Maiya Jannah: Making waves in media for a more inclusive Hollywood

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] - When Maiya Jannah was a kid, she was enthralled by what she saw on television shows. Whatever the subject was, that's what she wanted to be: From an FBI agent to an Olympic athlete to a music producer, Jannah imagined herself in the shoes of any compelling protagonist.

"That was true for literally every single TV show and movie that I watched," said Jannah, a rising senior at Brown. "It wasn't until I got older that I realized that maybe I'm interested in entertainment itself - there's this aspect of it where you have the ability to change and adapt and create a story anywhere."

This summer, Jannah is getting hands-on experience in the entertainment industry as one of 39 college students nationwide to be selected for the 8-week Television Academy Foundation Summer Internship program. Based on their interests, each intern is placed at a host company, and Jannah has taken up residence in Los Angeles as a production intern at the Walt Disney Company - specifically at ABC Signature Studios, home to shows like "Grey's Anatomy," "Criminal Minds" and "How to Get Away with Murder."

There, Jannah is learning the full scope of what goes into developing a scripted series, from pre-production, before the script has even been picked up, all the way to post-, when the final cut is delivered.

"It's all-encompassing - basically a crash course in television production," she said.

The internship is building on the academics and activities that Jannah has embraced at Brown, where she is pursuing a bachelor's degree in literary arts and modern culture and media, with a focus on film and television.

Over the course of the past three years at Brown, she has immersed herself in myriad student organizations dedicated to media, particularly Brown Motion Pictures and the Ivy Film Festival, the latter of which Jannah has co-led since her sophomore year.

"Everything that I've learned at Brown has really shaped my ability to do the work that I'm doing at my internship now," Jannah said. "Brown has such a unique atmosphere of students who are creative problem-solvers and self-starters. Being surrounded by that energy, and the support of Brown, has been invaluable for me in deciding to choose this path."

Jannah's work at ABC Signature Studios has included shadowing executives, attending table reads, hearing from location scouts, visiting sound stages, watching editors at work in the mixing room and helping create production calendars and budgets. As part of the internship, Jannah also receives weekly professional development, including panels with television industry leaders and customized seminars on navigating the job market ahead.

She said the combination of practical "on the job" experience, combined with the access to knowledge and resources, has solidified the feeling that working in the industry isn't just an interest - it's a calling.

"I know I want to do this for the rest of my life," Jannah said. "It gives me greater purpose, because I want to create change in the media landscape and expand access to the arts. I want to shape a Hollywood where anybody could walk into a room and feel like that room is geared toward their presence."

Creating access to meaningful opportunities for budding artists who might not necessarily have them is something she's committed to at Brown, especially as director of the Ivy Film Festival. The festival facilitates student filmmakers' travel and, for the past three years, has implemented a Rising Star grant, which provides funding for young filmmakers who are historically underrepresented in the industry.

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