I am a graduating senior, spending my last few months as a student here in LA instead of the harsh tundra that we all know and “love”. I have nicknamed this the Stepping Stone Method, because it allows me to adjust to life after school, while desperately grasping at the security blanket that is the […]
The semester in Los Angeles is the change every Syracuse University student needs to experience. The past three years of my life are characterized by studying in Syracuse, New York and living in Cleveland, Ohio during breaks. My comfortable routine was severed by the plane ride from snowy Cleveland to sunny Los Angeles in January. […]
This is going to sound very corny and possibly like a sales pitch, but hear me out: I can honestly say that I can’t imagine moving out to LA after graduation having not participated in SULA. I remember thinking that after all my Newhouse classes, I had at least some semblance of an idea of […]
Hello! My name is Amanda Ho and I am a senior animation major. That being said, being a senior and being in the SULA program is definitely a challenge. I am away from all my friends back in Syracuse and was thrown into the world of bright lights, famous people, and lots and a lots […]
I’ve been LA a few times as a visitor, seeing the entertainment world from the outsider’s point of view and admiring everything about it, but SULA gives me the opportunity to dive into the industry and see the real world. The orientation week was like pouring information toward me, showing how awesome about this city […]
Throughout this whole process of applying and coming to Los Angeles with SULA, the one question I keep being asked is why I decided to come here in place of going abroad. Although I don’t have a comparison, there are a ton of reasons why I don’t regret coming to LA (in the short time […]
I’m a computer art and animation major from a small town in Massachusetts. For my whole life, I’ve been sure that I wouldn’t ever want to live in a city for many reasons. Cities have always felt so overstimulating and cluttered, cold and anonymous and gray to me. A fact of life is that there […]
Growing up, I was a huge Harry Potter fan. I was fascinated with Hogwarts because it was so big and had so many secrets, that it was impossible to ever see it all—there was always something new to find. That’s why I think of LA as being like Hogwarts. Since the minute I arrived, there’s […]
Hi Everyone, I’m going to briefly talk about my experiences in LA since I got here 5 weeks ago. This place is great! I’m from Long Island and have grown up with NYC next to me and always was wondering what it’s like living outside NYC. The Vibe of LA is so different than NY, the people […]
The Prospect Studios is home to both General Hospital and Greys Anatomy. Although I knew working on the SOAP General Hospital would obviously involve some doctors, it took me a second to process the dozens of actors walking around the lot in scrubs on my first day. It would be my first time working as a production assistant, and I quickly […]
A semester in Los Angeles is a must for any student even remotely interested in working in entertainment. During your time here, you will learn a tremendous amount about the industry from people who have built successful careers and are more than willing to advise students interested in similar careers. Each guest speaker is as […]
This semester I’ve been lucky enough to intern at CONAN in the Control Room next the Warner Bros Studio building that the late night show is shot. I’ve always been interested in the technical side of TV production, specifically the real time processes involved in putting the show together. There is immense coordination, hard work and […]
The most exciting day of my internship at Good Universe so far was when a group of us development interns got to consult on the script of a current project. The writers wanted to make sure the dialogue was realistic for characters our age, so a group of us were brought in to meet about […]
From my time here I can confidently say that I believe every Syracuse student who wants to go into entertainment should do this semester. It should be mandatory for TRF and Music Industry students. Additionally, this is my final semester and I am so glad I am spending it here. While I do miss my […]
For much of my life I wanted to get out of Ohio so badly and move to the east coast. I thought that’s where my next chapter would start. I was wrong. Coming out to LA has been a blessing and I plan to move here indefinitely upon graduating in a year. I don’t mind […]
When someone tell you SULA is the smartest choice they’ve ever made, it is the truth. I am so happy to finally be here and everything is amazing so far. If you want a wonderful and meaning experience in your college life, this must be the right decision for you. I love Los Angeles not […]
My time here at SULA has been everything I hoped for and more. The show tapings, guest speakers, and celebrity sightings alone have been enough to satisfy my LA cravings. The main subjects of SULA, however, are the classes and the internships. I’ve been working hard year after year to get my foot in the […]
Life couldn’t be better. I’m living in beautiful Los Angeles, I’m working for NFL Network, and Tom Brady has officially made his mark in history as the greatest quarterback ever to play the game. I still can’t get over the events that took place this season, and I probably never will as long as […]
Something I always been interested in is how a show you see on television is made. One of my dreams growing up was to be on production set in California. Now, after a month participating in the Syracuse University Los Angeles semester, I can say I have worked on a set and helped produce […]
Flying from my favorite city Tokyo to (my fav-to-be) Los Angeles was one of the most enjoyable flying experiences. It’s also somehow a metaphor of this amazingly uncertain LA journey. It’s been a crazy surreal month, and I couldn’t tell you how much I love LA in one short paragraph. One of the best life […]
Coming to LA for the SULA program was a bold decision for me to make. Despite hearing all the good things about it, going to a place that I’ve never been to and know nothing about is beyond my comfort zone. So when I finally decide to come, I was as nervous as I was […]
After the first few weeks of being in Las Angeles, all I can say is it’s good to be home. Spending my final semester finishing school and interning in the city and industry in which I want to work is a great start to my transition into the workforce. At the first SULA alumni event, […]
I’m not going to sit here and type out all the reasons LA is great because to be honest, you’ve probably heard most of them already and will continue to hear them. Weather – amazing (minus some rainy days, but hey, anything beats feet of snow). Traffic – sucks. People – generally pretty friendly and […]
Travelling to Los Angeles has been a dream of mine for longer than I can remember. After now having spent the past three-plus months in the City of Angels, I can say that it has been everything I could have imagined and more. Being a musician and composer, I came to LA with the goal […]
Sun. Food. People. Opportunities. Those are just a few of the words that I thought of while typing. I have a lot to say about LA but that’s not what I’m going to do here. Instead, I’m going to talk about why I recommend taking part in SULA. Firstly, the traffic is terrible and going […]
This semester in LA has given me a lot of clarity but also kind of confused me. Being here and getting a first-hand view of what the film industry is like through my internship has prepared me for what the general common processes of starting out are. I would’ve never had any grasp of assistant […]
Los Angeles’s program has been, if anything, a wake-up call. It was a needed yank on the rug, which lay underneath me, and a harrowing look at where I am fulfilled. Pragmatically, it is not in this city, though how would I have known that without coming here? It has been – needless to say […]
The people here are nice. But nobody wants to read your script. For a town that’s built on content development, the people here sure go out of their way to not read scripts or watch pilots. I was told that back in the days of yest-er-years, Coverage was an important position. It used to be […]
This blog post is about seizing and making the most of opportunity while out here in LA. I hope it serves as motivation for any of you students preparing to embark on your own amazing semester out here. If you asked me before the start of the semester if pitching a tent inside of the […]
When I first got my letter of acceptance to Syracuse university I was told by literally everyone that the winter was the worst but I didn’t believe them until I saw it myself. The same goes with the LA traffic. Never in my life have I seen so many cars backed up on one freeway, […]
My semester in Los Angeles has been my favorite SU experience thus far. Growing up in Iowa and studying film on the East Coast, I didn’t really understand the inner-workings of “Hollywood”. Granted, nobody really does until you’re thrown right in the heart of it. Luckily for me, that’s exactly what the SULA semester provided […]
Being from Newport Beach, California, I had the privilege of being introduced to Los Angeles very early on. Growing up, I would take family day trips to LA a couple times a year and see sports games and concerts every now and then. Starting my freshman year in college, I became a little more exposed to Los Angeles by commuting during […]
As I arrived in Los Angeles for the beginning of this semester, I began to reflect. College can’t be coming to a close any faster at this point, so I realized I don’t have much time to waste while I’m out here on the West Coast. Moments after getting to the hotel my parents and […]
Perhaps I’ve been in New York for too long, but coming back to LA and the West Coast has reminded me that a good positive attitude is so important. People here smile, greet, and actually talk to each other… something I would never do in New York City. Here, people want to get to know […]
If you’ve ever seen L.A. Story, you’ll know the scene where Steve Martin doltishly drives form one block to the other to get to the next house. SULA can be a great one-stop to actively learn about your industry and dip your toes into [its] business, but don’t forget it’s a place for you to […]
Living in Los Angeles has been a great professional and personal experience. Being from Puerto Rico I am used to hot weather, going to the beach and being able to drive everywhere. I love that I can do the same in LA. Santa Monica and Venice Beach are very nice, but I personally prefer to […]
What is not to love in California? The sun and beaches… the mountains and palm trees…the In – N – Out, it is all so great. The only thing better than the setting, is actually working in LA. Whether it be fetching prominent rappers from smoking breaks, giving healthy nods of approval to relevant TV […]
As a lifetime Los Angeleno I’m fully aware of the stereotypes that come with the territory. Moving from the West Coast to the East Coast was a full-blown culture shock, no exaggeration. What was the norm to me was deemed completely otherworldly to my Syracuse University peers. It’s good to finally feel at home, and […]
