Summer isn’t over yet, but unfortunately we’re saying goodbye to our 2019 summer interns this week. They have been a tremendous help to us and instantly became valuable members of the INDIRAP team. Whether it was in pre-production, sales, helping out on set, assisting with marketing content, or even editing, INDIRAP interns hit the ground running on day one. Keep reading to hear from Dordt University senior Haemi Kim about her INDIRAP internship experience this summer.

WHAT DID YOU COME INTO THIS INTERNSHIP HOPING TO LEARN? DID YOU LEARN IT?

Coming to INDIRAP, I was hoping to learn skills for video shooting and video editing. Because I was only here for a short amount of time, I wasn’t able to handle and be in charge of taking over in a lot of things, however, I was able to go out on shoots to observe and help out behind the scenes and also was able to help out with few of the raw cuts of editing.

WHAT WAS SOMETHING YOU DIDN’T EXPECT TO LEARN BUT DID ANYWAYS?

Something that I did not expect when I came into INDIRAP is to learn the whole flow of how to run the whole video company. What I mean by this is, by having the opportunity to help and observe in different areas of the company, instead of focusing and seeing just one, I was able to see the whole. Starting from helping out with creating different posts for marketing to give interest and reach out to potential clients, to helping prospecting for the sales team and getting to see how they call to reach out, getting to hear the preproduction during different meetings to see where the next step is, going on shoots to see how all the planning comes into play, helping to organize raw footage and observing how they put everything together, being able to see final productions while organizing videos on YouTube, and coming back to the brand meeting to hear how much has been done. It was a great opportunity for me to learn how important each role was and also gain experience so that I know how to help in each position.

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE PROJECT TO WORK ON THIS SUMMER?

I enjoyed almost all of the projects and tasks I was given but I will say helping Sarah with the different social media content creation was the tasks that I enjoyed and was the time where I learned the most for both skills and information. Putting together the different content helped me improve in the different skills like design and animation while also gaining more knowledge of the different tips for video production and more about Chicago architecture.

It was also fun to experience pitching for different content series ideas which helped me enhance my creativity for the content while also enhancing the perspective of how it would work realistically.

Below is one of the many posts that Haemi helped create the graphics for. These were posted across all of our social media channels and will be used in future marketing material as well.

WHAT’S A SKILL YOU LEARNED THIS SUMMER YOU KNOW YOU WILL CONTINUE TO USE?

I will definitely take all the things I have learned from INDIRAP with me. The different content ideas, like the continuous swipe photo or animation using after effects, will be some of the things that I will continue to use for personal projects to build up my portfolio. I will also continue to use the different communication skills I got to learn from sales and shoots and use it to communicate with club members back at school and also for future clients as I continue after schooling, to get things done well.

WHAT MADE THIS INTERNSHIP DIFFERENT FROM OTHER INTERNSHIPS YOU’VE HAD?

INDIRAP is my first ever internship that I have worked for and it has been a great experience for me. Back at school, I am involved in may different event-based clubs and work as an event technical assistance for my work-study. I did have the chance to be creative for how to plan different events but because it was the same sets of events every year, I was almost getting too used to them. Working at INDIRAP showed me the bigger spectrum of creativity and also how work gets done. It was very eye-opening to see how much of work goes in for each individual project, which was something that I was aware of at the back of my head but to see it and feel it, that was different. This was especially when I got to see how many different projects were being done at the same time while still getting the best out of all those projects.

Haemi was also extremely helpful when it came to creating our Chicago architecture series. From taking the actual photos to researching and writing captions, Haemi’s work is greatly appreciated!

ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO SAY ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE?

I really like the idea that INDIRAP brings backpacks on shoots so that the clients are relaxed instead of being intimidated but this backpack still holds everything that is needed to get the best product out. I think this doesn’t only apply for actual shooting but also coming in to work with INDIRAP. As a first time intern, I was a little nervous but everyone was very welcoming and encouraging while also being very professional in what they were doing, giving me feedback on different areas where I could improve. Especially because the whole office is an open space, it was easier to communicate and build relationships with one another as well.

Thanks to Haemi for all of her help this summer and thanks to Chicago Semester for connecting us with Haemi!