Photo supplied by Jenna Amico
Bradley students have various different reasons why they decide to attend the university. For senior Jenna Amico, the university’s Hollywood semester served as one of the reasons she chose Bradley over art schools and other universities.
Amico, a television arts major, attended the Hollywood program this past spring during the second semester of her junior year.
“I thought the Hollywood semester would be an awesome opportunity to immerse myself in the entertainment industry and get hands-on work experience,” Amico said. “I am beyond grateful that I was able to have an entire six months in Los Angeles to explore and learn, and the work that I was able to be a part of was incredible.”
While in California, Amico had the opportunity to intern at music mogul Quincy Jones’ company. She also got experience in the film industry.
“I worked as a production assistant for a short film that will hopefully be premiering at festivals soon,” Amico said. “Los Angeles is a totally different world, but the opportunity and excitement I found on the West Coast was irreplaceable and definitely a good break away from campus.”
As a result of participating in the program, Amico said she decided to apply to be a producing intern at an advertising agency over the summer. She said both the Hollywood semester and her internship proved to be incredible experiences.
“Upon working in entertainment and experiencing what life would be like in California, I’m definitely looking forward to working on the northeast or northwest [coasts],” Amico said. “So, ultimately, I would love to continue working with entertainment [or] advertising production.”
Doug Frank, who teaches for Bradley both in Hollywood and via skype on campus and is the executive in residence for the Hollywood semester program had Amico as his student. Frank said Amico was hard-working and intelligent while studying in L.A.
“She’s engaged, interactive and extremely pleasant,” Frank said. “I wish [all students] were Jenna Amicos.”
In addition to participating in the Hollywood semester, Amico also has experience working in the news and entertainment industries through her production job with Bradley University Television (BUTV).
“I joined BUTV because I wanted to get involved on campus right away and especially with something that would accompany my major and feed my interest in film and production,” Amico said. “I wanted to study animation and cinematography when I was in high school, and before more film groups began popping up on campus, BUTV was the biggest and easiest way to get involved.”
Amico said her position has given her lots of responsibilities to help improve her time management skills, as well as prepping her for a future career in her field of study.
“A lot of the in-studio work for BUTV is done by students enrolled in studio classes, but there is always opportunity to be an anchor or reporter for the show, which is tons of fun,” Amico said. “As for Hollywood semester … it is an awesome opportunity to gain real life work experience and get to know such an iconic city.”
