Is it possible to get an intership as a high School student?

L

Let Malo Film

Hey, as you might understand I'm looking for an internship related to film making. To be honest, I have been looking a lot. Unfortunately, most of them only accept students who are at least 18 years old or are juniors in university. This definitely makes sense, because you don't want to get a kid who messes with your work. But as you understand, I would really like to get an internship or just be there to help for free. I'm not looking for money or anything like that. I'm looking to gain experience in film making. I hope I do not sound naive.
I've done many short films that received many awards and organized a film festival... I don't know if it helps... but if you have any advice or suggestions for me. I'll be glad to hear them. :) I'm sure can learn a lot from you guys!

Ps: I'm 17 years old and if it helps here is my portfolio maloriou.com if anyone wanna see my work.
Also, I know because of the coronas virus there is probably less/no internships but I would really appriciate to hear any advice.
 
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Not much is going to be happening in the NY Tri-State area for quite a while, but there are probably going to be lots of scripts wanting to be filmed once things open up again. Considering the current state of the economy they are going to be extremely micro-budget, so working for free will be about the only gigs around, initially.

It is highly unlikely (but not impossible) that you will land an internship. Just get out there and work on projects. I hope that you have access to a vehicle; that will give you more opportunities. Not all of your experiences will be good ones, but you will see, and hopefully learn, A LOT. In fact, the negative experiences will give you a great store of "what NOT to do" data.

You should also participate in this forum, do lots of reading and watching and listening. What I mean by that is......... I'm an audio guy. I can steer you towards books to read (start with "The Location Sound Bible" by Ric Viers, it's a good place to start), films/sound designers to watch/listen to, YouTube vids to watch, etc. Spend some time on FilmSound.org; it hasn't been updated in while, but the basics are still the basics - lots of
sound-for-picture glossaries, articles, history, interviews with sound designers and the like. Others on this site can point you towards "educational" material on the visual aspects - lighting, cameras, etc. - and writing.

I'll give you a couple of my aphorisms/bromides:

The hobbyist amateur learns from his mistakes,
A professional learns from the mistakes of others.

The true professional knows that there is always more to learn.

Get out there (when the world opens up again) and work on as many projects as you can. Network, NETWORK, NETWORK!!!!! Always be willing to do more. Never down-talk anyone. (Always remember that todays asshole is tomorrows corporate VP.) Abide by your agreements. Remember that the internet is forever.

You can learn a lot all on your own (working for free, reading, watching, listening, discussing) with some help from your peers here on IndieTalk. While you are learning build a reputation for hard work and reliability. Build your network. Maybe one day you'll bump into the right person. I have seen it happen. I worked on a short about 15 years ago, and the PA came up from Pennsylvania to Connecticut on his own dime to work on the project. He was great, and even gave the entire project its "Holy Sh!t" moment. The DP took him on at his company, and about two years later I saw him in NYC working on a major film shoot.

So get started. Read, Watch Listen. Ask questions here on IndieTalk.

Good Luck!
 
Thank you for your comment I really appreciate!
For the book, I met the author in a workshop (in Michigan) where he was giving us advice on how to record sound with an iPhone. I talked to him after and he was very nice. Since you recommended his book, I'm going to order it on amazon. Anyway, thank you for your answer. As you say, I'm going to be more implicated in this forum. I think I can learn a lot from everyone. I will also take a look at filmsound.org.

For the internships you're definitely right it's unlikely happening but gigs are good enough to me. 😁
I don't really know where to look for them yet. I hope I will find some gigs by searching on internet.
Also, for the gigs, should I contact studios by email?

Thank you for your honesty. :)
 
A cool place to work is a rental house. Checking out camera gear. 1) You learn the gear as well as parts of the biz like bookkeeping, insurance, etc. 2) You can seriously network if you are chatty and talk to the people renting. I used to jump on productions just talking to people that came for a camera. 3) You can likely get a job, not internship, at a rental house. Yes, at 17/18. You may start stocking shelves or testing equipment but let them know you are interested in checking out gear and dealing with the people. It's a really great job to start off and you can call various rental houses in video and film.
 
Sorry, I'm a bit confused about the "rental house". Do you mean a place where you can rent film gears?
My bad if my question sounds stupid 😅
 
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Yes. Where in NY do you live? There's tons of camera, lighting, and grip rental houses in NYC.
 
I'm living in Michigan right now but I'm moving to New York in July. I'm going to move to Harrison which is probably 30 minutes from manhattan.
 
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Internships don't pay the bills. They are designed for learning/college credit but many companies pull a scam and make you simply work for free doing things they should be paying people for. If you are not being apprenticed or learning a new skill it is not an internship. Trust me, I worked the scam ones. I was a simple office assistant that learned nothing except the quickest route to Kinkos. Look for a JOB in film. Or a job to support your filmmaking.
 
I'm 17 years old which I don't know if people would not be employed because of my age? I hope I'm wrong but otherwise, you're totally right.
 
