Jonathan Gelfond

Growing up in Los Angeles, I have always been captivated by the grandeur of Hollywood: A-list movie stars, LA-based television series, and the seemingly endless film sets in production around the city. From a young age, I became curious about – and inspired by – the moving images I was watching on screen. This curiosity would soon expand to the genre of documentary – one that defies the standard conventions of filmmaking: often no shotlists, film permits, or pre-written scripts. Notably small budgets also tend to be characteristic of such projects. To some, this lack of structure and funding may turn them away, but conversely, I find purpose in this field, which importantly explores social issues, asks pressing questions about the human condition, and challenges the status quo.

Despite the criticality of documentary films – particularly in our current geopolitical climate – dwindling funding from public broadcasters, streaming networks, and arts grants also makes it increasingly difficult to find internships in this space. Hearing about my struggles finding an internship, director Lauren Greenfield very graciously asked if I would join her this summer. For the past 12 weeks, I have had the privilege of working under the direct supervision of Senior Producer Jennifer Kobzik and Co-Producer Laura Aguire, with accompanying leadership from Greenfield and her producing partner Frank Evers in Venice, CA, at the offices of their production company, Institute Pictures. I was one of six interns in this summer’s cohort.

While my role was broad in nature and dependent on daily production needs, most of my time was devoted to two larger projects. The first was a recently released docuseries Institute produced in collaboration with Skydance Sports and Amazon Prime about WNBA legend Diana Taurasi, in which I updated transcripts, prepared archival legal logs, and tracked post-release press and social media. The second was an in-production photography exhibition based on many of the themes and teen subjects featured in Social Studies. With regard to this project, I collaborated on its creative production and design. It will open and begin its international tour in Fall 2026. Other roles included the preparation of comprehensive research reports, the maintenance and organization of project-related databases, and ad-hoc tasks for other projects at various stages of development.

This summer, and my time at UC Santa Barbara, have been indelibly supported by the Carsey-Wolf Center. I am deeply grateful to be a recipient of the Internship Scholarship for a second year, a program that continues to make possible career-building opportunities such as this for students alike. Through this internship, I developed as a filmmaker, storyteller, and communicator. Institute’s mission to champion social impact storytelling matches my own as an aspiring documentary filmmaker, and it was a life-changing experience to work alongside, learn from, and contribute to their team. This grant made that possible, and I will forever be grateful for the Center’s continued support of my academic and professional pursuits.