13 Creatives Open Up About Their Unpaid Internships
By Literally Broke
“
I knew it was something that some people couldn't afford to do because it was something I couldn't really afford to do.”
A growing tide of cultural workers are demanding an end to unpaid internships.
W.A.T., a collective of BIPOC theater workers, has most recently called on the theater industry to end unpaid internships and replace them with paid positions. Their demands directly point at the racial and financial inequality unpaid internships enable.
Many organizations have tried to tackle this issue by providing stipends, transportation incentives, and school credit (which is actually paid for by the student). None of these measures go far enough.
Here, 13 creatives open up about the good, the bad, and the ugly, of their unpaid internship experiences.
“I used my own family car as a van for filmmaking equipment, grocery shopped for my boss and her family, and drove boss’ dog from office to her house. I was never reimbursed for gas.” - Sarah Esghaghian, an Executive Assistant at HBO who interned in television and film production
“I was filling $40,000 personal monthly expense reports for a VP while making $0. Also one time a studio exec walked in, snapped at me and said “Diet Coke”, then walked past the front desk. Very Miranda Priestly. I was aware of it being exploitative but financially I was privileged enough that I could swing it. It also did end up turning into a job so I feel sort of mixed about it. On the one hand it helped start of my career but they really have no excuse to not pay considering the VPs monthly sushi budget” - An anonymous film editor based in NYC who interned in film and television
“I demonstrated the blocking for the talent. It could be physical i.e. crawling through a room and jumping to catch an invisible cracker with my mouth. I performed this over and over for each batch of people auditioning.” - Cara Flynn, an SFX producer who interned for a casting company
“During fashion week they honestly expected me to work until midnight or later, like I wasn't a student. And, there were days when I'll get there in the morning, they would hand me a list of pick ups and tell me I shouldn't be back until I get them all. I would be carrying over 60lbs of clothes, shoes, and accessories. I knew it was something that some people couldn't afford to do because it was something I couldn't really afford to do.” - Zena Erhabor, a developer who interned in fashion
“I had the full responsibilities of an Associate Produce, and was asked to ID myself as such to talent because the company had almost no employees except unpaid interns. I was not being compensated at all. At a different non-artistic barely-paid internship, my boss had me fly to St. Louis to pick up her new dog (a special truffle-hunting breed.) Notably, she did pay me personally for this, but still. I remember thinking regularly “if my parents weren’t covering my rent, I could not possibly do this internship for free and still be able to graduate.” - Grace Barry, a screenwriter who interned in reality television
“They had me work until 2 or 3AM with barely any dinner and then come back at 8AM for fashion show prep. I was in college so I still had parental help but it was a very low amount of money. Now I think “how did I survive in NYC?” - An anonymous fashion buyer who interned for Proenza Schouler
“I was sent home because an editor asked my supervisor to send me home for not wearing a suit at a company where there was no dress code.” - An anonymous newspaper writer
“My worst experience was when I was working at an award show. While we were at the award show site, I physically had to dig through bags of trash to sort out compost. Fortunately I was living at home while I was interning and had my parents full financial support.” - Jillian Houghton, a writer who interned in television
“I was told I wasn't committed enough to my position and didn't take it seriously enough. I was doing two unpaid internships at two different institutions with only one day off a week.” -Debra Hardy, an arts educator who interned at a museum
“Artists were constantly hitting on interns. I never took them up on the offer, but there were plenty who did. Back then, we accepted it as a reality.” - Bernadette Giacomazzo, a content creator who interned at a radio station
“When I worked at Shape Magazine, I didn't have a permanent desk or computer and was put in charge of a contest giveaway. The item was misplaced or stolen on one of the days I wasn't in the office (I only interned a couple of days a week) and the editor I worked for yelled at me for being irresponsible. It was a toxic environment, and I walked about a mile and a half to get to the office and back so I didn't have to pay $5 in subway swipes to work for free.” - Mary Kearl, a writer who interned in journalism
“At Lyric Opera they had us report to the stage (we were all in marketing and PR) to stand in for the puppeteers and run across the stage for an hour in a dragon costume so they could block the scene with the paid actors. I could only afford to work part-time so i could support myself financially. I worked as a nanny and a server.” - An anonymous actress who interned in theater
“I was still in school, so I was getting some help [from my parents], but I remember days when I didn't have enough money to buy lunch and I'd just walk around and smoke.” - Laurie Ulster, a writer who interned at a soap opera