WSU student brings passion to Publicity role

As we wrap up another incredible year at Made in the West Film Festival, it's time to shine a spotlight on one of the up and coming stars who helped make our 13th annual festival such a success.

We love making big plans each year, and assembling a great team to help us bring it all together is absolutely essential!

This year, we were delighted to welcome Angeli Moscoso, a third-year Bachelor of Creative Industries student from Western Sydney University, as our Publicity Intern for 2024.

Angeli came to us with a clear passion for the creative industries, complemented by her studies in Screen Media and Journalism minors. Her decision to join Made in the West wasn't just about gaining experience – it was about diving deeper into the Western Sydney film community she hadn't fully explored outside of university.

"As a screen media student, choosing to apply for the publicity assistant internship role with Made in the West would allow me to further understand and delve more into the Western Sydney film community," says Angeli.

"I wanted to learn more about the various films and filmmakers within the community and see what is needed to put together such an event."

The internship delivered exactly what she was looking for, and then some. Angeli threw herself into tasks that stretched her professional skills beyond the university setting – from crafting media kits and press releases to filming social media content and managing affiliate communications.

"During my time of the internship, I learned a lot of various skills that I previously haven't been able to fully develop through a more professional setting than university," she explains.

"Such as sending out emails to affiliate organisations and writing up media kits and press releases. As well as practicing how to film video reels that would be used for social media."

But it wasn't just the technical skills that made an impact. Working with Made in the West opened Angeli's eyes to the incredible talent that surrounds her in Western Sydney.

"I also had the opportunity to learn how talented Western Sydney filmmakers are and how much effort, passion and time they put into being able to share various stories through the screen."

Like many of our interns before her, Angeli found the lead-up to festival night particularly exciting. There's something magical about watching months of behind-the-scenes preparation come together for one spectacular evening!

"I would say that my favourite part of the experience was in the lead up working on different tasks and watching everything behind the scenes being put together, to the actual night of the event itself," she says.

"It was very exciting to be a part of the festival itself and seeing everything come to life."

Festival night gave Angeli the chance to connect with the community she'd been working to support throughout her internship.

"I also enjoyed being able to talk with many people that shared the same interest of film and partaking in representing Western Sydney," she reflects.

"Seeing everyone being so welcoming and coming together to be a part of the Western Sydney film community."

Of course, every internship comes with its challenges, and Angeli was honest about the learning curve she experienced, particularly with writing tasks that were new to her.

"I would probably say writing the media kits and press releases were the most difficult part of the internship," she admits. "Despite having some previous knowledge in writing short articles for journalism assignments, learning to get the hang of writing for a media kit and press release took a while for me to get the hang of."

We were impressed by Angeli's diligence. Rather than being discouraged, she embraced the guidance offered and grew more confident as the internship progressed.

"Despite the challenge, I felt very guided and understood by Misty who helped me along the way and steered me into the right direction of what would be needed to write those pieces. Which made the challenge slowly become less difficult as time passed."

The red carpet experience at this year's festival was particularly meaningful for Angeli, giving her the opportunity to see her hard work come to fruition in real-time.

"I had the opportunity to capture various videos throughout the night of the event itself, as well as interviewing and speaking to a few filmmakers and one of the sponsors that were in attendance."

Looking ahead, Angeli's experience with Made in the West has helped clarify her future career goals.

After graduation, she's planning to take some time to explore opportunities in photography and potentially return to the publicity world she's discovered she enjoys.

"I'd hope that I'd be able to possibly work on my photography, whether that be interning or working in a creative production agency or possibly a PR agency," she explains.

For those interested in following Angeli's creative journey, you can find her work at her digital portfolio here and on Instagram.

Thank you to Angeli for all your hard work this season – we were impressed with your dedication, creativity, and the fresh perspective you brought to our publicity campaigns. We wish you all the best with your final year of studies and look forward to seeing where your creative journey takes you next!

Made in the West is proud to continue working alongside WSU students each year. We remember what it was like to be studying at university and eager to connect with people in the industry, and we're grateful for the opportunity to provide real-world experience in the creative industries.

Our huge thanks again to WSU School of Humanities & Communication Arts for supporting the festival as our Gold+ Screen Sponsor. We've been delighted to strengthen our relationship with Western Sydney University and create meaningful opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience in arts organisations like ours.

Over the past few years, we've had the pleasure of working with nearly 100 students across our various projects and internships – whether on set of Made in the West TV, designing our poster for the festival each year, working on our 10th anniversary augmented reality magazine, participating in our annual internship programs, or joining us as festival crew.

Our university internship program remains one of our favourite ways to work one-on-one with students, giving them direct experience in the creative industries while contributing to the growth of the Western Sydney film community.

We're already looking forward to working with more talented WSU students in 2025 as we plan and promote our 14th annual Made in the West Film Festival.

If you're keen to work with us, feel free to contact us for upcoming opportunities!