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 🙂