The DreamWorks Kid

The past couple days have been good. I've been able to really see how the voice recording of actors goes down, as well as being a part of the immense preparation that goes into each and every session. It's a lot fun when the actors riff off of each other. While most of that material isn't used, the results (especially when you have Apatow Troupe and SNL members in your cast) can keep you laughing to yourself all day.* During bits of down time, my office mate and I like to pull up his reference videos and watch the hilarity. Why stuff like this isn't added to DVD bonus features is beyond me.

The really exciting thing that transpired lately came when I decided to ask my supervisor about scheduling meetings with various heads, sups, and leads around in the department to talk with them about their jobs and any tips they might have for a young up-and-comer like me. We're in a crazy crunch time right now, and taking time to spend with an intern is a pretty big favor to ask as the people I wanted to speak with have precious few minutes to spare. But I finally manned up and decided that there was no harm in asking. The response was overwhelmingly positive. My supervisor seemed very excited about my interest in meeting with people one-on-one and immediately started giving suggestions of the best people to talk to. He told me that when anyone who works here would be more than happy to mentor me - all I have to do is be willing to ask. He'll be working with me to book times with the Head of Story, a few of the best story artists in the studio, and various heads of other departments (at my request - I want as much knowledge of this process these guys will give me) as early as next week. I'm not only going to be able to talk with these people about the pros and cons of their positions, but also ask what they did to get where they are, how they do what they do, and have them critique my own work on some of my past projects. The thought of amazing professionals giving me tips on how to improve excites me beyond all reason. I've been glowing all day (more than usual - if I glow any more I should work for the Hallmark channel). Who better to learn from than the literal best of the people doing exactly what you want to do?

Tomorrow we have department mixer with all the other Dragon departments, which should enable me to meet even more of the people around here. It seems DreamWorks is never short on fun events like this that keep the studio connected socially. They're even planning a Rock Band competition between the Dragon and Shrek 4 crews. It's nice, especially for nervous, shy interns like myself.

It's hard to believe that before long I'll have been here a month already. While my time here has, in some spots, been painfully slow (i.e. being away from friends, family, and the girlfriend), I'm still not over the blissful, surreal feeling of waking up in the morning and driving to the DreamWorks campus.