My internship is in Culver City with the production company Anonymous Content. Anonymous produces a wide range of TV shows, films, music videos, and other media. Some of their most notable shows and movies include 13 Reasons Why, Spotlight, and The Revenant. Anonymous recently partnered with Emerson Collective, which is a company founded by Laurene Powell Jobs, that focuses on creating content with a social justice emphasis. This partnership means that Anonymous works to produces media that makes a social justice impact and really gets people thinking and talking about current issues.
I am interning in the activism department under executive producer Bedonna Smith. This is an exciting department that always has new projects in the making pertaining to creating media (tv shorts, commercials, and potentially movies) that highlight current social issues in America today. Right now I am working on projects in the realm of immigration reform and raising voter turnout. The activism department also often has projects in the working about the #metoo and Time’s Up movements that are taking charge in Hollywood. I think the department I am in and the projects I get to work on really reflect NCI’s mission because they focus on social issues often regarding women and minorities.
I found this internship through my professor Robin Blanche and her connections with the company. Her class was called From Pitch to Picture and it was the best class I have ever taken. It was all about the development process for TV shows and movies and what meaningful content looks like. I think establishing sincere relationships with professors really helps the internship search because the faculty at Tulane really want to help students grow.
My first week was fun but definitely an adjustment. It took a couple of days to figure out the projects that we (the interns) would work on. Luckily, I have made some great intern friends and have been able to really chat with Bedonna about my goals. I am excited to continue this internship and work on meaningful projects throughout the summer that I will hopefully see come to fruition. I think my personal connections in the entertainment industry, my understanding of TV and film production, and the depth with which I get to explore activism through media will all get to grow in a great way this summer.