Applying to an opportunity

Open an opportunity from /jobs/ and apply from the listing. Each one has its own form, set by the manager who published it.

Before you write

Make sure your portfolio is current. Managers open it — often before they read your answers — and a strong portfolio does more work than a long application.

Filling in the form

• Answer the question asked. The most common reason an application is skipped is that it answers a different question.
• Be concrete. Names, dates, venues, roles. "Toured Europe with X in spring" says more than a paragraph of adjectives.
• Address the specific brief. Say why you fit this work, not why you are good in general.
• Keep it short. Managers read a lot of these.
• No upload field? Some listings send applications straight to the manager by email and take a message only. Put a link to your materials — portfolio, showreel, a shared folder — in your message instead.

Your draft is saved as you go

When you are signed in, the form saves itself while you fill it in — your answers and the files you add. Draft saved with the time appears next to Submit. Leave and open the listing again later, and the form is just as you left it. Unsent drafts are also listed under My Applications, where you can continue or discard them.

Sending the application, or Discard draft, deletes the draft. A draft for a listing that has since closed can no longer be sent. Without an account nothing is saved, so finish the form in one go.

If something needs fixing

Problems are listed above the form, each with the field — and for uploads the file — it concerns. Go to field takes you straight there; the field stays marked red until it is fixed, for example by replacing the file.

Problems with the form or the website itself? Use Help next to Submit, or write to report@thepending.app. That address does not take applications — applications sent by email are ignored.

AI autofill

With a portfolio linked, the Create Application button on the form pre-fills it from your portfolio to save you retyping. It draws on your credit balance — the cost is shown under the button, and a fill that fails costs nothing. It is separate from the Application Assistant on your Dashboard.

Treat it as a first draft. Read every field before submitting — autofill does not know the specifics of this brief, and an application that reads as generated stands out for the wrong reason. Edit it into your own voice.

After you send

Your application appears at /creatives/my-applications/. The manager moves it through their own statuses — In Discussion, Accepted, or Rejected — and you see the state there. If the page has been open a long time and submit fails, reload it and try again.

How managers review

Managers may use AI to summarise and score applications, but a human decides. Answering clearly and specifically is what helps in both cases.