Film a reality show on a cruise ship or shoot travel videos abroad? David Kaminski explains how film students can find internships and make them count.
Want to see the world on a cruise ship and film a reality show? Work in the city of your dreams and learn a new language while filming vacation destinations?
All it requires is some strategic planning and a little luck. Students invest a lot of time and money in their educations, yet they often leave the details of their careers up to chance. But it doesn’t have to be that way for you. All you need to do is ask yourself some important questions and make a reasonable plan.
Self-Assessment and Preparation
- How many hours have you spent
building relationships with prospective employers?
- Who in your future profession
do you admire the most, and what have you done to secure a position with them?
- What contacts do you have from
the last several years, and how can you rekindle those and ask for favors and leads?
- Where would you like to live and
work in the future?
- Who can you find that can help
you search for jobs, get you prepared, and give you honest feedback about yourself?
- What is the job market like now,
and how will it change in the future?
- What skills do you have that
Start Early and Be Thorough
If you haven’t started yet, begin immediate. You should give yourself at least six months lead-time to find an internship.
Consider setting aside a hundred or more hours to perfect your reel, your resume, your pitch. Meet with friends and practice mock interviews and have them critique your work and ask you questions. Every practice will help you become more natural and more confident.
Plan a presentation (in person, on video, or audio) that is targeted to the people who will hire you. Imagine that you are selling yourself and your skills to investors. Make them believe in you. If you are applying to do camera work, then show them your range of skill, and make sure that every shot is perfectly in focus, with perfect framing, color, and movement.
Do not overlook small details. Spend the time to learn about the companies you want to work for, and understand in advance of contacting them how they can use you, in what capacity, department, and with whom you could work. Know the intimate details of their productions, software, workflow, timelines, budgets, equipment, and the skills they require for entry level. Impress the company with how much you know about them and how you think you can improve their bottom line.
The fine points of appearance: your hair, your clothes, the way you walk, the way you talk, the look in your eye. Make sure you sell yourself down to the socks you are wearing. People will look at everything, and they will make judgments.
Dressing up your paperwork and resume. Spend the money on fine stationery. Get a business card that is the most striking and professional you can find. Printed on vellum, on plastic, a custom logo of your own design? Include color prints, optical media, a flash drive, hard drive— anything that you think fits your job title and that makes the interviewers feel that you have thought ahead and planned for the interview and for their needs. Create several packets and arrive with enough to hand out to several people, if others come to the interview. Arrive with your laptop to show your work if you think that will help you.
Call a day ahead of any scheduled interview to confirm the time and location. Be professional, and know that your early call to their office will let them know in advance that you are a quality candidate.
Be relaxed and be yourself in the interview. You are living your dream. Exclusive interview by Jody Michelle Solis
Q: Are there any new things that are being announced for JVC at the 2015 NAB Show in Las Vegas?
Craig Yanagi: JVC will have announcements regarding the new 4KCAM line of professional camcorders, as well as for the current line of ProHD professional camcorder line.
Q: What are you exhibiting at NAB2015?
Craig Yanagi: JVC will be exhibiting our entire line of professional camcorders, monitors, Blu-Ray / HDD Combo Deck recorders and HD Video Streaming solutions, as well as future product concepts.
Q: Tell us about the GY-LS300, and what distinguishes it from other cameras?
Craig Yanagi: The GY-LS300 is the world’s first and only model which combines the form factor and functionality of a professional compact handheld camcorder with a Super35mm sensor, true multiple lensing options, 4K and HD recording to affordable SDXC media, internet camera control and live streaming capability, all at an affordable price.
Q: What advantages does it have over other cameras that are in a similar market?
Craig Yanagi: The GY-LS300’s body design is reminiscent of the industry’s iconic camcorders embraced by independent production (DSR-PD150, DVX-100, AG-HPX200) with professional features such as XLR mic inputs with phantom power, built-in ND filters, and enables the lensing flexibility of the MFT mount with full control protocols. Most importantly, the VSM (Variable Scan Mapping) technology provides the GY-LS300 the ability to scan the Super35mm sensor to match the native circumference of the light passing through the lens, maintaining its true angle of view.
Q: Are there any workflows, applications, or needs that the camera solves that other cameras don’t at this time?
Craig Yanagi: Our customers as well as voices in the marketplace have expressed to us that the form factor and feature sets of DSLRs configured for video acquisition is or can be cumbersome and expensive. With the GY-LS300 providing the features and functionality of mainstream professional camcorders, such as time code, and having the ability to record same H.264 files as DSLRs, production issues are greatly minimized. In addition, the ubiquitous MFT mount enables the adaptation of a multitude of professional lenses, ranging from EF, Nikon and PL based lenses – and film primes can range from 35mm to 16mm as the GY-LS300 has the ability to map the sensor to align with the circumference of these lenses. The GY-LS300 can also take the image being captured and both record to affordable media and stream live simultaneously via RTMP encoded signal to popular CDNs (Contend Delivery Networks) such as YouTube and UStream when a WiFi dongle or portable hot spot is engaged. Finally, we also enable 4K recording at 150Mbp/s H.264 at 24P, 25P and 30P, together with everything mentioned, at the price of S35 sensor camcorders only enabling HD capture.
Q: Do you think this is a good camera for schools, as well as a teaching tool for professors? Can you share some features and applications?
Craig Yanagi: With the GY-LS300’s lensing flexibility, with accurate field of view acquisition, and fully supported H.264 file recording as well as live streaming capability, this camcorder is ideal for use in multiple curriculums, whether it be filmmaking or journalism. For film schools with 16mm prime lenses, they now have a means to not only use the glass, but use them as they are without recalculating for focal length. The widely supported H.264 file recording format (generic to DSLRs) enables the instructor to focus on the discipline and pedagogy of visual storytelling, and not have to worry about post production. All the instructor needs to do is add a lens and media – the GY-LS300 comes with everything else (mic, battery, power supply) included.
Q: What kinds of workflows and needs does it provide solutions for?
Craig Yanagi: The GY-LS300 H.264 files are fully supported by Adobe Premiere, Apple Final Cut X and many other popular mainstream professional NLE (Non Linear Editing) systems. The camcorder can also record AVCHD files, which can be edited with Apple iMovie and other comparable editing systems, so a wide range of users are able to acquire and edit with this camcorder.
Q: If you can quickly share three best practices related to the GY-LS300 system, what would they be?
Craig Yanagi: Important – read the operation manual to identify the proper camcorder settings, be sure to purchase the proper media, and conduct shooting and editing tests.
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