While there’s excitement on every corner in LA, sometimes it’s nice to get out of the constant movement in the big city. This past weekend, I stayed at a beach house in Carpenteria along with a few of my fellow classmates. We kayaked, swam, barbequed, and played frisbee on a private beach in mid October. The mere concept of hanging out in 80 degree weather at […]
Los Angeles is a city full of passion and creativity. This energy is infectious and inspires me in ways I never thought it would before doing the SULA semester. Everywhere you go there are content creators and creative minds. I’ve met industry professionals in Ubers, concerts and in the classroom. Being able to talk with […]
Coming from a very small town, I really was not used to driving in such busy areas. On some days you could drive for miles without seeing any other car. I was pretty nervous coming into the LA program leading up to August 19th, because of this. So while driving through Nevada, I made a […]
Having grown up in New York all my life, I was very eager and excited at the opportunity to experience the west coast for a semester. I quickly realized after only being here for a days that I would be returning to New York with no answer to everyone’s most popular burning question, “Which city […]
All the summer I was looking forward to one week: the week I make the drive from Summit, New Jersey – my hometown – to a mystery land we all read about called *gasp* Los Angeles, California. We drove for 8 days and saw some of the most incredible sights that the United States has […]
I wanted to live in LA since I was a kid. It always seemed so perfect and picturesque. I always felt like it was right for me, but it wasn’t until I arrived this fall that I knew it for sure. LA is everything someone could want. It has great weather so you’re always happy […]
We get off the 405, drive westward on Wilshire Blvd en route to Santa Monica, and pull into Sonny McLean’s. The bar has parking in the back, and we were fortunate enough to grab a spot there. My two friends and I walked out of the car and into the bar, not knowing what to […]
Now that I’m in the midst of my final college semester, I’ve had time to reflect on what has gotten me to Los Angeles this fall. Since day one, my education has been career-focused. Attending the Bandier Program at Syracuse has been a remarkable experience. I have developed into a budding music business professional in […]
Los Angeles is the place to be. The city has anything and everything you would ever want to do. Good food, hikes, concerts, beaches, sunshine, great vibes, etc., etc. There’s not a chance that you’ll be bored in LA. I was here interning last summer and this summer, and decided to stay here for the […]
Coming to Los Angeles, I wasn’t totally sure what to expect. I’d seen the city in movies and TV, and heard the horror stories about endless traffic, but other than that, I had no real idea of what I was getting into. I’ve had the amazing opportunity to be out here since June, and in […]
“Did you have a good day?” “Yeah! Did you?” “Pretty good so far. Just started my shift.” “Great. Well, I hope this one is exceptional. See you tomorrow then?” “See you! Bye-bye.” I keep my window rolled down so I can high-five the attendant at the parking garage where I park when I’m in […]
Growing up just north of Washington D.C., I didn’t really know what to expect when I prepared to move to Los Angeles for the semester. I packed up my car and drove across country, thinking about the glamour and glitz I had seen in TV and movies growing up. When I finally arrived, LA wasn’t […]
During my brief time in Los Angeles, all that has truly stuck out to me is the beauty of LA traffic. It does not rain in Los Angeles, there might be a lack of rain but there is a surplus of traffic in Los Angeles. The drivers are not very nice to me similar to […]
I was extremely nervous about this semester. It was the first time I would be traveling across the country, first time I was going to be interning for a real production company, and it’s my last semester before graduating. I quickly learned I had nothing to be nervous about. Everything up to this point had prepared me perfectly, […]
You never know what to expect as an intern. Some days are writing coverages and grabbing coffee and others are…well, just different. I have a firm belief as an intern that you should never say no to project, even if you have no clue what you’re doing or what you’re about to get into. Always […]
It is strange how day by day things do not change – until you look back and it’s all different. As each semester progresses, the next approaches at uncomfortable speeds – days become weeks, and weeks turn into months. Before you know it, you are registering for senior year classes and those months accumulated to […]
Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to live in Los Angeles. The theatrical impulse came to me very early and as soon as I learned about the glamorous world of Hollywood, I begged my mom to move there. Unfortunately, it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to move from Maine to California at […]
Coming to Los Angeles has been completely different than I expected. To be honest, my thoughts about the LA semester included the belief that I was going to absolutely hate the city, and my only reason for coming was the professional experience I wanted to receive from my internship. I’ve been here for almost three […]
I was one of those people who wanted to do this LA semester since I knew it was available freshman year. I read all these blogs, the information pamphlets, attended meetings, etc. I thought I knew what to expect, but everything has a unique feel to it that can’t be described. Actually living LA through […]
Being in LA truly inspires you. When you’re day to day in a reality where celebrities and big timers all reside, you have no choice but to be motivated to aspire to a higher level. I didn’t realize just how ambitious I was until I got here. Fast forward 3 months and here I am […]
Coming to the SULA semester as a public relations major with preconceptions that the program focused all of its efforts towards TRF majors had me constantly questioning whether or not I made the right decision in choosing LA over NYC. Now, with only one month left in the program, I can honestly say that I […]
Having lived in a small beach town in lovely New Jersey my entire life, I have had little to no experience with the many conventions and rituals of city living. I have only been to California one time before now, and even then, I was not yet old enough to understand the various facets of […]
“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can,” plays in my mind on repeat. I feel like the Little Engine That Could out here in Los Angeles. The SULA staff doesn’t lie when they say that there will be many opportunities that arise when living in Los Angeles. Every week, new […]
Hey, Hi, Hello. I write to you from west-coast, best-coast with orange pigmented hands. No, my hands have nothing to with my time out here in Los Angeles; they’re just orange from all the carrots I eat. At least I can say that they’re California carrots, and like everything else out here, they’re fresher, brighter […]
I’m a New Jersey girl through and through, so the thought of moving across the country for a few months made me nervous for several reasons — mainly, what was I going to do without NJ pizza and bagels? …Alright, I guess there were a few other reasons I was nervous, too. The months leading up to my […]
It feels so strange to reflect back on the semester as if it is almost over. This has been the fastest (and coincidentally the last) semester for me. It’s interesting to think about my expectations and compare them with reality. Before I flew out here, I assumed there was some massive culture difference and I […]
If this will be some variation of an “abroad” program for you, then I guarantee that you will have fun and love it here. I’m sure you’ve read countless blogs by now how amazing, beautiful and filled with opportunities LA is. And yes – they’re all true. But for me, LA is bittersweet as I […]
The flight from New York City to L.A. is perfectly representative of the journey to a successful career in the entertainment industry; it’s longer than expected, restless, full of sitting around and waiting, exhausting, and only supplied with small cheap meals on the way. But ultimately, it ends with warm weather, sunshine, and beautiful people […]
Is it too cliche to say I’ve been waiting for this my whole life? Whatever, it’s true. Since I began applying to colleges, I knew I had to do a semester in LA. I’ve had LA on a pedestal for as long as I can remember – and now that I’m finally here, I am […]
My hometown of Amherst, New Hampshire and Los Angeles are actually very similar. For example, both have a Walmart. They both have a church where people go on Sundays. They even both have a Mobil gas station. However, I suppose moving to Los Angeles has been a slight adjustment. I’ve never lived in a city […]
I knew I would go to LA. Even from my very first day in college, I knew that I would be applying for SULA. The idea of immersing myself in the industry, in the heart of the industry, for an entire semester was pretty incredible. The open land, hills, beaches, and everlasting summer were not […]
I’ve been thinking about taking on painting as a new hobby. Yesterday I went to Venice beach and when I started walking the boardwalk there were so many painters and artists sharing their work. My friend offered to buy me one and I could not even pick a piece, because I grew to enjoy them […]
I didn’t realize it was halfway through the semester until, suddenly, my calendar informed me that our spring break was the following week. It’s a constant cycle of school, work, and play in LA, leaving you tired and wondering exactly how you manage to cram everything into a schedule. And I love every minute of […]
Despite being very excited for SULA, I came to LA with very low expectations. I knew that I had to experience LA at some point and that I would probably enjoy it but part of me hated everything about this city for the first few days. Being from North Jersey and spending my last summer working in […]
LIFE: Ever since I was little I wanted to live in LA. Never really knew why, but it seemed like the “place”. Last summer, I finally made my move thanks to an internship with the Television Academy. I was fortunate enough to make a lot of friends and connections that I’m still trying to catch […]
“It’s all about who you know here”, I hear them tell me. The City of Angels, though geographically spread out from the San Fernando Valley to the shores of Santa Monica, is as tight-knit as your favorite christmas jumper. “Network, network, network”, but what is it exactly? The word itself makes me shudder with fear […]
Once the jet lag subsided, I noticed one thing made very clear; it’s a small town, and in a city where everyone seems to be working at the latest and greatest company, the town gets even smaller. Going into my second week at my internship, I knew I had to find a way to make […]
“I am a New Yorker,” a phrase that carries a similar weight to that of Cives Romani — A Citizen of Rome, which when uttered in its time almost guaranteed that you would be able to walk the earth unharmed. It is a boisterous and quite arrogant claim, a source of pride for New Yorker that exacerbated after […]
