My 21CF Experience

Byron O’Neill - Intern

My Experience at 21CF

21st Century Fox – Weekly Activities

‘The Internship’ first Screening (Week 1)

During our first week in work we attended the first screening of ‘The Internship’ starring Vince Vaughan and Owen Wilson. We got free popcorn and a soda and also a plus one. The movie was very funny and

Vince Vaughan made a guest appearance before the movie started and answered some questions. Three of the interns were fortunate enough to get asked to be in a photo with Vince Vaughan.

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GEI Lunch and Learn (Week 2)

Wednesday week 2, we had lunch during a presentation given by Vijay Sudan, Director of Global Energy Initiative. The lunch and learn was very interesting and it made me more aware of protecting the

environment. Vijay told us how the new Avatar movie is going to be made completely by using just alternative energy. He also told us how 21st Century Fox was the first media company to start reducing

the waste from DVD cases, saving millions of dollars and also helping the environment.

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Tony Di Napoli’s and New York Post Tour (Week 3)

We went to Tony Di Napoli’s after work. This was my favorite meal of the summer. Afterwards we went to the New York Post and we were given a tour of how the papers get printed. It was very interesting and I was surprised how fast the machines produced the newspapers! I was also surprised by seeing

how much paper the factory uses on a weekly basis.

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Yankee Stadium (Week 4)

This was my second time going to a Yankees game but this time there was free hot dogs and sodas! It was a great day for the game and I don’t think you can have much more of an American experience than

eating hotdogs, on a sunny day at the Yankee stadium.

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Blue Sky Studios (Week 6)

This was my favorite tour with 21st Century Fox. Being in the studio that has made so many top selling animation movies such as Ice Age was amazing! We got to see the various production stages of how an

animation movie is put together. I did not realize how long it takes to create an animated movie and the amount of stages every scene goes through. The studio was as creative as I expected - staff were going around on electric scooters, one office was almost covered completely in plants and greenery, another office was a huge pirate ship shared by three or four employees! There are also Foosball and ping pong

tables for the staff.

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Interns Give Back Day (Week 7)

All the interns at 21CF spent the day painting the walls of the ‘Learning Ally’ offices. ‘Learning Ally’ is a voluntary group that provides recorded audio books for the blind and dyslexic.

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The Ireland U.S. Council Scholarship 2013 and Dennis Swanson

On June 13th, I attended the Ireland U.S. Council student awards ceremony and I received my work experience scholarship. It was a very proud day for me and it really hit me how lucky I was to have been

given this opportunity to work in 21st Century Fox in Manhattan for the summer. I spoke with Mr. Swanson, who happens to be both Council President and also President of Station Operations at Fox

Television. After the awards ceremony he gave me his card and told me to stop into his office anytime to meet with him. I arranged a meeting with him through his secretary, Erika.

I learned some valuable life/business lessons from Mr. Swanson that I will always remember:

Take risks – He was the person who gave Oprah Winfrey her first job on television. This was a brave call at the time and he was told that if it didn’t pay off that he would be fired.

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Value People based on Work Ethic – When Mr. Swanson was in the marines he said he valued people based on whether or not he trusted that they could one day do their job and save his life.

Everyone needs to be given a Chance – He believes that no matter how talented you are, you still need a “guardian angel” or some action outside out of your control to help you succeed. He used my example of working with 21st Century Fox as me being given a chance. Someone in a higher position than me gave me this opportunity which I would not have been able to get by myself.

Mr. Swanson also set up a day for me to spend behind the scenes in Fox 5 studios.

Skills Developed

- Communication- Teamwork- Time Management- Production/Creating Ideas/Creativity/Editing (goanimate videos)- Testing/Checking for Accuracy/Writing Reports (21CF Webpage)- Organization- Administration- Compiling Data- Acting (goanimate voiceovers)- Microsoft Office (Word,Excel)- Networking (I increased my connections on LinkedIn by 10+)

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Outside of Work

This was my first time living out of home in a different country. I adjusted to the subway system and how to navigate the streets and avenues in Manhattan.

I have met a lot of new people. I have made friends inside and outside the workplace that I will definitely be keeping in contact with.

Sight Seeing – David Letterman Show, Staten Island Ferry, Peter and the Starcatcher (Broadway), Ocean City Maryland for 4th of July, Museum of Natural History, Concert in Jones Beach, The Hamptons.

Advice for Future Irish Interns

You have to bring your own sheets and pillows if you are staying in Fordham University Campus. This was not communicated to me and I found myself in Bed Bath & Beyond at 9PM the night I arrived!

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Highlights

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Documents

My 21CF Experience