Tag: NYC

Mike: From LA to the Real World

Hey guys,

Well, after a whirlwind of a semester in Los Angeles, I am now an official BU graduate! I handed in the final paper of my college career last night, what a weird feeling…It hasn’t really hit me yet and I don’t think it will until after the New Year when all of my friends will be heading back to Boston for their final semesters and I will be home looking for work! A part of me is disappointed I won’t be up in Beantown for my final semester, but after two amazing semesters abroad, I feel that I am ready to take on the real world.

Spending the last three months in Los Angeles has been such an incredible experience. Just from being in the entertainment capital of the world, I learned so much about the industry. Interning at a major studio like Paramount and a leader in independent film like The Weinstein Company, I was exposed to such different approaches to filmmaking. I read tons of amazing scripts and even got to work a few film premieres! The program kept me constantly busy– interning five days a week and taking classes at night– but it has prepared me immensely for the working world.

Leaving LA was bittersweet but I know that I will be back in the future. For now, I’m going to enjoy the holidays and take a breather after a hectic semester. After the New Year, I will begin the daunting task of searching for a job in New York. Luckily, I have connections in NYC and LA now from my previous internships that I will definitely stay in touch with and contact if I need help finding work. My main piece of advice to all of you guys is to network and stay in touch with people from your internships!  Introduce yourselves to the speakers at the Cinemateques and other COM events because you never know when you are going to cross paths with these professionals again. It is so important to keep in touch with people you meet in this industry because they are often the ones who will help you find work and put in a good word for you in the future!

I still can’t believe I am finished at Boston University. The two and a half years I spent on campus at BU flew by and I only wish I could go back for more. After a year of traveling (last spring in Europe and this fall in LA), I am ready to settle down and look for my first job. I learned so much during my time at BU and made such lasting friendships. Make sure you guys take it all in and have fun! I wish you all the best of luck in college and hope that you all enjoy your time at BU as much as I did!

Mike

 

Joe: Meeting Stephen Colbert…for Class

Joe Kain
Joe Kain

Hey Everyone!

I hope you’re all having an awesome end to your school year, I know I did. And congratulations to those of you that have already graduated.

A few weeks ago, I had the amazing opportunity to see a live taping of The Colbert Report in New York City. As some of you may know, when you’re here at BU you will probably be taking a WR 150 class. These writing classes all test the same skills, but just have different topics. Some topics include The Devil, Environmentalism, Documentary Films, and even Stephen Colbert!

I was lucky enough to get into the class entitled “The Colbert Report: American Satire.” The class, with Professor Michael Rodriguez, studies Colbert’s unique brand of satire and how he is not only revolutionizing previously utilized styles of satire, but also creating his own unique style. It is a super fun class and I urge anyone interested in this type of thing to try and take this class, because it is NOT going to be easy to get in.

Anyways, we all got to skip out on class to take a trip to NYC. The Colbert Report interestingly films in a really random part of New York, so we didn’t have a lot of time to wander around the city before the filming. But, it didn’t really matter because we were all so amazed that we were about to see Stephen Colbert in person! For school!

The taping was everything I thought it was going to be. It was absolutely hysterical to see him in person. But, as a film and TV student, it was even more impressive to see how much goes into just one episode of the show. His team of writers comes up to him to give him a pep-talk between every commercial break, and the show’s runner is all over the place, queuing Colbert as to which camera he should be looking at.

After the taping, as a special treat for our class, Colbert stayed back and answered questions out of character. Not many people get to see Colbert out of his character, so to hear him speak so eloquently and with such intelligence as a satirist was amazing. I also felt like I had a greater understanding of the show after taking the WR 150 class.

So the lesson is take classes that you’re interested in! Never settle for any “boring” classes or classes that your friends are taking. Branch out and explore all your options here at BU. You won’t regret it.