London or Los Angeles? Both “abroad” opportunities could provide me with a chance to explore other parts of the world, take a quick break from SU, both begin with ‘L’. Boy – did I choose right! I am a month and a half into my SULA experience and I could not be happier with my […]
Growing up on the East Coast and then only having to travel an entire hour away to Syracuse, I knew that moving to LA for the semester was going to be a major adjustment. I’d lived in my sorority house for the last year, where meals were always prepared and my biggest complaint was that […]
It’s only been about a month since I’ve begun the SULA program and my internship with Fine Brothers Entertainment, and it’s already been such a rollercoaster. They say that everything in digital happens “faster,” and it’s certainly true. Within my company’s department, we’ve seen some up’s and down’s with the launch of our community-based digital licensing program […]
One of the reasons Syracuse University was so appealing to me initially was the SULA program. I remember hearing about all of the awesome opportunities that Syracuse and the Newhouse School provided to its students, and the LA semester was what stood out. You have to understand, as much as I wanted to go on […]
I’ve been working in Los Angeles for a few weeks now, and what strikes me as remarkable is the happiness of all the people here. Fast food workers, barbers, producers, maintenance workers, and college students alike are all happy, driven, and smart. No one appears stuck in a rut or otherwise unhappy with their current […]
What’s the first thing you think of when you think of LA? Ocean? Food trucks? Celebrities? How about the endless nature parks and hiking trails? Since we all moved out here 4 weeks ago I’ve already been on about five pretty extensive hikes, and the views that I’ve seen are incredible. Being a CNY native, […]
LA is huge! Although I’ve only been in LA for two weeks, and I have a long way to go, I feel like there is so much to do here and so little time! Every day, multiple times a day, I’m told about a new place to go eat, or a concert venue or movie […]
I was fortunate enough to spend last semester in London, which has arguably the best public transit system in the world. Or at least I think so. Everyone may have been squashed like sardines but I could get from my apartment to my classroom in 20 minutes flat. Now I spend anywhere between one to […]
I’m not going to lie- I have been eagerly waiting to participate in the SULA program from the moment I stepped onto Syracuse’s campus as a freshman. Not only did it offer an escape from the barren, winter wasteland that is Syracuse, but it also promised a much-needed foot in the door for the ever-competitive […]
My time in Los Angeles has been great so far. It has only been a few weeks, but I can really feel the pulse of the entertainment industry every time I walk out the door of my apartment. This is truly the land of the cinephiles, where opportunities seem to be lurking around every corner […]
I knew that I had participate in the SULA program when I first heard about it. There were many people who asked me why I would leave the comfort of driving in Syracuse, and my friends and family and go to do my last semester in Los Angeles. My answer was, “Really?!” I would be […]
If there’s something I’ve come to realize as a result of living in Los Angeles’ and working in entertainment industry for the past six months is that ‘passion’ is really overrated. Yeah I said it, but when every person you encounter on your day-to-day interactions is a passionately aspiring director, writer, producer, actor or agent, […]
Coming into this semester I had the assumption that the acting business is about pounding your head to the pavement every day in a flash of unfocused energy. The reality is that’s a good way to keep spinning your wheels. LA isn’t this golden land that if you show up to several auditions you’ll suddenly […]
The SU semester in LA was the difference between knowing what an AD is and having one yell “lock-up” in your ear. Each week here seemed to offer new opportunities to try new things and explore an exciting, and complicated industry. I was lucky enough to learn and participate on set as a PA for […]
In 1943, white sailors and navy men assaulted Mexican-Americans in a series of attacks now known as the Zoot Suit Riots because of the flashy Zoot Suits Mexican youth wore at the time. Filipino and Black youth were also targets of violence. In 1965, the famous Watts riots happened in the Watts neighborhood of […]
One of my best experiences by far was a two day trip to Napa Valley. It was nice to get away from the hustle and bustle that is Los Angeles. My roommate and I got up at five a.m. to embark on a six hour journey. The drive gave us the opportunity to see […]
One of the Professors here is prone to bringing up the Steve Jobs quote “you can’t connect the dots, looking forward; you can only connect them looking back.” Though that may someday apply to my whole life, it already applies to my time in the LA semester. Having only been to the west coast once […]
I have been granted so many amazing opportunities as of recent years. This past summer I got the opportunity to attend the Cannes Film Festival, which was a nice formal introduction to the industry that SULA would teach me more about. Shortly after that, SULA provided opportunities such as working at Funny or Die, going […]
When I was little, my neighborhood video store had a funny policy regarding R-rated films. You weren’t allowed to rent one if you were under 18, but it was tough for the cashiers to know which films were R-rated as their rating would not appear on their computer when the barcode was scanned. This meant […]
This away semester in Los Angeles has been among one of the most interesting semesters of my Syracuse career to date. Living in Los Angeles was nothing like I imagined it would be and yet at the end of these very short few months I find myself connected to this new home. LA has so […]
11/13/2015 6:00PM LOS ANGELES, CA [FOD] – Tensions are high in Los Angeles. An inside source at The Lot, home to such places as Funny or Die, Gifted Youth, and Gary Sanchez, has reported to SULA that one of Gifted Youth’s own interns (we’ll call him ’Spencer’) made a ‘joke’ at approximately 2:38PM that was, […]
L.A. has been a really exciting opportunity for me. Coming to a different side of the country and setting up shop is a completely new experience for me. When speaking to people within my own New York network that had been to Los Angeles, I was consistently urged to “watch my back”, “watch my drinks”, […]
I don’t think you can ever replace the feeling of the home you grew up in, and if I was looking for that, maybe I was misguided. In the past four years, I’ve been to Syracuse and now Los Angeles, with each step looking for a place that would feel familiar; and in all honesty […]
I always had this feeling that if I wanted to make it in Hollywood, the entertainment industry had to find me. I figured, to be a director I must produce content so impressive that someone discovers it and hires me. I was just trying to be real with myself, but I was blind to the […]
Is it true that the best internship ever could come when you least expect it? Well, with me, it most certainly did. For me, I mainly applied to Jingle Punks to intern for 3 reasons. The first reason was my strong interest in music publishing. The second reason was after someone in Syracuse recommended me […]
I’m at my internship, it’s the middle of the day, a cute new girl just started, and I RIPPED MY PANTS. Like, I didn’t rip my pants near the ankle as I narrowly escaped a dog chasing me on a coffee run, I didn’t rip my pants doing a super rad tree pose during office […]
Los Angeles. We’re more than halfway into our semester and this city is everything and so much more than anything I could have ever dreamt of. It’s such a weird place, honestly. A few weeks into your life here you’ll start to realize that you’re living a very different life than you previously did, and […]
When I first told my mom about the possibility of coming to Los Angeles for a semester, the first thing she said was, “Boy, you better get ready for those traffic jams!” I took it as a joke. I mean, how bad could it possibly be? Then, my flight landed in LAX and I rented […]
I’m a firm believer that any worry a person has in life can be soothed with a bingo card. On the Bingo field, all is equal. Nothing matters but you, your card, and any friends nearby helping you to pick up that rapid B13 call while you’re placing your G32. While out here in LA, […]
While incredibly corny, the old adage of “never being fully dressed without a smile” has never been more pertinent than throughout my experience in the LA semester. During my internship the importance of a positive attitude has only been reinforced time and time again. Though simple tasks like making coffee runs or picking up lunches […]
Some people in life are more fortunate than others, especially when it comes to picking a life career. I always wished I was a born a piano prodigy or mad scientist so that my life profession would already be chosen for me. Photography and filmmaking had always interested since I was a young adult but […]
Stepping over Tom Cruise’s Hollywood star everyday on my way to work, trying to side step a terrifyingly cheap version of Batman asking for pictures, I ask myself if I’ve become as jaded about Hollywood as the rest of its famous inhabitants. Just a couple weeks and I’m already walking past the TCL Chinese Theatre […]
I am from an upstate New York city called Rochester. Like most of the state, it exists to serve the downstate population as an extended suburb of NYC, about 5-6 hours away. With the Big Apple stealing nearly all the attention away from everything else in the state, Rochestarians have learned to take pride in […]
Growing up watching as much TV as I did, I never really took the time to notice the multitude of names following the end of each episode in the credits. Not only do they zoom past the screen at questionably fast pace, but I never really seemed to care. Since arriving in Los Angeles, I […]
Today, we had a guest speaker at the office of Brave New Films. The director for Amy, the recent documentary about Amy Winehouse, Asif Kapadia, came and spoke with us for an hour. It was fascinating seeing the same person I saw at Cannes, when the film first premiered, and asking him questions in regards […]
LA is definitely not for everyone, however after living in Florida for ten years, this heat is nothing I can’t handle. Have you ever lived in Florida? It’s either blazing hot or it’s pouring rain. There’s no in between. Personally, Cali is perfect for me. It’s not too hot (as Florida), and it barely rains. […]
The LA semester is my second abroad experience and you would think by now I would have gotten the hang of adjusting to a new place quickly. I thought I would step off the plane and feel no jet lag at all, figure out how to get around this city in about a week or […]
Participating in the Syracuse University Los Angeles program was one of the best decisions I have made while in my college career. While in California, I am taking 13 credits and have a three-day internship. My courses include my Capstone course, Development of Production, a Music Video course, and online Religion course and my three-credit […]
