The festival life
Junior Diem Dang gains a professional opportunity be attending the Beyond Wonderland music festival.
Since arriving back home last week, I’ve had time to reflect on my two-month experience in Los Angeles. I had the opportunity to work at an amazing internship, make new friends and explore the city in-depth for the first time. As a movie lover though, the most memorable experiences for me were the movie screenings I attended.
The impact of the film industry on the city of Los Angeles is noticeable immediately. I couldn’t drive more than a half a mile without seeing a billboard or poster advertising an upcoming movie. This meant there were a ton of opportunities to see these movies. My best friend from high school, Lauren, was great at finding these tickets and always invited me to go with her.
The first one we went to together was an early screening of the new Pixar movie “Onward.” As a longtime fan of Disney, I was very excited to see this movie. The screening took place at the El Capitan Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard, a famous movie theater owned by the Walt Disney Company that hosts premieres for all of Disney’s films. The theater was huge and had a stage set up with an “Onward”-themed setting. At the center of the stage was an organist who played a medley of Disney songs before the movie began.
The movie, as expected, was incredible. We both had an amazing time and ended up leaving the theater with some movie memorabilia. This experience made me even more excited about the opportunities ahead, and I asked Lauren to keep looking for more screenings.
Next, we attended a free screening of “Sonic the Hedgehog.” This screening was even more amazing because it was hosted by James Marsden, who stars in the movie. Lauren and I arrived at the theater at Universal CityWalk early because the seating wasn’t guaranteed, but we were more than early enough to get into the theater. Marsden spoke before the screening started and took a picture with every person who attended afterward. We complimented him on the movie and all the other movies he has been in that we love. It was another excellent experience.
The program was unfortunately cut short because of the coronavirus outbreak, and I couldn’t go to any of the other screenings I had planned, but these two months gave me moments I will never forget. I cannot wait to go back to Los Angeles in the future for more.