Bruny on the set of her first short film in LA. Photo provided by Frankie Bruny.
ENC offers a wide variety of off-campus programs and internships to students, however many of these opportunities are not publicized to students and remain fairly under the radar.
Yet if you can learn about an internship and take the plunge to apply, like Frankie Bruny, your life can take an overwhelmingly unexpected turn just as hers did.
Bruny is a junior Communications major with a minor in Theatre at ENC. She is a 19-year-old female of Haitian decent, and native to the Boston area. She has appeared in the fall musical Hello Dolly! and the winter play James and the Giant Peach.
Bruny is now studying at the L.A. Film Studies Center in Los Angeles, CA. She joined the program with the intention of becoming an active leader in her field.
The LAFSC is an internship program affiliated with ENC and is offered to juniors and seniors of any major.
ENC alumna Becky Malas was also involved with the L.A. internship. She told Bruny about her experience, encouraging her to join. During her semester at LAFSC, Malas worked on a short film and costumes, was filmed in a Got Milk commercial, and interned at Sony pictures.
“It was easy to do and it was great to do something I loved in another place, while still being a student [at] ENC,” Malas said of her study abroad experience.
Bruny joined the program in May and since then has worked on two short films and a documentary, met celebrities, and visited large and intricate film sets all in the hopes of one day becoming a director.
“The thought of being able control everything I want to do in life gives me the drive to get through each semester. I have the ability to make my dreams come true and that makes me want to push harder everyday even though I know it’s hard. Just thinking of that end result just makes me work harder,” Bruny said.
Thus far, her time at LAFSC has been challenging, but also causing her to grow in crucial ways.
“My communication skills have changed since I‘ve been here. [The people here] have a different way of speaking in terms of work character. A person’s work character is always going to change. It is always good to speak up and don’t hold back on your work,” Bruny continued.
Bruny has many other interests as well. She likes to do photography, and is also specializing in building websites along with running a production team. Her team is involved in projects involving up-and-coming Boston artists.
“Our company specializes in planning events [for bands and rappers]. We are working on doing an art gallery for those artists, and hopefully we can bring in a crowd of new artists,” Bruny said.
“This is my camera on the set of the documentary I’m filming about art and skating and how the two together change individuals. I shot it at the Seventh Letter gallery here in LA on Fairfax.” Photo provided by Frankie Bruny.
Bruny has become an example to the ENC community, and is aware of her own leadership qualities.
“I make my own path. I see myself as an artist, and I look up to other artists who came before me. People like Spike Lee, 2Pac, and Denzel Washington, people of color who lead by example became the artist[s] that I look up to,” Bruny commented.
She considers loved ones and their impact on motivations in life, when discussing and thinking of her role as a leader.
“My grandma is my role model…She is just so humble and so kind. She’s done a lot in her life and seen a lot in her life… She knows how to handle situations and knows how to be nice at the same time. She knows when to pick and choose her battles. I look up to that a lot,” Bruny shared.
While Bruny is a modern socialite in the theatre department and at LAFSC, confidence has always been a struggle for her. Being involved in theatre has helped a lot, though.
“[Theatre has] helped me connect to different characters and understand them. I was very shy, believe it or not, and theatre has helped me open up,” Burny said.
Theatre also allows Bruny to practice her leadership skills.
“[Theatre] has mostly helped me master my craft as a director. How am I supposed to tell someone how to do their job when I don’t know what they’re doing? Theatre gave me a whole new outlook on life and it’s now a part of me in everything I want to do,” Bruny said.
In the near future, it is possible that Bruny will screen one of her projects for the ENC community as she returns to ENC for the Spring 2015 semester.
Frankie met LisaRaye McCoy, an actress, model, and fashion designer. Photo provided by Frankie Bruny.
Bruny also met Doug Jones from Hellboy, Fantastic 4, Pan’s Labyrinth, and Hocus Pocus. Photo provided by Frankie Bruny.