“Everyone came away
with an entirely different,
yet in depth, view of how
Hollywood functions. That
was an important goal of
the exploration project.”
1
-Charles Cranston
Wu Media takes
By Israel Sanchez
This past summer, a group of mass
media students had the experience
of a lifetime. Along with Dr. Charles
Cranston, film and video professor, the
students spent a week in Los Angeles
learning the history and craft of
filmmaking.
The purpose of the trip was to get
the students familiar with how the
film industry works by experiencing
the locations first hand. For instance,
the students visited Warner Brothers
Studios, Sony Pictures Studios
(MGM), as well as Paramount studios.
Collectively, these studios have been
responsible for movies such as, “The
Amazing Spider-Man”, “The Dark
Knight,” and “Transformers”.
Audriana Monteith, a film major,
was one of the students that went on
the trip.
“I would have to say that my alltime favorite parts were being able
to go on the set of Central Perk, from
“Friends,” and getting to see the Harry
Potter museum of props at Warner
Bros. Studios.”
During the week-long historical
tour, the students visited scenic
page 6
Hollywood
preparation shops, set construction
venues, special effects sets, and
historical buildings.
“Everyone came away with an
entirely different yet in-depth view
of how Hollywood functions. And
that was an important goal of the
exploration project” Cranston said.
Besides touring studios and
historical facilities, the students had
opportunities to meet with studio
historians, as well as other industry
professionals.
“I feel that I came back with
so much knowledge about my
industry and I really think the
trip helped me figure out what
I wanted to do as a career,”
Monteith said.
The eight students and Cranston
stayed in a house at Laguna Beach and
used two rental cars for the duration of
their visit. The trip was made possible
by the Washburn Transformational
Experience. WTE awarded the
students with $1,000 each, which
covered airfare, housing and car rental
fees.
During the trip, the students were
required to keep a daily diary of their
activities and have specific questions
to ask when visiting a venue. At the
end of the trip, these notes served
as the basis for their presentation in
order to fulfill the WTE requirements.
The presentation was given in front
of Cranston’s Advanced Media Lab
students last fall.
“I am eternally grateful to
Washburn and Dr. Cranston for
giving me the opportunity to go
to Hollywood and Los Angeles,”
Monteith said. “Without the
WTE program, I wouldn’t have
been able to do that.”
2
washburn.edu/massmedia