Hollywood intern: Day in the life blog

Some people will tell you not to follow your dreams, because when are they ever in reality what you dreamt them to be?  I wasn’t following mine, at least not intently. Yet it happened to creep up on me anyway. I write this post now after four weeks in Los Angeles, working with Disney Branded Television in the Live Action Current Series Department.

I want to be able to shout from the rooftops about everything I have seen and heard and learned, but of course the Mouse has secrets that I must respect. So, as I take you through a day in the life of a DBT Intern, know that what I am about to say is heavily redacted. But don’t you worry, dear reader; few secrets last forever.

8.30am - It’s a brisk walk down Mickey Avenue (past Dopey Drive) to reach the shuttle bus to the offices of Disney Branded Television. This building is insanely huge, and there’s no getting over that feeling of “Ooo, I’m important” as I scan my badge to enter floor 21, just in time for work.

9am - I usually start by looking through the dailies of one of the shows in production. Dailies are essentially everything captured on camera during a day of shooting, including empty shots without actors to be utilised later in post-production if VFX is needed.  As I go through each one, I make note of the ones I believe to be useful (if the acting is good, if the lead actor is the focus, stunt work, etc.) which later will be cut together to form a more complete version of the scene.

11am - Once I’m done, there’s usually a new draft of a script to read. As someone who aspires to be a screenwriter, having the opportunity to read through scripts that are currently in development is truly eye-opening. It allows me to see what works and what doesn’t and also gives me the chance to offer some of my own creative insight. 

Early afternoon - At least once a week, we have a big team meeting. There comes a point in each meeting where I remember I have to switch out of fanboy mode after hearing some big-name writer, director or actor be dropped nonchalantly; realising that, somehow, we have become colleagues by proxy. These meetings discuss everything, from potential pilot programmes to the marketing of shows on their way to release, giving me a broad view of every stage of production.

Late afternoon - I'm on set to see a show being filmed. It’s a multicam sitcom filmed in front of a live audience and the experience has been truly incredible. Each visit was a privilege, as was being able to meet legendary Disney Channel stars of my own childhood.

The rest of my day is taken up by updating the system which holds all the information for each show, including writers, directors and crew. This has allowed me to be a part of meetings with potential writers as they pitch themselves to the team, which has been an insightful preview into the future of writing for television. 

These are mere snippets of the intern work that goes on at DBT. There is so much more that I wish I could talk about. Los Angeles itself is a film-lovers paradise, with a great cinematic temple sat on every street corner.