‘Academy Gold’ Adds Four Industry Partners; 20 to Participate in Pilot Year

Program Kicks Off with Two-Day Orientation on June 15-16

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is proud to announce commitments from four additional industry partners – Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Illumination Entertainment, Legendary Entertainment and Overbrook Entertainment – to participate in Academy Gold, a new entertainment industry-wide summer internship and mentoring program that will expand opportunities for students and young professionals from underrepresented communities.  Each of the now 20 partners will sponsor up to three interns for the program, which kicks off on Thursday, June 15, with a two-day orientation that includes various industry speakers, studio and technology-based company tours and visits to the Academy’s Film Archive and Margaret Herrick Library.

Previously announced partners include Deluxe, The Walt Disney Company, Dolby Laboratories, FotoKem, FremantleMedia, HBO, IMAX, Lionsgate/Starz, Panavision, Paramount Pictures, Participant Media, Sony Pictures, Technicolor, Twentieth Century Fox Film, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros.

In this pilot year, 70 interns (including 18 interns who will be placed within the Academy) will participate in the Academy Gold program.  The eight-week program, which concludes on August 11, will offer participants networking opportunities with Academy members and industry professionals, screenings, studio tours and educational workshops.

Academy members and industry professionals will participate in panels discussing their crafts, including: Bobbi Banks (sound editor); Lorrie Bartlett (Partner and Co-Head of Talent, ICM); Maryann Brandon (film editor); Ruth E. Carter (costume designer); Jeff B. Cohen, Esq. (attorney); Destin Daniel Cretton (writer, "Short Term 12");  Julie Ann Crommett (VP Multicultural Audience Engagement, Disney); Tonia Davis (VP Film, Chernin Entertainment); Christina Hodson (writer, "Transformers: Bumblebee"); Jordan Horowitz (producer, "La La Land"); Whitney James (makeup artist); Charles D. King (Founder & CEO, MACRO and executive producer, "Fences"); Stella Meghie (director, "Everything, Everything"); Jeff Miller (President, Studio Operations, Disney); Daryn Okada (cinematographer); Eric Pertilla (agent, Paradigm); Steves Rodriguez, CPA (Partner, Freemark Financial); Kim Roth (President of Production, MACRO); David Rubin (casting director); Demetrius Shipp Jr. (actor, "All Eyez on Me"); Justin Simien (writer-director-producer, "Dear White People"); Michael Tronick (film editor); Nancy Utley (President, Fox Searchlight Pictures); Michelle Watts (Principal, The Aziza Work Group); and Joe Wees (Senior VP Creative Advertising, Universal Pictures).  Visit www.oscars.org/AcademyGoldProgram for panelist updates.

Highlights from this summer’s program include:

Transformation – Future Focus Panel (June 21)

Industry leaders in conversation about the challenges and opportunities for those beginning their careers.  Panelists include Academy members and respected experts in their field.

Navigating a Successful Career in Hollywood (June 28)

What does it really take to have a successful career in Hollywood?  Hollywood veterans and newcomers candidly discuss the keys to being successful in the film industry.

Upgrade and Update – Technology Is Your Business (July 12)

Academy members and industry leaders discuss aspects of production and distribution, staying on top of the latest technology, and successful technologies and innovations incorporated into their work.

Anatomy of a Film Production – Above the Line (July 19)

A panel discussion giving above-the-line perspectives from individual directors, writers, actors and producers, who detail their personal career paths and stories while specifying tools and other ways to build and remain relevant in these careers.

Anatomy of a Film Production – Below the Line (July 26)

A cinematographer, casting director, costume designer, film editor, makeup artist, sound editor and other below-the-line talents discuss their collaborative processes and break down the specifics of what each of their jobs entail.

The Dream Team (August 2)

Support professionals including agents, lawyers, managers and publicists discuss their work.

The Academy Gold Talent Development and Inclusion Program will afford top film entertainment, technology, production services and digital media companies an opportunity to recruit and educate a nationwide pool of diverse talent.  The Academy also will build an alumni database to track the professional development of Academy Gold participants and provide a resource to connect alumni with one another upon completion of the program.

Additional support for Academy Gold is provided by The California Wellness Foundation.  Support for the Academy Foundation’s educational and outreach initiatives, which include Academy Gold, the Student Academy Awards, and the Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting, is provided in part by Walmart.

For more information about the Academy Gold program, visit www.oscars.org/AcademyGoldProgram.