For most film students, the dream of seeing your name scroll by on the big screen as the credits roll is pure fantasy. In June 2023, this dream became a reality for animation and visual effects alumna Stephanie Buschhorn, who had graduated just the month prior, after her time working on “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken” at DreamWorks Animation. 

“The opening weekend (of the movie), I went with my family who live in Texas, so I don't get to see them very often,” Buschhorn said. “It was absolutely incredible when I got to see my name on the credits, especially (because) interns usually don't get credits, but this movie specifically decided to. It was pretty cool seeing my name up there and knowing that was something I had worked really hard for and dreamed of doing.” 

Buschhorn told The Panther she grew up watching animated films, but it wasn’t until she visited Disneyland’s Animation Academy in middle school that she truly fell in love with the medium. She knew right away she wanted to grow up to have a career in making movies. Many years later, she began interning as a production assistant at DreamWorks in September 2022 and continued there until March 2023. 

“I really helped to run reviews and dailies (unedited footage),” Buschhorn said. “I helped take notes and just make sure artists are receiving their notes from the directors, and I also helped coordinate morale events to boost the morale on the show. I also did a lot of networking since I was trying to get a full-time job after the position. I would go on coffee chats with people and hear about their experience and hear about their journey at DreamWorks.”

But acquiring an internship was no easy feat for Buschhorn. During her time at Chapman, she founded the Women in Animation club on campus in 2020. As she was planning events for the semester, she reached out to one of the early careers teams, a group at DreamWorks dedicated to helping interns and entry level employees, to speak virtually at a meeting. After an informal chat with a recruiter, Buschhorn glided through the interview process and landed the position. 

Although this foreign experience as an intern came with its fair share of challenges, Buschhorn said her time at Chapman helped her to thrive in this new environment.

“I think a lot of what I learned (at Chapman) was collaboration with my peers,” Buschhorn said. “I feel like that was really important coming into the workplace culture — working with a team and having to work with different types of people. So, I really carried over that skill that I learned in college and continue to grow on.”

Buschhorn’s roommate and best friend, fellow animation and visual effects alumna Ava McLean, told The Panther that they not only live together, but they also both interned at DreamWorks at the same time. After completing the internships, the duo faced some friendly competition as they both interviewed for the two open full-time positions, along with 30-40 other candidates.

“(Buschhorn) found out Tuesday that she got a position, and I found out Wednesday that I got the other position,” McLean said. “We had the world's most awkward dinner (on Wednesday night). We both knew we had the job, and we're like, ‘How can I tell my friend that I have a job?’ And then at the end of the dinner, as she was leaving, I was like, ‘I have to tell you something,’ and she was like, ‘I have to tell you something.’ And then we’re screaming and crying. That was one of my like happiest college moments.”

Although they interned in opposing buildings on the DreamWorks lot, their workplace proximity is much closer now.

“We're actually on the exact same film, so we’re in departments that actively work together,” McLean said. “There was a bit of a transition of like, ‘Oh, I'm actually like working with her now,’ but I love it because at one of the scariest, most transitional periods of my life, I have a friend to do it together with me, and that makes a world of difference. She is a rock. She's very grounded in her life. I think it's good to be around that energy when you're going through something really crazy. She's very stable. She's very rational. And she's always there when you need her to be, especially in a work environment. And she's phenomenal at her job here.”

Buschhorn offered a piece of advice to those who are looking to follow in her footsteps, whether it be personifying a martial arts-obsessed panda or the film industry in general. Her main points of focus? Don’t be afraid to set up coffee chats, develop connections and put yourself out there.

“I think the most important thing is to put yourself out there and not being scared to apply to things and to be rejected,” Buschhorn said. “I think I applied to DreamWorks internships over five times before I got an interview. It's tough, and you just have to have resilience and to keep on willing to put yourself out there and stand back up.” 

Correction: A previous version of this article spelled Stephanie Buschhorn’s name as Stephanie Boschhorn. This information has since been corrected. We regret the error.