In House at NBC / other entertainment companies? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Curious to hear any first hand experiences re: hours, comp, atmosphere, etc. Looking at going in house at a company like this. Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

I can’t speak to NBC in particular, but as a whole traditional entertainment companies (not Netflix, Amazon, etc.) tend to pay poorly for run of the mill in-house jobs with hours that vary widely by group, but that can be brutal if you get unlucky.

FWIW, a friend of mine went to one of the big entertainment companies as a biglaw mid level and was making low to low-mid 100s in comp. Still said it was the best decision he ever made, though.

[Anonymous User]

I've heard a few (such as NBC) are known for working people like dogs, at nowhere near the pay of biglaw.

[Anonymous User]

I can’t speak to NBC in particular, but as a whole traditional entertainment companies (not Netflix, Amazon, etc.) tend to pay poorly for run of the mill in-house jobs with hours that vary widely by group, but that can be brutal if you get unlucky.

FWIW, a friend of mine went to one of the big entertainment companies as a biglaw mid level and was making low to low-mid 100s in comp. Still said it was the best decision he ever made, though.

I don't doubt what you write, but any idea how to reconcile these two statements?

[Anonymous User]

I can’t speak to NBC in particular, but as a whole traditional entertainment companies (not Netflix, Amazon, etc.) tend to pay poorly for run of the mill in-house jobs with hours that vary widely by group, but that can be brutal if you get unlucky.

FWIW, a friend of mine went to one of the big entertainment companies as a biglaw mid level and was making low to low-mid 100s in comp. Still said it was the best decision he ever made, though.

I don't doubt what you write, but any idea how to reconcile these two statements?

I’m assuming you’re referring two my last two sentences. My understanding is it came down to type of work (counseling/strategy on interesting matters vs mundane litigation at firm), job security, and not measuring your life in six minute intervals.

If $ is your number one concern, you will not be happy at a traditional entertainment studio / network after leaving biglaw.

[Anonymous User]

I can’t speak to NBC in particular, but as a whole traditional entertainment companies (not Netflix, Amazon, etc.) tend to pay poorly for run of the mill in-house jobs with hours that vary widely by group, but that can be brutal if you get unlucky.

FWIW, a friend of mine went to one of the big entertainment companies as a biglaw mid level and was making low to low-mid 100s in comp. Still said it was the best decision he ever made, though.

I don't doubt what you write, but any idea how to reconcile these two statements?

I’m assuming you’re referring two my last two sentences. My understanding is it came down to type of work (counseling/strategy on interesting matters vs mundane litigation at firm), job security, and not measuring your life in six minute intervals.

If $ is your number one concern, you will not be happy at a traditional entertainment studio / network after leaving biglaw.

If $ is primary concern, you won't be happy in-house unless you get a GC spot. The money won't be as good at almost any in-house roll. I think I found a lucky opportunity moving in house as a midlevel at about 300k all in, but that is still a big paycut from what I was making, especially if you only look at cash comp (which is much lower than 300k).

The bright side is even "bad" hours in-house is better than bad hours in biglaw. While in biglaw I had at least a handful of nights a month working past midnight, sometimes till 3 or 4 in the morning. In-house, no matter how bad, working till midnight will be the very rare exception. Also, you're only working with one team, so if you do work till midnight, you can probably come in a little late, in biglaw you might work till 3am then have a 8am call for a different deal you can't miss.

[Anonymous User]

I'm mulling over an offer for an in-house position with NBC. Can anyone share their insights on which groups are brutal (hours wise)?

I've heard from multiple sources it depends on department and trying to get a sense if the one I might join will be just as bad as biglaw.