For almost eight years, I worked at the Capitol Cinema as a cinema attendant and projectionist. I owe a lot of the skills that led me to Parliament to my time at the Capitol. Being able to deal with a busy crowd, telling people at the end of the night they had to leave, never being above doing domestic labour like cleaning the toilets. For a few years, I ended up being a projectionist, a trade that I was pretty proud of. Being a projectionist at work was one of the few pathways to climb above the minimum wage. The role of a projectionist also taught me the realities of automation. When digital projectors were introduced, my role became obsolete—now that I was being reduced to clicking a few buttons instead of meticulously putting film reels together and keeping the projector in shape. As a result of automation, I was put back into the role of cinema attendant—and my wages subsequently stagnated. The amazing technological advances that meant a machine could do my job should have meant my freedom, not an excuse for my employer to not pay me livable wages.