Life in LA with BC Student Sahara Brewster
Bluefield College communications senior Sahara Brewster has been studying film in Los Angeles, California, since fall 2019, while at the same time learning much about herself and fulfilling a lifelong dream.
Brewster was selected for a semester of study at the Los Angeles Film Studies Center (LAFSC) in the spring of 2019 by the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) after a competitive application process. Since then, she has taken several courses at LAFSC and gained many skills from her experiences as a Roserock Films intern.
“LAFSC was absolutely life-changing,” Brewster said about the impact the program has had on her life. “People would tell me that before I started the program, and I truly couldn’t understand what they meant until I was there. I made so many friends from all over the U.S. That was the best part – the friendships. Every night we would stay up and hang out, whether it was watching films, going to an event, playing games, or grabbing food.”
And while making friends from all over the country was a highlight of Brewster’s LAFSC experience, working with Roserock Films as an intern was also extremely valuable. The LAFSC program offers its students a total of four courses with one of those courses being the internship.
“LAFSC helped me get my internship with Roserock Films at Warner Brothers,” Brewster said. “I learned so much in the year I was there. They were a small company so I got to have more responsibilities, and they would take the time to teach me everything they were doing.”
As part of her internship experience, Brewster helped work on the production of the film Deep Blue Sea 3 from the end of pre-production to the middle of post-production.
“That gave me all the information one could need going into film,” said Brewster about her work on Deep Blue Sea 3. “LAFSC was an amazing experience and truly did change my life because I would not be pursuing film or living in LA without it.”
Interning at a small company exposed Brewster to a variety of film-making tasks. Aside from the internship, her favorite course was Faith and Artistic Development.
“We learned so much about people of faith in film and their creations,” Brewster said about the course. “Every week in the class we watched a film, which also might be the reason it was my favorite.”
Unfortunately, the LAFSC program is not accepting applications at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Brewster hopes the program will return in the near future.
“I definitely recommend the LAFSC program to BC students who are interested in film or just curious about the world out here,” she said. “The program is amazing, and you learn so much about film through living in LA and your internship. I hope the program does come back.
Currently, Brewster is finishing up BC classes virtually and working full-time at a restaurant in LA.
“I am not interning currently, but I am working a full-time job with a restaurant as I search for employment in my desired industry,” Brewster said. “I am also holding out for a few studio positions that require a degree. Since the pandemic is dwindling down, the film industry here is picking back up and more jobs are opening.”
Taking BC classes virtually has been fairly easy for Brewster. She said she did have to drop her second major, graphic communication, because of timing issues and the challenge of completing those types of classes virtually. There have been a few challenges to overcome to ensure she graduates on time, but luckily she said she has received plenty of help and support from BC professor Dr. Cynthia Bascom.
“I am extremely thankful to Dr. Bascom,” Brewster said. “She has done so much for me by giving me the opportunity with LAFSC’s Best Semester program and helping me get through my classes as I stayed in LA to help me graduate. She is a major reason I am able to pursue my dreams out here.”
Although living in LA is a dream come true for Brewster, she said she still misses home. She tries to visit as much as possible, but sees LA now as the place where she can really grow.
“LA has been extremely eye-opening for me,” she said. “I have learned so much about myself and the world that I wouldn’t have had the chance to back home. I do miss home, my family, and the greenery, but I have lived there for 21 years and there is no more room for me to grow. The amount of things I have been a part of and experiences I have had in just one year and a half is insane to me. I feel like I’ve lived here for 10 years. I am so very lucky to be able to finish my degree with Bluefield College and pursue a career in LA. There has been set backs with the pandemic and the industry sort of shutting down for a bit, but I have been able to make so many connections living here. I have made friendships through the film program, my internship, mutual friends, and my current job whom are all in the film industry which are all beneficial when searching for a career in LA.”
After completing her Bluefield College classes virtually and graduating from BC this May, Brewster plans to stay in Los Angeles to pursue a career in film.
“I plan to live in LA for as long as it has something for me,” she said. “I want a career in film, and this is the place I feel I will find that.”