“Why are you here?” is the number one question I receive when people find out I am doing SULA. I am an Orange County native, and have been no stranger to Los Angeles, spending two years as a commuter and growing up and falling in love with this city. So why am I here? The […]
I cannot believe I’ve already been here in Los Angeles for five weeks!! The time has flown by so quickly because every minute of every day is a new experience. I still cannot get over all of the people I have had the opportunity to meet in these past five weeks, and I am excited […]
What is it about Los Angeles that makes people try so hard to be healthy? I have consumed more kale in the past month than my entire family has in their lifetimes. I think it has something to do with either the good weather or the fact that the entertainment industry puts so much stress […]
My journey to Los Angeles consisted of a 3000 mile road trip across the country with my two best friends. Our trip lasted 11 days and we visited 7 of the country’s most major cities from start to finish. Despite having seen the entire country and its wonders along the way, I recall being completely […]
This semester means a lot to me. Before this semester, I was trying to do independent films but I didn’t know exactly what my plans were. I heard and learned about Hollywood and LA and the film industry, but it is only when I came here, lived here and worked here did I truly realize […]
The first thing you hear (usually) when you move to Los Angeles, California is, “Oh, I hear LA traffic is the worst! Hope you’re able to pick up LA driving quickly…” And to that I say, “How in the world is driving in LA different than any other state? And at that, how is it […]
Participating in the SULA program allowed me the opportunity to come back home while gaining some valuable experience from my internship. I’m currently interning at a production company called K.Jam media, but this blog isn’t about my internship experience. I want to share a personal event that truly defined Los Angeles as the “hub of […]
I tried to come into my Los Angeles semester with an open mind. Well, tried being the operative word. I might’ve failed at that. With New York allegiances in my core, I had a pretty distinct feeling that L.A. wasn’t going to be the place for me. Constant bumper to bumper traffic. Gas prices through […]
LA has been an incredible to me so far. I am completely honored to have this amazing opportunity. I am enjoying spending my weekends exploring beaches, restaurants, and culture landmarks that LA has to offer. It’s exciting to be somewhere new every single weekend. I also love the networking opportunities that Syracuse and LA have […]
The LA semester for me is a chance to experience college at home for the first time ever. I’ve spent 3 years now at school in New York, but nothing is quite like the place I grew up, beautiful and sunny Southern California. School for me has always begun with a plane flight across the […]
Los Angeles is incredible. I’m about three and a half weeks into the program and it’s just been incredible. SULA is a one-of-a-kind experience and it offers so much in terms of exposure and networking. The classes are engaging and the professors are legendary. Whether you’re sure or not of getting into the entertainment industry, this […]
As a Los Angeles native, it may seem odd that I chose to spend a semester “abroad” in my own hometown. Rest assured, it was a carefully calculated decision. About 60% of the reason I made that choice was for the benefit of having an internship in television while simultaneously taking classes on the entertainment […]
“You’re either going to hate it, or you’re absolutely going to adore LA” they told me, mere days before my departure. That was enough to terrify me. I mean, I’ve always believed I wanted to work in film and when I told people that, the statement “Oh, so you’re moving to LA after college” was […]
By my count it’s been about five weeks since I arrived at LAX — which really has nothing special about it by the way, it’s just as frustrating as every other airport — and I can say that life in Los Angeles has been mostly smooth sailing. I was really excited to come here, so […]
During my time in LA, I can honestly say that I have had experiences that will last a lifetime. Even though living in LA has had its challenges, I can say that my overall experience has ben a positive one. At my internship with Good Universe Productions, I have been privileged with having the opportunity […]
Early on, in my college career, I realized that study abroad was the thing for me. I have spent five weeks in Italy learning about neorealism and a semester is Prague making 35mm films at FAMU. These opportunities were life changing, Prague especially. There I learned so much about myself and who I want to […]
I first arrived in Los Angeles this last June to intern at Kraft-Engel Management, an agency that represents a large amount of A-List film composers (Alexandre Desplat, Danny Elfman, John Powell, Marco Beltrami, Christophe Beck, more). I knew it would be a great place for me to be as I myself want to be a […]
I came out here to LA thinking I was totally prepared for everything. I was VERY wrong. Coming from New York, I thought driving would be a non-issue and yet I’m in the car with my mom, merging onto the 101 and there was a stoplight. I was flabbergasted. Never in my life have I […]
While I’ve only been here for a couple weeks so far, I’ve already figured out lots of ways to save money. Los Angeles is expensive, so I wanted to share what I’ve learned to encourage anyone who is struggling financially to not completely dismiss attending the program just because of money. Let me just start […]
I distinctly remember getting ready to apply for the Los Angeles program last spring. Something about just hearing “Los Angeles” was so magical. Perfect weather, perfect culture, perfect place for my career. I had this notion that the second I landed in Los Angeles, everything would fall right into place, but it has not been […]
I am not a person who handles chaos well. When it comes my way, I tend to ignore it until I know how to resolve it or it works itself out—whichever comes first. Moving to Los Angeles was chaos. When I first got here, I didn’t have an internship, my car situation was in shambles […]
Before I arrived in Los Angeles, I knew nobody and was a little worried about starting this new experience. However, all of my worries went away when I began meeting my fellow students. I instantly felt welcomed and felt as if I was gaining new brothers and sisters. During my time here, I have gone […]
The leap of faith is something that is almost inherent to the city of Angels. People here talk about their scripts, documentaries, start-ups, million dollar movie ideas, acting careers, at a day-to day basis; making dreams and what many would call ”irrational” ambitions more tangible than ever before. In LA, you always feel like you […]
If there is one thing that I have learned in Los Angeles it is that if you want to get ahead in the TV and Film industry, you have to know people. Ever since I discovered this I have been trying to meet as many people as I possibly can. One day, on an airplane, […]
Some people eat to live, but I live to eat. Cheesy, but especially true for me. A semester observing the inner workings of Hollywood make me realize there are a lot of lunch meetings, A LOT. While some may say that’s mixing business with pleasure, I just consider it a double serving of the latter. […]
I’m one of the few people that has no interest in moving to LA after this semester is over. It’s just not my style. The prices are high, the traffic is terrible, parking is a nightmare, and a minimum wage job will not earn you enough for your own room in an apartment. Not everything […]
For my entire life, Los Angeles has always been a symbol for hope. In my carefully constructed mind, Los Angeles was a place of dream fulfillment and I was going to chase it until my heart was content. This is not my first time in Los Angeles, but it is definitely the most special. When […]
Four words: Los Angeles is amazing! I knew I made the right decision coming here as soon as I checked the weather forecast back in Syracuse when I arrived at LAX! The weather here is gorgeous every day. I have never found an excuse to stay inside my apartment. I’m always exploring whether it’s a […]
I honestly do not know how to begin to describe my semester in Los Angeles. From the moment I arrived, I was completely starstruck. Not with a specific individual, but with the city itself. Los Angeles has so much to offer from the endless palm trees to the beaches to the cool vibe downtown to […]
The rapid and unceasing advancement of technology puts a strain on the creative talents of those who wish to harness it. Nowhere is that statement more true than at B2+, where I am an intern. Just as my grandma needs me to explain how to answer emails on her iPad every week, so I look […]
This weekend, I drove 6 hours to eat the best NY style pizza in the Pacific time zone. Well, actually, I drove 6 hours to gamble and see Snoop Dogg DJ at a nightclub in Vegas…I kind of just stumbled on the pizza. I promise I’m going somewhere with this. Most of the students in […]
It’s an understatement to say how amazing my semester in Los Angeles has been. I live in the snowy tundra called Buffalo, which is about 2 hours away from Syracuse. When I originally arrived, I made a promise to myself every weekend I would be trying something new and I am proud to say I […]
Los Angeles is tight. If you don’t agree, then I don’t even want to be friends with you. To describe all the reasons for LA’s dopeness, I have put together a short list of lessons that I have learned throughout my months of living the high life: Traffic rules if you try and find celebrities […]
When I made the decision last fall to fill out the application for the SULA program, some of my family and friends questioned why I was deciding to spend my last semester of college off campus. It would seem like, as a senior, I would want to enjoy my last weeks in school at school, […]
I was born in Los Angeles and have lived here for my entire life. LA is my home, my city, and the only place I had ever really known until I flew across the country to attend school at Syracuse. When I first heard about the SULA program, the last thing I wanted to do […]
The SULA semester was huge factor in my decision to come to Syracuse, and I have to say, this experience has been more than I could have bargained for. I had no idea what I was entering into in terms of the opportunities that I would be exposed to or the connections I would make. […]
The past few days have been hectic and exciting as my group and I prepare for our first night of shooting for our music video. Rather than creating a video for a well known song, we decided to reach out to a local Los Angeles band and produce a music video for them. After several […]
The title doesn’t lie. I am currently on a train to San Diego. The impossibly blue ocean is on my left and the gorgeous rolling mountains are on my right. And here I am, alone with my computer, duffle bag, and crunchy M&Ms, reflecting upon life. People will say many things about LA: the traffic […]
