Hey y’all,

(Yes, “y’all” is a real word… it’s the most useful word in the English language and you just need to accept it already! ^.^)

I can’t believe we’re already at the end of third week! Our time in Los Angeles has been an incredible experience that’s both felt like we’ve been in this city forever and at the same time as though we’ve only just arrived. While our time here may be coming to an end, looking back on this block and considering all we’ve seen/learnt I can’t help but feel motivated by how much less daunting moving out to L.A. seems to be.

What makes me say that? Well if you read my last post, you know that this class helped me realize that my classmates have the potential to go on and do amazing things within the film and media industry. However, one thing that I was still overwhelmed by was thinking about the sheer amount of competition that exists within the business. I found myself feeling miniscule in the swarm of competition that exists within the industry, with each of us floundering our ways forward in our careers and vying for the same opportunities that we hope will propel us forward into our careers.

While that may be true to some degree, after meeting the with the CC Hollywood: On Location alumni, I felt reassured that getting a job and not only surviving in this massive city, but thriving isn’t as impossible or terrifying as some make it out to be. I particularly enjoyed my conversations with indie feature film editor Meredith Mantik and documentary editor Ryan Loeffler who both gave me insight into what working in Los Angeles as a video editor looks like – a world they made out to be of immense opportunity for those who are willing to work for it.

As our class stood there on the night of the reunion, scattered among the many new, friendly film and media studies alumni we’d just met, bonding over our mutual love for our art, it felt comforting to be surrounded by people who’d taken this same class that I’m currently in now; people who were in the same boat as I am and have each had success in advancing in their respective career paths. Thanks to them,  I’m now more excited than ever to dive in, trust the process, and get to work on paving my way forward in this incredible industry.

Writing to you again from my apartment’s balcony and looking out onto the sprawling city before me with a positive state of mind,

Angel 🙂

I can’t believe we’re already at the end of our first week in LA!

As you guys have read from our previous blog posts, this week has been a whirlwind of events ranging from having class at the Oakwood, meeting media industry moguls, attending movie screenings, going on group tours, and having a good time while doing it all! It’s been an incredible learning experience so far and I can’t wait to see what surprises next week has to offer!

If there’s anything I’ve learned so far in our brief time here, it’s that before taking this class I had been going through periods of anxiety surrounding the daunting challenge that breaking into the industry is made out to be. I periodically felt insecure about my decision to become a film major when I could have gone the  ‘safe’ route by getting a ‘conventional’ degree in STEM in order to get a job with an easier career path in something like healthcare; but after meeting both west coast Vanity Fair editor / CC Alumna Krista Smith and IMAX CEO Greg Foster this week, their advice for media careers in Hollywood sparked both a realization and a reassurance.

I realized that despite the challenges that are clearly to come given the ever changing nature of the media landscape due to digitalization, greater democratization of video content creation, and the increasingly social business culture surrounding entry into the field, that my classmates and I are going to ‘be okay’ in our individual ventures into the media world. One key piece of advice offered by the industry giants is that being a kind, genuine, and easy-to-get-along-with person can really get you far in this industry; qualities that I feel all my amazing classmates and I could be said to embody.

As Greg Foster put it, ‘content is king,’ and each of us is capable in our own right of creating dynamic awe-inspiring works of art. What seems usually to separate those who make it far in this industry from those who don’t is quality of character and, if you don’t mind me saying, we are some of the most agreeable, motivated, and responsible individuals who all possess the skills and traits necessary to do incredible things in our lifetimes. All it’ll take is for us to put our minds to the task, trust the process, and we’ll be able to achieve anything.

The journey doesn’t seem easy when looking towards the future, but darn it that’s okay. Every struggle we may go through will only serve as a learning experience and make us all better people / creators. The sky ahead might be a little cloudy sometimes and we might not always know what we’re doing, but as I sit here writing this out on my apartment’s porch on this beautiful spring California day, I can’t help but feel positive about my and my classmates’ futures.

Signing out for now,

Angel 🙂