In her first week as a summer intern with Warner Bros. Discovery in Burbank, California, Breana Boelkens was assigned to studio operations. There, she learned about leasing stages, coordinating vendors and crew, and even the politics of who gets the prime parking spots.

“It’s so niche, and we don’t think about it!” raved the UNLV film major and aspiring producer.

Boelkens was one of five UNLV students selected for a six-week paid internship with Warner Bros. Discovery. It was a lifechanging experience; a taste of both Hollywood and adulthood — handshakes and housing.

Along with fellow intern Lillie Pennington, Boelkens secured a place in a nearby AirBNB, an experience she called “nervewracking” because it was the first time the Las Vegas native had ever lived away from home or grocery shopped for herself.

But what she may lack in life experience, she makes up for in time on set. Her industry resume was already respectable: She’s served as a production assistant for YouTube star MrBeast, and on Hollywood blockbusters Venom: The Last Dance, and F1, partially filmed in Las Vegas. Pretty impressive for a 21-year-old who didn’t watch many movies growing up.

Boelkens and Pennington were joined by fellow interns Lily Magdesyan, Andres Velazquez, and Jericho Andaya, selected among a competitive pool of 70 applicants passionate about film. Warner Bros. Discovery hosts hundreds of student workers every summer, but the opportunity designed for UNLV students was unique, and each week offered something new. In addition to studio operations, the group gained experience in production sound, video services, rentals, special effects, and post-production. 

“We met hundreds of people,” Boelkens said. “We all learned there’s more jobs in the industry than we know about.”

In Hollywood, talent isn’t enough. You need strategy and connections to stay in the game. That’s the perspective of veteran executive Andi Isaacs, now a professor in the film department in the College of Fine Arts. Isaacs was instrumental in designing and securing the internship. “It’s hugely important to see how studios work,” she said.

Isaacs also remembers what it’s like to start out. Her career began in craft services, and she worked her way to the top, joining Summit Entertainment in 2007 to oversee all in-house productions. Her resume includes films such as The Twilight Saga and There’s Something About Mary. After 30 years, she pivoted to teach the business of Hollywood, imparting knowledge of what it takes to produce: “It’s a creative job for people who are also good at math.”

Isaacs brings this real-world lens to UNLV’s film studies program.

The internship isn’t only work experience, she continued. It’s academic as well. Students receive credit for participating, and they’re supported along the way, beginning with professional etiquette training — how to shake hands and how to write a thank-you note, for starters. Over the course of six weeks, interns check in with Isaacs at intervals, and write a final paper about what they learned.

“You’re taught at a young age to be nice to everyone,” said Velazquez, a film major entering his junior year, reflecting on what he’d learned. “But in this industry, networking is key.” 

Their first week, the group scheduled coffee meetups at the Starbucks on the lot with executives and professionals, Velazquez explained. It was an opportunity to ask how their careers launched, what they do now, and where they’re going. Everyone was so friendly, he said, but his favorite week was the last, working in post-production.

Velazquez took filmmaking as a high school elective then dabbled in newscasting before discovering his true passion for editing. People say editors are stuck in dark rooms, alone, but “I find it magical,” he said. “Editing can make or break a movie.” 

The internship was also the longest stretch of time he’d spent in Los Angeles. It was refreshing, a sense of independence, he said — then joked that he didn’t have to worry about his brothers jumping on his bed. Some evenings his face would literally hurt from smiling all day. “I was blown away. It was my dream come true.”

The interns returned to Las Vegas in mid-July. Velazquez said they’ve grown close, met people from all over the world, and seeded important relationships. Still, Boelkens may have had the most unforgettable moment of all. 

For many, Vegas is a popular place to celebrate your 21st birthday. But she was in California, attending a pre-release screening of F1 with her mom. The two almost didn't get to the theater in time, but the group had saved them seats.

As the lights dimmed, everyone watched as rivals and teammates Brad Pitt and Joshua Pearce clashed, raced, and faced off in a high-stakes poker game of Texas Hold’em at a Vegas table.

Yet, it wasn’t the adrenaline or beautiful actors that made the movie for Boelkens. What she cherished most came at the very end. There it was: her name in the credits, on the silver screen, on her birthday, and with mom by her side.