Los Angeles is a magical land filled with many wonderful foods. There are so many fantastic places to try that it may even seem overwhelming. There’s great Thai food, Korean BBQ and, of course, Mexican food. Before I came out to LA I knew that I had to find the burrito to end all burritos. […]
From living out here in sunny Los Angeles for the past two months, I’ve come to realize that anything can happen. Sometimes, it is from determination and perseverance, and at other times, all you need is a little bit of luck on your side. This luck can happen in the form of beating traffic (which […]
Having been in Los Angeles for a few months now I am starting to get a real feel for the city. I am learning the things I like and things I find difficult, as well as how different or similar the city is to how I imagined it. However, I think the thing that I […]
It’s odd to think that less than three months ago I was getting ready to drive forty one hours. I was triple checking my luggage, deciding what to take and leave behind. I had never been further west than Ohio. Two hours into the trip, I began to question why I didn’t simply ship my […]
It was Oscar Sunday and I’m not talking about Sesame Street (shout out to Kelvin Read). A bunch of us were watching in one of the Oakwood apartments, and the tensions were high. In the past years, I had watched the Oscars on and off, only half paying attention. But this year, we were part […]
I’ve always been known as an indecisive person, even with the simplest of things. Mexican or Thai? Cheddar or feta cheese? Malibu or Santa Monica? LA or Madrid? Reporter, producer, casting director, PR, TV host, or speech therapist? And the list goes on… But even when my anxiety kicks in and my mind goes racing […]
I have never imaged that I can enjoy such fabulous life in Los Angeles! Sunshine, beaches, Grammy, Oscar, I am entirely surrounded with all of these meaningful and memorable things. Meeting with Syracuse alumni, attending various panels, hanging out with the residents at MPTF, all of these experiences have really opened my eyes and make […]
Just this past Sunday I was a seat filler at the 2015 Grammys. It was an amazing experience that I have to give SULA all the credit for. We received an email that SULA had received 10 seat filler tickets and they chose names out of a hat and I was one of them! I […]
“Can I get you any water, sir?” “No I’m fine. Hey Jimmy, listen to that! He used ‘sir’!” This exchange occurred a couple of weeks ago at my internship. While pop culture had taught me classic Southern Californian phrases like “rad, gnarly, and bro”, I was entirely unaware that “sir” wasn’t part of the Los […]
Coming to Los Angeles you hear a lot about how much you’ll grow up. It’s all true, but considering I don’t quite consider myself a life-advice guru as a college junior, I’m gonna skip the big overarching life stuff and just share some more adult-like experiences you might have out here so you don’t get […]
When I first heard about the SULA Program, I knew immediately that I had to be a part of it. Sure, it was going to be a valuable educational experience, but the main reason I was so excited about it was because of location, location, location! My heart had always longed for LA, and I […]
Time determines everything. I waited two years to come to the SULA program after being rejected my junior year for not having taken one of the required classes. I questioned my career goals since my freshman year and now I am sure of what I want to do. I sat behind Jay-Z and Beyoncé at […]
Out here it is a whole new way of living. I mean this in a good way and a bad way. The weather is always perfect and the opportunities out here are unbeatable. In my experience, every day at work makes me feel like I am getting closer and closer to my dream job. This […]
I sat in silence unsure of what I’d just done. Surely another halting glance in my rear view mirror would only affirm my anguish. But like devouring that last slice of pizza, relishing that final drop of wine, or touching Kelvin’s new David Beckham haircut, I simply couldn’t resist. 10 minutes earlier…. Why hadn’t I […]
Last year at this time I was bundled up in the cold Syracuse weather. I was contemplating my future plans, debating on if it would be worth my time to come to Los Angeles for the semester. After discussing my future with my friends and family I came to the conclusion that it would be […]
Los Angeles is the strangest city I’ve ever been to. Please do not make me for a critic – on the contrary, I make this statement as an interested explorer. I can feel it in the atmosphere: a special quality to this place where it’s not like others. When I walked though other cities, like […]
I drove down to LA along the 5 freeway, leaving behind the Golden Gate Bridge and the foggy skies to spend the semester “abroad” in my own state. Six hours later I arrived in the city that I had spent weeks at a time in with my family but never had the chance to explore […]
My experience thus far in Los Angeles can be summed up best in one word: activities. Despite being born and raised in California as a lover of activities, I have never been more immersed in the word than I have this semester. I spent my fall semester interning in NYC without taking classes, yet somehow […]
Syracuse is orange, but SULA is colorful. Come to LA, and you will wake up in the beautiful golden sunshine everyday. We feel bad here to process the thought of “it’s chill” in the morning when it’s 55 degrees outside. The Oakwood swimming pools are heated 24/7, and they shine like sapphires at night. Surrounded […]
Before I left for Los Angeles, I fantasized about going to spinning classes, drinking kale smoothies and rubbing elbows with celebrities. However, I didn’t realize that I didn’t have to suffer into vegan submission in order to enjoy L.A. because this city has a knack for one thing and that is BURGERS! Like a snowflake, […]
I have been lucky enough to experience film in different parts of the world through abroad opportunities. With the LA semester coming to a close I would have to say my experience here exceeded my expectations. I haven’t been to another place with so many opportunities for anyone who wants to work in film or […]
I have never been to the west coast before so all I’ve ever known are below freezing temperatures and biting winds that equal winter. No one ever told me that “winter” in LA is pretty much overcast skies. What is even more confusing is how my body has somehow adapted from 2 years of Syracuse, […]
My time in Los Angeles has been completely different than anything I could have expected. I read every blog post and article I could find to prepare myself for LA life, but looking back I feel the authors were unhelpful. LA is unlike any other place I’ve ever been to because it is like everyplace […]
When I came out to LA, my main concern was that I wouldn’t find an internship where I was doing what I wanted to do. After not finding many interesting intern prospects, and being turned down from the ones that I did get an interview with, things weren’t looking too good. Until I got an […]
Los Angeles is the city where all your dreams can come true. That’s what they told me before I got here. I am originally from The Bay Area, so I have, of course, made the six-hour drive to go to Disney Land and to visit family. However, I never thought would live here. Since I […]
While I’m hardly the expert, living in Los Angeles for the semester has taught me many valuable lessons (like how to stay positive in endless traffic and how to live within my means). I spent my money on Kitchen24 brunch, Universal Studios, groceries, and AMC tickets. And I spent my time writing coverage, searching for […]
One of the visiting speakers in my class this week told us to “be comfortable with being uncomfortable,” in reference to her work as a commercial and film producer. She had done it all, from slogging through difficult shoots to scrounging to find a horse at the last minute for a commercial. Her message to […]
Being from Upstate New York, California (and specifically, Los Angeles) has always been a place of intrigue for me. From Dodger Stadium to Venice Beach there’s plenty to see and do out here in LA. It’s a sprawling, confusing, yet majestic place with everything and anything to offer. With all that being said, here’s my […]
Since arriving in Los Angeles, I have had a crazy whirlwind of events leading up to my semester beginning. Los Angeles has proven itself to be everything I’ve heard of it, and much more, in many different ways. One thing I was not expecting coming out here is the vast difference between every area of […]
SULA and my internship really gave me a kick-start into my career that I will value for the rest of my life. My internship at “Filmworks/FX” does a great job in showing me what careers in visual effects I may or may not want to pursue. It’s showed me that I no longer want to […]
I went to the beach on Tuesday. Seems like a pretty simple sentence on the surface, but lets think about this for a second. I went to the beach on Tuesday. Tuesday was October 28th. Back home in New Jersey it was 58 degrees while Syracuse was a crisp 52. I cannot tell you the […]
At first I was a bit nervous about crossing the country and living in LA for the semester, but after the first day I knew I had made the right decision. Everyone involved in the program really does a great job of making you feel right at home and very comfortable throughout getting adjusted. Now […]
I was recently invited to attend a screening of the new film Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) at The Academy of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Being a television, radio, and film major this was very exciting for me, especially since it is slated to be one of the big Oscar contenders this year. I […]
LA is fun, fast, and creative in a way that only a constant stream of sunny can inspire. Coming from the tiny island of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, LA feels more at home than any other city I’ve visited before. The laid-back vibe makes any office setting a little more casual. My internship with DreamWorks […]
I don’t know what it is, but ever since I got here, my creative juice has been on an overdrive. I feel more motivated, passionate, and even thrilled to go to class. Maybe it’s because I’m surrounded by other dreamers like myself, but whatever it is, it feels like home. It’s refreshing to be around […]
Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a nerdy confession to make: Over the past few years, I have become more and more invested in the world of competitive gaming. Throughout my time here at Syracuse University, this hobby of mine has been the gateway for me in terms of building some of my closest friendships, as […]
It’s been interesting to witness how much my other fellow SULA students have been adjusting to life in LA. What I’ve noticed, is that for those born and raised in the East Coast–particularly Jersey and NYC–LA might as well be Russia it’s so different. The driving, the weather, the people, they’re all distinctly not New […]
When I first got to Los Angeles in August a few things surprised me. The first was how tall the palm trees were. I imagined something smaller; instead they almost tower over everything. In a way they force you to recognize where you are. Secondly, I didn’t realize how hot it would be even through […]
