My Majestical Internship
Week 1: What a week!
In the space of 5 days I have learnt and experienced so much already. Since day one, I’ve ticked a lot of tasks off of my to-do list and am now setting my goals for week 2. On Tuesday we filmed at The Wingate Centre, capturing footage across the entire day, we got many great shots and lots of quality content. It was super exciting to watch and learn from behind the camera as to what makes for better footage and how to get the most out of filming for one day.
On Wednesday and Thursday I worked from our wholesome little studio in Congleton, where I reviewed and organised footage from Tuesday, as well as some extra footage from another project in the works. I felt a lot of responsibility for these things, as I had to ensure they were organised correctly into folders that the rest of the team could understand.
As Friday arrived, I was back in the office and undertook some research regarding potential clients, various UK businesses, and local charities. Alongside this, we made two TikTok’s for the newly established Majestical TikTok account, which included a video of us setting an illustration print up in the office, as well as a ‘Things in the Majestical office that just make sense’ video (currently a big trend on TikTok). We’re still waiting to go viral from the videos, but all in good time I’m sure!
Highlight of the week: Katie explaining and showing me how to use a drone. On our shoot on Tuesday at The Wingate Centre, we had to capture some birds-eye-view footage of the building, and the drone was the way to do it. With the weather being practically perfect for drone use, we got started. Katie explained everything to me, from setting it up to navigating it correctly on the control.
Week 2: things are hotting up!
Week 2 of my internship concluded with Katie and I about to leave the office, discussing how on Earth it has been two weeks since my first day. And I think that says it all. Within my first two weeks at Majestical I have: been on 3 shoots, attended a networking day, joined in on an initial business meet, and learnt a hell of a lot about the amount of behind-the-scenes graft that goes on.
As Monday and Tuesday happened to be the hottest temperatures England had ever experienced (40 degrees), I spent two days working from home as both myself and Katie were worried I’d melt on the train commute to Congleton (an award for world’s most considerate boss please). I made the most of that time doing research into some exciting ideas that are brewing from the Majestical team. On Wednesday I attended my first ever networking event where we discussed everything from mindset to problem solving in business. I left feeling so enlightened with all the advice I’d heard on the day, which I will remember in all of my future business endeavours.
Thursday was a busy day of filming at the Aqueduct Marina, which was very exciting!! Once again, Katie captained the drone as we got some incredible shots of the narrow boats and amazing scenery surrounding the marina. A very successful shoot day if you ask me. We also met the cutest dog called Rosie, so that was a bonus! As Friday arrived, it was back to the studio with the team! But, not for long… Katie invited me to a potential client meeting which provided me with a great insight of how to both speak with clients and about business. Returning to the studio, with lots of research to be done for some upcoming magical Majestical projects, I cracked on.
Week 2 has been delightful, and I can’t wait to see what week 3 holds!
Week 3: Busy and as fun as usual
I am officially halfway through my internship - what?! I guess it’s true what they say, time flies when you’re having fun. Now, if there’s one thing I love most about this internship it’s that days are rarely ever the same. Monday began with an office day, researching lots about one of Majestical’s exciting new endeavours!
Tuesday was a full day of filming at the Aqueduct Marina, where we got final shots for the project, making sure to document all of the resources available at the Marina. As a rail strike commenced on Wednesday, it was a work from home day for me. I continued to do research on possible #reelkind action for Majestical to get involved in (keep your eyes peeled). On Thursday I was back in the office, with a more creative task to do - creating watermarks. Having never created one before, I managed to get all of Majestical’s latest illustrations watermarked with the help of Adobe Express (shout out to them for making it a simple process).
Now Friday is here (already?!) And my main goal on Friday’s is to make sure I write my weekly journal about the things I learnt, the people I’ve met, and what I have found out. However, this morning also came with a lovely twist! I got to meet another Cheshire and Warrington Pledge intern called Finn, who is currently undertaking his internship at the Wild Rumpus. It was great to go out with Katie and meet another intern from the pledge and share a bit about our experiences and how we will take certain skills along with us in the future.
So this week has been as busy and as fun as usual, and I wouldn’t have it any other way (minus the rail strikes of course).
Week 4: Goals and confidence
Lots of Majestical pipeline projects were put into action this week! Throughout the week, we focussed mainly on goals we had set a few weeks ago and also prioritised upcoming goals. Soon to release our Envato packages, there was lots of final researching and designing coming into place.
We also had a WIP meeting discussing all angles of the business; what’s going well, what can we improve, status with latest projects, and coming up with new ideas. Something I really admire about working with the team at Majestical is how human led they are. Before the meeting we wrote down any personal worries or thoughts we’ve been having lately, just to feel more relieved during the meeting.
As every day is rarely the same, another exciting thing I got to experience was speaking to a local business owner about merchandise selling. Having some Majestical branded (fully recyclable) coffee cups still available in the office, we decided to reach out to local businesses about helping us to sell them. As 50% of the profits from the cups go towards The Wingate Centre (special children’s trust), we were eager to get the final cups sold, which involved speaking and explaining the intention behind the cups to a local business owner. This was both a success, and a learning curve for me.
I feel much more confident in speaking about the business in a professional setting and what it is we can offer. A very good and busy week has now come to an end. Roll on the week 5!
Week 5: Sharing experiences
As week 5 draws to a close, I can’t believe that I have only one week left at Majestical. I think the highlight of my week has to be the get-together we had at the end of the week, with different business’ and their interns. It was so great to meet such a lovely bunch of people, discussing each other’s experiences as summer interns. I was surprised that some businesses had multiple interns, so it was interesting to hear from them about how they found working together.
With many Pledge members in one room, it was a great opportunity to offer feedback; what worked well; what could be improved next year; how to make these internships more widespread; getting more business’ involved next summer. It was a lovely way to end week 5.
Week 6: Things are rarely as scary as they seem
As I am writing this on the train home, it’s hard to believe that today was my last day at Majestical. What an experience! Never has a summer gone by so quickly for me.
My last week began with an exciting project which Katie encouraged me to take the lead on (a few stop-motion videos promoting Majestical recyclable coffee cups – check them out). After having created concepts and tag lines, Katie and I filmed the video sequences and they turned out so well! The following day I was thrown into the deep end when Katie told me to have a go at editing the videos. Upon this request I obviously froze for a second in shock of her trusting me with this and also due to my own self-doubt. However, despite me feeling like a deer in headlights, I surprised myself by actually creating something half decent! To top the week off I was finally able to upload some Majestical creations onto Envato which I had carefully been attempting to do for the past two weeks – so cheers to that!
To end Friday off, the team and I headed to a local pub for a refreshing drink in the summer heat, where we then had to say goodbye.
Being Production Assistant at Majestical has taught me many things, the main one being to just have a go – things are rarely as scary as they seem. I feel that I’ve engaged with almost every aspect of the business and got a well-rounded view into video production. Leaving the internship, I have gained so much insight into the time, energy, and passion it takes to deliver any kind of project to its best standard. Watching the team give it their all has been incredibly inspiring.
The experience itself has left me with a confidence I didn’t have before. It has energised me to keep progressing further into video production post-university and to take every creative opportunity available to me. It has been a wonderful experience and a truly great opportunity, one which I would recommend to anyone who has the chance to get involved.
Thank you to Katie, Rachel, and Vikki, for teaching me so many invaluable skills!
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