This is a question I've gotten many, many times in one form or another, and if you're looking to be a director, producer, actor, designer, or other creative type, the answer is never really all that comforting...
In film, there aren't really any entry-level positions. Sometimes, you can find someone to work for as an assistant while you learn the ropes, but in the end you're going to be an independent contractor. You're looking to be your own boss, and that means there's no corporate ladder to climb. Getting your next job means finding people who need your services and showing them what you can do.
With all the agents, studios, and sundry side industries giving our business the illusion of structure, it sometimes seems like there's somebody in charge, deciding who works this year and who doesn't. Nope. In the end, you're in charge. Hollywood is no more or less than what you make of it.
Whether it's working for someone more experienced, shooting short films, making features on an entrepreneurial basis, picking up work on student movies or anything else, the way to get work is to show the other folks in our community what you can do. Do it often enough and well enough, and people will realize they need you.
Personally, I advocate starting your own projects and sheparding them towards the audience. If you're going to do the work of building your own business, why not take it the extra step, learn a little more, and reap the long-term rewards of owning something yourself? Still, maybe that's not your style. Maybe you're just looking for a way to get reliable work as a creative person.
Even if you "make it", that work will always be based on the projects you've just completed. What's more, it's never going to be as secure as a corporate position. You're not going to have someone standing over you telling you what to do, but you also don't have someone sharing the responsibility when you don't have enough work, or when you don't succeed at what you're doing.
Stop looking for the entry level position, and start creating.
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