(Not all students have the same internship experiences. Compare this report with Mirimax report 1. Both students were at the company during the same semester and had very different opinions about their experience.)
I have been interning this semester at Miramax Films in lower Manhattan located at 11 Beach Street on the 4th floor in the Publicity Department. Film publicity is a business that never stops because the company is constantly moving on and looking for new projects and trying to keep up with the projects that are in production. Most of the publicists in this office never have a dull moment and it seems pretty hard to have a life outside of work. Working in publicity does seem to have its advantages such as mingling with celebrities, socialites and other important people but there also seems a sense of people acting insincere. There seems to be a lot of talk but no action. In other words people seem to say one thing and act the opposite, which is something that I try not to do. The business of publicity is to sell a product just like a salesman sells a car but with entertainment the people are better looking and have more money. My overall experience was okay; I think it could have been better if I had more hands on work to do instead of filing and answering the phone. I know that as an intern you have to do things that you may not like to do, I just wish I had more responsibilities and a better understanding of how things work. I feel that when I was introduced into the office there was not really enough time to train me and tell me how things are in the industry. I learned a lot by listening to phone calls that were on speakerphone and reading memos that got passed in front of me.
I worked with two assistants of the SVP'S of Publicity and my first impression was they were not very friendly. I understand that the office is busy and I am an intern but I think people should be polite anyway. As the weeks went on in my internship they became friendlier towards me and explained things better to me instead of being vague. I found that throughout the office there were a lot of politics and a lot back stabbing throughout the floor. Since I was an intern I think people did
not really respect me as a worker but looked upon me as a college student. I would have liked to work with people that were a little older them myself because I feel that they would have had more experience and would bc able to tell things about the job. Most of the time when I was there I would always ask questions and ask why things were happening, they never really told me anything unless I asked. I realized through this internship that I would not like a boss like Dan because I felt that if someone made a mistake he got own their case even if it was not their fault and as a result everyone walks on egg shells around him. Dennis was more easy going and understanding and never came down on someone for making a mistake.The rest of the department was composed of mostly young girls right out of college. I made friends with two of them but the rest did not seem to friendly and were not really willing to help me when I had a question. I also noticed that no one works a nine to five schedule and it expected that you leave when the bosses leave which can be anywhere from six to ten at night. The office attire was pretty causal and on a regular day most people wore jeans and sneakers unless there was a meeting or a conference. Another large point I noticed is no one really has lunch. Everyone has lunch at his or her desk and works right through lunch. I work in an office now and everyone leaves during lunch and takes some time for themselves during the day even if it is only a half hour. I feel this is important and helps me get my work done better with some kind of a break when you can leave your desk and work.
The office for the most part was busy and never became fully quiet. The phones would constantly ring throughout the day with agents, press reporters and others with questions about the new movies. As an intern they had work for me for sometimes but at other times I was able to read magazines and surf the internet. When I did have a project I always put my time and effort into them and usually finished them before I had to. Most of the work was photocopying and answering of the phones which became slightly boring because I was eager to do other things and learn
something hands on. My biggest job was collecting the breaks and giving them out. I had to look through different sources of media and find mentions of Miramax, photocopy them, create a cover sheet, and distribute them to about 40 people. This task took about two hours. I would have liked to do more work like this instead of creating files and answering phones. Most of the time I would ask them if they had anything for me to do because otherwise I would have just been on the internet all day. All couple of times they had me looking for things such as a highlighter or a special kind of envelop and these are things that I can do with my eyes closed. I would have liked to bc challenged more and been able to use my skills.When I had first interviewed with them, it seemed that I would have a lot of responsibilities and would be learning a lot about the film industry. But for the most part I really learned things by keeping my eyes open and listening to anything that I could hear. I learned that the stars in their films them are pushed to promote to no end. I know this how the industry makes money and this also how it keeps people going to see them. I never realized all the talking and problems that have to bc dealt with in this industry. It seems that working with famous people is extremely difficult and the publicity department tries to make them happy at all times otherwise they will not promote their film. There were a lot of days where it was crazy and some stars were backing out of their process junkets because their demands were not met. For example, Marisa Tomei did not want to fly to Hollywood to promote her new movie "In the Bedroom", so her publicists got Miramax to give her a pair of shoes for $1700. This something I never knew went on.
They had asked me to work numerous premieres but I was not able to do all of them because I had to work at night and the commute was pretty long to take at night by myself after the premieres and after parties. I felt that they maybe they thought I did not want to do it but I did and I was not able to with school and work. Besides having the internship I had other responsibilities to tend to and the fact that the premieres were mostly on days that I had school, was another reason I could not do them.
I tried to put as much as I could into the internship and tried to take away as much as I could and I feel that I did. I realized that this is not a business that I would like to go into. I do not want to bc a slave to some executive that does not appreciate my work or takes advantage of me as an assistant. I do not mind working at an entry-level position but whom I work for is very important to me now. I liked the fact that the office was pretty casual and it was not mandatory to dress up everyday. I feel that publicity is a ruthless business and it takes a certain kind of person to be really good at it. I do not think it is for me. I realized that I like more of the creative process such as special events or postproduction, where I can have voice or my opinion can be acknowledged and accepted whether right or wrong. At this internship I feel that I was not able to express my opinions but I also realize that I was an intern and I should not have expected this.
There were times that I did like being there; this was mostly because I had work to do. My best day was when I worked with the special events and archives department at Planet Hollywood. Everyone was really nice and helpful and really appreciated my help. It was also exciting going to the premiere and watching how things are run behind the scene. That day I got a real sense of the industry and a lot of hands on experience. I actually really liked being busy running around and doing errands for them. I also liked the idea that I did not have to stay in the office all day, I was all over the city and having a great time, that I did not realize how many hours I worked that day.
If I could intern again I would try to do it somewhere where I could gain more experience and bc busy for the whole day and not watching my watch to go home. I mostly worked the hours of ten to six and if they needed me to stay late I did or if I they needed me to come in early I did. Most of time I stayed past six and did not hesitate to stay if I could. I hope that they noticed my willingness to help them out and work even though I did not always like what they had me doing.
Since I am graduating this January, I can take away from this experience that this is not an industry for me. I did like the idea of working with celebrities when I first stared but that soon faded when I realized that you have to whatever they want in order for them to do things for you. I would really like to work in a casual work environment, involved in the creative process and like what I am doing. Another point I noticed about the internship is one of my supervisors was looking for another job and told they had to get out of the job they were in. As a intern I felt that it was not a wise thing to say in front of me because I'm interning there trying to learn new things, establish connections and this person is telling me, you do not want to work here. I feel that is a poor reflection on the company as well as the person.
I currently have a job part-time at MTV and I feel that I have gained more experience there and learned how to work the business world. Miramax was an okay internship overall. It did have its high points such as the premieres, the special after parties, and the celebrity sightings. The main thing that I got out of the internship is that I do not want to work in publicity and I now know what type of people I want to work with. I know that there was another intern from St. John's there and it appcarcd to me that they loved being at Miramax but I felt that working in other places I noticed that it is not the company nor the people I would like to work with.
I found the experience a good even though I was not thrilled with my daily duties and a decent experience. As an intern, I know that it is not supposed to be great because you are doing work that no one else really wants to do but I tried to bc professional and show off my hard working traits when I was there. I have a feeling that maybe they were not pleased with everything I did because they never seemed really friendly to me but I think I did a good job there and I always worked hard and was willing to stay longer whenever I could.
12/01