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Let Malo Film said:
For the internships you're definitely right it's unlikely happening but gigs are good enough to me. 😁
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We all take what we can get, at first.About 18 years ago the recording studio at which I worked was closed (long, complicated story...) and I decided to go back to school to study for my Pro Tools certification, figuring it would be an asset when applying to other studios. In addition to the music related classes a series of courses in Audio Post were available for a very minimal fee (it was almost as expensive as the music course if taken on its own) so I took advantage of the offer. It was the autumn and the classes started in January, so I had some time on my hands. There were two (2) short films being shot specifically being shot for the Directors View Film Festival; members of the local communities were invited to be cast and crew by the director, who was a professor at a local college and the founder of the festival. I showed up at the auditions one Saturday morning with the idea of being an extra. When they found out I had audio experience I was co-opted into being the Production Sound Mixer. My first sound-for-picture gig!!! The 1st AD and I became very friendly. In the years following I worked on quite a few projects with her (like the one in my previous post about the PA), and those projects were great networking opportunities. So freebees - with the right projects - are terrific launching points for more work.

When I took the Pro Tools courses the instructor had worked with numerous big name musicians and on quite a few high profile films. When we got to the audio post courses Rob mentioned that I had a real knack for audio post, and there would be less competition and a better class of client. He was partially right, but I have love my career in audio post and having my own studio - although I hate the "taking care of business" (taxes, etc.) part of having my own business.

Let Malo Film said:
I don't really know where to look for them yet. I hope I will find some gigs by searching on internet. Also, for the gigs, should I contact studios by email?
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Start with Mandy.com, productionhub.com,mediamatch.com, entertainmentcareers.net and linkedin.com. There are many more, but I'll leave it to you to discover them.

Don't bother with major studios; try the smaller local production houses instead.

Where are you located?
 
Can! You! Top! This!

indietalk said:
I worked when I was 15 and bought a car for $5500 at the end of the year.
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When I was 12 the organist at our church, of whom I was a student, moved on to a different parish. I was the organist for the church from June until late summer, when a new organist/choirmaster was hired. My 13th birthday was three days after my first rehearsal with the choir and the day before my first service.
 
When I was in high school I even drove to TV stations to ask for jobs. I almost got one. I was into TV/Film from taking "TV Production" in HS and that set the bug. I did bust my ass after HS to work in film. All you have to do is get your hustle on. If you are ambitious you have to let that ambition be your compass. Don't listen to anyone that says you can't do it.
 
Alcove Audio said:
Start with Mandy.com, productionhub.com,mediamatch.com, entertainmentcareers.net and linkedin.com. There are many more, but I'll leave it to you to discover them.
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Keep your eyes open for a "Production Assistant" position. There are usually several production assistants working on a film project or in a television station. You probably won't see the word "intern" in any of the ads. An internship is normally arranged through a school, and is not generally available to the public.
 
Alcove Audio said:
Can! You! Top! This!
When I was 12
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Well I believe I was around 12, had my own lawn service. Literally. Not just small jobs. Me and a friend, we had two mowers, I got one free from my grandpa. We build a little wooden cart with 2x4s, plywood, and wagon wheels to pull the gas cans and accessories. On the side of the 2x4 it said "D&D Lawn Service" with our phone numbers. Most of the neighborhood called us. :D
 
Rayandmigdalia said:
Keep your eyes open for a "Production Assistant" position. There are usually several production assistants working on a film project or in a television station. You probably won't see the word "intern" in any of the ads. An internship is normally arranged through a school, and is not generally available to the public.
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PA jobs are OK! Just OK. You will likely not learn anything. You will spend a lot of time doing thinks like shopping, and fetching thinks. Like an office assistant. No real learning. But you can get a job as a 3rd grip with no experience. And then you will learn a lot about grip and lighting. 3rd electric, you will just handle a lot of cables but can move up to 2nd, best boy, gaffer, etc. You work closely with the cinematographer. I got into grip/electric easily but I am in NYC. As a PA you work in Production but will just be doing bs... really, it's a paycheck. No learning or ladder, imo. Been there. A job as Starbucks is just as good.
 
Thanks for all your replies. It shows me that I was wrong and that we can actually make money while being in Highschool :lol:

indietalk said:
When I was in high school I even drove to TV stations to ask for jobs. I almost got one. I was into TV/Film from taking "TV Production" in HS and that set the bug. I did bust my ass after HS to work in film.
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I found two TV stations at Harrison but I'm sure they are even more in Brooklyn.
indietalk said:
All you have to do is get your hustle on. If you are ambitious you have to let that ambition be your compass. Don't listen to anyone that says you can't do it.
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I definitely agree, I really need to keep this in mind.

Alcove Audio said:
Where are you located?
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Currently, I'm living in Michigan but I'm moving to Harrison in July.
Also, I signed up for all the websites you recommended to me. So now I'm keeping an eye on it.
 
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It's cool you have the drive. And don't worry about your age. It seems you think young people can't work in places other than fast food but they do. You just need to find the right fit. Stay ambitious because that helps. For example, I once picked a few directors I liked and wanted to work with them, and I did. By calling and faxing (lol).... yes faxing. I know you don't know what a fax is but pretend I said email. ;)
 
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