Life – Living in LA is everything the songs and movies make it out to be. Nothing does come close to the golden coast when you’re laying underneath the palm trees on a warm October day. Oakwood Apartments – The Oakwood (el oh el) situated in the rolling hills of LA overlooking the Warner Brothers […]
I came to Los Angeles for the first time my sophomore year of high school and immediately fell in love. The weather was amazing, the beach was a quick drive away, and my hair was fabulous without the New York City humidity (surprisingly a very important factor). I always thought this was the place I […]
California. It was a completely foreign concept to me. Before this semester, I’d only been here twice and for a few days at a time. I didn’t have any idea what I was in for. But I figured, hey, you’ve got nothing to lose, kid. I liked it from day one – the sunshine, the […]
As cliché as my title is, it is completely true. The first week here felt so slow and now all of the sudden I am in my seventh week here. Los Angeles and the surrounding area are absolutely amazing and it is important to take advantage of it while you can. As much as I […]
Being in LA has been such an adventure! It hasn’t been that long but I’ve already learned so much about the entertainment industry through classes, being a production assistant and just meeting people. I definitely feel like I’m getting the hang of this LA lifestyle. One thing I really love about the city is the […]
Growing up in a small town with relatively little to do, the local movie theater became a big part of my life. This has made Los Angeles feel simultaneously alien and familiar. In some ways this is like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It’s a new place with new people and I’ve made my way here […]
So far, this semester has been very challenging, but very rewarding. Los Angeles is a different world, but there is so much to learn and see. My internship is with a free-lance production designer, and this job has taken me all over LA. I have gone shopping for my boss, and helped on 2 different […]
LA is like NYC but with more driving, better beaches, and worse bagels. Even if you rank bagels high on your priority list, as I do, you should still give LA a shot. Or maybe not. There are already enough people out here taking up all the parking spots. As someone raised in New Jersey, […]
I had lot of expectations about how my time in Los Angeles would be. When I got here, at first, I was kind of scared. This city is very seems very big and I felt like an entire lifetime would not be enough to understand and discover this amazing place! Then I got overwhelmed and […]
My summer started with planning for my road trip. At first, I was nervous about coming to LA. It was a place that I had never visited before and wasn’t sure if it would be a place that I would enjoy living in. I came from a small town in a small state, so needless to say, […]
From the second I landed at LAX last summer to do my first Hollywood internship, I knew LA was where I was meant to be. The sun, the mountains, the beaches, everything was like a dream. I loved it so much that this summer I decided to come back for another internship and continue my […]
My time in LA was especially marked by one very specific place, the Regal Place In-N-Out. From my first meal in LA to countless other visits, there was something different about this establishment. It’s the buns. They are slightly toasted, which to me is a complete and total fast food game changer. I loved In […]
My journey to L.A. was great. I drove cross-country from Buffalo, New York all the way here to Los Angeles, California. This was a goal of mine to do at some point in my life and I thought of a no better time then to do it for this semester. Plus, it was the cheapest […]
2,251 miles – the distance I’ve traveled in the three weeks since I came out to Los Angeles. Tomorrow begins the fourth week of the LA program, including the orientation week, which means that I’ve now spent nearly a month on the West Coast. As someone who was born and bred on the East Coast, […]
It was 16 years ago, when I was out in Los Angeles for my first time that I said I wanted to live here when I was older. Apparently no one took the words of a five-year old seriously. Weird. Oh well, clearly that hasn’t stopped me from fulfilling my dreams. Luckily for me I […]
I’ve always enjoyed putting on events, but by far my favorite one was the 6th Street Market pop-up event I put on for my summer internship in June for a lifestyle publication called LA CANVAS. We partnered with clothing brand Love Nail Tree and transformed their warehouse and driveway into a marketplace and beer garden. […]
I love to travel and see new places, learn the culture of the local people, admire the architecture. I take this journey to Los Angeles as an opportunity to explore the state of California and the City of Angels. But also, I’m taking this as a chance to learn – anything and everything this semester […]
My Labor Day was a busy weekend full of first times around LA. On Friday I visited the Grammy Museum, which was fantastic. I was able to see the Michael Jackson exhibit along with Beyoncé’s actual Grammy dress, among other things. That same day, I went to a sushi restaurant where the most expensive item […]
I have been dreaming about Los Angeles since I was a little girl. The city became this beacon of hope, where all of my dreams were going to come true. I fell asleep looking at posters of old Hollywood stars, The OC theme song was always on repeat on my Ipod, and instead of doodling […]
Dear Almost SULA BABES, I experienced a DELUXE SENIOR YEAR. Fall semester: London, UK. Spring Semester: Los Angeles, CA. Price Tag: $$$$$, yet priceless (true). I was broke when I landed in palm tree paradise. I needed a car, an internship and a job. Thank the gods that The SULA Familia was ready. CAR: I […]
It all started on January 11, 2014 in my Oakwood apartment. I plugged my inquiry into Google and it led me to a spot on Hollywood Way. I parked my 2010 Ford Focus in the motel parking lot next door and pressed mylock button five different times. I opened the wooden door with chipped paint […]
Networking: one of the most overused words at Syracuse by faculty and staff. Until arriving in Los Angeles I always dismissed the idea of networking. Maybe it was because I get nervous meeting new people or possibly because I hate how many time I hear the word. As much as it pains me to say, […]
My journey to Los Angeles has been anything but ordinary to say the least. When I decided to participate in this program many people in my life we not only confused, but were also completely against the idea. No one quite understood why a Jewelry Major would want to spend a semester in LA learning […]
When coming to Los Angeles I was mostly excited to escape the Syracuse winter and at the fact that I could possibly stumble upon the Entourage movie set. While I haven’t seen them shooting the actual film, I did see Jeremy Piven driving his Porsche down Santa Monica Blvd, but that’s beside the point. I’ve […]
The best part of living in LA is everything is going on in your backyard. Movie premieres, comedy shows, concerts, and more. There’s never an excuse to stay in unless you’re exhausted from something else you just did. The most fun I had was actually putting on a show at The Comedy Store. The Comedy […]
So you’re probably reading through these blogs wondering whether or not you should go to LA and when… well for starters I came to LA my last semester of senior year. When I was a junior I became very indecisive. I knew I wanted to go to SULA my senior year but couldn’t decide between […]
Going to Syracuse, I knew what to expect: mountains of snow… on the sidewalk…in November. But I was ok with that because I knew junior year I was going to trade it just for a semester to revel in the green juice and hipster loving capital of our nation, Los Angeles. Like most “abroad” programs, […]
Growing up in Los Angeles I already knew the hype about it – the beaches, the vibe, the sights, and the weather. There was no mystery to me about driving freeways and in traffic, so I knew coming out here would be awesome. Not just because I knew the area, but because of the opportunities […]
I’ve been a TV enthusiast for as long as I can remember. In fact, such enthusiasm used to drive my parents crazy. They never understood why I would choose to spend a day inside with a box of One Tree Hill DVDs rather than go out and enjoy the North Carolina sunshine. It was always […]
My L.A experience has been wonderful, simply because I am fortunate enough to spend my days surrounded by intelligent, creative, people who are passionate about film and television. I came into this semester with the perception that I would learn about the film industry, and how to make myself competitive in this atmosphere through the […]
As I subsided in the final stages of my REM cycle before the start of a fresh week, the pale bumpy walls that I consider home began to move. Am I still dreaming I asked? What is the meaning of all this? Why are the walls bumpy? And by the time I stopped asking myself […]
I’ll be honest straight out the gate, I have interned in LA before. In fact, I interned for the same company and the same department over the summer as I am now. So why did I come back to LA you ask? To find a home here. While at Syracuse, the song “Feels Like Home” […]
It was my mission before making my trek across the country that I would become the biggest tourist Los Angeles has ever seen. Armed with my camera, Dodgers hat and New Jersey license plate, I’ve successfully visited most of the well-known attractions the city has to offer. I was so happy when I finally got […]
I came out to LA with my heart set on a production internship but quickly came to realize that those are few and far between these days. Instead, I wound up with two development internships one at a big broadcast studio and the other at a television production and distribution company. “Development” in television is […]
When I found out that I was spending this winter in Los Angeles, I was thrilled. Not just because of the incredible opportunities the SULA Program has to offer, but also because I was born and raised in Syracuse, New York. For once, I wouldn’t have to shovel myself out of my house to shovel […]
When I first stepped outside at Los Angeles International Airport, something didn’t feel right. Perhaps it was the fact that I was still dressed for the sub-freezing temperatures of Philadelphia, PA, where I had been a mere five-and-a-half hours before, or the fact that I was trying to find an airport shuttle while lugging around […]
Perhaps the most valuable realization I have reached thus far in my SULA experience is how imperative it is that I move out to LA upon graduation. Hailing from Chicago, I have interned and worked at a Chicago-based nonfiction television production company over previous summers, and I certainly reaped invaluable experiences. But there’s no doubt […]
I’m not going to lie. Making the transition to living in LA has not been easy. One of the main reasons why I originally applied and went to Syracuse was because I knew I wanted to spend a semester in Los Angeles. Since middle school, I have been obsessed with the glamour of the entertainment […]
