This summer I'm keeping busy with an online marketing internship at LA INC and a news internship at the Hollywood Reporter. Unfortunately, both internships are unpaid, so I'll also be working part-time at the SBE-owned Katsuya Hollywood to pay for rent. Over the next few months, I'll post about my experiences at these three companies, and hopefully anyone who stumbles upon this blog will find them worth reading!
Here's some background information on what I've been doing so far:
LA INC - Despite its flaws, I've always loved Los Angeles, both as an idea and as a reality. Whether it's food or entertainment, the city has so many hidden gems that tourists have no interest in and locals never discover. I want to open people's eyes to LA's unique character and culture, which is why I chose to intern at LA INC. It also helped that the internship is in the online marketing department, which is a field I have extensive personal experience in and therefore want to move into. So far, I love the internship. Unlike my previous internships, it's a very corporate setting, so I've had to readjust my personality and basic office conduct accordingly. What I really enjoy is that I don't have a set list of tasks because there's always something different to do. I sat in on a department meeting my first day, and yesterday I helped my supervisor come up with strategies for increasing traffic to our Facebook page. We're also thinking of starting a new video project that I would have a significant role in designing and maintaining. It's been very exciting so far, and I can't wait to see what other assignments I can get my hands on over the next few weeks.
The Hollywood Reporter - THR is one of the two leading entertainment business news sources, the other being Variety. While I don't have much desire to become a journalist, working at a crossroads of information is a great way to prepare for any career in the entertainment industry. I've certainly become more aware of what's going on in the world of film and TV since starting my internship. The office is understaffed at the moment, so I've had the chance to work with different departments, including publications, web, and charts. This has allowed me to get a better idea of how information flows through the entertainment industry and is distributed to the public. I hope I can do some reporting and social media work in the future, but for now, my duties are primarily setting up newsletters, creating galleries, updating production charts, and general web maintenance. While it isn't the most exciting, interactive internship in the world, I'm confident that it will provide the knowledge foundation I need to secure a job in my field after I graduate.
Katsuya - Katsuya is an upscale Japanese restaurant owned by SBE Entertainment, a hospitality company that also runs luxury venues such as the SLS Hotel, Gladstone's, the Abbey, and Hyde Lounge. My decision to apply for Katsuya was mostly made by what I like to call my guilty pleasure side: the part of me that loves reading trashy tabloids and follows celebrities' Twitters obsessively. I needed a restaurant job, because that's where I have the most job experience, and Katsuya -- a notorious celeb hotspot -- just happened to be hiring for the summer. After four rounds of interviews, I got a hostess job, and now I'm in the process of training. It's been a very long application process (I still have weeks of training to go), but I'm grateful to be a part of such a well-respected entertainment group. Celebrities aside, I hope I can improve my social communication skills while I'm at Katsuya, because that's going to be very important in the future.
In addition to writing about my professional experiences, I'll also post about any LA-related events I attend. TV tapings, food festivals, award shows -- hopefully I'll have the time to go to all of those and more this summer :)
- Annie
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