Veterans in Media & Entertainment (VME) Joins Forces With AT&T for Veterans Media Fellowship
LOS ANGELES, December 3, 2020 (Newswire.com) - For the second year in a row, AT&T, parent company of WarnerMedia, Warner Bros, HBO, CNN, and DC, among others, is sponsoring a Veterans in Media Fellowship in collaboration with Veterans in Media & Entertainment (VME).
“The fellowship highlights AT&T’s continuing commitment and track record of supporting U.S. military personnel, veterans, and their families,” said Roman A. Smith, AT&T’s Director of Community Investment.
“The select group of 40 veterans will meet virtually for 13 Saturdays starting in early 2021, with online seminars from fellow veterans already working in the industry as well as entertainment and media leaders,” said Karen Kraft, producer and VME Chair.
“The goal is to introduce veterans to the industry and provide an opportunity to work with professionals through a series of individual and small group projects,” added Tom McCafferty, actor and VME Vice-Chair.
Tom DeSanto, producer of “X-Men" and "Transformers," was one of the first guest speakers. "It's an honor to support our next generation of filmmakers through this AT&T program with VME. Having hired veterans before, their work ethic, ability to problem solve, and commitment to the team always amazes me. Our veterans have always been there for us and it is time for us to be there for them."
"I was so impressed with the creativity and dedication of the Veteran Fellows I met last year," said guest speaker Dara Weintraub, co-producer of "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express.” "It's inspiring to see AT&T leading this initiative to enable veterans to gain a better footing in the industry.”
Weintraub added, “Many producers are simply not aware of how diverse the veteran population is and how their talents and life experiences enrich any office or set."
Other guest speakers included Jim Arnoff, career coach and television packaging agent; Ann Epstein, Head of Studio at Troika Media Group; James Fino, executive producer of “Rick and Morty”; and accomplished television directors Matt Knife and Jonathan X.
Several past fellows were recently engaged as segment producers for the Veterans in Entertainment Virtual Summit, sponsored by a coalition of Hollywood studios. Others have moved into production jobs or internships or entered media-related college tracks.
Emerging filmmaker Terry Rivera, a past AT&T Media Fellow and Navy vet who also served in the NYFD on 9/11, who is now developing a documentary about fellow Latino firefighters said, ”The program helped me hone my career goals and the connections I made helped open doors to get my project off the ground.”
“While last year’s Fellowship was held in-person in Los Angeles, for 2021, we’ll be completely virtual. That means, this year, we can open up applications to veterans and the military all over the U.S., as well as those who are still serving overseas,” said Program Manager Brian Wright of Max Edwards Company, who also serves as a VME Advisory Board member.
Applications for the 2021 class are open online now at www.VMEconnect.org through Dec. 11, 2020, with the selected fellows notified by Dec. 18, 2020.
Veterans in Media & Entertainment is a 501(c)3 non-profit whose mission is to connect U.S. military veterans working or aspiring to work in the entertainment industry to jobs, internships and educational opportunities. More info about VME at www.VMEconnect.org.
Media Contact:
Rebecca Murga, Communications Director
Phone: 484-554-3213
Email: Rebecca.Murga@VMEconnect.org
Web: www.VMEConnect.org
Source: Veterans in Media & Entertainment
