fool around.
She makes sure that employees have fun, in addition to working hard. Her office wall is decorated with photos of employee activities, like birthday cakes and trips to Magic Mountain and Disneyland. There is an annual company picnic sponsored by Pacific Theatres, which owns a group of movie theaters throughout Southern California, including the Pacific Crest, the Cinerama Dome and the El Capitan.
As I was talking with Jocerina, an employee walked in. “Are we playing the Little Mermaid?”
“No,” said Jocerina.
The employee sighed with disappointment. She had wanted to see the film. As a special benefit, Pacific Theatre employees can take a guest to the movies for free during the day.
“I really wanted to see it too,” said Jocerina.
Jocerina takes a lot of pride in the Pacific Crest, where she must supervise personnel and oversee all theater operations. Some of Jocerina’s favorite memories of the theater have been the times when the theater hosted special movie premieres, when celebrities and entertainment executives come. Once a young man proposed to his girlfriend there. Another couple married there. The ceremony was held in front of the movie screen.
Although the Pacific Crest is not hiring right now, Jocerina had a lot of good advice for job applicants.
Who can apply: applicants must be 16 years old, have a work permit and social security number, and maintain a “C” average in school.
Salary: New employees start earning minimum wage and get a raise depending on how hard they work. Pacific Theatres also offers some bonuses: free weekday movies for the employee and discounts on concession items.

Minors work limited hours
Hours: Sixteen-year-olds can only work four hours a day during the week and eight during weekends until 10 p.m so their school grades won’t decline. However, minors can work until midnight during vacation.
Teens also may be asked to work on holidays for no extra pay. “We have a saying, ‘We work when others play.’ Our busiest times are nights, weekends and holidays.”
Duties: In addition to taking tickets and showing people to the seats, employees must keep the place clean, and check the restrooms every 10 to 15 minutes. “Some customers are picky. They don’t want sticky floors… If we see a spill, we mop it up right away.”
How to fill out the application: Don’t freak out if you’ve never filled out an application. Take your time and read what the paper says. Write as neatly as possible because managers judge applicants by the cleanliness of the application. Once the application has been returned, get ready for the interview.
Prepare for the interview: Here’s Jocerina’s advice, “Applicants must wear clean clothes, be well-groomed, organized… Males’ hair should look neatly trimmed and the face shaved. Females’ hair needs to be tied up. Long earrings, more than two earrings, bracelets, heavy perfume, gum chewing and nail polish are not acceptable during work hours.”
She added, “You don’t have to wear a suit, but how you represent yourself is important. Presentation is number one, especially if you’re selling food. We all have to be neat and clean.”
Starting the job: Still nervous about starting the job? We all go through that anxiety.
Jocerina gives new employees the following advice: “Be yourself. You don’t have to act different. [New employees] are usually nervous, especially in front of managers. They act like we’re going to eat them.”
She has sometimes had problems with teens who don’t take the job seriously. “They love to play around… Managers don’t want to see you dancing around, talking loud, singing loud.”
She also warned teens to come to work on time, and to let the manager know in advance if they can’t come. “Sometimes they call 15 minutes before their shift starts.” That makes it hard for her to find a replacement, she said.

Pacific Theatres offers training
Training: At Pacific Theatres, you’ll get eight hours of training (you get paid for it) on how to do your job. You’ll learn how to interact with people, smile and how to talk to customers. Why do we have to learn how to smile? Working with people is not just giving them what they want. People go to the movie theater to have a good time and if they see a mean face or attitude they might not enjoy the movie as much as they would if they were treated politely and with respect. Sometimes people are rude and employees feel humilated, but when customers see a smile they forget the bad day and feel much better. You may see movie stars who come to enjoy a film—and if you do, you may not ask for an autograph. They are there to enjoy the show too.
After the orientation class, employees start working. Everybody starts out as attendents, ushers or doormen. From there they can be promoted to work at the snack bar, box office, or become assistant manager or manager. Minors usually remain ushers until they are 18, when they are allowed to handle money.
Will work interfere with school assignments? Pacific Theatres managers know how much students have to study and care about the education of every citizen; in fact the company sponsors a reading program called Wonder of Reading to encourage elementary kids to read and do well at school. Employees are encouraged to volunteer in the program. Wouldn’t you like to make a difference in a child’s life while working in a great environment?”

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