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LA Internships

 
What do you do as an LA intern? What is it like, who have you met, and what have you learned? Chanelle Grannum asks her peers! 
 

Internship Experience


Applying for Internships
 
Most companies recruit interns for three different sessions during the year: fall, spring and summer. Recruitment begins as early as 8 months prior to the start of the internship for highly competitive positions. Some internships are offered only during the summer in LA (such as the top talent agencies CAA, WME, and UTA; ESPN, CBS Interactive, and certain advertising agencies.) However, the summer is also a more competitive time to apply because there are many more applicants for the same positions than in the spring and fall. 
 
In general, the more competitive internships have earlier deadlines. Examples of companies with particularly early deadlines include top talent and advertising agencies, studios, networks, sports media companies, print and broadcast journalism outlets, and talk shows like Conan and Ellen. If these are your specific areas of interest, consult with the FMA Study Away office about the best time to enroll in the LA Study Away Program.
 
Below is a list of internships held by recent participants in the Los Angeles Study Away Program.  Note that while opportunities vary from one semester to another, there is always a range of internships to apply for in the categories below.  Successful placement depends on the student’s qualifications and experience, as well as the quality and timeliness of the application and interview.  While all students in the program have ultimately secured internships, there is no guarantee of placement with any particular company.
 
The LA Internship Program guides and directly assists with the internship process in your specific areas of interest, and multiple placements are encouraged. Minimum 2 days per week during fall and spring semesters, minimum 3 days during the summer.
 

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Feature Film Development
Color Force (The Hunger Games, Diary of a Wimpy Kid)
Endgame Entertainment (Side Effects, Looper, An Education)
Good Universe (Oldboy, Neighbors, Daddy’s Home)
Groundswell Productions (Sideways, Thirteen, Milk)
ImageMovers (The Polar Express, A Christmas Carol, Beowulf)
Mandalay Pictures (Donnie Brasco, Seven Years in Tibet, Les Miserables)
Mandate Pictures (Juno, This is the End, Paradise)
Marc Platt Productions (Legally Blonde, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World)
Millennium Films (The Expendables, Olympus Has Fallen)
Misher Films (Mirror Mirror, Playing for Keeps, Carrie)
The Montecito Picture Company (I Love You, Man, Hitchcock, Up In the Air)
Muse Productions (The Virgin Suicides, American Psycho, Spring Breakers)
Offspring Entertainment (Hairspray, Rock of Ages)
Participant Media (The Help, Food, Inc., Syriana)
Silver Pictures (The Matrix, Sherlock Holmes)
Skydance Productions (World War Z, True Grit, Jack Reacher)
Strike Entertainment (Dawn of the Dead, Children of Men, RoboCop)
Trigger Street Entertainment (House of Cards, Captain Phillips, Recount)
 
Feature Film Production (On-set Production)
 
1) Most internships are office-based, and these kinds of internships are a great way to learn about the business.
2) On-set work is often possible on indie films, commercials and web series (interns can't work on union sets), but it's sporadic, so I highly recommend doing production on the side in addition to 2 days/week of a "regular" internship (development, post, commercial production company, etc.)
 
Run the Tide (dir. Soham Mehta)
Mojave (dir. William Monahan)
Nina (dir. Cynthia Mort)
You and Me and Everyone We Know (dir. Miranda July)
Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie (Eric Wareheim and Tim Heidecker)
Sharknado (Syfy Channel)
 
Documentary Filmmaking

Kirby Dick
Grace Lee
Laura Nix and Julia Meltzer
Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez
Ondi Timoner

TV Development and Production

Abso Lutely
Adult Swim
CBS "Under the Dome"
Chernin Entertainment
Disney-ABC
E! Entertainment
Entourage (HBO)
MTV/Viacom
Lifetime
Sony Pictures Television
The Mark Gordon Company
USA Network

Commercial Production and Music Videos

Aero Film
Caviar Content
Fixer Films
Foundation Content
Gifted Youth (Funny or Die)
Partizan
Prettybird
RSA Films
Smuggler

Post Production, Sound Design and Visual Effects

Alpha Dogs
Diesel Films
GDC Technology
Identity FX
Light Iron
Lionsgate Post Production
New Wave Entertainment
Nickelodeon Post Production
Point 360
Smart Post Sound
Telepix
Tunnel Post
Therapy Studios
Zoic Studios
2G Digital Post

Unscripted Television/Talk Shows

BBC Worldwide
Bunim/Murray Productions
Conan O’Brien
Dick Clark Productions
Dr. Phil
ESPN
ThinkFactory Media
Undercover Boss
The Doctors
X Factor

Journalism and Entertainment News

ABC News
GOOD Magazine
The Hollywood Reporter
LA Confidential Magazine
KNBC
LA Opera (PR Department)
ScreenSlam.com
Variety

Animation

Cartoon Network
Nickelodeon
Streetlight Productions
Shadowmachine
Threshold Animation Studios

Public Relations

BET
Lionsgate
Metro PR
Miller PR
MPRM Communications
PMK*BNC
Stan Rosenfield & Associates PR
The Workshop Collective

Talent, Literary, and Management Agencies

Anonymous Content
Barry Katz Entertainment
Benderspink
DDO Artists Agency
The Gotham Group
HRi Talent
Independent Artists Agency
Kazarian/Measures/Ruskin & Associates
Ken Sherman and Associates
Principato-Young Entertainment

Organizations, Events and Festivals

AFI (American Film Institute)
The California Film Commission
IDA  (International Documentary Association)
Los Angeles Film Festival
Outfest
SAG/AFTRA
Producers Guild of America “Produced By” Conference
Sundance Institute
Writers Guild Foundation
Women in Film
New Filmmakers LA
HollyShorts

Potential Internships for Actors and Theater Majors

Film and Television Development
Entertainment News
Film Festivals
Industry Organizations (i.e., SAG/AFTRA, Women in Film)
Talent and Management Agencies
Theater
Web-Based Media
Writing
(Many actors also audition for local productions on the side)

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