I swear I have no idea what half of these job titles mean.
To all the guys with complicated/technical sounding jobs - how did you end up where you are? I've never had any idea of what I would do for a legit "career", so I've been stuck in low paying jobs I hate my whole life. It sounds like plenty of you make good money, and I'm curious how you decided on your career paths in the first place. I don't picture many young guys thinking to themselves 'I wanna be an integrated marketing systems analyst when I grow up', because who even knows what that is?!
I always thought I'd be able to find a good/fulfilling job in the skate industry when I was younger - NOPE. The skate industry sucks ass. Once I figured that out I couldn't really think of anything in particular that interested me, career wise, so I've been spinning my wheels in dead end warehouse management jobs (non-skate) ever since. I've always been poor, so I can't afford school, and frankly it's hard to even consider taking on massive debt when nothing really appeals to me.
Really hoping I can transition into video editing as a career - just feel like I may need some sort of training to fill in the knowledge gaps that only editing skate videos has left me with.
Advice? Being over 40 and living with room mates is depressing.
Going to echo what the other pals said and suggest online training and lynda courses for free via library card. I've been working in the documentary world for the last seven years as an editor. The first three years were spent working as an assistant, and then I moved up to co-editor for one doc, and after that it's been lead editor or additional editor on everything else. I never went to film school and no one gives a fuck.
If you're over 40 and want to get into this, it's your attitude that you need to change first.
Most of the PAs and people just getting into this are going to be much, much younger, and they're going to have a lot of energy, and be down to do whatever it takes to get ahead. If I'm looking at qualifications for an assistant editor, and I have to choose between a young buck who has gone to film school and an older person who has done a couple online courses, and they're both at the same level of passion, then I'm going to choose the young person every time. They're moldable and more likely to be open to my suggestions. But, if that older person tells me that they work harder than everyone else, that they are making a change in their life so that they can do something they are passionate about, and they want to soak up every aspect of how to do the job properly, you can bet your ass that I'm going to go with them. Then if they show on the job that they ask questions so that their skills are constantly improving, and they go above and beyond in terms of the hours and the work, and they can learn, then I will recommend them to anyone that asks me for an assistant editor. I'll introduce them to producers I know, and when that next doc is crewing up, they'll be the first in line. Over time they'll build a positive rep as someone who works hard, has the goods, and makes work a better place. Sounds simple, but that's all you need to do. All the work I get now is a result of my previous work and the people I know.
The goal is to be someone who can handle anything that is thrown at them, and that people enjoy working with. You always want to be a part of the team that brings solutions, not problems. That doesn't mean that you always know how to accomplish what is asked of you, but it means that you never give attitude and do your best to figure out what is asked. Being ignorant of something is an excuse the first time, but not the second. I can't tell you how many AEs I've dealt with that could have moved up if they had been willing to learn more and had a better attitude. You have to bring value. And if all you have in your background is editing skate videos, then your value is limited at the moment. But it doesn't have to stay that way. The amount of information that is available online right now about practically any field is immense.
I can give more specific advice if you know where you want to work (LA, Bay Area, etc.) and in what field (commercials, fiction, nonfiction, etc.).