When Madison Crimi-DeMichele ’19 arrives for her internship at the Viacom office, she’s taking the elevator and walking the halls alongside MTV, Nickelodeon, and BET employees and celebrities.
As she turns a corner into her own office, she gets to work promoting the stars of mixed martial arts. This summer, she’s been interning at Bellator MMA, the second-largest promotion company for MMA in the world. As a digital media intern, Crimi-DeMichele works on the website and edits promotional fight videos for their millions of social media followers.
“It’s super cool creating something that everyone watches,” she said. “Seeing it actually posted is what makes it so exciting.”
Crimi-DeMichele, who created her own Entertainment Media Management major through the Whittier Scholars Program (WSP), is learning a lot from her time with Bellator. As she combs through fight footage to find the perfect highlight—like A.J. Matthews’ crazy knockout—she’s gaining real-world experience in the film side of her self-designed major, as well as time with a company she could see herself working for after she graduates.
When she considers the tremendous ways Whittier prepared her for the internship, she emphasizes how she’s learned to consider different perspectives.
“Now instead of thinking just one way about a project, I’ll think about it so many different ways,” she said. Kinesiology professor Kathy Barlow, the department chair, helped her get the internship, as well.
Needless to say, Crimi-DeMichele’s been enjoying a thrilling summer. When the videos pop up on her social feed, she’s so excited to see the publication of her hard work that she’ll watch the highlight clip for what’s likely the hundredth time.
She’s eager to take her experiences at Bellator into her final year of coursework. Thanks to WSP, she’s put together a slate of fall courses that fit her career goals—in essence, she edited together all of the exciting highlights.
