Brandon Maxwell is a CoPA junior pursuing BFA Dance Performance and B.A. PR & Advertising degrees. Read more about his invaluable summer 2019 intern experience with Impact24 PR:

 

group of smiling young adults at ComicCon

Brandon Maxwell, lower left, and his Impact24 PR team at Comic-Con.

This past summer, I interned with a company called Impact24 Public Relations and it was one of the best summers of my life! Impact24 PR is a behind-the-scenes and behind-the-camera public relations company that specializes in elevating talent in areas like cinematographers, editors, directors, makeup designers, costume designers, VFX artists, choreographers, and production designers (to name a few). This internship allowed me to get an inside look at the business side of the entertainment industry and learn how to use my talents to best assist a company. Some of my responsibilities have included developing press kits for clients and for various crafts, creating social media posts and helping with campaigns, managing press articles, researching and finding individuals who may need representation, providing outreach to new clients along with pitching clients to media outlets. Each day within the office was vastly different from the last and as artists, we always love change, making this the perfect summer internship. I have also supported the team by working on two panels for Comic-Con 2019: Hollywood Game Changers, which focused on leading women in the entertainment industry, and Secrets From The Beyond, which focused more on sci-fi television and movies. Our Comic-Con panelists have worked on some of the coolest creative projects including Game of Thrones, Better Call Saul, Space Jam 2, The Handmaid’s Tale, Key & Peele, and Santa Clarita Diet to name just a few. The ability to speak with these professionals was a great networking opportunity and a great way to learn about even more crafts within the entertainment industry. I also helped assist with securing and researching Emmy nominee clients for publicists, totaling to 27 Emmy nominee clients.

My biggest piece of advice for CoPA students who are looking for a similar experience is to start utilizing the Chapman network. This internship allowed me to both grow as an artist and as a professional. I found Impact24 PR while searching through LinkedIn for companies that alumni have worked at and after reviewing my resume and cover letter with the Office of Career and Professional Development, sent my materials to the company. It turns out that two of the publicists at the company are Chapman alumni and as a result, the CEO knew the level of talent coming out of Chapman. From there, the rest was history! As students, we know that the Chapman community is so strong on campus. However, it is just as strong off-campus and can lead to experiences like this. I highly recommend taking advantage of the Chapman network to allow you to succeed and find ways to bridge your passions.

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