Sydni Chustz, Video Production Intern at RPA
Los Angeles, CA
I think RPA chose me for this internship because…I think the video production department chose me because of my good reputation in the agency already, as well as the passion and experience I demonstrated in the first interview I had with my current boss. Although I didn’t have any direct video production experience on my resume, I was able to play up some of the other relevant things I had done that involved organizing events and people over a long period of time.
The type of work I did this summer included being support for any and all pre, post, and actual production matters. A large portion of my day to day role included handling requests from the producers regarding invoices, purchase orders, and estimates. I also spent a lot of time helping coordinate screenings of production companies who came to the agency to show us their work, and shadowing producers on their jobs.
The most challenging thing was learning how to fail forward. Production consists of many working parts, so there’s a lot of room to succeed.. and fall short. Sometimes the disappointment I felt when I made a mistake was so great and overwhelming that I forgot that I was actually in the middle of a learning opportunity. As time has gone on, I’ve gotten much more comfortable with making mistakes and have embraced the fact that it’s inevitably the one thing that will help me grow in my career. These mistakes are the very reason, for example, that I’m very good about asking the right questions and double checking all of my work today.
The best thing about my internship was having the opportunity to attend commercial shoots, recording sessions, screenings, and other industry events where I had the chance to meet some pretty cool people who participate in the creation of creative work for a living. Luckily, I have a very supportive team who was excited to expose me to these things.
The biggest learning I’m taking away from my internship is…One of the biggest things I’ve learned is how to behave in the office and adapt to the culture. I never knew it before this experience, but work culture is very important to me and finding the right fit has become more of a focus for me than ever before. Culture (which includes everything from the diversity of the people, their general attitude, the values of the company, and the things they do for their employees) varies from company to company– or even amongst departments at the same company.
My best advice for future interns is…Get in the habit of being vocal. Vocal in terms of getting to know the people around you. Vocal about what you do and don’t know. Vocal about what you like and don’t like. Vocal about what you want. It’s something that I’m still working on getting better at everyday, but I also realize it’s my own voice that has gotten me on the right track! If it hadn’t been for me vocalizing that I wanted to try video production, I would probably still be in my old position. Plus, your team and managers like it when you open up and show who you are.
🎧 Hear more about Sydni’s experience at RPA in her We Are Next Podcast Minisode.
Thank you so much, Sydni and RPA, for being part of Intern Fieldnotes, Vol. 1! For more insight and advice from summer interns at agencies all over the country, check out the full series.
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