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Throughout my first few years in º£½ÇÉçÇø’s English Cultural Studies program, I became particularly interested in how fictional female and/or racialized characters interpret their consumed texts; in effect, ‘re-writing’ intertextual media by subverting old meanings or creating new ones. Initially, my learning objectives at Arts East-West/Korean Film Festival Canada were simple: help foster and generate cross-cultural relationships and combine my social media experience with my passion for Pan-Asian film and desire to increase visibility in the cinema sector. Upon reflecting on my three months working alongside the KFFC team, and attempting to achieve my goals, I discovered that my internship existed parallel to much of what I’m interested in academically.

Arts East-West is a non-profit organization dedicated to uniting the Eastern and Western hemispheres through artistic expression, namely film and media arts. They aim to platform Pan-Asian artists and raise their voices both locally (in Montreal and Canada) and internationally. One of their most noteworthy initiatives is the Korean Film Festival Canada, which highlights film and media arts from Pan-Asian and Asian-Canadian artists. As the Media Relations and Communications Intern, my experience was split in time. For the first month or so, all efforts went towards promoting and preparing for the film festival, whose 11th iteration began on May 22^nd. For the last two months, I worked more generally on promotion such as website content, visibility creation, and a final project in the form of an organization-specific social media strategy.

Leading up to the festival season I leaned into the ‘media relations’ part of my role by reaching out to numerous Montreal-based media organizations and newspapers to create new partnerships and spread word about the event. I also connected with artists and existing partners. I am particularly proud of starting a new collaboration with a Montreal media company, which resulted in an article about the festival and an interview with one of its featured artists. Beyond this, I helped to post tickets and generate sales through social media, helped run the festival––setting up merch booths and refreshment areas, ushering guests to their seats–– and assisted wherever else was necessary. Following the festival’s end, I helped with social media posting, cleaning up the website, organizing email lists, and writing grant letters. In the last month, I researched, developed, and pitched a social media strategy that would ideally increase visibility for Arts East-West and its initiatives using social media marketing.

Initially, I had a bit of trouble adjusting to the everyday operations of my host organization. Tasks weren’t planned but assigned spontaneously, and the impending festival (with much to do) left the organization’s small team with a demanding workload. These challenges were remedied and improved upon simply through time. As my internship moved forward, I became better acclimated, and communication between myself and my co-workers increased.

This internship allowed me to see firsthand how consumers interact with media, particularly art produced by marginalized populations, and the strategies needed to appeal to certain consumer groups. While my tasks and responsibilities leaned more on the communications side of my education, my cultural studies background fueled my experience and perspective. I now go into my final year of university with a broadened understanding of the relationship between individuals and the media they consume. The festival goers’ artistic interpretations work alongside, and as a result of, how KFFC represents and introduces certain films—whether through social media, website content, or programs. I had not previously considered this relationship between marketing and artistic consumption.

Thank you to Mr. John Blachford for funding my Internship Award. It is because of your generosity that I could remain in Montreal during the summer, and further explore its rich artistic and cultural scenes. For that, I am extremely grateful.