Arts2Work at WLCAC is a career-connected pre-Apprenticeship program for young people ages 18 – 24 who are seeking to develop a career in digital media. This program in Watts is designed for emerging mediamakers to take their storytelling and technical skills to that next level and qualify for a variety of jobs in the media field. That might be a film/video associate producer, assistant director editor, cinematographer, social media content producer, digital archivist, sound designer, audio engineer, multimedia graphic, game or XR designer, and many other job pathways. Participants might want to work in entertainment or journalism, sports or human rights, health care or environmental justice, social work or museum design — every field needs talented digital mediamakers and storytellers! They might want to work for a Hollywood studio or a nonprofit social justice organization, a small local business or a big art museum, a sports team or an advertising agency, the local farmers market or a big food brand — or — they might want to start their own creative business and be their own boss.
This is a program where trainees with some previous experience get paid to learn creative and technical skills, and produce high quality digital media in collaboration with other trainees and mentors. Throughout the program, participants will deepen their abilities to create both personal projects and client work, video and audio, pre-production through post-production and distribution. They will be able to earn valuable credentials like Adobe Certified Professional and everyone will receive career coaching and college prep support (if they want to head to college, or go back to college – but it is not required!). All participants will collaborate to produce group projects in a professional classroom/studio setting at WLCAC and will also do work for clients and develop professional relationships that can help them build the career they want.
Might this be a program for you? We are looking for people who have had some previous experience making video, audio, or multimedia projects. Applicants may be self-taught, or may have had some training in high school, college, or elsewhere. Whatever your background or past life experience, we are seeking applicants who are passionate about working in the media arts field. If you faced some challenges that may have kept you from the career you’ve hoped for, and you are eager to connect with other emerging artists to co-create incredible stories and learn mad technical skills, please apply!