Career Path Of A Media Analyst At Variety Intelligence Platform
Tyler's career path, beginning with a film production degree, unexpectedly led to journalism after a high school journalism class and a film-focused journalism minor. Their internships at The Hollywood Reporter, where they covered "the rise of 'elevated horror'," and Entertainment Weekly, culminating in a role analyzing the film industry's response to streaming during the COVID-19 pandemic, ultimately prepared Tyler for their current position as a data-driven media analyst at Variety Intelligence Platform, focusing on streaming trends.
Media Analysis, Entertainment Journalism, Data Analysis, Streaming Media, Career Path in Media
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Tyler Aquilina
Media Analyst
Variety Intelligence Platform
Loyola Marymount University
None
Film, Media Arts, Visual Arts
Arts, Entertainment & Media
Data and Analytics
Honors Student
Video Highlights
1. Tyler's career path demonstrates that a background in film production can be a valuable asset for a career in media analysis. His film production studies combined with a journalism minor provided a solid foundation for his career.
2. His internships at The Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weekly gave him practical experience and bylines, which significantly helped him progress in his career. The experience covering the film industry's response to the pandemic and the rise of streaming provided invaluable insight and expertise.
3. Tyler's current role at Variety Intelligence Platform showcases the importance of data analysis and trend analysis skills in the media industry. His work involves data-heavy stories, highlighting the growing demand for professionals who can combine journalistic skills with data interpretation and analysis skills.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path? Please start with your experiences in college and any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
I came to journalism in a bit of a roundabout way. I actually went to film school at Loyola Marymount University, studying film production. However, I felt it was wise to have an alternative path prepared, as breaking into the film industry is incredibly difficult.
I always enjoyed journalism, and I took an introductory journalism class in high school. This was mainly to get into the broadcast journalism class, which was the closest thing to a film class my high school offered. I realized I enjoyed writing and decided to pursue journalism as a minor.
In college, I worked on various projects. I created a 30-minute documentary short about student activism at Loyola Marymount, which was an interesting experience. I conducted archival research and interviewed alumni for it. Putting that together was a great experience.
While in college, I landed my first journalism internship at The Hollywood Reporter, a prominent entertainment trade publication. This was an amazing experience, sitting at the crossroads of my interests in film and journalism. I reported a couple of stories, including one about the rise of what was then called "elevated horror."
I spoke with the writers of the first *A Quiet Place* movie and other industry professionals working in that genre. That story did well, and the byline experience was crucial. It helped me secure my next internship right out of college at Entertainment Weekly, a magazine I had grown up reading.
I was already familiar with their voice and style, which gave me a significant advantage when working on assignments. I was promoted from intern to a freelance digital writer and progressed a bit there.
Eventually, I was assigned to be the unofficial go-to reporter for film industry analysis and box office coverage. This was a really interesting time to cover that area, in the middle of COVID. Studios were experimenting with release strategies and the rise of streaming was happening.
I gained valuable experience covering that, which led to my current position. I now cover streaming as a media analyst for a Variety intelligence platform, which is a premium subscriber tier of Variety. We focus on news analysis, trend analysis, and data analysis, with our stories being data-heavy and featuring charts to support our arguments.
I mainly cover streaming, but also other areas. My analysis of the film landscape and its relation to streaming was instrumental in landing this position.
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