As expected, Los Angeles is the place to be. From classes to my internships to just living here, I am learning so much while also having one of the greatest experiences of my life. It’s eerily similar to my semester in London — I learn something new about this city and this culture every day, […]
Los Angeles was always such a foreign idea to me. It was a pipe dream like winning the lottery, never mind “making it” in LA, getting here alone seemed challenging enough. If you have ever read Of Mice in Men, going to California was my version of “tending the rabbits.” I always knew I would […]
It’s LA, it’s kinda big and empty. It’s sunny most time, but sometimes it rains. It has a lot of people here, and certain amount of them are kinda weird and kinda cool because they work in entertainment industry or they had too much entertainment in this industry. If you like them, go to talk […]
I grew up with watching Friends, CSI, and Grey’s Anatomy in South Korea. I’ve always dreamed about working in Hollywood since I was a little girl. I just merely dreamed one day I would produce that kind of creative TV series. After I got accepted to SULA program, I still couldn’t believe that I would […]
I can remember touring Newhouse as a baby-faced high school senior. “Some juniors spend a semester in LA,” the tour guide mentioned. I nudged my dad in excitement and at that moment a seed had been planted. Studying abroad always seemed fun, but LA?! Now that was the epitome of cool in my brain. In […]
Growing up I always thought of LA as the land of beautiful, sun-kissed skin people who have big egos and not a genuine bone in their body. I’m sure I’m not the only one who has this idea of LA. After all it is home to some of our favorite, and least favorite, celebrities. With […]
Even though I was born in China, Los Angeles is not unfamiliar to me. When I was in elementary school, “Los Angeles” and “Hollywood” are the two popular words often mentioned in the textbooks. After I moved to middle school, I became a big fan of Hollywood movies and a big fan of Arnold Schwarzenegger. […]
What do you think of when you hear LA? Movie stars, nice weather, traffic? When I was a junior in high school visiting Newhouse, I remember Professor Schoonmaker telling me about the semester in LA program, and ever since then I had dreamed of going to LA. I knew that this was the place to […]
During the months leading up to my departure for Los Angeles, I second-guessed myself multiple times, as I wasn’t sure if the entertainment industry was right for me. It only took a week in Los Angeles for these anxieties to subside; I had found my people. My conversations have ranged from writing to cinematography to […]
If you’re presented with the opportunity to do a semester in Los Angeles, CA, why on earth wouldn’t you do it!? The sunshine, the beaches, the attractions, the glamour, the smog… actually let’s ignore that last one. While Syracuse is in a ‘polar vortex’ freezing their butts, off your sitting pool side getting a tan. […]
Financial anxieties consume my mind more often than I would like, so I thought I would provide insight on the Syracuse University Los Angeles program from my frugally realistic perspective. This program is a great way to experience the living and working culture of one of the largest entertainment industry cities in the world, but […]
I’m warning you now; my next sentence, is going to be an extreme cliché. In the 33 days that I’ve been living in Los Angeles, I’ve made some incredible memories, met some of the most accomplished people in the business, made what I know will be life-long friendships, had hands on experience at my internship…and got a sweet tan
Why, might you ask, did I choose this title for my blog post? Here’s the story. On one of my first days interning at The Conan O’Brien Show, I was hanging out in the kitchen with a few of the other interns, still trying to adjust and learn the ropes when who walks in but […]
Since Freshman year I had planned on coming to Los Angeles for my Senior Spring semester. I just cannot believe the time is already here. Even though I’ve kind of kicked myself for missing out on the incredible Syracuse vs. Duke basketball game just a few days ago, I know I’m in LA for a […]
In this past year alone, I have lived in five cities. LA, by far, is the most different from each of them. Two of the cities were places that I had been living in for awhile. I grew up in Chicago: born downtown, grew up 30 minutes outside of the city. I started off 2013 […]
As I embark on this semester’s adventure in Los Angeles, I have three goals for myself. They are: to become familiar with the city of LA, network as much as possible, and secure a plan for life after graduation in May. I am living in a new city, working at a major studio, taking classes, […]
As Kendrick Lamar once said: “Wa-what more can I say? Wa-welcome to LA.” While I have been to California a number of times to visit family who live out here, they mostly live in the Bay Area, so I had only been to LA one other time for a short visit before now. After living […]
L.A. Semester is something that I have been looking forward to ever since I knew that I was attending Syracuse. This is the first time I have been on the west coast, let alone Los Angeles, and I can honestly say that it really goes above and beyond all my expectations. This was also the […]
I am the type of person who tends to have a plan for everything, and my plan was always to move straight to NYC after graduation and delve headfirst into my career. Los Angeles was furthest from my mind, but after a conversation with a fellow classmate, I made the decision to spend the spring […]
I’m a huge Breaking Bad fan. Huge. So, naturally, over the course of the five seasons I grew to love Jesse Pinkman and consequently gain a huge amount of respect for Aaron Paul as an actor. The first thing I said to my friends and family when I was accepted into the SULA program was, […]
I do not feel as if I have had a single moment of downtime since I touched down in LA to start my Fall semester. This city has revealed itself to be full of an overwhelming amount of opportunities that even if I were here for a year (3 months is far to brief), I […]
One of the most valuable experiences from the LA semester is the mentor program. You get one on one time with someone from the industry, from production assistant to development executives. My mentor lent a supportive atmosphere and was actually interested in my current projects. The alumni dinners and mentors are obviously a great way […]
Don’t go to Rent-a-Wreck. Just don’t do it. Specifically the one in North Hollywood. It is a shady enterprise, so you’d be better off going to the rental agency called Enterprise and saving yourself a good deal of stress. I was once a naïve young man, who arrived in Los Angeles with goals and dreams […]
Committing to anything for 4 years seems very overwhelming but it also seems very different now compared to when I was a senior in high school. An abroad opportunity is a way to experience your college but also seemingly break the commitment. On top of that an ‘abroad’ in the continental United States is a […]
Since freshman year, I knew that I would graduate a semester early and for my last semester, I would participate in the SULA program. These past three months have been a wonderful way to end my college career. I’m currently finishing up my internship at Gulfstream Pictures on the Warner Brothers Lot. At my internship, […]
For the entirety of the SULA Fall ’13 Semester, I enjoyed my stay. This semester was important for me to decide where I would head out post-college and the SULA semester helped me choose Los Angeles. I interned with VH1 throughout the semester and I should thank Lauren Palius for helping me with getting that […]
My experience in LA was a wild one to say the least. During my internship I worked with only two people. One of them left and was quickly replaced, which forced me to adjust and adapt to dramatic changes. My main boss was also hired for a job in NYC and left before my internship […]
Unlike most internship’s, my time at Wasserman Media Group got off to a quick start. I was given projects based on my previous work experience and knowledge. Having worked with high profile athletes and musicians, I was given tasks that directly involved the players we represent. In addition, I have been able to use CONCUR, […]
Aside from my internship and the free HBO at the Oakwood, the thing I’m going to miss most about Los Angeles is the food. When I first got here and saw the In-N-Out burger three minutes from my apartment I feared this semester was going to be problematic. In reality, animal fries aren’t very exotic […]
Los Angeles – Hollywoodland. It is definitely a trip. A town high on its glamour and vanity, Los Angeles pulls in the dreamers and star-cravers – the kids that just didn’t get enough love in youth. As a self-defined “filmmaker” (like so many others), this city is a newly welcomed home. With entertainment advertising towering […]
My passion for film and acting came to me at such a young age that I don’t really know where to start… I remember my Grandmother showing me so many incredible films before I even got halfway through elementary school. She’s a huge reason this all started. One of the films was the first Indiana […]
I really didn’t know what to expect from my stay here in Los Angeles. I’m a VPA Film Major and have never taken a Newhouse class or been to LA previously. I just knew I’d be happy because I would get some much needed Vitamin C after living in Washington State for 18 years. I […]
LA seemed so far away, literally and figuratively, just a couple months ago. As someone coming from Lima, Peru, I never really expected to be given the amazing opportunity of coming out to Los Angeles and get a taste of the industry. The amount of introductions to other people in the ones I’ve had to […]
After I declared my TRF major spring of freshman year and heard about the LA Semester for the first time, I didn’t even consider passing the opportunity up. I actually had little to no qualms about coming out to California; I just knew that the program was a necessary part of my degree if I […]
The 1996 movie (with Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn) about a couple of struggling actors in Los Angeles is not a half bad orientation video for a LA semester… The Driving Everybody knows about the traffic…and it’s real, but a less mentioned symptom of the lack of public transportation in Los Angeles is when you […]
Like many East Coast natives, I did not know what LA was truly like until I got here. Being immersed in the entertainment industry has not only helped me to understand how this fascinating business really works and how to find my place in its sprawling environment, but it’s also taught me that the business […]
There were a lot of things I was looking forward to doing during my semester in Los Angeles. Prior to my departure, I was eagerly anticipating starting my internship, exploring the city, meeting new friends, and of course, eating at cool restaurants. During these last 3 months in LA, I have discovered some great food in the […]
Coming out to LA for a semester was, hands down, the single best decision I made in college. As a TRF major and someone who wants to work in the entertainment industry, I knew that the SULA program was something I had to do. My internship here with Green Hat Films has been a fun […]
