Paramount Network Season of Giving with Reel Works

Reel Works’ young filmmaker community was thrilled to participate in Paramount Network's Season of Giving event again this past holiday season! This volunteer day is a special bi-annual event where industry professionals at Paramount Network provide the opportunity to learn about different career paths within the industry, as well as share their expertise and real-time insights and feedback on our young filmmakers’ feature pitches! 

Dayo Harewood, Vice President, Group Creative Director at Paramount Brand Studio and Reel Works Board Member kicked off the event with Harold Anderson, Coordinator, at Paramount Social Responsibility and Reel Works Documentary Lab Peer Mentor Manal Fadlalla. 

From there, Reel Works Doc Lab and Narrative Lab students were assigned to breakout sessions where they practiced presenting their pitch decks and received individual attention and feedback from Paramount professionals on how to improve. 

Simultaneously, we offered a robust Career Panel for our student and alumni participants who wanted to learn more about specific roles in the film industry. 

"Paramount's partnership with Reel Works allows us to continuously provide our employees with opportunities to make a substantial impact within their communities and help lower barriers for students pursuing careers in entertainment.” - Harold Anderson, Coordinator, Paramount Social Responsibility 

Our filmmakers also shared their enthusiasm for the event: 

"It was great getting feedback on my film! I personally felt shaky going into it, but Jasmine (Paramount Volunteer) gave me insightful feedback that made me confident in my film and I will definitely be taking it into account. It's always just wonderful to share my ideas with people who are actually in the industry!" - Kya Nelson, Reel Works Student 

"I think it was a good experience to talk with people who really know what they're doing and receive advice on my plot points. It helped me become more confident to tell my story." - Eva Tikhomirova, Reel Works Student 

"It felt good to interact with such a huge company as I take steps to be part of the media industry world." -Vinny Hunter Reel Works Student 

We want to thank all the volunteers for taking the time to work with our community of young filmmakers and MediaMKRS early career professionals!