Internship Success Stories

Atieh Bandehyazdani

Atieh Bandehyazdani (CTVA '20), was selected for a full-time, paid internship in development, production, business management and distribution with Hulu through the prestigious Television Academy Foundation Summer Internship Program. While the program was altered significantly under COVID-19 restrictions, Atieh was nonetheless awarded an Academy fellowship, along with the rare opportunity to interface with a select group of peers among multiple industry professionals. The online substitutional sessions include one-on-one visits, online panels and customized seminars covering topics such as leadership, personal brand building and navigating the job market ahead. A television production major, Atieh devoted the last two years to mentoring fellow CTVA students as an Academic Peer Coach Leader through the Mike Curb Student Success Program. Particularly inspired by a Fall '19 course in Business of Media, she previously worked under the direct supervision of the head of Operational Management of Amazon Studios.

Christian Ramirez

Christian Ramirez (CTVA ’20) has been selected for one of 30 coveted spots in the NALIP Latino Lens Workshop Series: Industry Fundamentals. The workshop’s focus is to develop its participants’ skills that will lead to success in the entertainment industry. This workshop will immerse its participants in the inner workings of the business of the industry while building proficiencies that are necessary to be relevant and competitive in today’s workforce. Ramirez was a Fall ’19 and Spring 20 intern in the prestigious Nickelodeon NICKternship labs, where he worked on digital series production. In 2019, Ramirez landed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences coveted Academy Gold Internship, the exclusive film industry enhancement program offered through the Academy Gold Talent Development and Inclusion Program.

Nicholas Griffin

Nicholas Griffin (CTVA ’20) was selected for the prestigious 2020 Writers Guild Foundation’s Veterans Writing Project, a year-long program which identifies emerging writers from United States military backgrounds and provides them with the tools and insights to nurture their work and successfully navigate the entertainment industry. Participants are paired with a WGA member-mentor bringing experience from beloved movies and television series of the past and present, each personally committed to guiding the voices of the future—from a weekend retreat through monthly follow-up workshops and special events. A five-year United States Marine Corp veteran, Griffin is a comedian, screenwriter and sketch comic who interned during Spring ’20 at Solve!, the #1 true crime show in the world. Since the show’s debut in 2018, over 30MM fans have tried to solve true-crime-inspired mysteries on Snapchat, Instagram and podcasts everywhere.

Kaelin McDonald

Kaelin McDonald (CTVA ’20) has been hired as a post-production assistant at Dirty Robber, where she interned in Fall ‘19 and Spring ’20. Dirty Robber specializes in telling athletic stories, including the feature length film Breaking2, documenting Nike's quest to break the two-hour-marathon barrier and recognized as a landmark achievement in branded content and marketing. McDonald has been placed on one of the Academy Award-nominated production company’s television shows for a top global streaming service. She also interned as assistant to Silvia Bizio at the 2020 Golden Globe Awards Hollywood Foreign Press Association Viewing and After Party; and in 2019 served as an intern with The American Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival. She is a 2019-2020 Hollywood Foreign Press Association Scholar.

Andres Angel-Portilla

Andres Angel-Portilla (CTVA ’20) has been awarded the first ever Television Academy CSU Post-Graduate summer internship, one of five paid, full-time positions for an eight-week work period this summer in the unscripted/reality television space. The goal of the program is to cultivate and place recently graduated college students in positions where they can develop the creative and business skills required to excel in the industry and have some access to C-suite executives. At the discretion of the host company, the position may lead to full-time employment upon program completion. Angel-Portilla interned in Spring ’20 at Nasser Entertainment as an assistant to Joseph Nasser, producer of over 70 movies across all genres including the recent HBO action thriller, Recoil, starring Steve Austin.

Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication

Department of Cinema and Television Arts

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