I attended an SULA meeting during the fall semester of my freshmen year at Syracuse, and always knew it was an opportunity I needed to seize. A few years later, I have followed through, and I am so happy that I did. This semester has been wonderful, and one thing that sticks out in my […]
Before coming to Los Angeles, I knew that production is my favorite part of the filmmaking process but I had never worked on a professional set. Over the past three months I have worked on a feature film, a web series, a music video, and a short film. My first PA gig was for a […]
When I was looking at colleges, I had originally intended on going to a school in California. However, I knew I wanted to work in the music industry and happened to stumble upon the Bandier program, which although was located in the snowiest city in America, would allow me to not only be a part […]
I began my LA semester experience with a road-trip from CT to Los Angeles, on which I visited many of America’s most famous National Parks. It was truly amazing and inspiring to explore America’s vast landscapes and climates. Over the course of the trip, I really felt like I got to know my country better, […]
In your college career, there will be a number of incredible and unique opportunities presented to you. In fact, there will be so many that you can’t possibly take advantage of them all. Some need to be skipped in favor of others. But if there’s one thing you should not miss, it’s the SU semester […]
I didn’t know what to expect when I came to Los Angeles. I grew up in Chicago, studied abroad in Prague, and spent my last few summers interning in Brooklyn, so I would definitely consider myself an urbanite. That being said, I was still somewhat intimidated by the sprawled out urban nature of LA. I […]
Hoping to land a career in music synchronization and publishing, I realize that there are two places I need to be – New York and LA. That is why I set my sights early on to having internships in both cities. I spent my summers interning in New York City and the LA Semester has […]
For anyone wanting to work in the Film/TV industry after they graduate, this is probably THE best/most important semester before you graduate. The #1 thing you will hear about working in this industry is ‘networking is everything’ because people hire who they know. The amount of contacts I’ve made out here over the past few […]
Okay, so I didn’t actually catch on fire in Los Angeles, but I did get a taste of the behind the scenes of the Hunger Games world as a development intern for Color Force Pictures. Color Force is, former Buena Vista President, Nina Jacobson’s production company. The company is responsible for film adaptations of The […]
The most memorable thing I’ve done so far with my LA experience is take a road trip from Connecticut to LA with one of my best friends. It was an amazing experience and would highly recommend it if you are deciding to come out here. Seeing the United States in all it’s beauty: camping, hiking, […]
Born and raised in sunny LA, it feels amazing to be back on the Best – err, I mean the West coast. Syracuse is great, but nothing’s better than great weather, beaches, and Mexican food! When applying to universities, I knew that I wanted to attend a school on the East coast. One has to be used […]
After the initial excitement of learning about my acceptance to the LA Semester wore off, the stress set in. How was I going to have time for a full semester of classes, 20 hours a week of working at an internship, homework, a social life, plus time to eat and sleep? Having been here for […]
I wasn’t exactly sure what I would find out here. Not many Television-Radio-Film students are seeking work outside those broad fields, certainly not among the LA Semester class. I had always hoped to direct my talents toward video game writing, so SU set me up with an internship at Floor 84 Studio, a small mobile/web […]
I firmly believe that with a business like the entertainment industry, there is only so much you can learn in a classroom. In order to know whether or not this industry is for you, and to understand where you fit in the crazy world of entertainment, you have to experience it. For this reason, the […]
If you’re a student hoping to work in the entertainment industry someday, there are a couple of words that just don’t seem to leave you alone: “experience” and “networking.” These words will loom over your head; every advisor, professor, and professional you meet will emphasize their importance. And during every spiel you hear, you’re going […]
When I first landed in LA, I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t really know anyone else in the program, and it was my first time ever experiencing the West Coast. But I knew that a career in the entertainment industry was what I really wanted to do with my life. And now […]
I came out here wanting to make as many contacts as possible. The best way I thought, at that time, to do that was through getting two internships as opposed to just one. The more the merrier so I thought and I ended up getting two internships with different development companies.
The Midwesterner in me was skeptical about coming out to California, never mind Los Angeles. What do you mean I have to get a car? “What kind of city doesn’t have public transportation? But truly I have become a fan of this sprawling, car-filled city. I am fond of its details. The everyday small things […]
One of the reasons I chose the S.I. Newhouse School, way back when in senior year of high school, was for the opportunity to participate in the SULA semester. I knew that it would be the perfect opportunity to ease my way into the post-graduation real world. Like most of my classmates, leaving Syracuse for a […]
A is everything I expected it to be; warm weather, kind people, lots of entertainment, many opportunities, and terrible traffic. When I first came to California, I arrived with my parents and we went to multiple activities each day. At first it was really annoying not being able to get away from them, but they took me to many different attractions that it was more than worth it. The quality time spent with them in just a few days was incredible. Once they left, I made many friends in the program and we started exploring on our own.
Moving out to Los Angeles for my final semester of my senior year at first seemed like a huge leap of faith. Questions about making friends, fitting in in California, finding an internship I wanted, etc. filled my mind when I decided to make the move. However, the program has been nothing short of amazing.
As soon as a received my acceptance letter to the Syracuse University in LA Semester I knew I was in for an amazing adventure…. and to date it hasn’t disappointed. Since arriving in Los Angeles I’ve experienced highs and lows and have learned lesson that I wouldn’t have learned for a while, if at all. […]
Life is all about learning, or at least, I’d really like to think it is, given that the first couple of decades of our lives are dedicated to education. My time thus far in LA has taught me that sometimes you learn a lot more from experience than you ever could within the confines of […]
In the weeks before arriving in Los Angeles, I was very nervous for a few reasons. Even though I had been planning for a year, I still had a few unsettling thoughts. My three main worries were arriving in LA without a secured internship, not knowing many other students in the program, and living in a city for a few months that I had never once been to. Within maybe two or three days of being here, all of these fears were gone.
After spending the previous fall semester in London, I thought there was no way any other city could fill the void after coming home; but I was wrong. From the second I stepped off the plane in Los Angeles, I knew that my time here would be full of growth, opportunity and lifelong relationships.
So, I have to say it has been a very interesting experience living at home during my semester “abroad”. I have enjoyed showing my east coast friends around my city– the little nooks and crannys you only become aware of after years of exploring and exposure. But for me, it kind of feels like summer […]
Once I found out my sophomore year that going to California for a semester was a choice, I immediately had my mind made up that this was an opportunity worth taking. As a VPA Film major I looked forward to going to Hollywood for the first time ever to witness where all the movies on […]
When I first heard about the LA semester, I knew it was something I needed to do. As a little kid I always saw myself in California and now I finally got the chance to go. Being here for just a little over a month I have had so many great experiences already. It is […]
“Someone is going to have to rip me away from LA and glue me on the plane back to Syracuse”. This thought pops into my head everyday that I am here. Prior to this trip I had never been to the west coast, better yet LA. I did not know what to expect but I knew that I would love it as much as the people before. I applied to this program only knowing two people and having no solid idea of what I wanted to do within the industry. After about six weeks of being here I have met some extremely amazing people, attended the coolest events, and have narrowed down what I truly want to do.
SULA…it’s crazy that I’m already here! I remember discussing the possibility of attending this abroad program during my college selection process. From conversations with SU faculty and my parents, I knew this would be a great opportunity for me. Honestly, it was one of the factors that contributed to my decision of attending Syracuse University. As of […]
The scariest thing about moving to LA, for me, was that I had no idea what to expect. From growing up in Rochester, NY to attending college at Syracuse University, I have spent my entire life on the east coast. So I had no clue how’d I’d feel about California: if I’d fit in; if I’d be able to adjust; if I’d even like it. But I knew going to LA was something I had to do. It is, after all, the Mecca of the entertainment industry; if you want to make films or TV shows, you should probably make your way to LA at some point.
When everybody ask the question, “Is this your first time in California?” I always respond, “Yes”. But the truth is I was here when I was 10 years old for a weekend and was extremely sick with the flu all weekend. After that point I decided that I did not like California and I was never coming back. However, after giving it another chance I have fallen in love with it. Of course, there have been a few hiccups such as my car arriving two weeks late then breaking down shortly after its arrival, or going the wrong way on the 101 in rush hour traffic and not realizing your mistake until you are miles down the road.
I never saw myself in the entertainment industry until the HBO series “Entourage” captivated my imagination and made the dream seem more tangible in reality. Coming from Queens, NY, the boys in the show connected with me on many levels. I saw myself one day following in similar footsteps as either Ari Gold or E-superstar Vince’s agent and manager, respectively. Still, I had no idea how to get myself in the situation where that dream would translate into reality. Because of the SULA program, this vision has already started to come into fruition.