Fox Television – “The Unit”

Jason Gutierrez, 2009

I think that the most important thing that I learned while I was working at “The Unit” was just how unnecessary it is to go to a graduate program if you wanted to write for television as a career. Of the dozen or so writers working on the show, only two had post-graduate degrees, and neither had a post graduate degree in filmmaking or screenwriting. What I noticed was a field in which there is a ladder type system in place and you work your way up to being a writer. For instance, each of the show’s four writing assistants were given the opportunity to write an episode, and in some cases more than a single episode. This experience can lead to being hired on the staff of whatever show you happen to be working on (“The Unit,” for example), but you can also use that script to get a writing jobs on other shows. I was also told anecdotally that most show runners and producers are more willing to listen to series pitches or story ideas from assistants and other people who had been working for the producer than someone with no experience with the producer.

In my case I had been planning on attending film school or pursuing a post graduate degree in some area related to film, however I am now questioning how wise a decision that this is, especially given that I would most likely find myself in the same position that I’m in right now, only two years removed and short thousands of dollars. It is definitely something that I will have to consider on a going forward basis.

I think that, all things considered, I had a good Winter Term internship experience. I was careful not to set expectations for the job too high, which I think is important for any future students who go on the same internship. You won’t be writing anything, and the tasks that I listed at the beginning were tasks that I was assigned to do, but actually being given a task was something that happened rarely. I think that Shawn Ryan was really interested in having students who were interested in writing come out and see what the working experience is like. To be honest this is less like an internship (where you’re saddled with asinine, menial tasks) and more like an experience shadowing a writer, which was much more useful and I feel like I learned more the way Shawn has the internship set up than I would have at a more traditional internship where I was asked to do chores that no one else felt like doing. As I mentioned to a few of my co-workers before I left, coming into this internship I felt that my strengths as a writer lie primarily in my ability to write dialog and develop character, but the ability to plot compelling stories has always seemed to elude me. I think that, like all things, this skill will come with time and practice, but being able to sit and watch (and occasionally contribute) the room has given me a greater understanding of how best to develop those skills. The experience has also led me to revisit past work to re-evaluate strengths and weaknesses, and although there is no question that I still have work to do, it has also given me confidence in my ability to fix those weaknesses. So, all in all I’m very happy that I got to have this experience, and I highly recommend it for other Middlebury students in the future.

Please contact the Career Services Office for more information on this internship.

NBC Universal

David Ellis, 2009

During the course of the internship I felt as though I performed extremely well.  The reason being that I was not only asked on a number of occasions to step in for my executive assistant but other assistants in the department as well.  Throughout the course of the month I was asked to cover the desk for three different assistants, sometimes for more than two days at a time.  The reason why I felt this said something about my performance was because it is not common that interns are asked to cover desks for an extended period of time and furthermore, the other interns that had been there prior to my arrival were not asked to cover desks while I was there.  I also thought I performed well because I was willing to step up to any task that they asked of me, whether it was reading a long novel and summarizing it or doing extensive research at the Motion Picture Library in Beverly Hills.  On each of these assignment I received positive feedback on the work that I produced both written and verbally.  I also thought I performed well because I successfully established relationships in the Production Development office.   I frequently met with the top executives at Universal and gained some extremely valuable career advice. Each person had a unique way about how they arrived at where they are today and were able to provide some great insights for me post-graduation.

One thing that I learned about myself is how much I really need to be in Los Angeles if it is my intention to be successful in the motion picture industry.  The west coast is much different from say New York in terms of media because everything is geared mostly towards film and television whereas in New York television is the primary focus with film as a secondary focus.  I think that this experience also allowed me to realize the steps that I need to take in order to be successful.  There are many paths that I could take, but the trick is to learn how to progress in the entertainment industry.  One thing that I learned about myself is that I have an ability to adapt fairly quickly to my environment.  When I first arrived in LA, I thought to myself that the only thing that was really missing were my close friends and family.  But after letting myself get lost in exploring LA I really became much more comfortable being out there not knowing very many people.  However, I am still going to try and convince everyone I know that LA is the place to be because I know that they would have as much fun as I did while I was out there.

Another thing that I learned about the motion picture industry is how much it is about whom you know.  I heard a lot about this before arriving but really wasn’t sure how this worked.  I wondered why there is even a Human Resources department if everyone is hired by word of mouth.  The truth is that Hollywood is very much a word of mouth industry and it is to a great extent about who you know.  I sat down with HR multiple times and the sense that I get from them is that even though their job is to bring in talent, most of the time people are referred right away, for a position that opens up by someone already at Universal.  This makes everyone’s job a little easier in that they really do not have to search too hard to bring in talent.  But this also creates a barrier for those people who are not connected to anyone in Hollywood who want to be a part of it.  I can say that I was one of those people and it is hard at first to make connections, but it’s the people who are willing to make the greatest sacrifices and rise above the competition that they are going to look for and not the people that will just accept defeat and move on to another profession.  I think one of the greatest lessons that I’ve learned in this experience is that if you have the will and passion to pursue something, there is really nothing that can stop you except yourself.

Overall, I thought that this was a truly amazing experience and I would recommend that anyone who has the opportunity to intern at any major studio in Hollywood to definitely do so, especially in production development.  I was able to learn how the business works and the skills that are needed to be successful.  I can definitely see myself living in LA and I am extremely excited to return there upon graduation.   I would also like to note that a lot of my experience thus far is due to internships that I’ve done in both the summer and winter.  Looking back, I would suggest to other students to start getting internships the summer after freshman year, as I did, because it really allowed me to have a strong resume to show people by the time I was approaching graduation.  Between my experiences in the summer and winter term I was well equipped for my trip to LA and had a really great experience.

Contact the Career Services Office for more information on this internship.