When I heard we were going to Los Angeles, I was beyond excited. I was overjoyed. Elated. Euphoric. My whole life, all I wanted was to be a filmmaker living the life in Hollywood, so a trip to the City of Angels was a dream come true. The bus ride with thirty other people from my internship, on the other hand, was a nightmare. Finally, after nearly two days after leaving Dallas, we arrived in Los Angeles eager to see what the city had to offer us eager film students. The air was filled with smog, the streets were dirty and crowded, but the city spoke to me on that first day.

Those first days were magical. I couldn’t get enough of the sights, the sounds, the smells of the bustling city. Seeing the Hollywood sign for the first time, walking down Hollywood Blvd, eating at Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, I felt something I’d never felt before. The place I had always dreamed about was finally real to me, and I couldn’t help but soak it all in. I knew right away that this was the city that I wanted to spend my life in. I kept thinking about the places I would live and the people I would meet. I saw billboards and posters for movies. I had my first In-N-Out burger. Everything was so perfect and I couldn’t stop imagining what my lfie in the city would be like. My first time in LA just confirmed what I knew since I was young.

Growing up, I always knew that I would work in the industry. I started writing, shooting, and editing personal videos when I was eleven, and I haven’t stopped since. Spending time in Los Angeles and meeting professionals in the film industry only made my love for the city grow stronger, and confirmed all my desires to live and work in the city. I would not have wanted to visit the city under any other circumstances. The internship I was with had leaders that grew up in the city, so we had excellent guides.

I knew I was meant to be in Los Angeles, and I couldn’t wait for the day I would live there- the first day of the rest of my life.