DME Lunch+Learn Webinar w/ Sony

On Friday, May 24th, the Digital Media + Entertainment Council hosted a Lunch+Learn webinar with Joel Camarena, who manages global talent acquisition programs for Sony Pictures Entertainment.

In his one hour webinar, Joel gave students and faculty members from Compton College, El Camino College, Santa Monica College, Long Beach City College, and Glendale Community College his “Recruiter Real Talk.”

He spoke candidly about what recruiters look for in entry-level talents’ resumes, cover letters, and interviews, and provided personal anecdotes about how he hustled into the DME industry.

“If you take anything away from this webinar, remember to focus on two things: transferable skills and relevant experiences,” he declared.

This was the students’ call to action. Tasked with competing against students from larger schools and with more recognizable experiences and networks, Joel inspired students to reach out to small businesses, churches, and school clubs to gain transferable skills and relevant experiences. These community resources were prime platforms to test skills and create living examples with them.

For students volunteering at their churches and interested in graphic design, the opportunity to create shirts for retreats or flyers for events is something they should seize. Likewise, asking local small businesses if they need help with marketing in exchange for experience could help students land competitive internships and ideally, compelling jobs.

Hustle, after all, is the one thing that can level an otherwise uneven playing field. Joel knew this. Eager to get relevant experience in college, he went to a local mediterranean restaurant one day, asked them if he could help them with marketing, and created a kebab costume to seal the deal.

The webinar ended with engaged students eager to improve their transferable skills and gain more relevant experiences. And as per Joel’s recommendations, they were encouraged to:

  • Be consistent
  • Be gracious
  • Be knowledgeable
  • Be excited
  • Be humble
  • Be willing to help with tasks
  • Be on time
  • Be able to share career goals
  • Be yourself

We are so grateful to Joel and other industry gatekeepers who have shared their time and insights with our region’s community college students.

Check out our last Lunch+Learn webinar with Disney executives here.

For more information about Digital Media + Entertainment internship opportunities, visit our open-source drive of internship descriptions: bit.ly/MEDIAinternships.


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