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Academy Gold Program

THE INITIATIVE

The Academy Gold Program is a multi-tiered educational and experiential initiative designed to enhance and extend an industry-wide diversity internship enhancement program under the Academy brand. The initiative affords top film entertainment, technology, production services and digital media companies an all-inclusive pass to recruit and educate a nationwide pool of diverse talent. The program offers interns exclusive access to Academy members, industry professionals, screenings, and educational workshops offering an inclusive industry networking experience.

ABOUT GOLD

Gold Students 2017

Gold Students 2017

The Academy offers unprecedented and exclusive access to industry professionals through its more than 8,000 members. Known for its “best in class” industry screenings, tours, educational workshops, roundtables and events, the Academy affords aspiring film and entertainment students the ability to interact and learn from the best. This initiative will ultimately cement, strengthen and clarify long-standing, but independent efforts to address concerns of accessibility and opportunity for underrepresented communities throughout our country.

In its inaugural year, the Academy partnered with 20 participating studios and content providers to directly impact the career pathways of 69 undergraduate and graduate students, including 18 interns placed in Academy departments. Having completed their first year, all 69 Gold alumni have now been successfully matched with an Academy member mentor, with special consideration given to their professional fields of interest. As the Gold program moves forward, the Academy is working to strategically expand the program and build on the successes of its pilot year.

SUMMER 2018

Academy Gold works in conjunction with various studios, industry suppliers, key organizations, etc., to create a differentiated eight (8) week summer educational and networking experience as the first part of a multi-tiered program.

The program is available to undergraduate and graduate-level college students with an emphasis on high-quality, underrepresented talent in order to help them acquire the knowledge, skills and connections to achieve success as they navigate above-the-line and below-the-line full time careers in entertainment. 

  • Master Classes: Access to programs in Academy facilities that provides a robust curriculum of industry topics targeted to all levels, leveraging the expertise of Academy members and partners. 
  • Networking with Industry Professionals: Hosted Academy screenings and panels include industry professionals with Q&A and networking opportunities.
  • Careers in Film Summit (CiFS): Students will have access in person and online to the Academy’s CiFS, a one-day crash course on filmmaking professions (including production, distribution, marketing, development, above- and below-the-line), with diverse filmmaker panelists offering explanations of their jobs and how to successfully prepare for and enter the film business.
  • Graduation: Opportunities for participating interns to “graduate” from the internship program and participate in the Talent Development and Inclusion Program via “Phase Two Mentorship” and “Phase Three Fellowship” programs currently offered through the Academy.
  • Alumni Network: Keeping the summer experience going, we will create an online tracking network (via LinkedIn) to nurture and build a networking portal for eventual job placement post-graduation
  • Student Academy Awards and Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting: Qualifying students will be encouraged to participate in the Academy’s other talent development initiatives.

GOLD PROGRAM OVERVIEW

• The program starts June 21, 2018 – August 15, 2018
• Applications open January 31, 2018
• The application deadline is April 15, 2018
• Interns who work directly for the Academy work a minimum of 20 hours per week. Hours vary for Interns through participating companies.
• In addition to employment, Academy Gold interns will have access to project driven, hands-on experiences to gain more knowledge about and access to the motion picture industry. 
• The Academy Gold summer internship program also includes educational brown bag lunches, panels featuring diverse entertainment professionals, studio tours and other growth oriented and fun activities related to student development and film.

PROGRAM CURRICULUM

Curriculum

This year's curriculum is under development.  Please reference last year's curriculum above for an idea of what's in store for this year's participants. 

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Academy Gold summer internship applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Be a college student attending an accredited undergraduate or graduate program
• Have an overall 3.0 grade point average
• Exhibit an interest in the motion picture industry
• Have strong written, verbal and problem-solving skills

PARTICIPATING COMPANIES

Thank you for your participation in this valuable program and your commitment towards creating a path of career advancement and opportunity for aspiring young talent within our industry. As part of your commitment to this program, we have provided some information that will prove helpful as we embark on this partnership together.

For employers interested in participating in the Academy Gold Program, contact us here

For students interested in applying for an internship, and for a full listing of participating companies, click here

For out-of-state students interested in the Academy Gold Program, click here