Olivia Cain, a senior studying film and television production and marketing, was announced as the winner for the DreamJobbing.com CBS TV Producer contest on Jan. 6.
In their own words, DreamJobbing is a digital platform that connects people around the world with once-in-a-lifetime dream jobs. Cain will have the opportunity to work in California as a guest producer on the set of “NCIS: Los Angeles” for a week.
“I would be responsible for working with the actors, directors, writers, to produce the hour-long episode, attend table reads, any casting sessions, any dry runs and, of course, the taping of the episode,” Cain said.
Cain said she found out about the contest while voting for one of her Facebook friends who had applied to a different DreamJobbing.com contest.
“As I was consistently voting for her, they released a new contest, which was the dream TV producer contest,” Cain said. “I decided I was going to enter, because it really focuses on my major.”
Cain said she had to record and submit a one-minute video describing why she would be perfect for the job and what made her stand out from other contestants. The video was then posted to the DreamJobbing website, and contestants gathered votes via social media websites. Cain explained that the first round of the contest accepted open applications. Then, using social media, the top 50 and eventual top 20 were selected.
“By the time it came to the third round, CBS actually contacted all of the top 20 and conducted a phone interview,” Cain said.
Cain also said that this opportunity will give her “that edge in the professional world,” in addition to real-world experience.
Cain said that her interest in entertainment was initially sparked when she was given opportunities to be in a few commercials as a child.
“When I started high school, I got very involved with the production side,” she said, “and I realized that it might be a little easier to break into the industry creating, rather than acting.”
Lisa Hennessy, co-founder for DreamJobbing, said she and co-founders Alex Boylan and Burton Roberts launched DreamJobbing on Sept. 30.
“Our goal is to create the world’s coolest jobs and experiences that anyone can apply for,” Hennessy said. “So far, we’ve launched eight DreamJobs.”
Hennessy said the inspiration behind the design of the platform was that all three co-founders have had amazing opportunities, and they wanted to pay that forward by giving those opportunities to other people on a global level.
Cain said she hopes to continue to learn about how each genre is produced and gain experience in other areas.
“The goal is to always be moving forward with what I can offer to a show and be proud of a product I helped create,” Cain said.
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