I’m a Media student at RWC. In my department, we learn all aspects of media from television to film to graphic design and all that goes with them. From a good friend of mine, I got every Media student’s dream come true. I went to LA, the movie capitol of the world and to the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards all in one week. The following is my diary of the week.5-6-00
I’m on my journey of a lifetime to the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards in LA, California. How I got here is weird. A good friend of mine who works for Blockbuster told me about this exciting trip he was taking; it sounded like the trip of a lifetime. I went home thinking about how awesome it would be if I could go; the wish came true. He called me the day after and said, “I have an extra ticket, do you want to go?” I was speechless. I could not pass up a trip to LA nor The Blockbuster Entertainment Awards. I have always been a big movie buff and hope to work in movies someday. There was only one thing holding me back, money. I had to work thirty to thirty-five hours a week at my job at Harvest Drive-Thru and also attend classes and study, but I made the amount of money that I planned on taking with a little extra.
5-7-00
I have been in LA for a solid 24 hours; already I have seen so many amazing things that I watched on television. This city is not at all how it is described. The image that is ordinarily presented is through the movies, and that right there makes me more excited about seeing the glitz and glamour. Today I sat in the studio audience of the show “The List” that is on VH1. I saw a small part of what is expected. Tomorrow, I will be going to Warner Brothers Studio for the tour and also for a look behind the scenes. I will be attending the “Tonight Show” with Jay Leno. I am really looking forward to Tuesday, and I am counting down the hours.
5-8-00
Today was a long day for all of us; we totally overdid it! We went to Paramount Studio, an amazing place to tour. I saw sets from half of the movies I’ve seen. In Paramount, there is quite a bit of history that people normally only get to read about, and I am seeing it first hand. We didn’t get our chance to go to the Jay Leno Show because the studio was too full. That is OK. Tomorrow I will be at the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards, which is the purpose of this whole trip. I am going to sit in the same room and watch people I look up to receive awards for movies.
5-9-00
I started the day by going to the Warner Brothers Studio and viewing the sets of shows that people watch every night. I walked on the “Friends” set and observed how the show is shot. I also walked in the house where “Growing Pains” was taped, starring Kirk Cameron and Tracy Gold. I will never watch television shows in the same fashion again. The awards ceremony was a success. It was everything that I expected and more. The stage was amazing and something I had only dreamt about. The ceremony was held at the Shrine Auditorium in downtown LA, the same place that the Oscars are awarded. It had all of the following: the red carpet, men in tuxedos and women in beautiful dresses, movie stars, and many other glamorous people seen on television. Not only was it an award show, but there were musical acts that helped keep the pace and people interested. The famous Kid Rock, Marc Anthony, Mariah Carey and Enrique Iglesias were the performers for the evening. They all played their chart hits very well. The room was packed with Blockbuster personnel enjoying their treat that Blockbuster gave to them for hard work. It was definitely something that most people only read about or see on TV.
This town is growing on me; I think I could stay here. Today was my last day to be a tourist, so the group I was with went to Universal Studio to see what makes their style so different from Warner Brothers and Paramount Studio. If you ever get the chance to go to LA, go to Universal. It is a tourist attraction, but it is awesome. I like Warner brothers and Paramount too, but unlike others, I am totally interested in film, and most other people will think they are wasting their money. We picked a perfect day to tour because it was not crowded. We went on the tour of the backlot and saw sets from the movie “Psycho,” “Back to the Future,” “ET,” “Backdraft” and many others. It was amazing. Seeing all of these just makes me not only want to rent a lot of movies but to seriously consider moving to LA.