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My first Ever Internship Experience in Bali’s International Film Festival
“I knew that Bali was a special place but now it does hold dear in my heart”. Namira S, Mass Communication BINUS University, Indonesia
Wanted to study abroad to get out of her comfort zone, the pandemic has directed Namira to another experience, somewhere away from home yet is close to her heart and certainly brings challenges, knowledge and life lessons. How did the idea of finally doing an internship in Bali materialize? Namira shares her experience interning at an International Film Festival in Bali.
Finding my internship program in Bali?
Bali has definitely been one of my most favorite places to have holidays, I could go at least once a year and it has always been highly anticipated. So when the pandemic hit and there was a little window to be elsewhere since classes were conducted online, Bali was the first destination I thought of for my internship. My search was rather simple, I found Bali Internships as it was first suggested when I Googled “internship in Bali”. So I immediately wrote Bali Internships and shared that I would love an internship which aligns with my passion and interests, and this was going to be my first internship experience ever as a student, so I finally decided to apply for the internship position in the film festival.
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My 5 months internship in Bali and my adjustment to the new environment
On my first day of internship introduction, I had a briefing before visiting my soon to be future office, Bali Internships’ program coordinator visited me, Miss Rima. I was nervous because this was my first internship experience ever, but gratefully the Film Festival team and Bali Internships team were friendly so I felt welcomed. I was given all of the information that day on how my internship weeks will look like, my internship working schedule, my first tasks, my break time, and so on. I loved my office because it was so green and we sat semi outdoors where we could work while enjoying nature which is quite the opposite of where I am from and used to.
A little share about my internship program, it shall last for 5 months, and my working hours start at 10AM and end at 5PM. I felt more and more involved as I received more responsibility for assisting all the new interns to settle with our team, getting the new interns up to speed with the office’s agenda. In the beginning of my internship, I was the only intern but luckily, I received sufficient help and I learned a lot from my team. I felt that I was part of them after about a month of internship, having to be the only intern at first, I needed a co intern friend to feel that I belong, then in my second month the second intern started and we became friends. Then it got more interesting when I attended the Bali Internships' gathering, where I got to meet more interns and volunteers who came to participate in the same program as I do but from different companies and fields.
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It was great to meet some other people, students, and to get to talk about food, hobbies, funny stories and now I made more friends from around the world. I am truly glad to experience Bali in a new way and learn so many new things even for the first time making friends with people from different countries, backgrounds and culture and doing everything on my own.
Some words for future interns and how I spend my day off during internship.
Since this is my first ever internship experience, I’d love to share tips to future interns who will participate at the international film festival. The internship with the film festival went quite well despite my lack of real-work experience, it would always be better if the upcoming intern already has some previous relevant experience. It can be the smallest experience in the work industry or university projects. The film festival industry is a place to manage a festival, it would be beneficial if you read or watch a lot of related literature or work about the movie or festival industry. Lastly, to always be up to date about related events around the world and in Bali would be a needed knowledge.
For me, it is very necessary to stay focused on a task, and it will always be helpful to ask for help when needed, to not be too shy to ask for assistance would be another tip when interning for the first time anywhere it may be It’s always a good thing when you ask for help or confirmation about your tasks especially if you are clueless, people around you will help, I am thankful that everyone in my team at the office were super nice and welcoming. They gave me some important feedback and they also did let me know when I have done something well which is very encouraging. Lastly, always be open to share your point of view, meaning when you have a task assigned to you, remember you are working with other people, they might need to see and hear different perspectives that may add a better way to complete a task and achieve the best result together.
Obviously, Bali is not all about work, you can always travel around during the weekend, there are simply too many places to visit, rest assured that there are no places or tourist attractions in Bali that are not worth visiting. Pantai Batu Belig in Kerobokan, north Kuta was one of the most visited beaches I have been to, as the location is quite near from where I live. I also use my weekends to do some grocery shopping, visit a cat cafe and I would end my day eating ice cream with some friends. I would also recommend anyone to take some road trips to some of the Balinese Temples and definitely a boat trip to add the great activities to do on weekends.
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